WASHINGTON — Nick Schmaltz secured victory for the Utah Hockey Club by scoring the deciding goal in the shootout, leading his team to a thrilling 5-4 win against the Washington Capitals on Sunday.
The team from Utah showcased a strong offensive performance, with Josh Doan and Dylan Guenther each contributing a goal and an assist. Michael Carcone and Jack McBain also found the back of the net, helping Utah to now secure three wins in their last four matches. They quickly took the lead in this contest, with Doan netting a goal just over a minute into the game, quickly followed by Carcone’s goal only 32 seconds later.
On the other end, Connor Ingram made nine saves out of 11 shots before leaving due to an upper-body injury. Karel Vejmelka took over in goal, successfully stopping 30 of the 32 shots faced and blocking all three attempts during the shootout.
The Capitals’ offense was highlighted by Tom Wilson, who scored two goals, while Alex Ovechkin added three assists. Dylan Strome and Pierre-Luc Dubois also contributed with goals, although the Capitals have struggled recently, now dropping three of their last five games. Logan Thompson, who had been second in the NHL for save percentage prior to this game, recorded 24 saves.
Notable highlights from the game included Dylan Guenther’s impressive performance, as he extended his point streak to four games, accumulating a total of seven points during this stretch and marking his first time reaching 20 goals in a season. Meanwhile, the Capitals managed to break their power-play drought, scoring two goals in their two opportunities on the man advantage after previously failing to convert in three games.
A pivotal moment occurred when a late comeback by the Capitals forced the match into overtime and subsequently a shootout, where Schmaltz executed a skillful deke on Thompson to score, sealing the game for Utah.
In a significant statistic, although Alex Ovechkin did not close in on Wayne Gretzky’s all-time scoring record, his three assists extended his point streak to five games. This performance elevated him past Phil Esposito on the NHL’s all-time points list, placing him in 11th.
Looking ahead, the Capitals will take a break for the 4 Nations Face-Off before facing off against the Pittsburgh Penguins on February 22. Meanwhile, the Utah Hockey Club will head to Los Angeles on the same day.
