The set-up: The Penguins played without Sidney Crosby in Game 4 but were able to win 3-2 and now own a 3-1 lead over the Caps in this second round series. Game 5 is tonight in Washington and Pittsburgh has a chance to eliminate the Presidents' Trophy-winning Capitals for the second time in as many years. Crosby skated alongside his teammates and was a full participant in drills during practice on Friday (four days after sustaining the reported fourth concussion of his career). When asked about Crosby's availability for Game 5, Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan was quick to add that his day-to-day status "hasn't changed at all."

Pittsburgh: Conor Sheary also practiced on Friday, after sustaining a concussion in Monday's Game 3. Sheary has struggled to maintain his scoring pace since being bumped from the top line alongside Crosby with just two assists in eight playoff contests (had a 53-point regular season, including 23 goals). Rookie Jake Guentzel continued his scintillating postseason by recording his fourth multi-point performance on Wednesday, increasing his goal total to eight to join Maurice "Rocket" Richard (12 in 1944), Mario Lemieux (11 in 1989) and Wayne Gretzky (nine in 1980-81) with at least that many tallies in his first nine career playoff games.

Washington: Are the Capitals showing signs of desperation by shuffling captain Alex Ovechkin to the third line in practice on Friday? "(We're) here to do whatever it takes to get the win and move forward," the three-time Hart Trophy winner told the Washington Post after skating with Lars Eller and Tom Wilson. "I don't think it's to send a message or something." As Archie Bunker used to say, "Whatever!' Ovechkin publicly accepted the blame for the team's Game 4 loss. Yes, head coach Barry Trotz called out his team's best players in the wake of Washington being pushed to the brink of elimination but it's wasn't just Ovechkin. Last season's Vezina Trophy winner Braden Holtby has been outplayed by counterpart Marc-Andre Fleury, as he owns a 3.00 GAA and a poor .867 save percentage in the series.

The pick: This has been a one-sided playoff rivalry, with Pittsburgh winning seven of the previous eight series and going on to capture the Stanley Cup after the last two (2009, 2016). The Penguins own a 13-3 mark when leading a best-of-seven series by a 3-1 margin but note that during the Crosby/Evgeni Malkin era, the Penguins are a modest 16-13 (1-1 this year) in games in which they can eliminate an opponent. I'm sure not about to call for the Caps to win three straight but that's not the question to be answered here in Game 5. Yes, Washington has been outscored 14-9 in the series but the Caps have 49 more shots on goal than the Penguins. In Game 4, Washington had a 38-18 advantage but was undone by mistakes. A goal deflected in off Dmitry Orlov's skate and the team took six offensive-zone penalties, including one as Holtby was being pulled for an extra attacker. Make Washington a 10* play in this one.