Oshie scores 30th as Caps down Flames
WASHINGTON -- T.J. Oshie scored his 30th goal of the season Tuesday as the Washington Capitals used a second-period shooting barrage to wear down streaking Calgary, earning a 4-2 triumph and ending Flames goalie Brian Elliott's win streak at 11 straight.
The Capitals peppered Elliott with 20 shots in the second frame, and Oshie helped break the tie when Alexander Ovechkin found him wide open in front of the net for a quick flip over the netminder's shoulder. It is the first time in Oshie's career he has reached the 30-goal plateau.
Ovechkin helped play a role in Washington's third goal as well, drawing a tripping penalty against the Flames' Dougie Hamilton while driving to the net at the 19:40 mark of the second. With just 2.9 seconds left in the period, Kevin Shattenkirk's shot dribbled through Elliott's pads for the defenseman's first goal since joining the Capitals in a trade on Feb. 27.
After Calgary's Troy Brouwer scored a third-period goal close the gap to 3-2, Ovechkin capped off a busy night with a power-play goal with 2:51 left, his 11th shot of the night, to seal the victory.
Goalie Braden Holtby, playing in his 300th game with Washington, made 29 saves to pick up his 37th victory of the season.
Elliott, who had tied Mike Vernon's team record for consecutive victories, collected 36 saves in his first defeat since Feb. 18.
Both teams utilized some nifty passing to get on the board in the first period. At the close of a 4-on-4 stretch, Washington's Andre Burakovsky picked the pocket of Calgary's Johnny Gaudreau at center ice and then hit the tape of Evgeny Kuznetsov, who had just left the penalty box. Kuznetsov was able to slide the puck past a diving Elliott to give the Capitals a 1-0 advantage at the 6:47 mark.
The Flames drew even later in the period as Gaudreau made amends for his turnover by delivering a picture-perfect pass to Sean Monahan in a 2-on-1 situation. Monahan went up high and beat Holtby for his 24th goal of the season.
Calgary had several opportunities to take the lead in the second period, but Mikael Backlund hit the post on a breakaway and Michael Frolik was turned away in dramatic fashion by Holtby on a 2-on-1, short-handed chance.
NOTES: With LW Matthew Tkachuk serving a two-game suspension, Calgary recalled RW Garnet Hathaway from its AHL affiliate Stockton. Hathaway has played in 26 games for the Flames this season but was a scratch Tuesday along with LW Micheal Ferland and D Dennis Wideman. ... Washington RW Justin Williams left the game briefly in the second period after being hit in the head with a shot from teammate Dmitry Orlov, but did return. ... This was the Flames' last game against the Eastern Conference, as they finished with a 18-13-1 mark. ... D Taylor Chorney and D Nate Schmidt were scratches for the Capitals.