Capitals 5, Hurricanes 2
Troy Brouwer scored a pair of goals and visiting Washington steamrolled Carolina to extend its winning streak to three games.
Third-liners Joel Ward, Jason Chimera and Eric Fehr each recorded a goal and two assists for the Capitals, who were eliminated from playoff contention 24 hours earlier. Marcus Johansson collected a pair of assists and Braden Holtby turned aside 36 shots to win his third start in a row.
Jiri Tlusty netted a short-handed tally and Radek Dvorak scored in the final two minutes for the Hurricanes, who have scored a total of four goals during their three-game losing streak. Anton Khudobin allowed a season-high five goals on 21 shots.
The Capitals got on the board only 62 seconds into the contest as Fehr slid a pass from behind to net to Ward, who pulled the puck to his forehand and easily beat Khudodin. The line struck again midway through the second period, when Chimera was allowed to skate in front from the right side of the net and tuck the puck past Khudobin.
The Hurricanes briefly slowed the momentum at 17:16, with Tlusty finishing off a 2-on-1 rush by burying a feed from Jordan Staal into an open net, but Brouwer restored the two-goal advantage with a one-timer from the left faceoff circle with 35.1 seconds left in the session. Washington turned it into a laugher when Fehr and Brouwer connected 62 seconds apart in the first 3:27 of the third for a 5-1 lead.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Chimera's three-point performance gave him 41 on the season - a new career high. ... Tlusty's tally was the 11th short-handed goal for the Hurricanes, who trail league-leading Calgary by one. ... Johansson's two assists gave him 44 points, leaving him two shy of his career high set in 2011-12. ... The visiting team has won eight of the last nine in the all-time series.