Capitals Rally To Beat Islanders, 4-3 (OT)

Posted on January 16, 2023 by Jon Sorensen
Photo by Mike Stobe/NHLI via Getty Images

The Washington Capitals rallied from a 3-0 deficit in the second period to down the New York Islanders, 4-3 (OT), Monday night at UBS Arena in Belmont Park, New York. The victory improves the Capitals record to 24-16-6 (54 points) on the season.

Darcy Kuemper (12-11-0-4, 2.54 GAA, .918 sv%) got the start between the pipes for the Capitals. Ilya Sorokin (15-14-0-2, 2.25 GAA, .927 sv%) got the start in goal for the Islanders. The starting forward lines and defensive pairs for the Capitals:

Alex Ovechkin — Dylan Strome — Connor Sheary
Anthony Mantha — Evgeny Kuznetsov — T.J. Oshie
Sonny Milano — Nicklas Backstrom — Tom Wilson
Marcus Johansson — Nic Dowd — Garnet Hathaway

Erik Gustafsson — Trevor van Riemsdyk
Dmitry Orlov — Nick Jensen
Matt Irwin — Martin Fehervary

Darcy Kuemper
Charlie Lindgren

Extras: Lars Eller, Nicolas Aube-Kubel, Alex Alexeyev

FIRST PERIOD

It took the Islanders all of 4:36 to dent the twine early in the first frame. Sebastian Aho (4) fired the game’s first salvo from the left point at 4:24. Josh Bailey (12) and Noah Dobson (17) had the helpers.

Capitals center Nic Dowd took a hit in the early going, and would leave the game. He came back for a twirl, minutes later, but went right back down the tunnel.

The Islanders made it 2-0 midway through the first frame on a goal from Matt Martin (4) at 13:19 of the first period. Cal Clutterbuck (4) and Alexander Romanov (4) had the assists.

That would be it for the opening period. The Islanders led in 5v5 shot attempts 15-13 in the first period.

SECOND PERIOD

The Islanders made it 3-0 early in the middle frame. Hudson Fasching (3) notched the Islanders third marker at 3:51 of the period. Jean-Gabriel Pageau (16) and Anthony Beauvillier (9) had the assists.

Alex Ovechkin lowered the boom on Jean-Gabriel Pageau early in the period. The hit would prove to be a momentum-builder for the Capitals.

The referees reviewed the play and the hit was deemed legal. Pageau would leave the game but return in the third period.

The Capitals finally got on the scoreboard moments later with a goal from Garnet Hathaway (7) at 10:01, making it 3-1. Alex Ovechkin (20) and Marcus Johansson (11) had the helpers.

Hathaway has recorded six points (3g, 3a) in his last nine games and scored Washington’s first goal of the game in two of their last three contests.

The Capitals quickly cut the Islanders lead to one on Tom Wilson’s first goal of the season. Nicklas Backstrom (2) and Dmitry Orlov (11) had the assists.

That would be it for the middle frame, with the Islanders leading 3-2. The Capitals grabbed control of possession following the hit by Ovechkin, leading in shot attempts, 20-13.

THIRD PERIOD

The Capitals tied the game early in the final frame with a tally from T.J. Oshie (9) at 5:54 of the third period. Erik Gustafsson (15) and Evgeny Kuznetsov (31) had the assists.

That would be it for regulation, with the game tied 3-3.

OVERTIME

The Capitals won it in overtime. Dmitry Orlov had the honors of completing the Capitals hard-fought comeback. Orlov would use finesse, rather than a blast from the point, to drop the hammer on the Islanders.

The Capitals have a record of 8-1-0 in their last nine road games, dating back to to Dec. 5.

Darcy Kuemper stopped 27 of 30 shots faced, including all 13 shots faced in the third period and overtime. Kuemper has a record of 8-2-3 in his last 13 starts.

The Capitals, who trailed 3-2 entering the third period, have now won four games this season in which they trailed after two periods. That’s tied the for the third-most wins when trailing after two periods in the NHL this season.

The Capitals overcame a 3-0 deficit to beat the Islanders, marking their largest comeback win of the season. The last time Washington overcame a three-goal deficit to win a game was Jan. 28, 2021, also vs. the Islanders.

The Capitals are back in action tomorrow (Tuesday) night when they host the Minnesota Wild at Capital One Arena. Puck drop is set for 7PM.

SHAVINGS

  • Garnet Hathaway scored his seventh goal of the season to cut the deficit to 3-1. Hathaway has recorded six points (3g, 3a) in his last nine games.
  • Alex Ovechkin recorded the primary assist on Hathaway’s goal, his 20th assist of the season and the 650th of his career. Since entering the NHL in 2005-06, Ovechkin’s 650 assists rank 10th in the NHL. In that same span, Ovechkin leads the NHL in goals with 810, holding a 272-goal lead over the next-closest player.
  • Tom Wilson scored his first goal of the season to make the score 3-2. Wilson has recorded 17 points (8g, 9a) in 40 career games against the Islanders, the third-most point he has against a single franchise (New Jersey: 19p in 36 GP; Philadelphia: 18p in 40 GP).
  • T.J. Oshie scored his ninth goal of the season to tie the game 3-3. Oshie has recorded 32 points (16g, 16a) in 39 career games against the Islanders.
  • Erik Gustafsson recorded the primary assist on Oshie’s goal, his 19th assist of the season. Gustafsson has recorded 16 points (7g, 9a) in his last 14 games, dating back to Dec. 17. During that span, Gustafsson’s 16 points are tied for the third most among NHL defensemen.
  • T.J. Oshie recorded the primary assist on Orlov’s overtime goal, his second point (1g, 1a) of the game. It marks Oshie’s seventh assist of the season and his third assist on a game-winning goal.
  • Sonny Milano recorded the secondary assist on Orlov’s goal, his 20th point (7g, 13a) in 33 games this season.

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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13 Responses to Capitals Rally To Beat Islanders, 4-3 (OT)

  1. Anonymous says:
    January 16, 2023 at 10:17 pm

    Maybe the first game I have really enjoyed this year. Great comeback but finally playing with some fire and toughness.

    Reply
  2. Anonymous says:
    January 16, 2023 at 10:57 pm

    Ovi hit turned the game on its ears.

    Reply
  3. Diane Doyle says:
    January 16, 2023 at 10:59 pm

    Comeback wins have been few and far between this season. But it happened tonight. Orlov lived up to his last name and flew like an eagle.

    Reply
  4. Jon Sorensen says:
    January 16, 2023 at 11:32 pm

    Reply
  5. Mark Eiben says:
    January 17, 2023 at 9:24 am

    What a game. I thoroughly enjoyed that 2nd period and on to the end. Really great efforts and skills on all the Caps goals. Glad we still have Eller because the Dowd injury didn’t look good. Is there any update on his status or when might we know about his injury?

    Reply
    • Jon Sorensen says:
      January 17, 2023 at 9:58 am

      We could learn more about Dowd injury when Laviolette meets with the media at 4:45 this afternoon. However, the team has been rather tight-lipped with regards to injury details this season, so I would expect a lot of information. May e just that he is in/out for tonight’s game.

      Reply
      • Mark Eiben says:
        January 17, 2023 at 10:27 am

        I’m worried because it looked like the Connor Brown or Tom Wilson injury to me. Would not be surprised if he is out for 6 to 8 months.

        Reply
  6. horn73 says:
    January 17, 2023 at 9:53 am

    okay, how did Milano get an assist on the game winner? I mean he hadn’t touched the puck in over 10 seconds and multiple passes between Oshi and Orlov.

    But it happened on the road so not home cooking, but I don’t get it,

    Reply
  7. James says:
    January 17, 2023 at 11:21 am

    Wow! I think it may have been better to win this way than to have gone out and just dominated for the whole game.

    Reply

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