Harry Lichtman
The Washington Capitals (35-27-9) went toe-to-toe with the top team in hockey. Sadly, the Colorado Avalanche (46-13-10) escaped with a 3-2 overtime victory on Sunday afternoon.
The big highlight for the Capitals was Alex Ovechkin recording a power-play goal to tie it at 2-2 in the third. The 40-year-old now has 1,000 combined regular season and playoff goals.
“It’s always nice to reach something, and it was an important goal as well,” said Ovechkin.
The Capitals got going early on when Justin Sourdif scored the game’s first goal. The score remained 1-0 after two periods.
Unfortunately, a series of miscues by the Capitals led to Colorado taking a 2-1 lead. Gabriel Landeskog and Nicolas Roy both contributed with goals for the Avalanche.
In 3-on-3 OT, Colorado kept the puck in the offensive zone as Brock Nelson recorded the game-winner. Nevertheless, the Capitals finish the homestand with points in all four games (2-0-2).
Next up, the Capitals begin what will be their last multi-game road trip of the season. Their first stop will be St. Louis on Tuesday night.
Capitals Analysis
The Capitals kept it competitive with the top team in the NHL throughout the afternoon. Amazingly, they held a 1-0 lead through the first 40 minutes.
The first goal came when Sourdif skated towards a bouncing puck in the offensive zone and fired a shot past Makenzie Blackwood. The 23-year-old now has 13 tallies on the season.
Late in the first period, Ethen Frank went down with a lower-body injury and did not return. Frank had charged after a puck in the offensive zone when Devon Toews shoved him into the net.
The third period is when the Capitals committed multiple errors that led to opposing goals. First, Logan Thompson’s pass behind the net led to Martin Necas taking the puck and assisting on Landeskog’s game-tying tally.
Then, Cole Hutson had the puck stolen away from him in the slot. This turnover led to Roy beating Thompson for the go-ahead goal.
However, the Capitals found hope later in the period when Ovechkin recorded a game-tying power-play goal. The man advantage had previously gone 0-for-4 when The Great 8 fired a one-timer past Blackwood.
Ovechkin now joins Wayne Gretzky (1,016) as the only other player to record 1,000 combined regular season and playoff goals. The 40-year-old had recorded his 26th goal of the season.
Unfortunately, the Capitals were pinned in their own zone during 3-on-3 OT. That’s when Necas found Nelson for the game-winner.
Capitals Report Card
Team: B-
The Capitals were able to keep up with the mighty Avalanche on Sunday. Unfortunately, a series of miscues led to the OT loss.
Alex Ovechkin: A
Ovechkin showed shades of his old self with a game-tying power-play goal. The Great 8 made even more history as a result.
Cole Hutson: B-
On the positive side, Hutson recorded his first NHL assist on the Ovechkin tally. On the negative side, his miscue led to Colorado taking the lead in the third.
Logan Thompson: B-
Thompson did finish with 21 saves. However, his misplay behind the net led to the Avalanche tying it early in the third.
