Strome scores game-winner to help Capitals beat Flyers originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington
One game after firing off 50 shots on their own in a 3-2 win over the Edmonton Oilers, the Capitals engaged in a grueling contest with the Philadelphia Flyers on Wednesday that saw the two teams combine for just 57 between them. Washington erased an early 1-0 deficit to finish its six-game road trip with a 4-1 win.
The Capitals entered the contest 0-6-2 on the season when trailing after the first period, struggling to dictate the pace of play when skating from behind. They snapped that skid thanks to the efforts of T.J. Oshie, who scored a power-play goal for the second-straight game, and a game-winning goal scored by Dylan Strome.
Winger Kevin Hayes got the Flyers on the board first with a power-play goal from the point late in the first period. The Capitals then spent almost the entire first four minutes of the second on the man advantage thanks to a pair of tripping penalties. Oshie ensured they wouldn’t waste it with a scorching slap shot from the slot to beat Flyers goalie Carter Hart.
Capitals netminder Charlie Lindgren started his second consecutive game in the place of the injured Darcy Kuemper (upper body), who was listed as day-to-day. He stopped 29 of 30 shots and held Philadelphia scoreless over the final two periods to push his record to 4-3-2 on the season with a .902 save percentage and 3.07 goals against average.
But the hero of the night proved to be Strome, who entered the contest with points in four of his last five games. The 25-year-old center has carved out significant roles on both the Capitals’ first line alongside Alex Ovechkin and Conor Sheary as well as their top power play unit. He registered the primary assist on Oshie’s goal before scoring the game-winner in the third.
Strome tapped the puck home on a redirect of John Carlson’s shot from the point. It marked the third time this season the pending restricted free agent has tallied both a goal and assist in a game. He ranks second on the team with 22 points thus far this year.
Alex Ovechkin then iced the game with a pair of empty netters, the 50th and 51st of his career. The tallies put him exactly 99 goals behind Wayne Gretzky for the most in NHL history with 795. He needs just six more to tie Gordie Howe for the No. 2 spot.
With the win, the Capitals pulled back to .500 for the first time since Nov. 11. The 12-12-4 squad will head home after 12 days on the road before hosting the Seattle Kraken at Capital One Arena on Friday.
Source: Yahoo Sports
