Harry Lichtman
The Washington Capitals (32-26-7) snapped their three-game losing skid. They scored a whopping seven goals for a 7-3 home win over the Calgary Flames (25-31-7) on Monday night.
The Capitals put up an excellent first period with three goals from Hendrix Lapierre, Tom Wilson, and Connor McMichael. It was an early sign that the losing streak would end.
However, while up 3-0, Calgary answered back with three unanswered tallies in the middle frame. Even worse, the Capitals surrendered back-to-back shorthanded goals on one power play.
Nevertheless, the Capitals were resilient in the third period. It all started when McMichael struck again on the man advantage, which was followed by Justin Sourdif scoring seconds later.
The Capitals eventually sealed it later on with goals from Ethen Frank and Ryan Leonard.
Next up, the Capitals hit the road for their next two games, starting with Philadelphia on Wednesday, then Buffalo on Thursday.
Capitals Analysis
Coming off a rough 3-1 loss to Boston on Saturday, Capitals head coach Spencer Carbery shook up the lines once again. The most notable change was Alex Ovechkin and Dylan Strome being separated.
Ovechkin worked with Sourdif and Anthony Beauvillier, while Strome was slotted between Wilson and Aliaksei Protas. Leonard moved up to the second line with McMichael and Pierre-Luc Dubois, while the fourth line remained the same.
The changes worked in the first period, as Lapierre got to the front and buried Martin Fehervary’s rebound. Then, a deflected puck landed near Wilson, as he went top shelf from a tough angle for his 24th of the season.
Late in the period, McMichael fired away from the slot for his first of two goals as the Capitals led 3-0.
Unfortunately, the middle frame is when the shutout ended. Matvei Gridin went backdoor and shot one past Logan Thompson to put Calgary on the board.
Then, the Capitals’ second power-play opportunity is when things really fell apart. First, Blake Coleman went on a breakaway for a shorthanded goal. Seconds later, a a miscue led Joel Farabee stealing the puck and finding Yegor Sharangovich to tie it at 3-3.
Thankfully, the third period is when the Capitals regained control. The team went on their third power-play opportunity with some tweaks to the top unit.
The Capitals kept the puck in the zone, as McMichael batted in a rebound to make it 4-3. 23 seconds later, Sourdif fired a shot that bounced off Kevin Bahl’s leg and in for a 5-3 lead.
The Capitals then sealed it later on when Frank found the empty net, and Leonard scored a breakaway goal.
Capitals Report Card
Team: B+
The Capitals had a strong opening period, then fell apart in the second. Luckily, they showed their resilience with four goals in the third.
Connor McMichael: A
McMichael ended up recording two goals, including the go-ahead tally on the man advantage. The 25-year-old now has 10 goals this season.
Capitals Power Play: C+
Giving up two shorthanded goals on one power play is flat out unacceptable. Good thing McMichael answered to give the Capitals a 4-3 lead.
Ryan Leonard: A
Leonard scored the final goal on a breakaway with 15 seconds remaining. The 20-year-old extends his point streak to three games.
Hendrix Lapierre: A
Lapierre made another impression on the fourth line with his third tally of the season. He later recorded a secondary assist on Frank’s empty-netter.
