D12 EZ M2 THE WASHINGTON POST.SUNDAY, MARCH 6 , 2022
as the game went on, you noticed
his speed, and he played good
defense. Then off the rush he was
able to attack and get a couple
looks.”Middle-six identity
On Wednesday, MacLellan also
singled out Washington’s third
line as having a lack of identity.
Lars Eller has long been the an-
chor of that line, but with injuries
and absences galore this season,
Eller has been put with various —
and often young — wingers. The
lack of consistency and chemistry
has led to overall struggles.
Sheary played on that third line
Saturday night with Eller and
Connor McMichael.
“What is the purpose of that
line?” MacLellan questioned. “We
have to figure out, after the dead-
line, we have to figure out how
we’re constructing that line.... Is
it a two-way line? Is it offensive? Is
it defensive? I think that’s part of
the issue that we’re having right
now.”
One player who has been on
and off that line is 24-year-old
winger Daniel Sprong. He has
been a healthy scratch in four of
the past five games, including
Saturday night.day and is still being evaluated.
Jonsson-Fjallby has one assist
in 10 games with Washington this
season. He made his NHL debut in
November. In Hershey, he had 16
goals and 18 assists in 44 games.
Saturday’s game also had a
heightened significance for Jons-
son-Fjallby. Because the forward
played in his 10th NHL game,
Jonsson-Fjallby will have to clear
waivers if the Capitals want to
send him back down to Hershey.
“I thought he was really good.
You notice his speed out there,”
Laviolette said of Jonsson-Fjallby.
“I thought he did a good job on
that line.... For him to jump back
in, first few shifts it looked like he
was finding his way out there. Butbench. The sign said, “Alex Go
Back to Russia.” The person hold-
ing the sign was wrapped in a
Ukraine flag.
There also was a small Ukraine
flag on the glass during warmups
for Thursday’s game against Caro-
lina.Jonsson-Fjallby recalled
Axel Jonsson-Fjallby was re-
called by Washington on Friday
from the team’s American Hockey
League affiliate in Hershey, Pa.
The Capitals see the 24-year-old
winger as a replacement for Carl
Hagelin on the fourth line. Hage-
lin is out indefinitely after he was
struck in the eye with a stick
Tuesday. He had surgery later thathis home country’s invasion of
Ukraine. Ovechkin has voiced
support for Russian President
Vladimir Putin in the past. In his
recent comments, he did not di-
rectly sever ties with Putin, in-
stead saying he hopes that the war
will be over soon and there will be
“peace in the whole world.”
Ovechkin and other Russian
players have faced online threats
and alleged verbal abuse, prompt-
ing the NHL and some teams —
including the Capitals — to bol-
ster security.
Before Saturday’s game, a
blown-up photo of Putin and
Ovechkin — the star’s Instagram
profile picture — was featured in a
large sign behind the Capitals’saves. Only a few days after Mac-
Lellan called out his two inexperi-
enced goaltenders for a lack of
timely saves, Vanecek made plen-
ty. After his solid game Saturday
and his third shutout of the sea-
son Thursday, Vanecek looks like
he is pulling ahead of Ilya Sam-
sonov for the role of No. 1 goalten-
der.
“I think Vitek has looked really
good,” Capitals Coach Peter Lavio-
lette said. “... He seemed like he
was in control tonight.”
Here’s what else to know about
the Capitals’ victory:Captain faces backlash
Late last month, Ovechkin de-
livered an antiwar message afterdirection.”
It helped that captain Alex
Ovechkin continued to chase his-
tory with his three-point night. He
gave the Capitals a 4-2 cushion
with a power-play goal early in the
third period, his 34th goal of the
season and the 764th of his career.
Ovechkin is three goals shy of
passing Jaromir Jagr for third in
NHL history.
“It’s just nonstop,” Tom Wilson
said of Ovechkin’s scoring prow-
ess. “Every time he’s in a game,
every time he’s on the ice, on the
bench, if we don’t get a shift, he’s
like, ‘Let’s go.’ When we’re out
there, he’s like, ‘Let’s go.’ He wants
to score again.... He just has a
drive that I’ve never seen before,
and it shows in his game.”
Conor Sheary scored twice Sat-
urday, including the go-ahead
goal on the power play with 8:12
left in the second period. The
Capitals now have scored with the
extra man at least once in 10 of the
past 13 games. Sheary’s second
was an empty-netter for the
game’s final score.
Washington now heads to Can-
ada for a three-game road trip.
The Capitals don’t return home
until March 15 against the New
York Islanders.
While Washington jumped out
to a 2-0 lead midway through the
first period after goals from Wil-
son and Dmitry Orlov, the Kraken
tied the score early in the second
period.
Joonas Donskoi cut the Capi-
tals’ lead to 2-1 off a big rebound in
front with 3:04 left in the first,
moments after Vitek Vanecek
made a solid pad save on Riley
Sheahan. Colin Blackwell tied t he
game in the first minute of the
second period before Sheary’s go-
ahead tally.
Wilson gave the Capitals a 1-0
lead with an impressive sequence
at 11:30 of the first period. The
play started with Ovechkin toe-
dragging a defender on the rush
before he lost the puck in front.
Wilson picked up the puck and
deked a defender before finishing
with a backhand past goaltender
Chris Driedger.
Orlov scored on a blast from the
left circle 34 seconds later to give
Washington a 2-0 lead.
Vanecek again was solid most
of the night, finishing with 29
CAPITALS FROM D1
Ovechkin chases history as Capitals pull away from Kraken
JOHN MCDONNELL/THE WASHINGTON POST
Alex O vechkin scored his 764th goal in the Capitals’ win, moving within three o f sole possession of third place on the NHL’s all-time l ist.C APITALS’ NEXT THREEat Calgary FlamesTu esday 9NBCSWat Edmonton OilersWednesday8TNTat Vancouver CanucksFr iday10NBCSW PlusRadio: WJFK (106.7 FM)Capitals 5, Kraken 2
SEATTLE .................................. 1 10 —2
WASHINGTON ......................... 2 12 —5
FIRST PERIOD
Scoring: 1 , Washington, Wilson 18 (Kuznetsov, Ovech-
kin), 11:30. 2, Washington, Orlov 9 (Jensen, Dowd),
12:04. 3, Seattle, Donskoi 2 (Sheahan, Oleksiak), 16:56.
SECOND PERIOD
Scoring: 4 , Seattle, Blackwell 7 (Appleton), 0:58. 5,
Washington, Sheary 13 (Ovechkin, Wilson), 11:48 (pp).
THIRD PERIOD
Scoring: 6 , Washington, Ovechkin 34 (Carlson, Back-
strom), 0:47 (pp). 7, Washington, Sheary 14, 17:50 (en).
SHOTS ON GOAL
SEATTLE ................................ 10913 —3 2
WASHINGTON ......................... 6 13 6— 25
Power-play opportunities: Seattle 0 of 3; Washington 2
of 2. Goalies: Seattle, Driedger 5-9-0 (24 shots-20
saves). Washington, Vanecek 12-7-5 (31-29). A: 1 8,573
(18,277). T: 2 :25.Call for a FREE Estimate888-670-4342 | HarryHelmet.com*Offer expires 3/31/22. Valid on initial visit only. Min. purchase required. Cannot be combined with other offers. †Subject to credit approval. Ask for details. NMLS #1416362. MD MHIC #48622 - VA #2705036173 - DC#420218000007 Licensed, Bonded, Insured. © 2022 Lednor CorporationNever Clean Your Gutters Again!
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