The Ottawa senators visited the Washington capitals on Saturday evening – a battle of the capitals. The story of the game was that of Alexander Ovechkin, the Capitals captain, who was about to play his 1,500th career game and score his 900th goal. This was the second game of a back-to-back for the Capitals, and they posted a dominant 5-1 victory against the Columbus Blue Jackets. The Senators hoped to start a winning streak on Thursday after a narrow 2-1 loss to the Philadelphia Flyers. A win would mark their first run of consecutive wins this season. Lars Eller, a former capital of eight seasons, would be back in a familiar arena for the first time this season.
First period
The game got off to a fast attacking start as Dylan Cozens snuck past Charlie Lindgren and scored on the first shot of the game. He had no help. The first power play of the game was for the Capitals on a holding penalty on Nikolas Matinpalo; however, they did not score with the man advantage. The Senators had their first power play after a tripping penalty on Tom Wilson, but they too were unsuccessful.
After a brief scrum between a handful of players, Kurtis MacDermid and Pierre-Luc Dubois were both ruled two-minute minors for roughing, and the match became 4-on-4 hockey. After a relatively quiet first period, the Senators took a 1-0 lead into the locker room. There were only eleven shots on target in the opening stages, eight from Ottawa and three from Washington. Both teams would need to increase their pace and improve their attacking prowess if they wanted to secure a win.
Second Period
The Senators actually improved their offensive capabilities in the middle period. Early on, after a few minutes of review, it was determined that Shane Pinto got the puck past the goal line before running into Lindgren and knocking the goal out of position. The Senators were up 2-0, but Capitals coach Spencer Carbery decided to call it a day due to goaltender interference. Carbery’s challenge was unsuccessful, as the referees determined that Jakob Cychrun ran into Pinto, causing Pinto to fall to Lindgren. Ottawa ran another power play after the bench minor was assessed due to the failed coach’s challenge. Ovechkin served the penalty.
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The Senators took a dominant 3-0 lead on the power play when Cozens scored again, assisted by Drake Batherson and Tim Stutzle. Within minutes of the Cozens goal, the lead increased to 4–0 when Nick Cousins scored unassisted with his backhand. The Capitals had to register an extra shot on goal in the second period. It was determined that Dylan Strome, who was injured in the first period, would not return to the lineup for the capitals. Brandon Duhaime served a two-minute minor for cutting Cousins, which was ruled a minor for decoration. The teams again played just over a minute of 4-on-4 hockey before Pinto was awarded a hooking penalty. The Capitals then played 4-on-3 for 50 seconds before moving on to a regulation power play, but were unable to convert with a man advantage.
With 32 seconds left in the period, a multi-player fight broke out behind Lindgren’s net, with the goalie even joining in on the action. Linus Ullmark also crossed the ice to join the fight. After some deliberation, it was determined that Martin Fehervary was given a double minor for front bashing, while Ridley Greig served for two minutes. Each goalkeeper was also assessed a minor penalty, called by Ovechkin and Cousins. The period ended with the Senators making a power play and having ten shots on goal against the Capitals’ three. Washington would be desperate for any offense in the third period if they had any chance of overcoming a four-goal deficit, while the Senators could coast through the third period relying on defense to maintain their dominant lead.
Third Period
The Senators were 1:24 into a power play to start the third period, during which Batherson scored his first goal of the season, assisted by Cozens and Claude Giroux. Ottawa’s lead was now 5-0. The Capitals finally got one when Trevor van Riemsdyk backhanded the puck past Ullmark, saving his team from a shutout. Ryan Leonard and Nic Dowd assisted on his first goal of the season. The Senators had another power play after Justin Sourdif cut Fabian Zetterlund’s stick out of his hand. Thomas Chabot scored from the point, assisted by Giroux and David Perron, and the visitors led 6–1. Batherson scored again, giving him his 300th career point and Ottawa their seventh goal. The game ended with the Senators having 32 shots on goal and the Capitals only 13. The Senators also had the advantage in the face-offs, 62.1% of their chances win.
The Senators left Capital One Arena with a dominant win and will look to continue their momentum when they play the Boston Bruins at home on Monday. The Capitals hit the road looking forward to a much better hockey game against the Dallas Stars in Tuesday’s Frozen Frenzy.
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