In Newark, the Washington Capitals scored four times in the middle frame on Monday night en route to a 6-3 win over the New Jersey Devils.
New Jersey took a 1-0 lead in the first period off a goal from Nathan Bastian. The Caps responded with a tying goal from Nic Dowd in the frame, and then the four in the second period for a 5-1 lead.
“If you don’t play 60 minutes, it’s hard to win games in this league,” New Jersey captain Nico Hischier said. “We had a hard time finding our legs, and they made us pay.”
Charlie Lindgren made 38 saves in the Caps win.
“I’ve just loved being here,” said Lindgren. “I think it’s a heck of a group and to get my first win feels awesome. Our guys deserved it.”
Nick Jensen, Garnet Hathaway, Alex Ovechkin, and Conor Sheary scored in the second period.
Washington coach Peter Laviolette said of Ovechkin, “Somebody hands you a piece of paper on every milestone that he passes each night. It’s unbelievable. He’s been able to just constantly contribute offensively, and score goals. I guess if you do it well enough and long enough, you’re going to bring down some milestones, so we give it a quick shout at the end of the game when things like that happen, but that’s a pretty impressive milestone.”
Tomas Tatar and Jesper Bratt scored for New Jersey in the third period to cut the Caps lead to 5-3.
“I would say our start to the season wasn’t good, going [0-2-0], but right now we’ve kind of battled through some injuries,” said Ovechkin, the Washington captain. “Different guys are stepping up in the lineup. We’ve been there before. The most important thing for us right now is collecting points, trying to play smart and simple.”
The Caps’ Aliaksei Protas added a late empty-net goal for the 6-3 final.
Mackenzie Blackwood got the start for New Jersey and surrendered five goals and made 13 saves before getting the hook in the second intermission.
Vitek Vanecek made three saves in a mop up role.
You must be logged in to post a comment.