Capitals Win 5-4 Against Panthers
SUNRISE (AP) — Alex Ovechkin scored the go-ahead goal in the third period and had two assists and Troy Brouwer had two power-play goals Thursday night, lifting the Washington Capitals to a 5-4 victory over the Florida Panthers.
Nicklas Backstrom and Brooks Laich also tallied for the Capitals and Braden Holtby made 30 saves.
Brad Boyes scored twice for Florida, and Drew Shore and Tomas Fleischmann also had goals. Tim Thomas stopped 27 shots.
Ovechkin broke a 4-all tie in the third period when he took a pass from Laich on the right side and sent a one-timer past Thomas at 15:43 for his 41st goal.
The Capitals beat the Panthers for the ninth time in 10 meetings. Florida lost for the sixth time in seven games.
Down 4-2, the Panthers tied it in the first half of the third period with two goals 82 seconds apart.
Shore scored a power-play goal at 8:01 with a slap shot. Boyes tied it 4-all when he grabbed his own rebound and put it into the net at 9:23.
Brouwer's second power-play goal gave the Capitals a 4-2 lead. Thomas made a pad save on a shot by Ovechkin but lost his stick. Brouwer knocked in the loose puck with 47 seconds left in the second.
The Panthers tied the score at 2 just 40 seconds into the second. Boyes found a rebound at the right side of the net and poked in the puck.
The Capitals regained the lead about three minutes later. Backstrom took a rebound that went off a Panthers defenseman and put it into the net at 3:44.
The Capitals scored twice in the first period.
During a power play, John Carlson took a shot from the point that was blocked by Thomas. Brouwer grabbed the rebound after it deflected off Laich and backhanded it past Thomas at 5:48 to make it 1-0.
Laich then took a cross-ice pass from Ovechkin and scored on a one-timer from the right circle that went over Thomas's shoulder at 8:10.
The Panthers closed to 2-1 on Fleischmann's goal. Fleischmann took a pass from Jesse Winchester below the left circle and beat Holtby on the stick side at 15:27 of the first for his first goal in 23 games.
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