Anthony Mantha and Alex Ovechkin scored and assisted, leading the Washington Capitals to a 4-1 win over the Seattle Kraken on Friday night.
Marcus Johansson and Lars Eller also found the back of the net, while Charlie Lindgren made 25 saves as the Capitals secured their first three-game winning streak of the season. Eller and Ovechkin added empty-net goals in the final 1:06, with Ovechkin’s tally marking his 796th career goal.
“We’ve just played amazing hockey,” Lindgren said. “Honestly, I think it’s been fun to play goal for this team all year, but especially the last few games, we’ve been playing incredibly. (We) We can’t get complacent; we must keep fighting and working.”
Adam Larsson scored for Seattle, and Philipp Grubauer stopped 34 shots, but the Kraken suffered their third consecutive loss.
Despite being outshot 12-6 in the first period, the Kraken struck first when Larsson netted his first goal in 20 games with a point shot through traffic just 2:09 before the intermission. It was the 18th time in 29 games that the Capitals conceded the first goal.
“Just go back to work. Tough stretches, they’re part of this,” Kraken coach Dave Hakstol said. “You have stretches where you play well, and things go your way. You have tough stretches on the schedule where you must step up and play good hockey. Our group is strong in the dressing room. Remain confident and do better than we did tonight.”
Washington finally tied the game at 5:20 of the second period when Mantha scored his seventh goal of the season, redirecting Matt Irwin’s shot off Jamie Oleksiak’s skate.
“Everyone was fired up… it’s just a big win and big points for our team right now,” Mantha said.
Shortly after recording his first NHL assist on Mantha’s goal, Alex Alexeyev left the game after taking an elbow to the head from Oleksiak, who received a match penalty. The Capitals capitalized on the ensuing five-minute power play, with Johansson scoring his sixth goal to give Washington a 2-1 lead with 6:45 left in the second period.
Notes
- Tom Wilson joined the Capitals on the ice for the first time this season at their morning skate on Friday.
- Seattle’s Shane Wright reported to Team Canada for the World Junior Championships.
- The Capitals’ Darcy Kuemper and Martin Fehervary missed their third straight game with upper-body injuries, while Dmitry Orlov has now missed 15 straight games.
- Kraken center Karson Kuhlman recorded an assist for his first point since Oct. 23 (seven games).
- Ovechkin now has 15 points in his last 11 games.
Up Next
Kraken: Continue their four-game trip at Florida on Sunday.
Capitals: Visit Winnipeg on Sunday for the first of two meetings this season.
