The Washington Capitals secured a critical two standings points following a 4-3 shootout victory over the Detroit Red Wings on Thursday night at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Michigan. While Red Wings forward Patrick Kane captured most headlines on a history-making night, Charlie Lindgren’s gutsy effort provided a massive win for Washington as the NHL nears its multi-week break in the schedule for the 2026 Winter Olympics.
A Victorious Lindgren Carried Off By Teammates
With Washington leading 3-1, Alex DeBrincat kick-started a wild finish in Detroit after scoring twice in 47 seconds to tie the game at three. His game-tying score deflected off the glass and through the pads of a confused netminder for some improbable bonus hockey.
In overtime, Lindgren clearly aggravated something on a shot at the buzzer when sliding from left to right to make a save. The 32-year-old netminder stayed on the ice for a few moments before gingerly skating over towards the Capitals bench.
Lindgren could barely move in the shootout to thwart an oncoming Red Wings attacker. Lucas Raymond and Kane scored easily, but they were matched by Dylan Strome and Ryan Leonard. Dylan Larkin drew iron on the crossbar, and Nic Dowd finished off the win with a third consecutive puck behind John Gibson to deflate a fired-up Michigan crowd.
Crazy scene for Capitals in Detroit:
— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) January 30, 2026
1) Logan Thompson not dressed; took a shot off the mask last game
2) Charlie Lindgren injured at the end of OT
3) Stays in for shootout…wins when Larkin hits crossbar
4) Carried off by his teammatespic.twitter.com/Oj7tFeqWBx
Washington’s backup netminder has encountered a bit of turbulence in 2025-26 with an 8-6-3 record with a 3.37 goals-against average (GAA) and .884 save percentage (SV%). In 39 games for Washington last season, Lindgren finished with a 20-14-3 record, a 2.73 GAA, and a .896 SV%. As evidenced in Thursday night’s win, he is going to be a very important player down the stretch for the Capitals if he doesn’t miss extended time due to injury.
Kane Secures Record for Points by a USA Hockey Player
Before his late-game heroics and injury-riddled win, Lindgren will garner an unwanted footnote in the NHL history books. At 9:52 of the second period, Kane picked up a secondary assist on Ben Chiarot’s game-tying goal. The assist was the 1,375th point of Kane’s incredible career, as he passed Mike Modano for the highest-scoring United States-born player in history.
It appeared the 37-year-old forward had completed the feat earlier in the contest, but a disallowed goal on an offside call put NHL fans back on milestone watch for another hour. “It’s nice to have it over with in some ways,” Kane said following the game. “Just kind of worry about the rest of the season, what we can accomplish as a team and hopefully go do something special as a group.”
Detroit sits in a good situation heading towards the NHL’s scheduled break. The Red Wings sit second in the Atlantic Division with 70 points behind a 32-17-6 record. That point total is battling the Tampa Bay Lightning (34-14-4, 72 points) and Carolina Hurricanes (33-15-4, 71 points) for the best record in the East in 2025-26.
Chris Patrick Has Tough Decisions Ahead of the NHL Trade Deadline
There are four games remaining on the NHL schedule before the 2026 Winter Olympics take over competition for a few weeks. Washington will play a handful of games, including four in six days, before a three-week break in NHL action. While it’s certainly not a make-or-break situation yet, things are getting dire for the Eastern Conference’s top team heading into the 2024-25 postseason.
As of Jan. 30, Washington is tied with the Florida Panthers at 59 points. That mark sits six points behind the Montreal Canadiens and Boston Bruins, who hold the final wild card spots following the 50-plus game mark. Chris Patrick, Washington’s general manager, will have some tough decisions to make over the next few weeks as the NHL barrels towards the 2026 NHL Trade Deadline. According to MoneyPuck, the Capitals own a 27.6% chance at making the postseason following last night’s win. Do you invest in a playoff push for Alex Ovechkin, or do you concede to an injury-plagued campaign by maintaining assets for the future?
A solid win streak can return Washington to postseason contention; however, any semblance of the 3-6-1 record like the last 10 games will keep the Capitals out of the postseason in 2026. Washington will play three games in four nights before the NHL goes on vacation. Those results will largely dictate how the Capitals plan their trade-deadline strategy during the scheduled break.
