Capitals 3-2 Predators (Nov 6, 2024) Game Summary

On By Littum

WASHINGTON — – Alex Ovechkin scored the go-ahead goal midway through the third period to reach 861 in his career, and the Washington Capitals beat the struggling Nashville Predators 3-2 on Wednesday night.

Ovechkin beat Juuse Saros with 9:35 left in regulation for the lead his eighth goal of the season, tying Connor McMichael for the team lead. Ovechkin is now only 34 goals from breaking the record Wayne Gretzky’s NHL career goal record and is in the process of doing so before this season is over.

McMichael and Aliaksei Protas also scored for the Capitals, who have won nine of their first 12 games. Logan Thompson made 33 saves to improve to 6-0-0 in his first six starts with Washington.

The Predators’ woes continued despite 33 saves from Saros and goals from Juuso Parssinen and Steven Stamkos. Nashville has opened 4-8-1 after signing Stamkos, 2023 playoff MVP Jonathan Marchessault and defenseman Brady Skjei in a $100 million plus free agency expenses.

Takeaways

Predators: Coach Andrew Brunette acknowledged frustration seeping into his team’s play at not scoring, and hitting the posts and crossbar multiple times won’t help that effort.

Capitals: Matt Roy, injured in the season opener, had an assist in his 20:07 of ice time in his return.

Key moment

Officials waved off a possible Nashville goal with 7:47 left for goalie interference. Brunette challenged and the call stood, putting the Predators on the penalty kill for the next 2 minutes at a time they would have to push to try and tie it.

Key state

Dylan Strome, who set up Ovechkin’s goal, was the 200th assist of his career. Only two players in the league have more than Strome’s 15 assists this season.

Next

The Predators play the second half of their back-to-back Thursday night in Florida, while the Capitals host Pittsburgh on Friday night.

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AP NHL: