Washington Capitals fall in overtime to Oilers
The Washington Capitals had a solid second period but couldn’t hang onto their lead.
The Edmonton Oilers defeated the Washington Capitals 4-3 in overtime on Thursday night. In a contest that saw the Caps enter the final 20 minutes with a 3-1 lead, Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid came up clutch. The latter had the game-winning goal finishing off a 2-on-1 rush with McDavid.
Darnell Nurse put the Oilers up 1-0 at 13:20 of the first with Leon Draisaitl and Zack Kassian getting the helpers. That would be the lone goal of the period as the Oilers outshot the Capitals 11-8.
In the second though, the Caps came alive just like they have all season in the middle stanza. More on that in a second. Jakub Vrana got them on the board with a spin-o-rama goal from the right face-off area.
More from Capitals News
- Breaking down the Rookie Camp roster
- Hear what Magic Johnson said about Alex Ovechkin
- Capitals announce Rookie Camp schedule
- Breaking down the 2023-24 Capitals national TV schedule
- Capitals Alumni Weekend is coming back
The Caps took the lead when Alex Ovechkin deflected in a shot from Jonas Siegenthaler from right in front of the net. John Carlson was credited with the secondary assist.
The Caps went to the power play for the second time when Matt Benning closed his hand on the puck at 11:59. They scored at 13:40 with Ovechkin’s second goal of the night. It came with a nifty Tom Wilson backhanded pass to a wide open Ovechkin from his office in the left face-off area. Vrana was credited with the secondary assist.
The Caps took a 3-1 lead into the second intermission outshooting the Oilers 14-11. Carlson (5 goals, 13 assists) and Ovechkin (9 goals, 13 assists) each extended their point streak to nine games. Carlson is atop the NHL leaderboard with 21 points and Carlson has recorded a point in all but one game this season.
The Caps have notched a goal in every second period this season and have outscored their opponents 20-6 in the middle stanza.
Ovechkin’s second goal was the 250th power play goal of his career becoming the fourth player in NHL history to reach that mark. With 666 career goals, he needs just two more to pass Luc Robitaille for the 12th most goals in NHL history. Ovechkin’s PPG was his 125th on the road, passing Brett Hull for first all-time.
The Oilers got one back on a goal from Draisaitl at 4:25. Connor McDavid tied it with a minute and 38 seconds left to force overtime. The Oilers outshot the Caps 14-9 in the third.
Trending. What will happen when Oshie's shooting percentage drops?. light
In the overtime, McDavid came down the ice and found Draisaitl in a 2-on-1 rush for the finish. The Caps will look to bounce back tonight in Vancouver.