Colorado Avalanche (1-1-0 2pts) v. Washington Capitals (1-0-1 3pts)
Game Recap:
For the first time since March 2020 the Washington Capitals get to play a team from the Western Conference as they host the Colorado Avalanche. In the opening minutes of the first period Evgeny Kuznetsov would generate some quality scoring chances, especially one where he would almost score on a wraparound. However, it would be a break down the middle between the defenders with a nice skate to stick play to slide the puck past Darcy Kuemper to give the Caps the early 1-0 lead. Then later in the period the Caps would get the first powerplay of the game, but it would not work in their favor as JT Compher would score shorthanded to tie the game at one. But, a great offensive break by the Caps defensemen would lead to a Nick Jensen tally to give the Caps the one goal lead back over the Avs.
In the second period the Caps and Avs would go back to battle, and in the first three minutes of the period Darren Helm would score his firs as an Av to tie the game up at two. Then later in the period Anthony Mantha would net his first of the season to not only give the Capitals their lead back, but also record his 100th career NHL goal. Less than two minutes later Evgeny Kuznetsov would net his second of the game to complete a really dominant shift in the offensive zone that saw the Capitals grind down the Avs defense to lead to Kuzy’s second tally for the two goal lead.
Then in the third period the Caps would strike quickly as Nic Dowd would record his first of the season 39 seconds into the period to grow the Caps lead to three. Late in the period with the goalie pulled Garnet Hathaway would get called for slashing while battling for the puck to get the empty netter, and as a result Mikko Rantanen would strike on the powerplay to bring the Avs back within one. However, less than a minute later Alex Ovechknin would launch a perfect dart into the empty net for his fourth of the season, and to secure the 6-3 victory for the Capitals.
Lineups:
Colorado Avalanche:
Andre Burakovsky — Nathan MacKinnon — Mikko Rantanen
Sampo Ranta — Nazem Kadri — J.T. Compher
Darren Helm — Tyson Jost — Logan O’Connor
Mikhail Maltsev — Martin Kaut
Samuel Girard — Cale Makar
Bowen Byram — Erik Johnson
Jack Johnson — Ryan Murray
Kurtis MacDermid
Darcy Kuemper
Jonas Johansson
Scratched: Jayson Megna
Injured: Stefan Matteau (lower body), Pavel Francouz (ankle), Valeri Nichushkin (upper body), Devon Toews (shoulder)
Suspended: Gabriel Landeskog
Washington Capitals:
Alex Ovechkin — Evgeny Kuznetsov — Tom Wilson
Anthony Mantha — Lars Eller — Daniel Sprong
Conor Sheary — Connor McMichael — T.J. Oshie
Carl Hagelin — Nic Dowd — Garnet Hathaway
Martin Fehervary — John Carlson
Dmitry Orlov — Nick Jensen
Trevor van Riemsdyk — Justin Schultz
Ilya Samsonov
Vitek Vanecek
Scratched: Hendrix Lapierre, Dennis Cholowski, Matt Irwin
Injured: Nicklas Backstrom (hip)
First Period:
WAS Goal – 6:15 – Evgeny Kuznetsov (1) from John Carlson (2)
COL Penalty – 9:09 – Nazem Kadri 2 minutes for Embellishment
WAS Penalty – 9:09 – Anthony Mantha 2 minutes for Slashing
COL Penalty – 12:39 – Samuel Girard 2 minutes for Tripping
COL SHG – 13:46 – JT Compher (2) from unassisted
WAS Goal – 16:53 – Nick Jensen (1) from Dmitry Orlov (1) and Tom Wilson (2)
WAS Penalty – 18:13 – Dmitry Orlov 2 minutes for Interference
| End of First | COL – 1 | WAS – 2 |
| Shots | 7 | 17 |
| Faceoff Wins | 11 | 12 |
| Hits | 5 | 8 |
| Powerplay | 0/1 | 0/1 |
Second Period:
COL Goal – 3:12 – Darren Helm (1) from Logan O’Connor (1) and Bowen Byram(2)
WAS Penalty – 6:23 – Conor Sheary 2 minutes for Holding
WAS Goal – 14:47 – Anthony Mantha (1) from Lars Eller (1)
WAS Goal – 16:41 – Evgeny Kuznetsov (2) from Tom Wilson (3) and Dmitry Orlov (2)
| End of Second | COL – 2 | WAS – 4 |
| Shots | 13 | 27 |
| Faceoff Wins | 16 | 22 |
| Hits | 8 | 17 |
| Powerplay | 0/2 | 0/1 |
Third Period:
WAS Goal – :39 – Nic Dowd (1) from Nick Jensen (1) and Carl Hagelin (1)
WAS Penalty – 4:47 – Tom Wilson 2 minutes for Cross Checking
COL Penalty – 5:28 – Nazem Kadri 2 minutes for Cross Checking
COL Penalty – 12:40 – Nathan MacKinnon 2 minutes for Goalie Interference
WAS Penalty – 15:38 – Garnet Hathaway 2 minutes for Slashing
COL PPG – 16:54 – Mikko Rantanen (1) from Nathan MacKinnon (1) and JT Compher (2)
WAS ENG – 17:39 – Alex Ovechkin (4) from Tom Wilson (4) and Evgeny Kuznetsov (4)
| End of Third | COL – 3 | WAS – 6 |
| Shots | 26 | 39 |
| Faceoff Wins | 26 | 32 |
| Hits | 15 | 20 |
| Powerplay | 1/4 | 0/3 |
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