Capitals Down Flyers, 5-4; Alex Ovechkin Scores Goal #716

Posted on March 13, 2021 by Jon Sorensen
Photo by Len Redkoles/NHLI via Getty Images

The Washington Capitals downed the Philadelphia Flyers 5-4 Saturday evening at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia. The Capitals jumped out to a 2-0 lead after 20 minutes of play, but the Flyers battled back to make it 3-2 midway through the second period. The Capitals would add goals from Alex Ovechkin and Nic Dowd to seal the victory. The win improves the Capitals record to 17-6-4 (38 points) on the season.

STATS

STARTERS
Ilya Samsonov (4-0-0-1, 2.55 GAA, .907 sv%) got the start between the pipes for the visiting Capitals. Brian Elliott (7-3-0-0, 2.45 GAA, .911 sv%) started in goal for the Flyers. The starting forward lines and defensive pairs for the Capitals:

Scratches: Tom Wilson (Suspension), Jonas Siegenthaler and Trevor van Reimsdyk.

FIRST PERIOD
The Capitals opened the scoring with a fluky goal from Daniel Sprong (5) at 4:40 of the opening period. Jakub Vrana (10) and Evgeny Kuznetsov (8) had the assists.

The Capitals would make it 2-0 on a goal from Carl Hagelin (3) at 13:21 of the first period. Nick Jensen (8) and Garnett Hathaway (5) had the helpers.

Lars Eller suffered a lower body injury early the first period and did not return for the remainder of the game. He skated for just three shifts in the game. He was flexing his right leg during his last shift.

The Capitals led 2-0 after the first 20 minutes. The Capitals led in shot attempts 15-14 in the first frame. The Capitals led 9-8 in shots on goal. The Flyers were 0 for 1 and the Capitals 0 for 0 on the power play in the first frame.

SECOND PERIOD
The Flyers would cut into the Capitals lead with a goal from James van Riemsdyk (12) at 2:35 of the middle frame.

However, the Capitals would restore the two-goal lead with a tally from Nick Jensen (2) at 3:05 of the second period. Carl Hagelin had the lone assist.

But the Flyers would cut the lead to one, again. This time Nolan Patrick (3) notched a tally at 5:47 of the second period, making it 3-2.

Alex Ovechkin (10) would restore the Capitals two-goal lead with a power play goal at 13:10 of the second period, making it 4-2. Nicklas Backstrom (20) would get the lone helper.

The second period would end with the Capitals leading 4-2. The Flyers led in shot attempts 27-13 in the middle frame and 41-28 after two periods. The Flyers led in shots on goal 15-7 in the second period and 23-16 after two periods. The Capitals were 1 for 1 and the Flyers 0 for 2 on the power play after two periods.

THIRD PERIOD
The Capitals stretched their lead to 5-2 with a goal from Nic Dowd (6) at 4:25 of the second period. Garnet Hathaway (6) and John Carlson (18) had the assists.

The Flyers would close the gap to 5-3 with a power play goal from Shayne Gostisbehere (5) at 13:07 of the final frame.

The Flyers would pull their netminder and close the gap to 5-4 at 17:03 of the third period with a goal from Claude Giroux.

That would be the final.

The Capitals are back in action on Monday when they face the Sabres in Buffalo. Puck drop is set for 7:00 pm.

NOTES

  • The Flyers won the faceoff battle 54-46%.
  • Capitals were 1 for 3 and the Flyers 1 for 3 on the power play.
  • Flyers led in scoring chances 19-14.
  • Capitals xGF% of 42.97%
  • Flyers led in shots on goal 32-23.
  • The Flyers led in shot attempts 48-35.

SHAVINGS

  • Alex Ovechkin scored his 10th goal of the season and his 716th career goal to extend the Capitals’ lead to 4-2. Ovechkin sits two goals shy of passing Phil Esposito (717g) for the sixth-most goals in NHL history.
  • Ovechkin trails only Ray Bourque (6,209 shots) for the most shots in NHL history.
  • With a goal and an assist tonight, Jensen has recorded his seventh career multi-point game and his first as a member of the Capitals.
  • John Carlson recorded the secondary assist on Dowd’s goal, his second assist of the game. It marks Carlson’s 18th assist of the season, which ranks second on the Capitals (Nicklas Backstrom: 20).
  • Garnet Hathaway recorded the primary assist on Dowd’s goal, his second assist of the game. It marks Hathaway’s eighth career multi-point game and his second as a member of the Capitals.
  • Nic Dowd has scored the game-winning goal in consecutive games. He’s the only player on the Capitals this season to record the game-winning goal in back-to-back games.
  • Nicklas Backstrom recorded an assist against Philadelphia, marking his 20th assist of the season. Backstrom‘s 30 points (10g, 20a) leads the Capitals and currently ranks 10th in the NHL.
  • Backstrom has recorded a point in 20 of the Capitals’ 27 games this season.

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By Jon Sorensen

 

About Jon Sorensen

Jon has been a Caps fan since day one, attending his first game at the Capital Centre in 1974. His interest in the Caps has grown over the decades and included time as a season ticket holder. He has been a journalist covering the team for 10+ years, primarily focusing on analysis, analytics and prospect development.
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8 Responses to Capitals Down Flyers, 5-4; Alex Ovechkin Scores Goal #716

  1. Anonymous says:
    March 13, 2021 at 9:40 pm

    Getting tired of the meltdowns in the third….

    Reply
  2. Jon Sorensen says:
    March 13, 2021 at 11:02 pm
    Reply

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