Category: Washington Capitals

Caps v. Panthers – 4 Goal Third Falls Caps

Washington Capitals (14-3-5 33pts) v. Florida Panthers (14-4-3 31pts)

Game Recap:

Back in Sunrise, FL to finish their three game regular season series against the Florida Panthers, the Washington Capitals look to continue their winning ways as they end the month of November as they started it, playing in the state of Florida.

In the first period it would be the kids for the Caps as Connor McMichael would net his third of the season, and then 11 seconds later Beck Malenstyn would score his first career NHL goal to give the Caps the 2-0 lead. However, 52 seconds later Joe Thornton would be sitting on the doorstep and tap in the puck for his second of the season, and 1,533rd NHL career point to tie Mark Recchi for 12th all time in the NHL, to bring the Panthers back within one. Later in the period the Caps would hop on the powerplay for the first time in the game, but they would be unable to capitalize on the man advantage. Both teams would trade chances but neither team would score as the Caps would take the 2-1 lead into the first intermission.

In the second period both teams would open up the period trading chances, but as the period went on the Caps would swing the momentum in their favor. It would pay off as Lars Eller would score on the backhand to give the Capitals their two goal lead back, and come the midway point of the period the Caps would be outshooting the Panthers 5 to 1. After the goal things would get chippy as we would see rough housing after the whistle caused by Ilya Samsonov pushing the net further off it’s borings, and two players from each side would go off for roughing. After the mayhem Nick Jensen would rip one to the roof and behind the water bottle to grow the Caps lead the three. Tom Wilson would get hit for holding, and put the Panthers on the powerplay, but the Caps would play solid penalty killing to protect their three goal lead. The period would continue to get chippy as the period came to an end, and the Capitals would take the 4-1 lead over the Panthers into the second intermission.

Then in the third period the Panthers would pounce on the Caps as Ryan Lomberg would score it the opening minutes of the period to cut the Panthers deficit to two, and in the first five minutes of the third the Panthers would out shoot the Caps 9 to 0. However, the Caps would catch a break as Frank Vatrano would be called for tripping, but the Caps powerplay waould falter as Eetu Luostarinen would strike shorthanded to get the Panthers back within one of the Caps. Moments later Tom Wilson would be called for his second penalty of the game to put the Panthers on the powerplay. The Caps would kill off the penalty, but the Panthers would keep the pressure going in the Caps zone as Dennis Cholowski would get called for cross checking to put the Panthers back on the powerplay. This time on the powerplay Sam Bennett would tip in an Aaron Ekblad point blast to get the powerplay goal to tie the game at four. With five minutes left in regulation the Panthers would be outshooting the Capitals 23 to 2. In the final minute of the period the Caps would finally apply some pressure in the Panthers’ zone, but Malenstyn would get called for goalie interference to give the Panthers a powerplay that they would score on as Sam Reinhart would strike on the wrister to give the Panthers the 5-4 comeback victory.

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Lineups:

Washington Capitals:

Alex Ovechkin — Evgeny Kuznetsov — Aliaksei Protas

Connor McMichael — Lars Eller — Tom Wilson

Carl Hagelin — Nic Dowd — Garnet Hathaway

Brett Leason — Michael Sgarbossa — Beck Malenstyn

Martin Fehervary — John Carlson

Dmitry Orlov — Nick Jensen

Dennis Cholowski — Trevor van Riemsdyk

Ilya Samsonov

Vitek Vanecek

Scratched: Matt Irwin, Daniel Sprong

Injured: Nicklas Backstrom (hip), Anthony Mantha (shoulder), Conor Sheary (upper body), T.J. Oshie (lower body), Justin Schultz (upper body)

Florida Panthers:

Jonathan Huberdeau — Sam Bennett — Owen Tippett

Carter Verhaeghe — Anton Lundell — Sam Reinhart

Frank Vatrano — Joe Thornton — Maxim Mamin

Ryan Lomberg — Eetu Luostarinen — Patric Hornqvist

MacKenzie Weegar — Aaron Ekblad

Matt Kiersted — Radko Gudas

Lucas Carlsson — Brandon Montour

Sergei Bobrovsky

Spencer Knight

Scratched: Kevin Connauton, Aleksi Heponiemi

Injured: Aleksander Barkov (knee), Mason Marchment (upper body), Markus Nutivaara (lower body), Anthony Duclair (lower body), Gustav Forsling (lower body)

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First Period:

WAS Goal – 5:52 – Connor McMichael (3) from Nick Jensen (6) and Dmitry Orlov (9)

WAS Goal – 6:03 – Beck Malenstyn (1) from Brett Leason (2) and Trevor van Riemsdyk (7)

FLA Goal – 6:55 – Joe Thornton (2) from Aaron Ekblad (12) and Jonathan Huberdeau (14)

FLA Penalty – 13:38 – Frank Vatrano 2 minutes for High Sticking

End of FirstWAS – 2FLA – 1
Shots1215
Faceoff Wins1313
Hits1611
Powerplay0/10/0

Second Period:

WAS Goal – 6:40 – Lars Eller (2) from Tom Wilson (15) and Dmitry Orlov (10)

WAS Penalty – 10:35 – Martin Fehervary 2 minutes for Roughing

FLA Penalty – 10:35 – Jonathan Huberdeau 2 minutes for Roughing

WAS Penalty – 10:35 – Garnet Hathaway 2 minutes for Roughing

FLA Penalty – 10:35 – MacKenzie Weegar 2 minutes for Roughing

WAS Goal – 12:40 – Nick Jensen (3) from Nic Dowd (3) from Beck Malenstyn (1)

WAS Penalty – 13:03 – Tom Wilson 2 minutes for Holding

End of SecondWAS – 4FLA – 1
Shots2524
Faceoff Wins2226
Hits3025
Powerplay0/10/1
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Third Period:

FLA Goal – 3:23 – Ryan Lomberg (2) from Patric Honqvist (8) and Eetu Luostarinen (1)

FLA Penalty – 5:36 – Frank Vatrano 2 minutes for Tripping

FLA SHG – 6:09 – Eetu Loustarinen (7) from Ryan Lomberg (3) and MacKenzie Weegar (12)

WAS Penalty – 8:18 – Tom Wilson 2 minutes for Interference

WAS Penalty – 11:27 – Dennis Cholowski 2 minutes for Cross Checking

FLA PPG – 12:01 – Sam Bennett (8) from Aaron Ekblad (13) and Jonathan Huberdeau (15)

WAS Penalty – 19:03 – Beck Malenstyn 2 minutes for Goalie Interference

FLA PPG – 19:45 – Sam Reinhart (5) from Jonathan Huberdeau (16) and Aaron Ekblad (14)

End of ThirdWAS – 4FLA – 5
Shots2750
Faceoff Wins3236
Hits3535
Powerplay0/22/4

Caps v. Canes – A Battle of a Win

Washington Capitals (13-3-5 31pts) v. Carolina Hurricanes (15-3-1 31pts)

Game Recap:

On the road the Washington Capitals travel to Raleigh to take on their Metropolitan Division rival Carolina Hurricanes as both teams vie for first place in the division in their early afternoon matinee. In the first period it would be very fast paced, but also very sloppy. In the opening seconds the puck would become very lively as it would skip past Ilya Samsonov behind the net and go right to a Canes player, but Martin Fehervary would come in with the toe save to keep the game scoreless. The Hurricanes would apply some great pressure on the Caps, but the Caps would still generate some really solid scoring chances early on. around the midway point of the first period Evgeny Kuznetsov would get called for tripping, but the Canes would struggle on the powerplay as the Caps would kill of the penalty. Later in the period Lars Eller would get called for interference, but once again the Caps would kill off the penalty as the Canes would struggle to generate any real offense with the man advantage. To finish the first period both teams would get some more scoring chances, but both Samsonov and Frederik Andersen would stand tall in net to keep the game scoreless.

In the second period Aleksai Protas would get a great scoring opportunity, and it would lead to the Caps getting on the powerplay 40 seconds into the period. The Caps would get one guick one-timer from Alex Ovechkin, but it would go wide. The Canes would play a solid layered defense to kill the penalty to Teuvo Teravainen. After the midway point of the period the Caps would break things open as Alex Ovechkin would bank in his 19th goal of the season off of an amazing pass from Dmitry Orlov that fooled the defense and Andersen to take the 1-0 lead. Then 59 seconds later Aleksai Protas would net his first career goal after he would bank a pass off of the skate of Tony DeAngelo and go past Andersen to give the Capitals the two goal lead. Shortly after the mini scoring spree the Caps would continue to apply the pressure in the Canes zone and would force the Canes to take a penalty to put the Caps on their second powerplay of the game. The Capitals would generate some great scoring chances on the powerplay, but Andersen would keep the Caps off the board and the Canes only down by two. Frenemies Brendan Smith and Tom Wilson would pick up their beef from last season as both men would get coincidental minors as the end of the period.

Then in the third period the Capitals would come out flying again, and as a result Brady Skjei would take his second penalty of the game to put the Caps back on the powerplay 46 seconds into the period. The Caps wouldn’t do much with the extra man advantage, and after killing the penalty the Canes would start to surge. A little over six minutes into the period Jesperi Kotkaniemi would strike to get the Canes on the board and end Samsonov’s shutout bid. After the goal the Canes would continue to generate solid scoring chances, and after a post by Hagelin in the Canes zone, Sebastian Aho would get a breakaway opportunity only to draw a penalty against Martin Fehervary. With the powerplay the Canes would not strike on the man advantage, but shortly after the powerplay expired the Caps would make a bad play and the Canes would take advantage as Nino Niederreiter would score to tie the game at two for the Canes. In the final five minutes of regulation the Canes would get themselves into penalty trouble as the Caps would get a 90 second two man advantage, and while they were moving the puck great, they couldn’t get their shots on goal, but as the first penalty expired the Caps would do a fantastic passing exhibition as Dmitry Orlov on the doorstep would bank one home to give the Caps the 3-2 lead. With about two and a half minutes left in regulation the Canes would pull Andersen for the extra attacker, but John Carlson would get the empty netter to give the Capitals the 4-2 victory over the Hurricanes in a hard fought battle between the two division rivals.

Lineups:

Washington Capitals:

Alex Ovechkin — Evgeny Kuznetsov — Aliaksei Protas

Connor McMichael — Lars Eller — Tom Wilson

Carl Hagelin — Nic Dowd — Garnet Hathaway

Brett Leason — Michael Sgarbossa — Beck Malenstyn

Martin Fehervary — John Carlson

Dmitry Orlov — Nick Jensen

Dennis Cholowski — Trevor van Riemsdyk

Ilya Samsonov

Vitek Vanecek

Scratched: Matt Irwin, Daniel Sprong

Injured: Nicklas Backstrom (hip), Anthony Mantha (shoulder), Conor Sheary (upper body), T.J. Oshie (lower body), Justin Schultz (upper body)

Carolina Hurricanes:

Teuvo Teravainen — Sebastian Aho — Martin Necas

Andrei Svechnikov — Jordan Staal — Seth Jarvis

Nino Niederreiter — Vincent Trocheck — Jesper Fast

Jordan Martinook — Steven Lorentz — Jesperi Kotkaniemi

Jaccob Slavin — Tony DeAngelo

Brady Skjei — Brett Pesce

Brendan Smith — Ian Cole

Frederik Andersen

Antti Raanta

Scratched: Derek Stepan

Injured: None

COVID-19 protocol: Ethan Bear

First Period:

WAS Penalty – 8:38 – Evgeny Kuznetsov 2 minutes for Tripping

WAS Penalty – 13:49 – Lars Eller 2 minutes for Interference

End of FirstWAS – 0CAR – 0
Shots710
Faceoff Wins613
Hits158
Powerplay0/00/2

Second Period:

CAR Penalty – :40 – Teuvo Teravainen 2 minutes for Hooking

WAS Goal – 11:58 – Alex Ovechkin (19) from Dmitry Orlov (8) and Tom Wilson (13)

WAS Goal – 12:57 – Aleksai Protas (1) from John Carlson (16)

CAR Penalty – 17:09 – Brady Skjei 2 minutes for Interference

WAS Penalty – 18:19 – Tom Wilson 2 minutes for Slashing

CAR Penalty – 18:19 – Brendan Smith 2 minutes for Roughing

End of SecondWAS – 2CAR – 0
Shots1819
Faceoff Wins1424
Hits2220
Powerplay0/20/2

Third Period:

CAR Penalty – :46 – Brady Skjei 2 minutes for Holding

CAR Goal – 6:22 – Jesperi Kotkaniemi (5) from Jordan Martinook (5) and Tony DeAngelo (16)

WAS Penalty – 11:30 – Martin Fehervary 2 minutes for Hooking

CAR Goal – 13:32 – Nino Niederreiter (4) from Martin Necas (8) and Brett Pesce (6)

CAR Penalty – 15:00 – Seth Jarvis 2 minutes for Holding

CAR Penalty – 15:30 – Sebastian Aho 2 minutes for Slashing

WAS PPG – 17:05 – Dmitry Orlov (4) from Tom Wilson (14) and John Carlson (17)

WAS ENG – 18:19 – John Carlson (5) from unassisted

End of ThirdWAS – 4CAR – 2
Shots2532
Faceoff Wins2834
Hits3023
Powerplay1/50/3

Panthers v. Caps – Ovi Unleashed

Florida Panthers (14-2-3 31pts) v. Washington Capitals (12-3-5 29pts)

Game Recap:

At home in Washington DC, the Capitals would don their blue third jerseys as they would play host to the Florida Panthers in a battle of two of the top teams in the Eastern Conference. In the first period it would be a rather quiet period. Both teams would trade powerplay opportunities, but neither team would be able to capitalize on them. However, late in the period with 32 seconds left, Jonathan Huberdeau would be the beneficiary of a blown wheel of a Caps defenseman to get a breakaway and squeak the puck past Ilya Samsonov to give the Panthers the 1-0 lead.

In the second period it would get goal crazy as Tom Wilson would strike shorthanded 94 seconds into the period to tie the game at one, but then a powerplay goal and an even strength goal 56 seconds apart by Alex Ovechkin would give the Caps the 3-1 lead over the Panthers. However, moments later Sam Reinhart would strike on a shot Samsonov should’ve had to get the Panthers back within one. Both teams would trade powerplay opportunities late in the period, but neither team would score as the Caps take the 3-2 lead into the second intermission.

One thing that took place during the second period was Sergei Bobrovsky and his constant pulling from the net for Spencer Knight. Looked like Bobrovsky got hit high on the Wilson goal and was pulled after Ovechkin’s first goal. He would come back after Ovechkin’s second goal, but after Reinhart scored the concussion spotters called down and had Bobrovsky pulled for concussion protocol. Bobrovsky would return to finish the period.

Then in the third period Ovechkin would remain hot as he would post up in front of the net and record his third of the game to give him his 28th career hat trick to give the Caps their two goal lead back. Howevera little over 90 seconds later Carter Verhaeghe would score to get the Panthers back within one. The Panthers would pull Bobrovsky in the final minutes, but the Capitals would hold them at bay as they take the game with the 4-3 win.

Lineups:

Florida Panthers:

Jonathan Huberdeau — Sam Bennett — Maxim Mamin

Carter Verhaeghe — Anton Lundell — Sam Reinhart

Frank Vatrano — Joe Thornton — Owen Tippett

Ryan Lomberg — Eetu Luostarinen — Patric Hornqvist

MacKenzie Weegar — Aaron Ekblad

Gustav Forsling — Radko Gudas

Lucas Carlsson — Brandon Montour

Sergei Bobrovsky

Spencer Knight

Scratched: Kevin Connauton, Anthony Duclair

Injured: Aleksander Barkov (knee), Mason Marchment (upper body), Markus Nutivaara (undisclosed)

Washington Capitals:

Alex Ovechkin — Evgeny Kuznetsov — Aliaksei Protas

Daniel Sprong — Connor McMichael — Tom Wilson

Carl Hagelin — Nic Dowd — Garnet Hathaway

Brett Leason — Michael Sgarbossa — Beck Malenstyn

Martin Fehervary — John Carlson

Dmitry Orlov — Nick Jensen

Trevor van Riemsdyk — Dennis Cholowski

Ilya Samsonov

Vitek Vanecek

Scratched: Matt Irwin

Injured: Nicklas Backstrom (hip), Anthony Mantha (shoulder), Conor Sheary (upper body), T.J. Oshie (lower body), Justin Schultz (upper body)

COVID-19 protocol: Lars Eller

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First Period:

WAS Penalty – 10:01 – Martin Fehervary 2 minutes for Interference

FLA Penalty – 14:10 – Sam Bennett 2 minutes for Goalie Interference

FLA Goal – 19:28 – Jonathan Huberdeau (7) from unassisted

Second Period:

WAS Penalty – :10 – Alex Ovechkin 2 minutes for Slashing

WAS SHG – 1:34 – Tom Wilson (8) from John Carlson (15) and Evgeny Kuznetsov (18)

FLA Penalty – 1:37 – Joe Thornton 2 minutes for Tripping

WAS PPG – 2:50 – Alex Ovechkin (16) from Tom Wilson (11) and Aleksai Protas (2)

WAS Goal – 3:46 – Alex Ovechkin (17) from Aleksai Protas (3) and Evgeny Kuznetsov (19)

FLA Goal – 6:49 – Sam Reinhart (4) from Marcus Weegar (10) and Brandon Montour (8)

FLA Penalty – 9:57 – Brandon Montour 2 minutes for Hooking

WAS Penalty – 14:15 – Garnet Hathaway 2 minutes for Tripping

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Third Period:

WAS Goal – 4:02 – Alex Ovechkin (18) from Evgeny Kuznetsov (20) and Tom Wilson (12)

FLA Goal – 5:36 – Carter Verhaeghe (7) from Gustav Forsling (12)

Winner, Winner, Turkey Dinner?; Washington Capitals vs Montreal Canadiens

GoaltenderRecordGAA / SV%
Washington Capitals Ilya Samsonov11-3-52.11 / .924
Montreal CanadiensJake Allen5-13-22.78 / .905

After spending the last week and a half on the road and picking up points in four of five matches, the Washington Capitals are finally back in DC to take on the struggling Montreal Canadiens. It has been just short of two years since the Caps last played the Habs, with their last game having been a 4-3 overtime loss. These two teams like to trade turns with the wins and losses, and over the years, the Caps have won just 48% of the time.

The Washington Capitals fell to the Seattle Kraken back on Sunday by a score of 5-2, giving the NHL’s newest franchise their first win in six tries. It was Washington’s first and likely last visit to Climate Pledge Arena this season, and it was only fitting for former Capitals goaltender Phillip Grubauer and Kraken legend Vitek Vanecek to faceoff in net for both teams.

In fact, the Kraken put together a lovely tribute video to celebrate his homecoming.

The Capitals did actually score first, as Tom Wilson potted his 6th goal of the season just three and a half minutes into the first period. It was Wilson’s third goal in five games.

But then with Evgeny Kuznetsov in the box for holding, Jared McCann scored with just under five minutes left in the period to make it 1-1.

Seattle would add on another three goals in succession in the 2nd period. Jaden Schwartz scored his 4th of the year at the 6:17 mark. Then, less than a minute later, Adam Larsson made his 3-1 Seattle, and Calle Jarnkrok scored at the 13:51 mark to make it 4-1. Both goals for Larsson and Jarnkrok were their first of the campaign.

Appeasing Caps fans slightly, Alex Ovechkin did score his 15th goal of the season at the 3:09 mark of the third period.

For a second, it felt like Washington could have made a comeback, and certainly made a push to do so. Unfortunately, with the Caps net vacated, Yanni Gourde finally ‘scored’ an empty-net goal to seal the 5-2 victory. Vitek gave up four goals on 30 shots for a .867 save percentage and is now just 4-3-4 on the season. The Capitals would go 0-for-4 with the man-advantage but did narrowly edge out the Kraken in the faceoff circle, winning 51.5% of faceoffs.

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Meanwhile, the Montreal Canadiens did actually manage to take down the Nashville Predators 6-3 back on Saturday the 20th. The first 40 minutes were ALL HABS. Putting up one goal in the first period and four in the second, Montreal had a suffocating 5-0 lead as they closed out the first two periods. Artturi Lekhonen scored his first of the season just two minutes and 41 seconds into the opening frame.

The second period was chock full of goal-scoring and fist-throwing. Christian Dvorak made it 2-0 a measly 66 seconds into the middle frame, and then Brendan Gallagher added to extend his team’s lead to a score of 3-0. Gallagher’s 4th goal of the season came on the power play (Olivier, tripping). Six minutes later, Ryan Poehling improved the Habs’ lead to 4-0. Not even a minute later, Poehling scored his 2nd goal of the night to establish that five-goal lead. Just before the end of the second period, four different players, two from each team, became involved and were assessed a number of penalties for fighting, roughing, and unsportsmanlike conduct.

Martin Olivier and Josh Anderson were assessed five-minute majors for fighting, Christian Dvorak and Mark Borowiecki were assessed two-minute roughing minors and matching 10-minute misconduct penalties.

Then came the third period. In a span of ten minutes, and with each goal coming just a few minutes apart, Matt Duchene would score a natural hat trick to tally his 10th, 11th, and 12th goals of the season.

The first two goals both came as Nashville power-play markers. Down by two, the Predators elected to pull their goaltender for the extra attacker, but it was Tyler Toffoli who would score the empty-net goal to make it 6-3, Montreal.

Sam Montembeault, whom the Habs acquired from the Florida Panthers, earned his first win of the season.

The Montreal Canadiens are without the majority of their first string lineup. The list can be found below;

  • C Cedric Paquette (IR, undisclosed)
  • RW Paul Byron (IR-LT, hip)
  • LW Mike Hoffman (IR, upper body)
  • LW Mathieu Perreault (IR, eye)
  • D Shea Weber (LT-IR, ankle, retirement imminent)
  • D Joel Edmundson (IR, undisclosed)
  • D Brett Kulak (OUT, lower body)
  • G Carey Price (IR-LT, knee).

Goaltender Jake Allen was cleared by Habs athletic trainers and medical staff after suffering a concussion versus the Detroit Red Wings.

The Washington Capitals announced on Tuesday that Axel Jonsson-Fjallby had been reassigned to the Hershey Bears. This suggests that someone is soon to be healthy enough to return to the lineup. Lars Eller is still in COVID-19 protocol, TJ Oshie is again day-to-day with a lower-body injury, as is Conor Sheary. Nicklas Backstrom and Anthony Mantha are out with no return date.

Kassie’s Noteworthy Remarks

  1. Nick Suzuki leads his Canadiens in goals, points, and assists (4G, 10A, 14 points). Tyler Toffoli and Josh Anderson also have four goals apiece.
  2. Chris Wideman has four assists, five points, and is a +3 over his last five games for Montreal.
  3. Montreal is just 1-7-1 on the road this season, and is among the leagues worst in all offensive and defensive categories. They allow the 4th most goals against, have the 4th worst penalty kill (69.2%), and allow a staggering 31.7 shots on goal against per game.

The Washington Capitals and Montreal Canadiens will play on Wednesday, November 24th, at 7:00pm EST, and can be seen on NBC Sports Washington+, Sportsnet 1, Sportsnet East, and RDS Canada.

Cutting Deals in the Shark Tank; Washington Capitals vs San Jose Sharks

GoaltenderRecordGAA / SV%
Washington Capitals Ilya Samsonov10-2-52.45 / .914
San Jose SharksAdin Hill8-7-13.11 / .894

SAP Center in San Jose, California is the next stop for the Washington Capitals on this West Coast Roadtrip. These two teams last met back in January of 2020, where the Capitals defeated San Jose, 5-4. Unfortunately for Washington, and much in favor for the Sharks, the Caps are historically pretty bad against this team, no matter at home or on the road; in their last 30 meetings (dating back to 2000), the Capitals are just 8-18-4, though they have won three straight since 2019, and five of their last six.

On Wednesday night, in an ultra-late episode of Washington Capitals hockey, the Caps defeated the Los Angeles Kings by a score of 2-0, courtesy of two goals from Garnet Hathaway. Washington was looking for its 10th win of the season after dropping their last game against the Anaheim Ducks, less than 24 hours prior. Ilya Samsonov got the start for the back-end of the back-to-back, and it was Jonathan Quick in net for the LA Kings. This one was essentially a chess match. Very little offensive movement, defensive line-matching by both teams. It wasn’t until the third period was nearly over that the first goal of the game was scored, either. Although a variety of penalties were called, including matching minors on two separate occasions, both Samsonov and Quick were operating at peak performance.

The Kings got their first opportunity with the man-advantage just short of the nine-minute mark of the first period, but the Capitals killed that off. Then, just over halfway through the second period, Washington got its first power play as Blake Lizotte went off for high-sticking. They would not convert either.

With 3:30 remaining in the game, Garnet Hathaway scored his 3rd goal in four games to finally break the ice and put the Caps on top.

The Kings would pull their goaltender in hopes of tying it late, forcing overtime, and extending their point streak. But Hathaway potted an empty-net goal with just over 60 seconds left to make it 2-0.

John Carlson tallied assists on both goals and Evgeny Kuznetsov earned his 21st point in 17 games with the secondary assist. The win ended the Kings’ eight-game point streak and Jonathan Quick’s four-game win streak. It marked Samsonov’s 2nd shutout of the season and the 5th of his career.

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The San Jose Sharks were last in action on Thursday as they fell to the St Louis Blues, 4-1, ending a four-game winning streak for the Sharks. James Reimer was in between the pipes for the Sharks, and was 4-2-1 heading into the match.

A mere three seconds into the game, Robert Bortuzzo of the Blues and Jake Middleton of the Sharks dropped the mitts. Both were given five-minute majors for fighting.

The Blues got their first power play of the game when Kevin Lebanc was sent to the box for tripping. Brandon Saad would score just as the penalty would expire making it 1-0, Blues. Robert Thomas would add to St. Louis’s lead just one minute and 35 seconds into the middle frame with his 2nd of the year.

Jonathan Dahlen finally got the Sharks on the board as he scored his 7th of the season at the 8:16 mark of the second period. But just two minutes later, Brandon Saad went on to tally his 2nd of the game, improving St. Louis’ lead to a mark of 3-1, all but sealing the win for St. Louis. The Blues would go on to earn another three power play opportunities, but the Sharks killed off all three. Jordan Kyrou potted his 8th of the season 69 seconds into the third period, making it 4-1. It is worth noting that San Jose’s goaltender, James Reimer, managed to keep the score respectable, as he went on to stop an astounding 44 of 48 shots against.

The Sharks’ penalty kill is the best in the league, killing off just over 90% of all penalties taken. However, the team ranks 15th overall in penalty minutes, average 9.2 per game. San Jose has the 12th best power play, operating at just under 21% efficiency, compared to the Caps’ 17% power play. The Sharks, though, were not given a single power play opportunity in their last match against the Blues.

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The San Jose Sharks are without Kevin Lebanc (OUT; suspension), Lane Pederson (DTD; lower body), and Nikolai Knyzhov (IR-NR; lower body). Evander Kane is ineligible for play. For the Washington Capitals, TJ Oshie and Nic Dowd were both full-contact participants in Friday’s practice. Oshie has missed the last 10 games with a lower-body injury; Nic Dowd has played just nine games this season. Lars Eller is still in COVID-19 protocol, and Nicklas Backstrom does not yet have a timeline to return.

Kassie’s Noteworthy Remarks

  1. Logan Couture and Timo Meier are tied for goals, assists, and points on the team (6G, 8A, 14 points). Meier, however, has played four fewer games.
  2. Garnet Hathaway, who scored both goals for the Capitals on Wednesday, has four goals over his last four games, and has two, multi-goal games in the same span.
  3. It was announced Friday evening that Kevin Lebanc would be issued a one-game suspension for slewfooting Tyler Bozak. This means, Lebanc wilk be out versus the Capitals. He was issued a two-minute minor for tripping for the offense. The penalty can be seen below.

The Washington Capitals and San Jose Sharks will play on Saturday, November 20th, at 10:30pm EST, and can be seen on NBC Sports Washington and NBC Sports California.

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Westward Ho!; Washington Capitals vs Anaheim Ducks

GoaltenderRecordGAA / SV%
Washington Capitals Vitek Vanecek9-2-42.34 / .912
Anaheim DucksJohn Gibson9-4-32.37 / .924

Riding a four-game win streak, the Washington Capitals have set forth on their westward road trip, and are looking to put an end to the Anaheim Ducks impressive seven-game winning streak. These two teams haven’t met since December 2019, when Washington defeated Anaheim 3-2. The Ducks, however, have been mightily tough this season, with a 9-4-3 record overall, with six wins coming on home ice.

On Sunday night, in the rivalrous Capitals-Penguins showdown, Washington crushed Pittsburgh in a 6-1 a$$-beating on home ice. It was Sidney Crosby’s (second) return to the Pens lineup after missing time due to COVID-19 (the first being due to injury), but things did not go as planned for the veteran. Vitek Vanecek got the nod, deservedly so, for the Caps, and it was the annual Hockey Fights Cancer night. Goals from six different skaters would embarrass goaltender Tristan Jarry, who was selected to start after Casey Desmith had played the night before.

The Caps had to kill off an early Pittsburgh power play as former Penguin Daniel Sprong was called for holding just three minutes into the first. Much to the surprise of Caps and Pens fans alike, it was Washington who would score, short-handed, as Martin Fehervary tallied his 2nd of the year at the 4:25 mark of the first.

The Capitals would get their first power play of the night shortly after as Kasperi Kapanen went off for hooking, but the good guys would not convert. Garnet Hathaway, who scored two goals in his last outing versus the Columbus Blue Jackets, would make it 2-0 just beyond the 14-minute mark; it was his third goal in two games, also his 3rd of the season. The cross-pass picked up from Alex Ovechkin, from Trevor van Riemsdyk off the boards, made for the prettiest setup you’ll see all season.

But before the first period came to a close, Jake Guentzel would get his Penguins on the board, with just over a minute left. His 4th of the season, which made it 2-1, would be the only goal Pittsburgh scored all night.

Twelve seconds into the 2nd, Connor McMichael was called for hooking, putting the Pens right back on the power play. Though the Caps didn’t score another shorthanded goal, they did kill off the penalty to keep it 2-1. This game had a playoff feel to it, and Washington seemed to be skating extremely well. Well-read passing, strong defense when needed. With half of the Capitals roster made up of former Penguins, it only seemed like a matter of time until one of them would score. Daniel Sprong answered the call, with his 3rd of the season, at the 16:11 mark which made it 3-1, Washington. Former Penguin Conor Sheary recorded the primary assist on the goal.

Like clockwork, and almost like it was planned from the start, Conor Sheary then scored himself, with Sprong tallying the secondary assist, just over two minutes later, increasing the Caps lead to three goals, as the score improved to 4-1.

But the scoring didn’t stop there. Evgeny Kuznetsov, who’d been turned away by Jarry a handful of times in the first 40 minutes of play, broke out the bird celly as he scored his 6th of the year to make it 5-1. The goal came just short of the five-minute mark of the third.

After tallying just 29 points in 41 games last season (9G, 20A), Kuznetsov with the goal, now has six goals and 14 assists over 15 games. His shot percentage is among the best of his career (14%), and is scoring at a rate of 1.33 points per game (PPG). For comparisons’ sake, last season, that number was 0.70 (PPG), and the Stanley Cup year, the best of his career, that value was 1.05 PPG.

Before the game was over, the Capitals would earn another power play with just over 10 minutes remaining (Crosby, cross-checking). Washington, whose power play has not been great this year by any means, took full advantage of the man-advantage. Tom Wilson, aka the greatest goal-scorer in the league, scored after just 20 seconds with the extra-man, making it 6-1, sending the online hockey community into a frenzy.

The goal wasn’t the only reason ‘Tom Wilson’ went trending once again on Twitter, though. Sidney Crosby, in an apparent fit of rage in his return to the Capital One, grabbed and flung defensemen Martin Fehervary into the boards behind Vanecek. The video has gotten nearly 1 million views since it was posted on Twitter. No penalty was called on the play, and Crosby did not receive supplemental punishment, either. Now, *Tom Wilson enters the chat*. Fans across the league argue that had it been Tom Wilson and not Crosby making that play, he would have been permanently removed from the league. No 20-game suspension, no excessive fine; all-out lifetime ban. People were also confused, thinking the ‘42’ on Fehervary’s jersey was a ‘43’, and were praising Crosby for flinging who they thought was Wilson. What do you think?

With that being said, Washington put on a hell of a show for Capitals fans before heading out on an 11-day trip. Vitek Vanecek allowed just one goal on 25 shots, earning his 4th victory.

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As for the Anaheim Ducks, their season is about as close to a full 180 as you can get as compared to last year. The Ducks also put a beating on their opponent of the night, the Vancouver Canucks, in a 5-1 victory on Sunday night as well. John Gibson tallied his 8th win of the season, helping his team hold onto the 2nd spot in the Pacific division.

Before the game was five minutes old, the Ducks got their first power-play opportunity as Elias Pettersson went off for hooking. Anaheim did not convert (this time). It was Nils Hoglander of the Canucks who actually scored first at the 7:29 mark of the first period, his 5th of the season. The Ducks would earn another power-play opportunity nine minutes in when Josh Bailey was called for high-sticking. At the 12:35 mark, Trevor Zegras, Anaheim’s 2019 1st round draft pick, scored to tie it 1-1.

Zegras would go on to score another power-play goal, marking his 4th of the season, at the 2:13 mark of the middle frame.

Up by a goal, Anaheim’s Sonny Milano would score short of the nine-minute mark to make it 3-1, Ducks. The Canucks got their first opportunity with the man-advantage at the 19:17 mark of the second, as Hampus Lindholm went off for tripping. Vancouver, however, would not convert.

In the third period, Vancouver elected to pull their goaltender as the final frame began to wind down in hopes of salvaging at least a point. Unfortunately for the Canucks, Adam Henrique scored an empty-net goal with 58 seconds remaining; it was his 6th goal of the season. And 21 seconds later, after Henrique made it 4-1, Sam Steel tallied his 4th of the year to seal the 5-1 win for Anaheim. Ryan Getzlaf tallied assists on Zegras’ second goal and Henrique’s empty-net goal to put up a two-point effort, who has 16 assists in 16 games played.

Anaheim was 2-for-4 with the man advantage and also won the face-off battle, winning 54.7% of all faceoffs taken.

The Capitals are still without Nicklas Backstrom, TJ Oshie, Nic Dowd, and Anthony Mantha. Backstrom, Oshie, and Dowd were seen practicing in full gear last week, but no return to play dates have been announced. The Ducks do not have Rickard Rakell (IR- upper body), Max Jones (IR- pectoral), or Maxime Comtois (DTD- upper body) available for play.

Kassie’s Noteworthy Remarks

  1. Evgeny Kuznetsov is having a redemption year; he is currently earning points at a rate of 1.33 points per game, exceeding his career best 1.05 PPG (2017-18).
  2. Troy Terry of the Ducks leads his team in goals and points (11G, 20 pts). He has points in each of his last 14 games, dating back to October 18th, 2021, and has two, two-goal efforts in his last six games. Terry was named the NHL’s 3rd Star of the Week.
  3. The Anaheim Ducks have outscored their opponents 30-11 across their seven-game win-streak. They also boast the 4th best power play in the league, converting on 28.3% of all opportunities.

Get your coffee pots, energy drinks, or whatever keeps you up at night (legally, please), poised and ready. The Washington Capitals and Anaheim Ducks will play on Tuesday, November 16th, at 10:00 pm EST, and can be seen on NBC Sports Washington and Bally Sports West.

Pens v. Caps – Caps Dominate the Pen 6-1

Pittsburgh Penguins (5-4-4 14pts) v. Washington Capitals (8-2-4 20pts)

Game Recap:

In Washington for a cup of coffee, the Capitals would play host to the Pittsburgh Penguins for their Hockey Fights Cancer night. In the first period the Pens would get on the powerplay early on as Daniel Sprong would get called for holding, but it would be the Caps taking advantage as Tom Wilson would feed Martin Fehervary for the shorthanded tally to give the Caps the 1-0 lead. Then moments after taking the one goal lead Conor Sheary would draw a penalty against Kasperi Kapanen, but the Caps would be unable to capitalize on the extra man advantage. Later in the period the Caps would strike again as Alex Ovechkin would feed Garnet Hathaway for his third pf the season to grow the Caps lead to two. However in the final 80 seconds of the period Jake Guentzel would strike to get eh Pens on the board and cut the Caps lead to one.

In the second period it would only take 12 seconds before a penalty would be called as the rookie Connor McMichael would get called for hooking to put the Pens on their second powerplay of the game. However, the Caps would apply the pressure and kill off the penalty to give themselves some momentum and lead to a great scoring opportunity for Carl Hagelin, but Tristan Jarry would be up to the task to keep the Pens only down by one. With the Caps continuing to apply the pressure Jeff Carter would get called for slashing, and with the powerplay the Caps would generate some really solid scoring chances, but were unable to capitalize on the powerplay. Then late in the period Lars Eller would feed Daniel Sprong for a bomb to give allow the Caps to retake their two goal lead, and then Conor Sheary would strike to grow the Caps lead to three as they take the 4-1 lead over the Pens into the second intermission.

Then in the third period the Capitals would continue to dominate the Penguins as they’re consistent forechecking would result in Evgeny Kuznetsov netting one from the slot to grow the Caps lead to four in the first five minutes of the period. The Pens would get close to getting another one past Vitek Vanecek, but it was all post to keep the Caps up by four. Midway through the third frustrations were starting to brew for the returning Sidney Crosby as he would go after Kuznetsov with some cross checks that would send him to the box for two minutes. This penalty after Crosby would throw Martin Fehervary roughly to the ice, which wasn’t called. On the powerplay the Caps would only need ten seconds to score as Kuznetsov would breakout Tom Wilson who would slid it between Jarry’s legs to give the Caps a dominating 6-1 victory over the Penguins.

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Lineups:

Pittsburgh Penguins:

Jake Guentzel — Sidney Crosby — Bryan Rust

Jason Zucker — Jeff Carter — Kasperi Kapanen

Danton Heinen — Teddy Blueger — Brock McGinn

Evan Rodrigues — Brian Boyle — Zach Aston-Reese

Kris Letang — Brian Dumoulin

John Marino — Marcus Pettersson

Chad Ruhwedel — Mike Matheson

Tristan Jarry

Casey DeSmith

Scratched: Sam Lafferty, Mark Friedman

Injured: Evgeni Malkin (knee)

Washington Capitals:

Alex Ovechkin — Evgeny Kuznetsov — Tom Wilson

Conor Sheary — Connor McMichael — Daniel Sprong

Axel Jonsson-Fjallby — Lars Eller — Garnet Hathaway

Carl Hagelin — Aliaksei Protas — Brett Leason

Martin Fehervary — John Carlson

Dmitry Orlov — Nick Jensen

Trevor van Riemsdyk — Justin Schultz

Vitek Vanecek

Ilya Samsonov

Scratched: Dennis Cholowski, Matt Irwin

Injured: Nicklas Backstrom (hip), T.J. Oshie (lower body), Anthony Mantha (upper body), Nic Dowd (lower body)

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First Period:

WAS Penalty – 3:08 – Daniel Sprong 2 minutes for Holding

WAS SHG – 4:25 – Martin Fehervary (2) from Tom Wilson (9) and Garnet Hathaway (1)

PIT Penalty – 5:28 – Kasperi Kapanen 2 minutes for Hooking

WAS Goal – 14:05 – Garnet Hathaway (3) from Alex Ovechkin (13) and Trevor van Riemsdyk (6)

PIT Goal – 18:40 – Jake Guentzel (4) from Kris Letang (8) and Mike Matheson (5)

End of FirstPIT – 1WAS – 2
Shots89
Faceoff Wins68
Hits810
Powerplay0/10/1

Second Period:

WAS Penalty – :12 – Connor McMichael 2 minutes for Hooking

PIT Penalty – 5:26 – Jeff Carter 2 minutes for Slashing

WAS Goal – 16:11 – Daniel Sprong (3) from Lars Eller (7) and Conor Sheary (4)

WAS Goal – 18:36 – Conor Sheary (3) from Connor McMichael (4) and Daniel Sprong (2)

End of SecondPIT – 1WAS – 4
Shots1723
Faceoff Wins1714
Hits1317
Powerplay0/20/2
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Third Period:

WAS Goal – 4:43 – Evgeny Kuznetsov (6) from Alex Ovechkin (14)

PIT Penalty – 9:15 – Sidney Crosby 2 minutes for Cross Checking

WAS PPG – 9:35 – Tom Wilson (4) from Evgeny Kuznetsov (14) and John Carlson (7)

End of ThirdPIT – 1WAS – 6
Shots2532
Faceoff Wins2524
Hits1926
Powerplay0/21/3

Cruising Along in Motown; Washington Capitals vs Detroit Red Wings

GoaltenderRecordGAA / SV%
Washington Capitals Zach Fucale6-2-41.73 / .933
Detroit Red WingsAlex Nedeljkovic7-5-22.00 / .939
Fucale (5GP in AHL)

After ending a three-game losing skid, the Washington Capitals defeated the Buffalo Sabres on Monday night. Now, they’re off to Detroit to take on the Red Wings, a team that despite being in the middle of a rebuild, is coasting along quite well this season. Detroit actually defeated the Capitals in their last meeting on October 27th, by a score of 3-2. With their win on Tuesday, they sit 2nd in the Atlantic Division (7-5-2).

On Monday, the Washington Capitals took down the Buffalo Sabres, 5-3, to halt a three-game losing streak. Vitek Vanecek put an end to his own four-game losing streak, which did, unfortunately, include the game where he replaced Ilya Samsonov twice in an eventual 5-4 OTL (versus the Panthers). Axel Jonsson-Fjallby made his NHL debut, the 5th Capitals rookie to do so this season. Washington actually reacquired AJF from the Sabres after losing him when he was placed on waivers prior to the start of the season.

Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin put together an impressive three-point night (1G, 2A) to kill two birds with one stone. Not only did he register his 600th career assist, but he also scored his 741st career goal to officially tie Brett Hull for 4th on the all-time goals list.

Just 2:13 into the first period, Tom Wilson scored his 2nd of the season to give Washington an early 1-0 lead. It initially appeared as though Alex Ovechkin got the tip-in, but the replay of the goal showed the puck deflecting off Wilson before sneaking behind Dustin Tokarski. Ovechkin tallied the primary assist on the goal.

Both the Caps and the Sabres had opportunities with the man-advantage, but neither team was able to convert (Thompson; holding)(Hagelin; holding).

Connor McMichael made it 2-0, Capitals, at the 2:30 mark of the second period to mark his 2nd goal in two games.

But just over a minute later, Caps legend Cody Eakin cut Washington’s lead in half with his 2nd of the year, unassisted. The dreaded two-goal lead. The most dangerous in hockey. Unless you’re the Capitals in which case, no lead is safe. But lucky for the fans of the home team, Alex Ovechkin scored just seconds short of the nine-minute mark to give the Caps back their two-goal lead.

The remainder of the second period expired without another goal, but the Capitals did kill off another Sabres power play.

Three minutes and 17 seconds into the final frame, Anders Bjork scored to bring Buffalo back within one, and Capitals fans began to get anxious that their team would give up another lead for another loss. But Tom Wilson potted his 2nd of the game just over three minutes later. A slick pass from Evgeny Kuznetsov made it possible.

The Capitals would finally convert on their 3rd power play of the night as John Carlson scored to make it 5-2, Washington. At first, we thought it was Conor Sheary’s goal.

The Buffalo Sabres would put up another goal before the game was over when Colin Miller scored with just over 60 seconds left in the period. It was his first of the year. In the final moments of the game, Caps goalie Vitek Vanecek was caught underneath the body of Jeff Skinner, and it appeared as though Vanecek’s left arm was compromised. No announcements have been made regarding the goaltender, but come game-day, something may be shared from the team.

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The Detroit Red Wings were last in action on Tuesday when defeated the Edmonton Oilers, 4-2. Sam Gagner played in his 900th career game, which is quite the milestone to celebrate against your former team. Alex Nedeljkovic got the start for the Red Wings. Vladislav Namestnikov, at the 14:03 mark of the first period, got his Red Wings on the board with the first goal of the game. Gagner tallied the primary assist to mark the 307th of his career and his 480th career point.

Codi Ceci was called for delay of game just short of the four-minute mark of the second period, giving Detroit their first power play of the evening. Detroit’s 22nd ranked power play has converted eight times on 46 opportunities, and they did not convert on this opportunity. But just upon expiration of the Oilers penalty, Namestnikov tallied his 2nd goal of the night (his 7th of the season) to extend Detroit’s lead to two goals. Before the second period was over, Dylan Larkin would also score to make it 3-0, a goal which would be the ultimate game-winner, as did Jesse Puljujarvi for the Oilers to spoil Ned’s shutout bid. Puljujarvi’s goal came with just 45 seconds remaining in the period.

Connor McDavid extended his point streak to 11 games when he scored just 38 seconds into the final frame, making it 3-2, to pull the Oilers within one goal of tying the game. But it was Moritz Seider who, with six seconds left in the game and Edmonton’s net empty, would score to make it 4-2 and to seal the win for Detroit. The Oilers failed to convert on either of their two power-play opportunities, and Leon Draisatil actually ended the night with a -2 (+/-) rating and was not allowed a single shot on goal in 24:38 time on ice.

The Red Wings are riding a three-game win streak, and are 4-1-2 at home, averaging 3.07 goals per game (13th), but give up the most shots on goal against (34.4) and register among the fewest shots on goal for (29.6).

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Nic Dowd was placed on the Injured Reserve list for the Capitals on Wednesday. Hendrix Lapierre was reassigned to the QMJHL after playing six games with Washington. The Capitals also recalled Aliaksei Protas and Zach Fucale from the Hershey Bears, and Fucale practiced with both Vanecek and Ilya Samsonov. It was announced at noon on Thursday that Zach Fucale would get his first career NHL start. In five games played in the AHL, Fucale is allowing a GAA of 1.73 with a save percentage of .933. The Red Wings are without Troy Stecher who is listed as day-to-day with an undisclosed injury.

Kassie’s Noteworthy Remarks

  1. Alex Ovechkin needs one more goal to take sole possession of 4th all time on the NHL goals list. Ovechkin leads the league with 11 goals and tallied 1 goal and two assists versus the Sabres.
  2. Goaltender Vitek Vanecek did NOT undergo shoulder surgery, as shared by NHL Network.
  3. Lucas Raymond and Moritz Seider are two of Detroit’s most talented skaters. Raymond has six goals, three of which have come on the power play, and Seider leads the team in assists (9A).

The Washington Capitals and Detroit Red Wings will play on Thursday, November 11th, at 7:30pm EST, and can be seen on NBC Sports Washington and Bally Sports Detroit.

Sabres v. Caps – Continuing the Climb

Buffalo Sabres (5-4-2 12pts) v. Washington Capitals (5-2-4 14pts)

Game Recap:

In Washington the Capitals would play host to the Buffalo Sabres for some Monday Night Hockey. In the first period the Caps would come out hot as Tom Wilson would deflect an Alex Ovechkin shot to give the Caps the 1-0 lead. Shortly after Tage Thompson would get called for holding to give the Caps their first powerplay opportunity, and while they had one really good chance, overall they didn’t do much with it as the Sabres would kill the penalty. Later in the period the Caps would go shorthanded as Carl Hagelin would go to box for holding, but the Caos would be up to the task and kill the penalty. After killing off the penalty the Caps would control the play and tire out the Sabres but unfortunately they would not capitalize on the zone dominance. The Caps would take the 1-0 lead into the first intermission.

In the second period the Caps would continue to apply the pressure in the Sabres zone, and 2:30 into the period Connor McMichael would strike for his second of the season to give the Caps the two goal lead. However, moments later Alex Ovechkin would cough the puck up in the Caps defensive zone, and former Capital Cody Eakin would take advantage and score on the turnover to get the Sabres on the board and back within one. That wouldn’t last long though as Ovechkin would make up for the turnover and tip a Dmitry Orlov point blast to record his 741st career NHL goal to tie Brett Hull for fourth all tine on the NHL goals list and give the Caps their two goal lead back. Hagelin would be called for his second penalty to put the Sabres back on the powerplay, but the Caps penalty killers would be up to the task to keep the Sabres off the board and kill the penalty to keep the Caps 3-1 lead going into the 2nd intermission.

Then in the third period chaos would reign in the Caps zone as Anders Bjork would score during a massive scramble in the crease to bring the Sabres back within one. But the Caps would not back down as Tom Wilson would net his second of the game to regain the two goal lead. Then Cody Eakin would shoot the puck out of play for a delay of game penalty to put Caps in the man advantage, but the Sabres would not give the Caps the time and space to create any true scoring chances. Later in the period Dmitry Orlov would be called for Interference and the Caps penalty killers would be up to the task as they would kill off the penalty, and draw a powerplay of their own and would strike on the powerplay to take the 5-2 lead. Colin Miller would score with 64 seconds left for the Sabres, but the Capitals would hold on to take the 5-3 victory.

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Lineups:

Buffalo Sabres:

Jeff Skinner — Tage Thompson — Rasmus Asplund

Drake Caggiula — Dylan Cozens — Vinnie Hinostroza

Zemgus Girgensons — Cody Eakin — Kyle Okposo

Anders Bjork — Arttu Ruotsalainen — John Hayden

Rasmus Dahlin — Will Butcher

Jacob Bryson — Colin Miller

Robert Hagg — Mark Pysyk

Dustin Tokarski

Aaron Dell

Scratched: Christian Wolanin

Injured: Craig Anderson (upper body), Victor Olofsson (undisclosed), Alex Tuch (shoulder), Casey Mittelstadt (upper body), Henri Jokiharju (lower body)

Washington Capitals:

Alex Ovechkin — Evgeny Kuznetsov — Tom Wilson

Conor Sheary — Lars Eller — Daniel Sprong

Carl Hagelin — Nic Dowd — Garnet Hathaway

Axel Jonsson-Fjallby — Connor McMichael — Brett Leason

Martin Fehervary — John Carlson

Dmitry Orlov — Nick Jensen

Trevor van Riemsdyk — Justin Schultz

Vitek Vanecek

Ilya Samsonov

Scratched: Dennis Cholowski, Matt Irwin, Hendrix Lapierre

Injured: Nicklas Backstrom (hip), T.J. Oshie (lower body), Anthony Mantha (upper body)

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First Period:

WAS Goal – 2:13 – Tom Wilson (2) from Alex Ovechkin (9) and Trevor van Riemsdyk (5)

BUF Penalty – 3:44 – Tage Thompson 2 minutes for Holding

WAS Penalty – 10:07 – Carl Hagelin 2 minutes for Holding

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Second Period:

WAS Goal – 2:30 – Connor McMichael (2) from Justin Schultz (1) and Carl Hagelin (2)

BUF Goal – 3:43 – Cody Eakin (2) from unassisted

WAS Goal – 8:55 – Alex Ovechkin (11) from Dmitry Orlov (4) and Evgeny Kuznetsov (9)

WAS Penalty – 14:49 – Carl Hagelin 2 minutes for Tripping

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Third Period:

BUF Goal – 3:16 – Anders Bjork (2) from Arttu Ruotsalainen (1) Robert Hagg (3)

WAS Goal – 6:45 – Tom Wilson (3) from Evgeny Kuznetsov (10)

BUF Penalty – 9:45 – Cody Eakin 2 minutes for Delay of Game

WAS Penalty – 14:40 – Dmitry Orlov 2 minutes for Interference

BUF Penalty – 16:31 – Zemgus Girgensons 2 minutes for Slashing

WAS PPG – 17:47 – John Carlson (3) from Evgeny Kuznetsov (11) and Alex Ovechkin (10)

BUF Goal – 18:56 – Colin Miller (1) from Mark Pysyk (2) and Vinnie Hinostroza (5)

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Sometimes You Gotta Fall Before You Fly; Washington Capitals vs Philadelphia Flyers

GoaltenderRecordGAA / SV%
Washington Capitals Vitek Vanecek5-1-42.42/ .902
Philadelphia FlyersMartin Jones5-2-22.02 / .941

The Washington Capitals have dropped their last two games, each being one-goal-deficit losses, and both coming on the road. Now, the Caps are back in DC to take on the Philadelphia Flyers. The Flyers are 5-2-2 this season, and 2-1-1 on the road. Washington is 6-1-0 in their last seven games against Philly, lost their previous five games before that, and then went on a five-game winning streak before that.

The Washington Capitals fell to the Florida Panthers in what ended up being a confusing and crazy match at the newly-named FLA Live Arena in Sunrise, Florida. The Caps ultimately lost in overtime for a 4th time, by a score of 5-4. Ilya Samsonov was slated to start for Washington, but moments into the game, he was promptly replaced by Vitek Vanecek. As it turns out, a nitro cold brew coffee of any size before a game can and will cause trouble. Then, out of nowhere, Samsonov returned to the net, and fans only realized he was in goal after giving up a goal on his first shot faced. Aleksander Barkov tallied his 6th of the season at the 3:07 mark of the first. The Capitals challenged the goal for goaltender interference, but the call was upheld, and as a result, Washington was forced to kill off a delay-of-game minor penalty for the failed challenge. Then, Aaron Ekblad scored at the 11:04 mark to make it 2-0, Cats. It was his 4th of the season.

Daniel Sprong finally got the Capitals on the board just 43 seconds into the second period. It was then that we noticed Sergei Bobrovsky was not in goal for Florida, and that Spencer Knight had replaced him.

Brandon Montour re-instated the Cats’ two-goal lead when he scored at the 7:16 mark of the middle frame. It was at this point that Vitek Vanecek replaced Samsonov in net (for a second time). Samsonov had allowed three goals on 15 shots, so it was time for a change. Barkov would tally his 2nd goal of the game to make it 4-1, Florida, at the 15:32 mark with his team on the power play (Eller; interference). But just under three minutes later, Alex Ovechkin potted his 10th goal in 10 games, to bring Washington within two.

Not only is he the current goals-leader, but he is now one shy of tying Brett Hull on the all-time goal-scorers list. Just before the expiration of the period, Washington would come within one goal of tying it up. At first, it was believed to be John Carlson’s goal, but after review, it was Tom Wilson who’d scored his first goal of the season.

The goal came with just 17 seconds left in the period.

Connor McMichael (the better Connor Mc- in the league) scored his first career NHL goal at the 6:56 mark of the third period to tie the game at four goals a-piece. McMichael became the fourth rookie to score a goal for the Caps this season, tied for most rookie goal-scorers in the league.

With no additional goals scored in the match, and the game tied, overtime, again, was needed. After maintaining possession of the puck for approximately zero seconds in the overtime period, Washington conceded its 5th goal, this time to Eetu Luostarinen. The overtime game-winner came at the 1:55 mark of the OT period. The Capitals are 0-4 in overtime this season. Washington was 0-for-2 with the man-advantage, but narrowly beat out the Panthers in the face-off circle. Nic Dowd who made his return to the lineup won 10 of all faceoffs taken. The Caps loss meant that the Panthers’ record improved to 9-0-1, the best 10-game start in franchise history.

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The Philadelphia Flyers also dropped their most recent game, a 3-2 overtime loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Just 16 seconds into the match, Brock MgGinn scored his 3rd of the season to stun the Flyers with an early 1-0 lead. Travis Konecny would tie the game at the 7:37 mark of the second period, on the power play, with his 4th of the season. But Jake Guentzel made it 2-1 just minutes later, forcing the Flyers to play catch-up again. With less than three minutes remaining in the game, Scott Laughton scored his 3rd of the year to tie it, 2-2. Like the Capitals and Panthers, the Flyers and Penguins needed an overtime period. One minute and 54 seconds into the OT period, Kris Letang scored to mark the win for the Penguins. It was his first of the season.

The Flyers’ power play was 1-for-3 on the night, and killed off both Penguins power plays successfully. Philadelphia boasts, again, the 2nd best faceoff percentage in the league (as a team), winning 55.5% of all faceoffs taken.

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The Washington Capitals are still without Nicklas Backstrom and TJ Oshie. Aliaksei Protas was recalled from the Hershey Bears on Friday after it was announced that Anthony Mantha underwent shoulder surgery and would be out indefinitely. The Philadelphia Flyers are without Ryan Ellis (OUT; lower body), Samuel Morin (IR; knee), Kevin Hayes (IR-LT; abdomen), and Zayde Wisdom (IR; shoulder).

Kassie’s Noteworthy Remarks

  1. Carter Hart has been much better this year after an extraordinarily bad 2020-21 season. He’s allowing 2.41 goals per game, on average, and has a .926 save percentage.
  2. Alex Ovechkin recorded three points (1G, 2A) against Florida, marking hi 6th multi-point game in 10 games played this season. He trails only Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid in points (18).
  3. Sean Couturier and Claude Giroux are tied for most-points on the Flyers (11 pts). Giroux also has the 4th best faceoff percentage in the league (62.69%). Cam Atkinson leads the team in goals (6G).

The Washington Capitals and Philadelphia Flyers will play on Saturday, November 6th, at 7:00 EST, and can be seen on NBC Sports Washington and NBC Sports.