Aliaksei Protas scored twice in the third period, including a short-handed goal, and the host Washington Capitals rallied past the slumping Detroit Red Wings 5-2 on Friday night.
Tom Wilson also had a short-handed goal for the Capitals, who trailed 2-1 entering the third. Taylor Raddysh and Jakob Chychrun scored the other Washington goals, while Logan Thompson made 17 saves.
Dylan Larkin and Moritz Seider scored for the Red Wings, who have lost five straight. Lucas Raymond earned assists on both goals and Cam Talbot made 23 saves.
Larkin scored from a tough angle 43 seconds into the contest. He collected a loose puck along the boards and lifted a shot from below the goal line that found its way underneath the crossbar.
With Trevor van Riemsdyk in the penalty box for holding, Seider notched a power-play goal seven minutes into the game to make it 2-0. Patrick Kane passed the puck from the right circle back to the point, where Seider fired a slapshot that eluded Thompson.
Raddysh put the Capitals on the board with 1:21 remaining in the period, knocking in his own rebound. Andrew Mangiapane and Rasmus Sandin collected the assists.
Washington outshot Detroit 9-4 in the second period but the score remained the same.
The Capitals gained the lead in the first two minutes of the third. Protas’ short-handed goal tied the score as he collected the puck in his own zone, skated along the left side and scored from the circle. Wilson was credited with an assist.
Chychrun scored the go-ahead goal from the high slot. He circled around near the blue line and beat Talbot on the glove side.
Protas’ second goal came at 5:17 of the period. Connor McMichael’s lead pass allowed Protas to skate smoothly into the left circle and fired a shot past Talbot’s blocker.
Wilson’s short-handed goal four minutes later made it 5-2. He wound up with a breakaway and scored on a backhander. Protas notched the assist for his third three-point game of the season.
–Field Level Media
