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Capitals stun Hurricanes, end two-game skid

By Michael Marzzacco

RALEIGH, NC - JANUARY 3: Goaltender Ilya Samsonov #30 of the Washington Capitals gets the victory and is congratulated by teammate Braden Holtby #70 during an NHL game against the Carolina Hurricanes on January 3, 2020 at PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina. (Photo by Gregg Forwerck/NHLI via Getty Images)
RALEIGH, NC - JANUARY 3: Goaltender Ilya Samsonov #30 of the Washington Capitals gets the victory and is congratulated by teammate Braden Holtby #70 during an NHL game against the Carolina Hurricanes on January 3, 2020 at PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina. (Photo by Gregg Forwerck/NHLI via Getty Images) /
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The Washington Capitals finally defeated the Carolina Hurricanes, something they’ve been looking to do since last spring.

The Washington Capitals got payback in a 4-3 road win over the Carolina Hurricanes in Raleigh on Friday night behind an offensive outburst and another good road outing from Ilya Samsonov.

The first period was scoreless with Samsonov getting most of the work as the Caps were outshot 18-7. At 2:58 in the second the Caps got on the board.

Richard Panik drove to the net and backhanded the puck with a defender all over him. The loose puck wound up off defenseman Brett Pesce, giving Panik credit for the goal for his fifth of the season. Lars Eller had the assist.

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The Capitals doubled their lead on the power play (Sebastian Aho for interference on Garnet Hathaway) with a good fake shot by John Carlson that ended up going right to Evgeny Kuznetsov in front of the net. Kuznetsov tapped it in for his 16th of the year. Carlson and Nicklas Backstrom had the helpers.

2-0 was the score after two periods. The Caps outshot the Hurricanes 14-8 in the middle stanza.

39 seconds into the final period, Jordan Staal put the Hurricanes on the board. The Caps went back to the power play shortly after with Erik Haula called for slashing Nick Jensen. Alex Ovechkin launched a slapshot from downtown that missed the net by about five feet, ricocheting off the boards right to Eller, who was there to put it in for his ninth. Ovechkin and Dmitry Orlov had the helpers.

At 4:51 the Caps added another goal, this time from Jakub Vrana as he finished a rush with Kuznetsov for his 16th of the year. T.J. Oshie was credited with the secondary assist.

Vrana used his speed to crash the net and finish the play. It would not have been possible without the nifty pass by Kuznetsov that had both precision and accuracy.

The Hurricanes got two goals back on the power play from Teuvo Teravainen and Ryan Dzingel but it wasn’t enough as the Caps hung on for the 4-3 win. Samsonov made 38 saves on 41 shots that he faced for a .927 save percentage. The Caps rookie netminder is undefeated on the road.

Capitals coach Todd Reirden told NHL.com after the game:

"“[Samsonov] was, no question, the first star tonight. His emotional control never changes. I think it allows our team to not get too derailed. He was outstanding.”"

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The Capitals will host the San Jose Sharks on Sunday afternoon. Puck drop is at 12:30 p.m.

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