The Washington Capitals scored twice in a first-period span of 5:06 and held on for a 3-1 win over the visiting Boston Bruins in a New Year’s Eve matinee on Tuesday.
Aliaksei Protas scored two bookending goals around Jakob Chychrun’s game-winner for the Capitals, who overcame an early one-goal deficit to avenge a 4-1 loss in Boston in Dec. 23 with their second victory in three games.
Tom Wilson dished out a pair of assists for Washington, and Logan Thompson made 11 of his 26 saves in the third period en route to his third straight win.
Chychrun’s goal was his 11th of the season, tying him for the NHL lead among defensemen.
Justin Brazeau opened the scoring with his third goal in four games while Jeremy Swayman stopped 24 shots for Boston, which finished 9-4-1 in December despite losing two of its last three.
Both teams had 27 shots on goal. Washington was 1-for-2 on the power play and blocked 28 attempts to make the difference in the game.
Boston logged the game’s first five shots during a roaring start, but it was a fortunate bounce that led to the opening goal at the 1:21 mark. Parker Wotherspoon’s dump-in banked off an end-wall stanchion and right to Brazeau in the low slot, where he chipped the puck past Thompson.
The hosts took control of the scoreboard and the shot counter before the end of the first period, though, after getting a game-tying goal at 12:05. Pierre-Luc Dubois slid a centering pass out to the front of the net, and Protas lifted it home over Swayman’s shoulder.
Chychrun’s power-play marker with 2:49 left in the first gave Washington the lead as he closed down the right wing and fired in a hard snap shot from the top of the circle.
The Bruins totaled just two shots across two unsuccessful man advantages in the second period and another pair through the first 12-plus minutes in the final frame.
A late-game surge from the visitors saw Thompson make multiple key saves on David Pastrnak inside the final four minutes and withstand a flurry after Swayman was pulled for an extra attacker.
Protas scored an empty-net goal with 8.9 seconds left to ice the game.
–Field Level Media
