The Capitals needed two points on Tuesday night. On his tumultuous final day of January, when the lead to the top wild his card and his spot began to shrink, Washington moved up the schedule for the first half against bottom-placed Columbus his blues his jackets. We wanted to finish with a goal.
It took 60 minutes and with some change, the Capitals secured the victory with an overtime goal from Evgeny Kuznetsov. The 30-year-old center hasn’t scored as usual this season, but in his most important moment in the arena on Tuesday, Nationwide saw the match-winner score a goal in his 26th second of extra time. I decided.
The Capitals got off to a strong start, jumping out to an early lead in the fifth minute with a goal from right fielder Garnett Hathaway, and held the lead for the next 48 minutes. Defenseman Trevor van Liemsdijk provided most of the offense, scoring twice in the first multi-goal game of his NHL career.
Van Liemsdijk closed out on Tuesday with a new career-high with four goals this season. Lead in regulation. His second score was a strike from a low slot set up by a pass from behind from Kuznetsov midway through the second period.
The Capitals have handled the low-ranking Blue Jackets, owners of the NHL’s worst record, well this season, winning all three of their previous games by 11-5 combined scores. Columbus responded to each van Riemsdyk goal with their own quick tally, with Jonny Gaudreau equalizing with his 7:16 remaining in the third.
Washington put enough pressure on Colpisaro only for the Netminders to pull off some spectacular plays and keep them off the board. His efforts allowed Columbus to force overtime, but Kuznetsov put the game away when a defensive collapse by the Blue Jackets left him alone in front of the helpless goalkeeper.
Charlie Lindgren made a start in the Capitals’ net and gave D’Arcy Kemper a shot at his All-Star break after head coach Peter LaViolette pulled him in the second period against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Sunday. gave an early start. Seeking his first victory in a month, Lindgren stopped 31 of his 34 shots to take the win.
With 60 points on the season, the Capitals finished the first half with a 27-20-6 record that placed fourth in the Metropolitan Division. They went into the break by monopolizing the first wild card his spot in the East, just behind the Pittsburgh Penguins (57), Buffalo Sabers (56), New York Islanders (55) and Florida Panthers (54). going now.
