There was a furious opening and another burst of momentum after a change in goaltenders, but none of it was enough for the Washington Capitals to overcome turnovers, poor special teams play and desire around the net from the Philadelphia Flyers.
Mike Knuble had two of Philadelphia’s four goals that came on second- or third-chance opportunities as the surging Flyers defeated the Caps 6-4 yesterday at Verizon Center.
After winning four of five and losing once in regulation in the past eight contests (5-1-2), Washington failed to continue the momentum in the second of a critical five-game homestand.
“They’re only going to give you so many opportunities,” coach Bruce Boudreau said. “Eventually Carolina is going to start winning a lot of games, and the teams in the division that are losing are going to start winning. We have to make hay. This is a big week for us.”
Buoyed by a near-capacity crowd, the return of captain Chris Clark and defenseman Tom Poti and a Philadelphia team playing its third game in four days, the Caps were the aggressors early. Clark made an impact on his first shift. He retrieved the puck behind the Flyers’ net with a solid check and sent it to Michael Nylander, who fed Alexander Semin for a goal 82 seconds into the first period.
The Caps maintained their grip on the flow of play for the next few minutes, registering the first six shots on goal, but then Philadelphia — which is 7-1-1 in its past nine games — rattled off four straight goals. Knuble tied the score at 8:45 when he fished the puck out from behind Olie Kolzig during a scrum and into the net.
He scored again less than seven minutes later on the power play. Kimmo Timonen’s shot bounced to Kolzig’s left, and Knuble waited for the netminder to stretch out before putting the rebound just past his reach.
The Flyers scored twice on their first three shots of the second period — Jim Dowd in similar fashion to Knuble’s first and R.J. Umberger on a shot that deflected off Caps defenseman Milan Jurcina’s stick and Kolzig’s glove. Boudreau then decided to insert backup Brent Johnson for Kolzig, the first time the goalie had been removed from a game in exactly one year.
“I think it was more about our team wasn’t playing very well,” said Johnson, who stopped 14 of 15 shots in relief. “It wasn’t anything about Olie. … [This game] was definitely in our grasp, and we let it slip away.”
The Caps responded quickly. Defenseman Mike Green notched his 12th of the season 24 seconds later on a wrist shot through traffic from the right point. Less than five minutes later, Alex Ovechkin scored his 33rd after a drop pass from Viktor Kozlov. Johnson looked sharp in net, stopping all eight shots he faced in the second period, and it appeared the momentum had shifted.
But 8:23 into the final period, the Flyers solved Johnson. He stopped Steve Downie’s first offering, but Mike Richards pounced on the rebound with a backhanded flip for his 20th of the year to make it 5-3.
“A goalie’s job is to make the first save, and our goalies usually do,” Clark said. “It is our job, not only the defense but the forwards, to come back and knock guys down, clear the puck, lift sticks — whatever it takes to not give up a rebound chance.”
Michael Nylander cut the advantage to one with his 11th goal after a pass from rookie Nicklas Backstrom, but Timonen ended any doubt by scoring an empty-netter for the Flyers with 38 seconds left.
While the Caps managed four goals, the power play proved unsuccessful in five tries. Washington is now 1-for-15 in the past four games with the extra man.
“[The power play] always seems to be too cute,” Boudreau said. “We talk about every game, every day about shooting. It starts with shots, and you make plays. If you want to make five passes and score, that doesn’t happen.”
Caps Report
Yesterday at Verizon Center
BY THE NUMBERS
200 Career goals for Washington center Michael Nylander — 28 during his two stints with the Caps.
4-1 Record in afternoon games for Washington this season, including a 4-3 overtime victory at Philadelphia that was Bruce Boudreau’s first as an NHL coach.
OVECHKIN WATCH
Alex Ovechkin had a goal and an assist in his first game since signing a 13-year, $124 million contract extension Thursday. Ovechkin moved ahead of Calgary’s Jarome Iginla for second place in goals behind Atlanta’s Ilya Kovalchuk. He also logged more than 25 minutes for the 10th time this season, but the Caps have posted a 1-9 record in those games.
— Corey Masisak
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