Behind the glass: Capitals 4, Sabres 3 (OT) — Caps flip the script on Buffalo, storm back from 2-0 first-period hole
Down 2-0 in the first period, the Caps got two goals from Dylan Strome and two from Alex Tuch, including the overtime winner, to beat Buffalo 4-3.
CapitalsWASHINGTON, D.C. -- What a difference a few nights make! After giving up a two-goal lead in 31 seconds to the winless Kings last Tuesday, the Caps turned the tables on the Sabres. Storming back from a 2-0 first-period deficit on a packed Saturday night at The Fortress, these Caps proved they are indeed for real. An overtime home victory is exactly what the doctor ordered, and it sets up a potential 4-1 homestand when the Flyers come to town Wednesday. Let’s go! Read more: Capitals 4, Sabres 3 (OT) — Caps flip the script on Buffalo, storm back from 2-0 first-period hole
From my perspective, the first 11 minutes felt like Tuesday all over again. We had given up seven straight goals in four periods.
Then the building woke up, and so did this team. Washington outshot Buffalo 34-21 on the night, and when Alex Tuch buried the winner with 1:18 left in overtime, The Fortress shook. The Caps are now 6-4-0 and have won three of their last four.
The great
Alex Tuch. First game against the team that traded him this summer, and he made Buffalo pay twice. His first goal, at 16:10 of the opening period, was pure hockey karma: a centering pass that caromed off Tage Thompson’s stick and past Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen to make it 2-1. That goal flipped the whole night. Then in overtime, Dylan Strome found him all alone in the slot and Tuch fired it past Luukkonen. Bragging rights secured. You could see on his face how much that one meant.
Related: Alex Tuch’s overtime goal beats his former team
The good
Dylan Strome was the engine. Two goals and an assist, and he owned the second period. He tied it at 2:59, then put the Caps ahead at 17:24, snapping home Justin Sourdif’s feed from behind the goal line. Both goals came from point-blank range.
That’s where you win hockey games in October — and in May.
Jordan Kyrou and Jakob Chychrun chipped in two assists apiece. And Charlie Lindgren, who only had to make 18 saves, made the one that mattered most: a stop on a Zach Benson shorthanded breakaway late in the second with the game tied. Forty-six seconds later, Strome scored. That’s a game-turning sequence, and the crowd knew it.
The bad
The start of the third. Just 2:20 in, Noah Ostlund’s attempt deflected off Matt Roy and past Lindgren to tie it 3-3. For a few nervous minutes, it looked like this one might slip away. A bad bounce, sure, but the Caps sat back and invited it.
And the schedule is no friend right now. Three days off before this one, three more before the Flyers. Two games in five days after four in seven. It’s hard to build rhythm when you’re spending more time at practice than under the lights.
Related: Behind the glass: Caps cough up early lead, crown winless Kings
The ugly
Those first 11 minutes. Two self-inflicted wounds in their own end. Jack Quinn had a clear lane to the net at 6:27. Then Chychrun coughed it up behind his own net under pressure from Ryan McLeod, and McLeod found Josh Doan for 2-0. You could hear the groans in section after section. To Chychrun’s credit, he answered with two helpers the rest of the way.
Who’s up, who’s down
Hot: Tuch, Strome and Kyrou. That trio drove the bus all night. Lindgren, quietly, came up big when he had to.
Not: First-period coverage. If the Caps keep spotting teams two-goal leads, they won’t keep getting bailed out.
Fans excited or depressed?
Excited. After the Kings meltdown, a lot of us left Tuesday wondering if the fast start was a mirage. Saturday answered that. Down two, a packed house restless, and this group dug in and won it. That’s character. That’s toughness.
Next up
The Flyers visit The Fortress Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. with a 4-1 homestand on the line. Then it’s straight to Nashville on Thursday for the back end of a back-to-back. Philly is a rivalry game and a must-win to close out this stretch on a high note. Bring the noise. Rock our house.
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John Fredericks is the publisher of Disruptor Sports and the founder of the John Fredericks Media Network. He hosts The John Fredericks Show weekday mornings across the network's stations, and on Saturdays he is Godzilla, host of Godzilla Wins, the network's NFL and fantasy football show. Every one of his picks lives on the Godzilla Wins picks page, record and all. The desk's model has its own read on every game on The Card.
This column was written by John Fredericks. It was fact-checked and copy edited by the Disruptor Sports desk working with Claude, a generative AI model made by Anthropic. How our newsroom works.
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