Capitals Ground Lightning, 5-3; Connor McMichael Scores Two Goals For Second Consecutive Game


Photo: X/@Capitals

The Washington Capitals downed the Tampa Bay Lightning, 5-3, Thursday night at Amalie Arena in Tampa. The victory improves Washington’s record to 26-21-8 (60 points) on the season.

The Capitals grabbed an early lead on a nifty backhander by Nicolas Aube-Kubel less than three minutes into the contest and Connor McMichael added his third goal in four periods for a 2-0 lead at the first intermission.

The Lightning closed the gap to a goal midway through the second period but the Capitals quickly answered less than three minutes later on Anthony Mantha’s 18th goal of the season to make it 3-1 at the second intermission.

The Lightning closed the gap to a goal early in the final frame and tied the game 24 seconds later, making it 3-3 just three minutes into the third period. But the Capitals answered late on Rasmus Sandin’s third goal of the season and Connor McMichael added an empty net goal to make it 5-3, the final.

LINEUP

Charlie Lindgren (11-8-4, 2.62 GAA, .915 sv%) got the start in goal for the visiting Capitals. Andrei Vasilevskiy (19-13-0, 2.95 GAA, .898 sv%) got the start between the pipes for the Lightning. The starting forward lines and defensive pairs for the Capitals:

Alex Ovechkin – Dylan Strome – T.J. Oshie
Anthony Mantha – Connor McMichael – Tom Wilson
Max Pacioretty – Mike Sgarbossa – Sonny Milano
Beck Malenstyn – Aliaksei Protas – Nicolas Aube-Kubel

Trevor van Riemsdyk – John Carlson
Rasmus Sandin – Nick Jensen
Joel Edmundson – Ethan Bear

Charlie Lindgren
Darcy Kuemper

Scratches: Nic Dowd (upper body injury, day-to-day), Pierrick Dube, Alex Alexeyev, Nicklas Backstrom (hip).

1ST PERIOD

The Capitals opened the scoring early in the first period on a close-range backhander from Nicolas Aube-Kubel (6) at 2:30 of the frame. Beck Malenstyn (9) had the lone helper.

They stretched their lead to 2-0 on Connor McMichael’s (11) third goal in the last two games at 16:19. Joel Edmundson (4) and Tom Wilson (10) had the helpers.

The Capitals held the 2-0 lead into the first intermission. The Lightning led in five-on-five shot attempts, 19-15. The Capitals led in five-on-five shot attempts, 15-7 in the second period.

2ND PERIOD

The Lightning cut the Capitals lead to one midway through the middle frame on a shot from the left-slot by Brandon Hagel (21) at 9:16.

But the Capitals restored their two-goal lead less than three minutes later on Anthony Mantha’s 18th goal of the season at 12:14. Dylan Strome (19) and T.J. Oshie (8) had the assists.

The Capitals held the 3-1 lead into the second intermission. The Capitals doubled up the Bolts in five-on-five shot attempts, 15-7 in the middle frame and led in high-danger chances, 5-0 and xGF 1.35 to .72 after two periods.

3RD PERIOD

The Lightning made it 3-2 early in the third period on Nicholas Paul’s 15th goal of the season at 2:42. The

The Lightning tied the game less than a minute later on Tyler Motte’s 5th goal of the season at 3:06.

T.J. Oshie left the game late in the third period on a non-contact play. He did not return.

The Capitals regained the lead on Rasmus Sandin’s third goal of the season at 15:01. Aliaksei Protas (19) and Dylan Strome (20) had the helpers.

Connor McMichael (12) added an empty net goal to make it 5-3, the final. It was McMichael’s second consecutive two-goal game. Nic Jensen (9) and Tom Wilson (11) had the assists.

NHL Box Score

SHAVINGS

  • Beck Malenstyn recorded the primary assist on Aube-Kubel’s goal, his ninth assist of the season. Malenstyn has recorded three points (1g, 2a) in his last six games.
  • Anthony Mantha scored his 18th goal of the season to put the Capitals ahead 3-1. Seventeen of Mantha’s 18 goals have come at five-on-five, which leads Washington.
  • Dylan Strome tallied his 19th assist of the season on Mantha’s goal, extending his point streak to three games (1g, 4a). Strome, who has recorded 40 points (21g, 19a) in 55 games, has reached the 40-point mark for the third consecutive season and the fourth time in his career.
  • T.J. Oshie was credited with the secondary assist on Mantha’s goal, his eighth assist of the season. Oshie’s 35 points (16g, 19a) in 27 career games against the Lightning are the most he has registered against one franchise.
  • Connor McMichael scored his second goal of the game on an empty-net to make it 5-3. It marks McMichael’s second-straight multi-goal game and his fifth goal in his last four games dating back to Feb. 13 vs. Colorado.
  • Tom Wilson was credited with the secondary assist on McMichael’s empty-net goal. With two assists tonight, Wilson recorded his fourth multi-point game of the season and the 59th of his career.
  • Nick Jensen registered the primary assist on Washington’s fifth goal, his ninth assist of the season. Jensen has tallied two assists in his last three games.

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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