Capitals halt four-game skid with 4-2 win
WASHINGTON -- Alexander Ovechkin ended a 10-game scoreless drought with a second-period goal and the Washington Capitals halted their four-game losing streak Tuesday night with a 4-2 win over the Minnesota Wild in a battle of conference leaders.
Ovechkin had not scored since Feb. 19, but the Capitals followed a classic blueprint to get their captain back on the board in the waning seconds of a second-period power play. Washington center Nicklas Backstrom passed to John Carlson at the blue line, who then connected with Ovechkin in his traditional spot in the faceoff circle.
Minnesota goalie Devan Dubnyk could not corral Ovechkin's blast and Washington grabbed a 2-0 advantage just as the power play expired. It was Ovechkin's first even-strength goal in 18 games.
Down three goals, Minnesota stormed back in the third period. Matt Dumba scored just 37 seconds into the period and the Wild capitalized on a five-on-three opportunity with an Eric Staal goal four minutes later.
But Washington sealed the deal at 14:19 in the third period, catching Minnesota in a line change and center Jay Beagle fired a shot past Dubnyk for his first goal since Feb. 4.
Dubnyk made 36 saves for Minnesota, which has lost five of its last seven games. Braden Holtby stopped 30 shots to end his three-game losing streak and pick up his 35th win.
The second period was a chippy, penalty-filled 20 minutes with 10 infractions whistled.
However, only the Capitals were able to take advantage, when Evgeny Kuznetsov scored 22 seconds after Ryan Suter was sent off for slashing to give Washington a 3-0 lead. It marked the first time in six games the normally high-powered Capitals have scored more than two goals.
The period ended in fisticuffs. Washington's Tom Wilson and Minnesota's Ryan White threw down their gloves. Wilson was given a 10-minute misconduct penalty and 17 minutes of penalties.
Capitals defenseman Nate Schmidt opened the scoring in the first period with just his second goal of the season on yet another assist from Backstrom, who reached 50 assists for the fourth straight season.
NOTES: Minnesota recalled C Tyler Graovac from the Iowa Wild of the American Hockey League on Tuesday. He has seven goals and one assist in 49 games with the Wild this season. ... Capitals D Kevin Shattenkirk (suspension) and D Taylor Chorney (scratch) were out of the lineup. Wild C Martin Hanzal (illness) and C Jordan Schroeder (scratch) were sidelined. ... Minnesota concludes its season-long, five-game road trip Thursday at Carolina. Washington hosts Nashville on Thursday.