Karel Vejmelka made 30 saves, including all three shots he faced in the shootout, for Utah Hockey Club in a 5-4 shootout win against the host Washington Capitals on Sunday.
Vejmelka, who played Saturday in a 7-3 loss at the Carolina Hurricanes, came on in relief in the first period after starter Connor Ingram (two goals allowed on 11 shots) left the game with an injury.
Josh Doan, Dylan Guenther and Jack McBain each had a goal and an assist for Utah, which enters the two-week 4 Nations Face-Off break having won three of its last four. Nick Schmaltz scored the only goal in the shootout.
Tom Wilson had two goals and an assist, Pierre-Luc Dubois had a goal and an assist and Alex Ovechkin had three assists for the Capitals, who enter the break 3-0-3 in their last six games. Logan Thompson made 23 saves.
Trailing by two in the third period, Dylan Strome pulled Washington within one when he slipped the puck past Vejmelka’s right skate at 4:49.
With Thompson pulled for the extra attacker, Wilson redirected an Ovechkin feed from in front to tie it 4-4 at 18:29.
Doan gave Utah a 1-0 lead at 1:10 of the first period on the first shot on goal. He carried the puck up the left side before cutting to the middle high in the Washington zone and wiring a wrist shot that beat Thompson through the pads.
Michael Carcone doubled it 32 seconds later on Utah’s second shot. Guenther, in the right circle, spotted Carcone on the back door for the redirect into the open side of the net at 1:42.
Wilson cut it to 2-1 on the power play at 3:47 off a one-timer from just inside the circle that beat Ingram stick side.
McBain put a feed from Michael Kesselring under Thompson’s right arm to push the lead to 3-1 at 7:07.
Dubois corralled the puck at the side of the net and tucked it inside the right post on the power play to narrow it to 3-2 at 12:38.
Ingram was tended to by a trainer after the goal before exiting the game.
On a power play, Guenther’s one-timer from the left circle beat Thompson in the far top corner to extend it to 4-2 at 2:47 of the second period.
–Field Level Media
