In Washington, DC, the Capitals are in need of wins and two points on every match. On Sunday, they coughed up a golden opportunity to to add to their ladder standings with the struggling Arizona Coyotes in town. 
Instead, the Coyotes scored once in the opening stanza and three times in the middle frame to take a 4-1 lead into the third period, en route to a 5-2 win over the Caps.
Karel Vejmelka made 24 saves in the win.
“He made saves at key moments and key saves, huge saves,” Arizona coach Andre Tourigny said. “He saved shots that should have been goals. He made a huge difference.”
The Coyotes moved to 25-31-5 off their second straight win.
We played smart,” Tourigny said. “We didn’t have our legs. They came out really hard. I think our guys raised their level of urgency, and we played really well after that.”
Arizona took a 1-0 lead in the first period on a strike by Logan Cooley at 7:33.
The Coyotes’ Jason Zucker pushed the advantage to 2-0 off the power play at 4:06, scoring off a tip in.
The Caps dropped to 28-23-9 off their second loss in three matches.
“I’m trying to remember, but I think given the circumstances, for sure, that’s the most disappointing game I’ve coached this year, this team,” Washington coach Spencer Carbery said. “In the third period, I will give our guys credit for that 20 minutes. But the first two periods, it’s the worst we’ve played all year.”
The Capitals’ Sonny Milano trimmed the deficit to 2-1 at 6:02 of the second period. He directed a pass from ALex Ovechkin into the net for the marker.
Arizona replied with a strike by Michael Kesselring at 6:45 of the second, scoring from the right side.
Dylan Guenther hit off the power play at 18:01 of the second for a 4-1 lead headed to the third period.
“I think we’ve been playing well the last two weeks,” Guenther said. “Let’s just keep this thing going. We’ve got some confidence now, so let’s roll with it.”
With 10 seconds gone in the third period, Washington’s Anthony Mantha hit off a power play for the Caps to cut the gap to 4-2.
“I don’t think we were ready from the start,” Mantha said. “We dig ourselves in a hole, and it’s hard to come back against these teams. We’re not going to score five goals every night. If you give up four and you’re kind of chasing, it’s just almost impossible.”
Nick Schmaltz sealed the win when he hit an empty net with 21 seconds left on the regulation clock for the 5-32 final count on the scoreboard. 
Charlie Lindgren made 23 saves in the loss.
“Stings a little bit more when you see what we’re capable of doing in the third to create offense and play in their end,” Washington’s Max Pacioretty said. “If we had that effort for 60 minutes, we would have liked our chances.”
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