NHL

Washington Capitals at Toronto Maple Leafs

· National Hockey League
Final
5 - 2

Alex Ovechkin scores in return from injury as the Capitals defeat the Maple Leafs 5-2

Washington Capitals vs. Toronto Maple Leafs: Game Highlights

Andrew Mangiapane, Jakob Chychrun, Nic Dowd and Tom Wilson also scored for the Capitals. John Tavares and Bobby McMann scored for the Leafs.

Washington’s captain Ovechkin played his first game since he fractured his left fibula Nov. 18 in a game against the Utah Hockey Club.

Ovechkin was held off the scoresheet Saturday until firing the puck into an empty net for his 869th career goal.

Logan Thompson stopped 35 shots for the win. Matt Murray made 27 saves for Toronto.

Takeaways Capitals: Ovechkin played 14 minutes, 58 seconds, recorded three hits and three shots in addition to his goal. Washington was still able to thrive without its captain. The Capitals went 10-5-1 record in 16 games while Ovechkin was injured.

Maple Leafs: Toronto has lost three of four games without Auston Matthews in the lineup, who was out with an upper-body injury. Toronto has allowed at least five goals in each of those four games, and 21 total during that span.

Key moment Thompson had a hot glove hand throughout the game. Washington’s goalie robbed Toronto forward William Nylander of a sure goal when Thompson dove across the crease to snatch a shot at a yawning cage out of mid-air. Nylander was Thompson’s victim again in the third period when a deflected power-play shot from the point was scooped by Thompson, who was facing the back of the net.

Key stat With an assist on Ovechkin's empty-net goal, Pierre-Luc Dubois extended his point streak to five games with a total of one goal and five assists.

Up next The Capitals visit the Detroit Red Wings on Sunday. The Maple Leafs host the New York Islanders on Tuesday.

Regular Season Series

WSH wins series 2-1

Scoring Summary

Goal 1st Period 3:14 John Tavares Goal (18) Deflected, assists: Simon Benoit (4), Max Pacioretty (7)
Goal 1st Period 4:46 Andrew Mangiapane Goal (8) Snap Shot, assists: Hendrix Lapierre (8)
Goal 1st Period 8:54 Jakob Chychrun Goal (10) Slap Shot, assists: Trevor van Riemsdyk (12), Taylor Raddysh (12)
Goal 2nd Period 8:10 Bobby McMann Goal (10) Snap Shot, assists: Max Domi (10), Mitch Marner (37)
Goal 2nd Period 9:53 Nic Dowd Goal (9) Wrist Shot, assists: Rasmus Sandin (11), Andrew Mangiapane (6)
Goal 3rd Period 12:36 Tom Wilson Goal (14) Tip-In, assists: Jakob Chychrun (13), Dylan Strome (28)
Goal 3rd Period 16:37 Alex Ovechkin Goal (16) Wrist Shot, assists: Aliaksei Protas (16), Pierre-Luc Dubois (22)

Statistics

https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/wsh.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originWSH https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/tor.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originTOR
17 Blocked Shots 9
17 Hits 28
6 Takeaways 1
32 Shots 37
1 Power Play Goals 0
1 Power Play Opportunities 2
100.0 Power Play Percentage 0.0
0 Short Handed Goals 0
0 Shootout Goals 0
26 Faceoffs Won 29
47.3 Faceoff Win Percent 52.7
14 Giveaways 13
2 Total Penalties 1
4 Penalty Minutes 2
Toronto Maple Leafs Toronto Maple Leafs Injuries
NAME, POS STATUS DATE
Jani Hakanpaa, D Injured Reserve Feb 1
Washington Capitals Washington Capitals Injuries
NAME, POS STATUS DATE
Matt Roy, D Out Apr 1

Game Information

Scotiabank Arena

Location: Toronto, ON
Attendance: 19,125 | Capacity:

2024-25 Metropolitan Division Standings

TEAM W L PTS OTL
Washington 47 17 103 9
Carolina 45 24 94 4
New Jersey 40 29 87 7
NY Rangers 35 32 77 7
Columbus 33 30 75 9
NY Islanders 32 31 74 10
Pittsburgh 30 34 71 11
Philadelphia 31 36 71 9

2024-25 Atlantic Division Standings

TEAM W L PTS OTL
Toronto 45 25 94 4
Tampa Bay 43 25 91 5
Florida 44 26 91 3
Ottawa 39 28 84 6
Montreal 34 30 77 9
Detroit 34 33 74 6
Boston 30 35 69 9
Buffalo 31 36 68 6
Full Standings