The Washington Capitals are in great shape. On Sunday, they prevailed 5-2 at the Winnipeg Jets, celebrating their fourth straight win. The guests created the basis for the success in the Canada Life Center with a brilliant middle period in which they scored four goals. Alex Ovechkin got the final score with an empty net goal in the final phase. It was his 797th goal in the NHL.
“We kept him in check most of the time. We knew from the start that he would get his shots and chances. However, we didn’t look bad against him. He only scored when our goal was empty,” said Jets defender Neal Pionk to the appearance of Ovechkin. The Capitals captain has scored four goals in the past three games. If he continues like this, he can break the mark of 800 hits this week. There are still three games on the program for Washington until Saturday.
After a scoreless first third, the bell rang Trevor van Riemsdyk the rush of the Capitals in the second round. With a wrist shot he got the 1-0 lead (24th). Evgeny Kuznetsov increased with a backhand shot from the slot in the power play to 2:0 (29th). He extended his points streak to five games. During that time, he had one goal and four assists.
Not even two pointer turns later it was 3:0. In a solo run with a man down, Marcus Johansen by Jets-Blueliner was able to Josh Morrissey can only be stopped illegally. The Capitals attacker put the following penalty in the net (30th). “I had used this move successfully before, so I stuck to this variant. I think it was an important goal for us in this phase,” said Johansen about his successful attempt. Lars Eller put the intermediate score at 4:0 (36th).
Chuuuuuuuuuuck!#ALLCAPS | @WeAreHII pic.twitter.com/RgwJ0glUC4
– Washington Capitals (@Capitals) December 12, 2022
Capitals goalkeeper Charlie Lindgren followed the whole thing with relish from his case, as he put it on record. “If your team scores four goals, then of course you like that as a goalie. The boys deserve a lot of credit. They worked hard and sunk the pucks. We had a solid first third and then our power play was great,” was the conclusion of the goalkeeper. Lindgren made 29 stops to help earn a double point against the Central Division leaders.
In the last section, the Jets came through a double strike from Adam Lowry (41.) and Pierre-Luc Dubois (44th) to 2:4, but the Capitals couldn’t take the butter off their bread in the remaining minutes. Ovechkin made everything clear just before the end.
Capitals striker Eller not only had good reason to be happy because of his goal and his team’s triumph. He made his 900th appearance in the NHL on Sunday. In his match analysis, he emphasized the closed team performance. “Every part of the team did their part. Charlie deserves a special mention. He was strong. It was a good performance today for 60 minutes, in which our opponent only pressed in the first five minutes of the third period and scored two goals.” , he explained.
The defender, who had been injured for a long time, called in the triumph against the Jets Dmitry Orlov back in the ranks of the Capitals. He had two assists, three shots on target and two blocked shots in a 21:29 game time. Orlov missed 16 games with a lower body injury.
Video: WSH@WPG: Ovechkin delivers Empty-Netter
The Capitals have gained some ground in the Metropolitan Division with their recent winning streak. With 32 points (14-12-4) from 30 matches, they only occupy sixth place in the table. But the playoff ranks are now at least in sight again.
On Tuesday (9 p.m. ET; NHL.tv; Wed. 3 a.m. CET) the team from the US capital has to play against the Chicago Blackhawks. This will be followed by two home games for Washington. On Thursday (7 pm ET; NHL.tv; Fri. 1 a.m. EST) the Dallas Stars drop their calling card at the Capital One Arena and on Saturday (7 pm ET; NHL.tv; Sun. 1 a.m. EST) the Toronto Maple Leafs.