It was a back-and-forth battle and Kuemper and Kochetkov shined, and Kuznetsov's shootout goal made the difference in a 2-1 win for the Capitals.
It was Darcy Kuemper's night and all grit for the Washington Capitals against the Carolina Hurricanes on Sunday, and ultimately, their effort would pay off as they fought to the very end to grind out a win.
Martin Fehervary evened the score in regulation to force overtime and Darcy Kuemper held his own against Pyotr Kochetkov at the other end, and ultimately, an Evgeny Kuznetsov shootout goal made the difference in a 2-1 win.
Here are all the takeaways from the victory, which ends a two-game slide.
Darcy Kuemper Impresses In Return To The Crease, Capitals Hold Their Own In Metro Battle
Charlie Lindgren had started four of the last five games for D.C. and has staked his claim for control of the crease after a shaky start to the year for Darcy Kuemper. However, the 33-year-old is still confident, and he showed that in a dominant return after a week off.
Kuemper was solid for the Capitals, moving well in the crease and coming up with quite a few ten-bell stops. He finished the night with 27 saves on 28 shots and was perfect in the shootout to earn his club the victory. He is 13-for-13 in shootouts this season.
Overall, it was a strong game for the team as a whole. Washington held its own and avoided making too many mistakes or falling into bad habits. The penalty kill also went 5-for-5, shutting down the dangerous Hurricanes.
Carolina's lone goal in regulation came from Sebastian Aho, and it was after a rough turnover. Other than that, D.C. had a strong defensive showing, blocking 14 shots and winning battles and races to the puck. It paid off in a gritty iwin.
Capitals Defense Scores For First Time In Nearly A Month, Strome Stays Hot
The last time a defenseman scored for the Capitals was back on Nov. 22 against the Buffalo Sabres, when an Alex Alexeyev shot deflected in for his first NHL goal. Besides that, John Carlson was the only other defenseman to chip in a goal — but Martin Fehervary changed that pattern on Sunday.
It all started with a great rush up ice by Dylan Strome, who then made a nice feed to Tom Wilson. Wilson then found Fehervary, who stepped up to the slot and called his own number to make it a 1-1 hockey game with his first goal of the year and first in 34 games.
With one of the assists, Strome extended his point streak to four points and has seven points in his last six outings, while he also remains tied with Tom Wilson for the team lead in scoring.
Oshie A Late Scratch Due To Injury
The Capitals had not expected any lineup changes, but right before warmups, they were hit with the news that T.J. Oshie would sit this one out due to a lower-body injury.
It is unclear when Oshie suffered the injury or how severe it is, but considering the team did not skate on Sunday, one could assume it's an ailment from Saturday's game against the Nashville Predators, in which he scored the lone goal.
Oshie recently returned from an upper-body injury and struggled with back issues that held him out for significant stretches last season. He underwent a double ablation in April to address those issues and has said he has felt significantly better since.
Washington has off on Monday and will be back at practice on Tuesday.