The Washington Capitals are getting into a groove under coach Peter Laviolette’s system, finding ways to win even without contributions from stars like Nicklas Backstrom and Alexander Ovechkin.
Garnet Hathaway and Daniel Sprong scored within the first five minutes, as the Capitals surged to an early three-goal lead and held off a New Jersey Devils rally to secure a 5-2 victory on Saturday.
Lars Eller, who added the third goal in the strong opening period, believes Washington is hitting its stride with a 5-1-1 run following a four-game losing streak.
“I think Pittsburgh (Thursday) was maybe our best game of the season, and today we finally came out with a really good start,” Eller said. “I’m encouraged by what I’ve seen lately, especially in the last two games, but also over the past five or seven games.”
Jakub Vrana scored on a breakaway in the third period, and Nic Dowd added an empty-net goal as the Capitals maintained control after the Devils closed within a goal. Rookie goalie Vitek Vanecek made 22 saves to earn his ninth win.
Nico Hischier and Pavel Zacha scored for the second consecutive game for New Jersey, which has now lost four of its last five games. Mackenzie Blackwood made 19 saves as the Devils opened a five-game homestand.
Devils coach Lindy Ruff criticized his team’s poor start.
“We weren’t ready to play,” Ruff said. “We weren’t ready to compete. We turned a lot of pucks over, and it looked like we wanted to be a little bit of a fancy team. Our wall battles weren’t great to start the game. The last 40 minutes were the team I like to see, but the first 20 were totally unacceptable.”
The Capitals, who had rallied from a two-goal deficit to beat the Devils last Sunday, learned from that experience and started strong.
Hathaway scored at 3:36, finishing off a crisp cross-ice pass from defenseman Justin Schultz.
Sprong, playing in place of the injured Evgeny Kuznetsov, deflected a point shot by Brenden Dillon past Blackwood at 5:06.
Eller, who scored in his second consecutive game, capped off a 3-on-1 break by converting a setup from Conor Sheary, who used Ovechkin as a decoy on the rush.
Hathaway credited the team’s success to their understanding of Laviolette’s system.
“When guys aren’t wasting time or energy or thinking too much, that’s when we anticipate the play and let our work ethic take over,” Hathaway said. “That’s what creates our offense.”
Hischier, who left the ice after being struck in the face by a deflected shot with 4:23 remaining, pulled New Jersey back into the game by scoring from close range in the final minutes of the first period.
Zacha extended his scoring streak to nine games by netting a goal from between the circles in the second period while Vanecek was playing without his stick.
Ruff mentioned that Hischier was hit in the shield, which may have lessened the impact. “It hit him really hard, but fortunately, it seems like it hit the shield or helmet,” Ruff said.
Vanecek made several key saves early in the third period to keep Washington ahead, and Vrana sealed the game by slipping the puck through Blackwood’s pads on a breakaway.
JOHN CARLSON ON STREAK:
“I think we’re definitely not satisfied yet,” Capitals defenseman John Carlson said. “It’s been better, but you can’t say you’re there after just six games. We still have a lot to learn, a lot to clean up, and a lot we can improve on. We’re confident in our team, but we know we’ve got a long way to go.”
Game Notes:
The Devils presented Travis Zajac with a silver stick before the game in honor of his 1,000th game milestone last weekend. New Jersey reassigned defenseman Connor Carrick from the taxi squad to Binghamton (AHL) and recalled defenseman Matt Tennyson from Binghamton to the taxi squad. Carlson recorded two assists and is now three points shy of 500. Backstrom remains one assist away from reaching 700.
UP NEXT:
- The Capitals and Devils meet again at the Prudential Center for a 3 p.m. game on Sunday.
