Despite a poor start to the game, the Capitals forced a deficit and forced a poor quarter on Philadelphia Flyers goaltender Samuel Ersson in a 5-2 win in Washington on Friday night.
The visitors took control with two goals in the first half, but the home team came back with five unanswered goals. The “Caps” only needed 21 shots to win, with Ersson only blocking 16 pucks.
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The team's big guns did some damage, especially Alexander Ovechkin, who scored his 17th goal of the season. The Russian surprised the opposing goalkeeper with a quick shot after a throw-in.
It was Ovechkin's 839th career goal that enabled him to overtake Wayne Gretzky as the top scorer in history in March. The Capitals captain hit the target 145 times in 245 games in the third month of the year.
Anthony Mantha and Dylan Strome, Washington's top two sharpshooters in 2023-2024, shook things up in the third period. Sonny Milan and John Carlson were the other scorers, while Hendrix Lapierre, Max Pacioretty, Tom Wilson and Strome had two assists.
Wilson and former teammate Garnet Hathaway exchanged pleasantries at the end of the game, even before the puck was placed for the faceoff. The Capitals strongman had time to throw several good punches before being knocked to the ground by his rival.