Photo: Patrick Smith/Getty Images
The Washington Capitals defeated the Minnesota Wild by a score of 3-2 in a shootout Friday night at Capital One Arena. The win improved the Capitals’ record to 3-3-1 and 7 points on the season. Goaltender Darcy Kuemper made 39 saves in the victory.
Lines & Pairs
Alex Ovechkin – Dylan Strome – Tom Wilson
Sonny Milano – Evgeny Kuznetsov – T.J. Oshie
Connor McMichael – Nicklas Backstrom – Anthony Mantha
Beck Malenstyn – Aliaksei Protas – Matthew Phillips
Martin Fehervary – John Carlson
Rasmus Sandin – Trevor van Riemsdyk
Alex Alexeyev – Nick Jensen
Darcy Kuemper
Hunter Shepard
Scratches: Center Nic Dowd and defensemen Hardy Häman Aktell and Lucas Johansen
Injuries: Goaltender Charlie Lindgren (upper-body), defenseman Joel Edmundson (hand; long-term injured reserve), and forward Max Pacioretty (Achilles; long-term injured reserve)
First Period
Not even three minutes into the period, Minnesota center Marco Rossi would give the Wild an early 1-0 lead.
What a SNIPE from Marco! 🎯#mnwild pic.twitter.com/9zJomeE9BR
— Minnesota Wild (@mnwild) October 27, 2023
Notching his first of the season, Wilson would tie the game at 1-1 with a shorthanded beauty at the 9:49 mark. McMichael (1) and van Riemsdyk (1) assisted.
Willy with the shorty snipe pic.twitter.com/hjFAksfFMV
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) October 27, 2023
Strome (5) would give the Capitals a 2-1 lead on a power-play opportunity late in the opening frame. Ovechkin (4) and Kuznetsov (4) had the assists.
Dylan Strome has five goals in his last four games pic.twitter.com/KlVe9C6Jix
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) October 27, 2023
Quick Stats
SOG: 15-8 Wild
Face-Off Win %: 60% (Wild), 40% (Capitals)
Hits: 4-3 Capitals
Second Period
The middle frame would go scoreless.
Quick Stats
Total SOG: 21-14 Wild
Face-Off Win %: 51% (Capitals), 48% (Wild)
Total Hits: 9-6 Wild
Third Period
Minnesota right-wing Ryan Hartman would tie the game at 2-2 just 1:16 into the final stanza on a breakaway.
HARTZY ON THE BREAKAWAY AND WE ARE TIED#mnwild pic.twitter.com/eMe1fzmGTi
— Minnesota Wild (@mnwild) October 28, 2023
Quick Stats
Total SOG: 36-31 Wild
Face-Off Win %: 52% (Capitals), 47% (Wild)
Total Hits: 10-8 Wild
Overtime & Shootout
Neither team could covert during 3-on-3 five-minute overtime, and the game went into a shootout. The Capitals would win 3-2 with a goal from Carlson in the seventh round.
Carly FTW pic.twitter.com/fNs4CPhKSY
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) October 28, 2023
Notes Through the Game
- Wilson’s eight career shorthanded goals are tied with Matt Pettinger for the eighth-most in franchise history.
- Wilson extended his point streak to three games (1g, 2a).
- McMichael has registered two points (1g, 1a) in his last two games, including the game-winning goal on Wednesday against New Jersey.
- Ovechkin extended his point streak to five games (2g, 4a). Ovechkin has recorded 37 points (19g, 18a) in 22 career games against Minnesota (1.68 P/GP).
- Kuznetsov passed Bengt Gustafsson (554) for the eighth-most points in franchise history. He is now three assists shy of passing Mike Gartner (392) for the fifth-most assists in franchise history.
- Carlson’s shootout goal marked his fourth career shootout goal and first since December 6, 2021, versus Anaheim.
- Kuemper, originally drafted by Minnesota with the 161st overall pick in the 2009 NHL Draft, stopped 39 of 41 shots (.951 SV%) tonight to earn his fourth career victory against the Wild.
The Capitals tangle with the San Jose Sharks at Capital One Arena on Sunday. Monumental Sports Network will have the coverage beginning at 5 PM ET.
By Della Young
Rather entertaining!
Good win, helps them mentally and they get confidence. DK wasn’t hung out to dry, the D was better at protecting the net this game. And more importantly, they didn’t have a 2nd period melt down!
PK and Darcy came up tremendously this game.
Jensen still sucks, Trade him when Edmundson and Patches are healthy.
I still don’t understand putting Ovi out on a shootout.
As soon as it started, I said the same thing to my wife. I wanted to see McMichael personally. Even Phillips. The goalies will have little to no idea what to expect methinks.
Fyre, I don’t get it either. As great a scorer as Ovi has been, shootouts are not one of his strong points. But it’s not just Ovi. TJ, who used to be a shootout artist, seems a bit slow to me now. Kuzy, as good as he has been, has turned into a 1 trick pony. And please don’t get me started on Backy. SMH As our players age not only are their feet not as quick but their hands as well. Our shootout lineup needs to go a lot younger. Get our quick hands guys out there. Strome, Milano, Kuzy, CMac. If the shootout runs long like last night, then you are going to have to through in a few of the older guys. But on the horizon, we are headed down a much different path. In a year, two tops, our shootout lineup is going to look like, Strome, Milano, CMac, Miro, Crystal, Sudzy, Leonard, etc. Ok, I guess I just showed my impatience. Lol BTW, that move Milano made last night batting the puck out of the air and get a shot off before the puck hit the ice was SICK!
I wish I could have seen Chia batting the puck.
Tricky shooters can be clever no matter their age. Ovi is not a tricky shooter. Kuzy is. Osh used to be but I think he is now too set in his ways and predictable. I have always felt (without any evidence, just my gut) that new players have an edge — no one knows them. Of course, if you get a power shooter like Ovi, it doesn’t matter how new you are. But I do think being unknown helps. But, as I said, no evidence to back that up.
Talking about tricky shooters, what has happened to Sudz?
And finally, when talking about long shootouts:
The Florida Panthers (USA) needed 20 shootout rounds to finally defeat the Washington Capitals (USA), 2–1, on 16 December 2014, in the longest shootout in NHL history. The Capitals and Panthers set three other records during this shootout: most shootout goals by both teams (11), the most shootout goals by a single team (Florida, with six); and the most shootout saves by a goaltender (Florida’s Roberto Luongo, with 15).
The previous record for the longest shootout was 15 rounds when the New York Rangers (USA) beat the Capitals on 26 November 2005.
Why did Phillips and Protas play just a couple of minutes each, does anyone know?
Another great game to watch
Please give me your definition of great! It seems that listening to the games (and its the same in other sports) the word great it thrown around way to much. Is it a great game every game they win? I was watching a football game and the announcer said “That was a great run” and it went for a total of 4 yard and it was not a TD or a 1stdown or even just chewing up the clock as it was in the 1st quarter. Locker also uses the word “Great” to define a lot of passes that are just ordinary passes and the same with shots and hits. IDK maybe its just that I have been watching sports for over 60 years and have seen great plays in all sports and just think great is overused. It was a good game but not great!
In the past, great announcers used descriptive words — it was a determined run, or tricky pass, or clever use of the clock. But we have simplified our play calling as well as misusing a lot of words. No one is drugged down the field or else we need to call the DEA. We stand on a podium but behind a lectern. We lay the ball down but we lie down. Finally, unique means one of a kind. Can we really have something that is most one of a kind?
Yes, I’m a boomer and my father was a HS English teacher so I’m probably more sensitive than most (a Professor Higgins). But often it is extremely painful to listen to sports announcers and is even getting painful to read some articles. Comments, ok, I can live with errors. But when people are paid to speak or write, they should do it properly.