The Washington Capitals (18-9-4) had been on a roll lately. However, they fell to the Carolina Hurricanes (19-9-2) 3-2 in a shootout at home on Thursday night.
The Capitals did not put on a strong effort throughout the night, as Logan Thompson did most of the heavy-lifting.
After a scoreless first period, Connor McMichael put the Capitals ahead first with a goal. But then Carolina’s Nikolaj Ehlers tied it at 1-1 later in the middle frame.
Nic Dowd got into a fight at the beginning of the third period, and then gave the Capitals a 2-1 lead with under 10 minutes left in regulation.
However, the lead fell through as Carolina tied the game up again on a Logan Stankoven tally, forcing overtime and then a shootout.
Seth Jarvis recorded the only goal in the skills competition while the Capitals were unable to score and lost as a result. However, they extended their point streak to nine games.
Next up, the Capitals hit the road for their next two games as they face Winnipeg on Saturday and Minnesota on Tuesday.
Capitals Analysis
The first 40 minutes of this game were rough for the Capitals. They headed into the first intermission being outshot by Carolina 13-4, and finished with 25 total shots.
Thompson did all he could to keep the Capitals in the game, as he stopped 37 of 39 shots. Carolina even attempted multiple shots that rang off the post.
Ironically, the Capitals did get on the board first in the second period. McMichael buried a loose puck past Brandon Bussi for his fifth goal of the season.
More importantly, Alex Ovechkin recorded the primary assist, as he now has 1,800 career points combining the regular season and playoffs. The Great 8 is now the 11th player in NHL history to reach that milestone.
To begin the third period, Dowd dropped the gloves with Carolina’s Jordan Martinook, as both players were sent to the box for five minutes.
Later in the third, Dowd showed some more grit by scoring the go-ahead goal. He sped to the front of the net and buried a great feed from Rasmus Sandin to make it 2-1.
Unfortunately, the lead fell apart with 2:15 left, as Stankoven got a hold of the puck and fired it past Thompson to tie the game at 2-2.
The game needed a shootout after neither team scored in the five-minute OT period. Jarvis scored for Carolina, while Anthony Beauvillier, Dylan Strome, and Sonny Milano were all denied. With that result, the Capitals have yet to win in the skills competition this year.
Capitals Report Card
Team: C
This was one of the weaker showings from the Capitals this season, aside from Thompson and the two goals. The team also continues to struggle in the shootout.
Logan Thompson: B+
Thompson did all he could by stopping 37 of 39 shots, even if it wasn’t enough for the win.
Nic Dowd: B+
Dowd showed a lot of grit in the third period by dropping the gloves with Martinook and scoring the go-ahead tally.
Connor McMichael: A
McMichael had himself a multi-point night, as he recorded the Capitals’ first tally and had a secondary assist on Dowd’s goal.
Rasmus Sandin: B+
Sandin recorded an assist on both of the Capitals’ goals, as all of his assists have come on the 5-on-5 this season.
Hendrix Lapierre: D-
Lapierre hasn’t had much to show during the season, as he finished with only 4:58 of ice time on Thursday.
