Washington, DC (SportsNetwork.com) – Nicklas Backstrom netted the deciding
goal in the shootout, and Washington snuck past Anaheim, 3-2, at Verizon
Center.
Jason Chimera and John Carlson scored in regulation while Evgeny Kuznetsov
added two assists for the Capitals, winners of three straight games.
Philipp Grubauer picked up his first NHL victory this season with 23 saves
plus turning away two of three chances in the game’s final segment.
Ryan Kesler and Corey Perry tallied for the Ducks, who had won their previous
two. Ilya Bryzgalov made 32 stops but let two shots slip by in the shootout.
“In the first period, the team worked hard to protect him. In the second and
third, he worked hard to protect the team,” said Ducks head coach Bruce
Boudreau of Bryzgalov.
Backstrom began the second round as Kuznetsov did the first, by beating
Bryzgalov with a wrister after Jakob Silfverberg bested Grubauer on Anaheim’s
first opportunity.
Grubauer turned away Perry, and after Alex Ovechkin just missed the crossbar
with Bryzgalov down and a chance to end the contest, Kesler’s drive was
stopped.
Kesler ripped a shot home from a left-circle faceoff win during a power play
with 1:45 left in the opening period.
Chimera evened things at 4:15 of the second, one-timing a Kuznetsov feed off a
2-on-0 break. Troy Brouwer set up the score, with his dive at the blue line
managing to hook the puck away from a Ducks player and begin his team’s
transition.
Carlson’s long shot from the right point hit the net with 9:16 left in
regulation, but Perry’s wraparound try from the right post caromed off
Carlson’s skate and eluded Grubauer for a 2-2 game three minutes later.
Game Notes
Kuznetsov has picked up points in six of his last seven games (2G, 4A) …
Entering play, Ovechkin had recorded 15 points (7G, 8A) in nine career games
against the Ducks, but was held off the scoreboard Friday … The Ducks
scratched Ryan Getzlaf late due to an undisclosed injury and recalled
forward William Karlsson from Norfolk of the AHL … Prior to the game. the
Capitals assigned forward Andre Burakovsky to Hershey of the AHL … Caps
defenseman Mike Green was a late scratch following warmups and was deemed day-
to-day with a lower-body injury.
