Last night, the Washington Capitals and the New York Rangers battled for the first time since last season’s first-round NHL playoff series, resulting in a sweep by the Rangers. This time in D.C., the goalie hugs at the end of the game went joyful following a 5-3 win for the Washington Capitals at Capital One Arena.
Alex Ovechkin skated closer to history with a pair of goals and Washington was able to hold off a scrappy Rangers team in the third period. It’s a big win for the Washington Capitals picking up two points in the standings against one of the Metro’s best squads. The Capitals are home in D.C. for four of the next five games, and it’s always good to get a win to start an extended home stand.
Game Summary of Washington Capitals 5-3 win
Alexander Ovechkin opened the scoring at 3:23 of the first period with a shot that beat New York goalie Igor Shesterkin through the five-hole. The Rangers responded quickly tying the game a minute later on a Will Cuyle goal. Ovechkin found the back of the net again at 5:10 to restore the Capitals advantage, 2-1. With his two goals on the night, Ovechkin’s regular-season goal total stands at 857 which is 38 shy of breaking Gretzky’s record.
Connor McMichael made it 3-1 in favor of the Washington Capitals midway through the first period after a Taylor Raddysh shot deflected off the forward and into the net. New York scored early in the second period on a Chris Kreider Power Play goal to trim the lead to 3-2.
Four minutes later, Washington Capitals forward Aliaksei Protas scored on a hustle play to put the home squad back in front before the pendulum moved back to New York only 14 seconds later. Filip Chytil deflected a puck above the shoulder of Capitals backup goalie Logan Thompson for a 4-3 Washington lead. There were no goals in the third period until Nic Dowd hit an empty net from the defensive zone to seal the 5-3 win for Washington.
An early look at the Metro Standings
The Washington Capitals and the Carolina Hurricanes are tied for third place in the Metropolitan standings. Both teams are 6-2-0 after eight games with games in hand on the teams directly above them leaving them in a good early position to return to the postseason in 2024. Those two teams collide in a big-time contest this Sunday, November 3rd.
The New Jersey Devils have played the most games in the division and have come away with the most points as a result with a division-leading 14 points and a 6-4-2 record. The New York Rangers feature a 6-2-1 record over nine games this season, just one more than the Washington Capitals.
Any of the bottom four in the division still has an opportunity to cruise up the standings. Columbus, NY Islanders, Philadelphia, and Pittsburgh will still all play a major role in how the 2024-25 NHL season plays out.
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