NEWARK, New Jersey — Alex Ovechkin scored in a four-goal second period for the Washington Capitals, who defeated the New Jersey Devils 6-3 at Prudential Center on Monday.
Nick Jensen, Garnet Hathaway and Aliaksei Protas each had a goal and an assist, and Charlie Lindgren made 38 saves in his first victory for the Capitals (4-3-0).
Ovechkin gave Washington a 4-1 power play lead and passed Gordie Howe for second on the NHL’s game-winning goals list with 122. Jaromir Jagr is first with 135.
“It’s pretty cool, obviously, to be in this business and to pass these legends. … It’s a pretty cool time,” Ovechkin said.
Washington coach Peter Laviolette said of Ovechkin, “Somebody hands you a piece of paper for every step he takes every night. It’s incredible. He was able to consistently contribute to the attack and score goals. I guess if you do it well enough and for long enough you’re going to knock some milestones off, so we quickly shout it out at the end of the game when things like that happen, but it’s a pretty impressive milestone.”
Video: WSH@NJD: Ovechkin rips PPG at home to extend lead
With the Capitals leading 5-3, Lindgren made a sprawling save from the right pad against Egor Charangovich at the left post at 1:44 p.m. of the third period.
“I just loved being here,” said Lindgren, who signed a three-year, $3.3 million contract (average annual value of $1.1 million) as a free agent on May 13. July. “I think it’s a hell of a group and to get my first win is awesome. Our guys deserved it.
John Marin had two assists for the Devils (3-3-0), which ended their three-game winning streak. Mackenzie Blackwood allowed five goals on 18 shots before being replaced by Vitek Vanecek (three saves) to start the third period.
“If you don’t play 60 minutes, it’s hard to win games in this league,” the New Jersey captain said. Nico Hischier said. “We struggled to find our legs, and they made us pay.”
Nathan Bastien gave the Devils a 1-0 lead at 4:49 of the first period when he controlled his own rebound from the right post and scored his first goal of the season.
Nic Dowd equalized 1-1 at 10:46 on an instant shot to the right post.
Hathaway scored from the left circle for a 2-1 lead at 9:16 of the second after a giveaway along the left wing half-boards. Conor Sheary made it 3-1 with a shorthanded goal 47 seconds later at 10:03 after stealing the puck from the Devils blue line.
“They had four guys back and I just saw [Jesper Bratt] kind of looking up the ice to do an extended pass, and I just kind of read it,” Sheary said. “I had a breakaway from there, so I just took advantage of a mistake on their side.
Video: WSH@NJD: Sheary catches the pass and brings SHG home
Ovechkin extended the lead with a one-timer from the left circle at 17:14, and Jensen scored 33 seconds later for a 5-1 lead at 17:47.
“When there’s no one to block it, it’s him against the goaltender,” Sheary said. “He’s done it so many times. It’s always been a scary blow for him. It’s good to see him come in for him and hopefully that gets him rolling.”
Ovechkin has 783 goals and is four shy of passing Howe (786) for the most with a franchise in NHL history.
“They get a power-play goal and we spit out a shorthanded one that cost us dearly,” New Jersey coach Lindy Ruff said. “That was the difference in the game. I think we lost momentum where we could have gained more in the second half. We lost it.”
Tomas Tatar scored on a rebound at the right post to put the Devils up 5-2 at 4:08 of the third.
Bratt cut it to 5-3 at 9:06 and extended his season-opening one-point streak to six games (nine points; one goal, eight assists).
Protas scored at 16:11 for the 6-3 final.
“I would say our start to the season has not been good, [0-2-0], but right now we kind of struggled with some injuries,” Washington captain Ovechkin said. “Different guys are stepping up their roster. We have been there before. The most important thing for us right now is to collect points, to try to play smart and simple.”
REMARKS: Sheary scored his first shorthanded goal in 456 NHL games. … Ovechkin scored his 397th road goal and is six clear of Wayne Gretzky (402) for the most in NHL history. … Hischier had four shots on goal and was 15 for 26 on faceoffs (58%) in 21:22 of ice time. … Vanecek was acquired in a trade with the Capitals on July 8.
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