Capitals 5, Sabres 2
WASHINGTON -- Alex Ovechkin scored two third-period goals, including an empty-netter, Marcus Johansson scored the go-ahead goal and added an assist, and the Washington Capitals rallied past the Buffalo Sabres 5-2 on Wednesday night for their ninth straight win.
Trailing 2-1, Washington scored four third-period goals to improve to 16-1-1 over their last 18 games.
Left winger Andre Burakovsky and right winger Justin Williams also scored for Washington and center Evgeny Kuznetsov assisted on the tying and go-ahead goals.
The Capitals (28-6-2) poured 43 shots on net as they continued their best start in franchise history and moved ahead of idle Dallas for the NHL points lead.
Center Zemgus Girgensons had a goal and an assist for Buffalo, and right winger Brian Gionta gave the Sabres a 1-0 lead in the first. Rookie center Jack Eichel had two assists.
Ovechkin tied the game at 1:24 of the third period when he took pass from Kuznetsov and back-handed a shot past Sabres goalie Chad Johnson (38 saves).
Then on a power play, Kuznetsov skated toward the net from the right circle and fed in front to Johansson, whose redirect gave Washington its first lead of the night.
Burakovsky gave Washington a two-goal cushion a little over a minute later, and Ovechkin notched his 20th of the season into an empty net with 1:13 left.
Capitals goalie Braden Holtby turned aside 25 shots.
The Sabres got the only first-period goal off a pretty passing sequence at 5:38.
Girgensons dropped a pass back to Eichel in the slot. Eichel stick-handled between two Capitals and backhanded a pass across to Gionta, whose redirection trickled past Holtby.
Washington peppered Johnson during the middle of the second period, but he was equal to the task, including two saves on Williams alone in front just after a Washington power play.
Meanwhile, left winger Evander Kane nearly gave Buffalo a 2-0 lead at the 10-minute mark when his shot clanged off the post.
Johnson's first mistake of the night was costly when he went behind his own net to play the puck. Seeing Washington center Evgeny Kuznetsov closing in, he quickly sent the puck to the other side, right to the waiting Williams, who tucked it home for his 11th goal of the season at 14:08.
Despite being outshot 28-19 over two periods, the Sabres took a 2-1 lead late into the second intermission.
When the rebound of an Eichel shot bounced high in the air in front of Holtby, Girgensons positioned himself and, when the puck landed, banged it home with 67 seconds left.
NOTES: The Capitals last won nine straight from Feb. 26 to March 15, 2011. ... Washington C Michael Latta, who injured an arm during a fight with Buffalo LW Nicolas Deslauriers on Monday, was out of the lineup. D Brooks Orpik (lower body) missed his 22nd game and D John Carlson (lower body) his second. RW Stanislav Galiev was scratched. ... The Sabres began play 0 of 17 with the man advantage through six games. ... Buffalo scratched LW Matt Moulson and D Carlo Colaiacovo. ... Centers Jack Eichel (11 goals) and Sam Reinhart (eight) could become the second pair of Buffalo rookies to score 20 goals in the same season. Danny Gare (31) and Peter McNab (22) did it in 1974-75. ... Washington RW Jay Beagle suffered an upper-body injury in the second period and did not return.