Capitals Take 3-1 Series Lead Over Canadiens on Late Mangiapane Goal

Washington Capitals forward Andrew Mangiapane scored a late game-winning goal to help secure his team a 3-1 lead in their first-round series against the Montreal Canadiens. Two empty-net goals closed the scoring in what was an eventual 5-2 win at the Bell Centre on Sunday.

Game Recap

The Capitals trailed 2-1 heading into the third. However, things took a turn for the worse for the host Canadiens six minutes into the frame when Tom Wilson rocked Habs defenseman Alexandre Carrier with a huge hit. In the aftermath of the hit, with Carrier making his way to the bench, the Caps took advantage of an odd-man rush, when Brandon Duhaime bounced the puck in off Cole Caufield. Carrier left the game soon thereafter.

Coincidentally, Caufield had given the Canadiens a 2-1 lead heading into the third, when, on the power play, he one-timed a shot past Capitals goalie Logan Thompson, who was making a relatively surprise start after having left Game 3 with an apparent injury. Thompson made 16 saves on 18 shots in the game.

Juraj Slafkovsky initially got the Canadiens on the board midway through the second, when, also on the power play, rookie Ivan Demidov set him up from behind the net. That tied the score 1-1.

On the goal, Lane Hutson got the other assist, his first of two on the night. With the point, he took sole possession of the record for most assists by a rookie defenseman in NHL history in a regular season and playoffs, with 64, passing ex-Habs defenseman Chris Chelios (1984-85). He now has 65. He had tied Larry Murphy for the regular-season mark at 60 (1980-81) in Game 82.

Capitals forward Dylan Strome opened the scoring a few minutes into the middle frame. Canadiens goalie Jakub Dobes kicked out an Anthony Beauvillier rebound from in close right to Strome who backhanded it home. With the score tied at two apiece with just 3:37 left in the third, Strome also fed Mangiapane. The Capitals forward wristed it home from the slot on a rush the other way, Alexander Ovechkin serving as an option for him to pass and a potential distraction for Dobes, who made 21 saves on 24 shots. Dobes got the start after No. 1 Sam Montembeault left Game 3 to injury, similar to Thompson.

Duhaime added the first empty-net goal with 2:39 left. Wilson closed the scoring with another at 19:05 as the Capitals now look to end the series in five on Wednesday night, back in Washington.