Rookie Cole Hutson scored in his first NHL game to help the Washington Capitals defeat the Ottawa Senators 4–1 on Wednesday night. The loss means the Senators remain five points out of a playoff spot, trailing the two wild-card holders, the Boston Bruins and the Detroit Red Wings.
Hutson signed a three-year entry-level contract with Washington on Sunday after completing his second season at Boston University. He looked like a carbon copy of his brother, Lane Hutson of the Montreal Canadiens.
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At the other end of the age spectrum, 40-year-old Alex Ovechkin opened the scoring in the second period. With that goal, Ovechkin reached the 25-goal mark for the 20th time in his career, tying the NHL record held by Gordie Howe. He outraced a flat-footed Ridly Greig to the net and redirected a Rasmus Sandin pass past Linus Ullmark to break a scoreless tie 8:09 into the middle frame.
Seconds later, Nick Cousins broke free on a partial breakaway and beat Logan Thompson between the legs, but as the puck trickled toward the goal, it took a sharp right turn and hit the post.
It summed up a frustrating night, one of several posts the Sens hit during the game, as the Senators generated more than enough chances to take control earlier. Their shooters simply couldn’t put the puck in the net.
Late in the second, with the Senators caught on a long shift, Tom Wilson beat Ullmark from a bad angle on the short side to make it 2–0. With Ottawa struggling to finish, it was a terribly timed weak goal, but Ullmark helped to make up for it with a terrific pad save on a Ryan Leonard breakaway in the third.
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The Senators pulled their goalie early for the extra attacker, and it paid off with 2:41 to play when Tim Stützle scored his 31st goal, redirecting a pass from Claude Giroux. But the hope was short-lived. Less than a minute later, Aliaksei Protas scored into the empty net, then Hutson added another empty-netter for his first NHL goal to put the game out of reach.
The Senators outshot the Capitals 35–25 on the night, and will now need to regroup quickly for another important matchup. They host the New York Islanders Thursday night at Canadian Tire Centre.
Steve Warne
The Hockey News
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