The Washington Capitals (27-22-7) finally returned home on Saturday after a lengthy road trip. While they trailed 3-0, they completed a remarkable comeback for a 4-3 overtime victory over the Carolina Hurricanes (33-15-6).
The game went into OT tied at 3-3 when Justin Sourdif scored the game-winner. This gave the Capitals their first set of back-to-back wins since early December.
The Capitals had also been dealing with multiple absences in the lineup, as their recent struggles showed early on. Carolina managed to take a 3-0 lead in the middle frame.
However, the Capitals responded with four unanswered goals. Hendrix Lapierre, Dylan Strome, and Jakob Chychrun all found the net in regulation.
Clay Stevenson made his second career NHL start after injuries to both Logan Thompson and Charlie Lindgren. Despite a rough start, he managed to record his first NHL win.
Next up, the Capitals will host the New York Islanders on Monday with three games left before the Olympic break.
Capitals Analysis
The Capitals were once again shorthanded, as Connor McMichael, Matt Roy, and Lindgren were all placed on IR. Martin Fehervary was a late scratch for personal reasons, as he was expecting his first child with his girlfriend.
The Capitals managed to play well at first and got plenty of chances, outshooting Carolina 19-13 in the first. However, some crucial mistakes led to opposing goals.
First, William Carrier was in front and caught a point feed, then snuck past a sliding Dylan McIlrath to find Mark Jankowski for the goal.
Later in the period, John Carlson’s mishandled pass led to Sebastian Aho going on a break and netting the puck past Stevenson. Carolina led 2-0 at that point.
The Capitals trailed 3-0 in that middle frame, needing some sort of spark. Thankfully, that’s when Lapierre came to the rescue. He got to the front and buried his own rebound past Frederik Anderson to end the shutout.
Later in the frame, Strome came through playing on a line with Aliaksei Protas and Tom Wilson. He got to the front and redirected a feed from Protas to cut it to 3-2.
In the third, Wilson laid out a big hit on Jankowski, which led to the game-tying tally. Chychrun got to the slot and sniped the puck past Andersen for his 19th goal this season.
In overtime, Sourdif got to the front of the net buried his own rebound for the game-winner. This gave the Capitals their first set of consecutive wins in nearly two months.
Capitals Report Card
Team: A-
The Capitals struggled at first, but managed to rally with four unanswered goals for back-to-back wins. They also managed to pull it off without some key players in the lineup.
Justin Sourdif: A
Sourdif was the hero as he got to the front and buried his own rebound for his first career overtime game-winner. He is now the fifth rookie in franchise history to score an OT goal and the first since Evgeny Kuznetsov in March 2015.
Jakob Chychrun: A
Chychrun finished with two points as his 19 goals are tied for the most by an NHL defenseman this season.
Strome-Protas-Wilson line: A+
This adjusted line managed to work in the second half of this game. Strome cut the Capitals’ deficit to 3-2 with his fifth goal in his last six games. Protas finished with a pair of assists to help his team rally back. Wilson was also very physical with three hits to go with his secondary assist.
Clay Stevenson: B
Stevenson managed to do his best with both Thompson and Lindgren out. The 26-year-old goaltender stopped 19 of 22 shots for his first NHL win.
