The key facts

  • Minnesota won on the road against Washington 5:1 in an NHL regular-season game.
  • Late in the third period, three Russians scored in succession: Maxim Shabanov, Kirill Kaprizov and Danila Yurov.
  • Alexander Ovechkin, heavily used by the Washington coaching staff, failed to register a point — a situation that has now repeated itself.

The visitors settled the outcome in the opening minutes and at the end

The Minnesota Wild claimed a road victory over the Washington Capitals with a 5:1 score in an NHL regular-season game. Gazeta.Ru describes how the game unfolded: within the first six minutes, Quinn Hughes and Michael McCarron built a solid cushion for the visitors that the hosts were never able to overcome.

Washington's only goal and three Russians for the Wild

Five seconds before the end of the second period, Justin Sourdif deflected Cole Hutson's shot from the blue line past Jesper Wallstedt, cutting the deficit to the minimum. In the third period, Washington came close to tying the game: the Capitals' captain Alexander Ovechkin fired several dangerous shots, but Wallstedt did not concede again. And at the end, three Russians scored for the Wild at once: Maxim Shabanov beat Logan Thompson at even strength, Kirill Kaprizov scored on a five-on-three, and Danila Yurov sealed the final result on a five-on-four.

Ovechkin extends his pointless streak

Despite a solid performance and heavy usage by the Washington coaching staff, Ovechkin failed to register a point in this game. The outlet specifically notes that this is a recurring situation: earlier, the Capitals' captain also went pointless in an NHL game. Thus, the game proved contrasting for the Russian players of the two teams: three scored for Minnesota, while Washington's main star once again failed to make an impact on the scoresheet.