Buffalo Sabres (20-10-5 45pts) v. Washington Capitals (20-10-3 43pts)
Game Recap:
The Washington Capitals defeat the Buffalo Sabres in a tightly contested game that saw Braden Holtby make 36 saves on 37 shots, and Tom Wilson clinch the game with the game winning goal 7 minutes left in regulation.
Lineups:
Buffalo Sabres:
Jeff Skinner — Jack Eichel — Sam Reinhart
Conor Sheary – Vladimir Sobotka — Evan Rodrigues
Zemgus Girgensons — Casey Mittelstadt — Kyle Okposo
Remi Elie — Johan Larsson — Tage Thompson
Rasmus Dahlin — Zach Bogosian
Lawrence Pilut — Rasmus Ristolainen
Marco Scandella — Jake McCabe
Carter Hutton
Linus Ullmark
Scratched: Brendan Guhle, Matt Hunwick
Injured: Jason Pominville (undisclosed), Nathan Beaulieu (upper body), Casey Nelson (upper body), Scott Wilson (ankle)
Washington Capitals:
Alex Ovechkin — Nicklas Backstrom — T.J. Oshie
Jakub Vrana — Evgeny Kuznetsov — Tom Wilson
Andre Burakovsky — Lars Eller — Brett Connolly
Chandler Stephenson — Nic Dowd – Devante Smith-Pelly
Michal Kempny — John Carlson
Dmitry Orlov — Matt Niskanen
Jonas Siegenthaler — Madison Bowey
Braden Holtby
Pheonix Copley
Scratched: Dmitrij Jaskin, Travis Boyd, Tyler Lewington
Injured: Christian Djoos (leg), Brooks Orpik (knee)
First Period:
Sabres Penalty – 4:32 – Jeff Skinner 2 minutes for Hooking
Capitals Penalty – 8:28 – Tom Wilson 2 minutes for Hooking
End of 1st – BUF – 0 WAS – 0
Shots 09 08
Faceoffs 07 09
Hits 03 10
PP 0/1 0/1
Analysis:
This was a very fast paced and very even first period for both teams. Both the Capitals and Sabres are doing a very good job of taking care of the neutral zone and keep the the slot area clear for their goalies.
Need to Do:
The Capitals need to keep their feet moving and continue playing really good team defense against the Sabres. The Capitals also need to do a better job in reducing the amount of giveaways. They had 7 to Buffalo’s 4 in the first period.
Second Period:
Capitals Penalty – 2:37 – Jonas Siegenthaler 2 minutes for Tripping
Capitals SHG – 2:50 – Chandler Stephenson (3) from Nic Dowd (9)
Sabres Penalty – 7:12 – Evan Rodrigues 2 minutes for Holding
Sabres Penalty – 9:38 – Casey Mittelstadt 2 minutes for Holding
End of 2nd – BUF – 0 WAS – 1
Shots 19 16
Faceoffs 14 19
Hits 03 19
PP 0/2 0/3
Analysis:
This was another very good back and forth period between both teams. The Capitals were better than the Sabres on special teams as they held Buffalo shotless on their lone powerplay of the period, and the Capitals scored while shorthanded. The Capitals powerplay was buzzing on both opportunities and with some controversy to the first one.
Need to Do:
The Capitals need to continue playing strong team defense and limit the scoring chances for the Sabres. Also the Capitals need to cut down on their giveaways. They almost shot themselves in the foot a few times this game with their giveaways.
Third Period:
Sabres Goal – 9:01 – Johan Larsson (3) from Tage Thompson (3) and Rasmus Ristolainen (19)
Capitals Penalty – 9:24 – Matt Niskanen 2 minutes for Tripping
Capitals Goal – 13:00 – Tom Wilson (10) from Evgeny Kuznetsov (25)
Sabres Penalty – 14:23 – Vladimir Sobotka 2 minutes for Hooking
Capitals Penalty – 17:48 – Nic Dowd 2 minutes for Tripping
End of 3rd – BUF – 1 WAS – 2
Shots 37 24
Faceoffs 23 28
Hits 06 19
PP 0/4 0/4
Analysis:
A good solid period. Both teams scored hard earned goals, but it would be the Capitals penalty kill that would upset the Sabres and not allow them to get any quality chances on the powerplay.
Next Up:
Washington (21-10-3 45pts) @ Ottawa (15-16-4 34pts)
Buffalo (20-11-5 45pts) v. Anaheim (19-13-5 43pts)
