The Washington Capitals welcomed the Dallas Stars to Capital One Arena for an interconference battle between two teams looking to get back to their winning ways. Washington’s injury issues have contributed to a 3-4-2 record since Dec. 20, while Dallas has posted a 1-4-3 mark over that same time span. After 60 minutes of regulation hockey, Dallas celebrated a 4-1 win over the Capitals to put an end to a six-game losing skid.
Game Recap
Washington started the game with an early power-play opportunity after Ilya Lyubushkin was whistled for a holding infraction against Jakob Chychrun less than three minutes into the game. A short-handed Radek Faksa flipped a harmless-looking shot at Logan Thompson, but the Capitals netminder couldn’t control the rebound before the Stars forward slammed it into the back of the net for an early road lead.
Sam Steel doubled the Dallas lead at 2:37 of the second period after Matt Duchene and Thomas Harley confused the Capitals’ defense on a zone entry play before the Stars defenseman located his teammate at the top of the crease for an easy tap-in goal. Despite some heavy pressure in the middle frame, Dallas was unable to slip another puck past Thompson.
Washington’s goalie stood on his head early in the third period to keep the Capitals in the contest, including a pair of timely saves to deny Roope Hintz on the power play. Alex Ovechkin gave the home fans a reason to cheer by ending Casey DeSmith‘s shutout bid with under three minutes to play. It was Ovechkin’s 18th goal of the season and 915th regular-season tally of his career.
Hintz finally got his third-period goal by sniping the empty net with 18 seconds remaining for a 4-1 final score. With the win, Dallas improves to 26-10-8, while Washington’s record slips to 22-16-6 on the 2025-26 campaign.
Up Next
Washington hits the road for a two-game road trip starting on Friday night at the United Center against the Chicago Blackhawks. Dallas seeks to keep the good times rolling at the midway point of a six-game road trip with a Saturday afternoon date against the San Jose Sharks at the SAP Center up next on their NHL calendar.
