NHL Roundup: Capitals Outlast Canadiens 5-4, Stars Beat Avalanche 3-2 in Shootout

Capitals edge Canadiens as Tuch leads Washington with 3 Points

 

Alex Tuch powered the Capitals past the Canadiens in a wild 5-4 finish in Montreal, while Roope Hintz sealed a shootout winner as the Stars rallied to edge the Avalanche in Wednesday's two-game NHL slate.

Capitals survive Habs, Stars Stun Avs in shootout thriller. Hintz nets shootout winner after Hyry short-hander...

The Washington Capitals outlasted the Montreal Canadiens in a back-and-forth battle, while the Dallas Stars beat the Colorado Avalanche in a shootout on Wednesday's two-game slate.

Capitals Edge Canadiens 5-4 in Thriller

The Montreal Canadiens held a 2-1 lead as the first period wound down, but Washington Capitals winger Ivan Miroshnichenko scored his first goal of the season on the team's third power play of the night to level it at 2-2 with under 30 seconds remaining.

Washington's Alex Tuch broke the deadlock with a no-look, short-handed wrister to make it 3-2 six minutes into the second period.

Six minutes later, Josh Anderson netted the equalizer for his second goal of the game and fourth of the season to tie it again heading into the final frame.

Justin Holl (2) and Tuch (5) added just enough insurance for the Caps to secure the win despite a late third-period goal from Montreal's Nick Suzuki (4).

Montreal outshot Washington 29-24. The Canadiens went 1-for-2 on the power play, while the Caps finished 1-for-4. Tuch led all skaters with three points (2G, 1A) as Washington improved to 4-3-0. He is now tied with teammate Ryan Leonard for the team lead in points this season with six.

The Habs dropped to 3-3-1.

Stars Survive Avalanche 3-2 in Shootout

Despite five combined penalties in the first period, neither team capitalized on the man advantage and headed into the second frame scoreless. It wasn't until Gabriel Landeskog broke the deadlock with his second goal of the season to put Colorado ahead 1-0.

The Avalanche had a chance to double the lead after eight minutes, but the goal was overturned for offside upon review.

Almost 10 minutes later, Miro Heiskanen tied it for Dallas with his third of the season. Following a penalty-free second period, the Avalanche earned a prime opportunity when Mikko Rantanen was assessed a two-minute minor for tripping the game's only power play of the third period.

But it was Dallas' Arttu Hyry who put his team ahead 2-1 with a short-handed goal the first of his season.

Seven minutes later, Avalanche veteran Brock Nelson forced overtime with the equalizer. In the shootout, Roope Hintz delivered the winner for Dallas his first shootout goal since February 25, 2023, against the Vegas Golden Knights, which also finished 3-2.

Colorado outshot Dallas 27-22. Both teams went a combined 0-for-6 on the power play (DAL 0-for-2, COL 0-for-4). The Stars improved to 3-3-1, while the Avalanche dropped to 4-3-0.