SENATORS STORM BACK
Ottawa pulls out wild 6-4 win after trailing Capitals 3-1
WASHINGTON — This was different. The good Senators AND their evil twins showed up in the same game.
The result: A wild, backand-forth game against the Washington Capitals. In the end, a Senators team that needed to find inspiration delivered an inspired, 6-4, comeback victory — Ottawa’s first regulation win at the Verizon Center since March 12, 2006.
Zack Smith scored the game-winner with 2:23 remaining in regulation, converting a semi-breakaway with a glove-side shot.
Mika Zibanejad had scored the go-ahead goal in the third period, as a shot by captain Jason Spezza deflected off the leg of Zibanejad on a power play. Ottawa’s third power-play goal of the game gave them their first lead of the night at 6:05 of the third period. That held up until a power-play goal late in the third by the Caps’ John Carlson.
Finally, Smith ended the tumult. Bobby Ryan added an empty-net goal, his second of the night and 13th of the season.
After falling behind 3-1 on a couple of quick Capitals strikes in the first period, the Senators fired up a spirited rally on the strength of goals by two of the team’s most unlikely scorers — Chris Phillips and Colin Greening. It was goal No. 1 of the season for both players and capped a middle period in which the Capitals got into a world of hurt with penalty trouble.
Phillips, a good-luck charm whose goals generally herald an Ottawa victory, hadn’t scored in 39 games, dating to March 25. When he does score, the Senators have a record of 52-9-4-2. In career game No. 1,097, Phillips had one of the more productive nights in his career — a goal and an assist.
Ottawa outshot Washington 19-3 in the second period, dominating the hosts, who may have felt the game was over after scoring two goals in a span of 47 seconds in the opening period to surge ahead 3-1.
That was their response to Patrick Wiercioch’s directing the Ottawa power play goal to set up the Senators’ first goal, erasing a 1- 0 Washington lead. Often the most dangerous point shots are the simple flicks: Wiercioch smartly wristed a point shot that Ryan was able to tip behind Capitals goaltender Braden Holtby. Ryan thrust his arms to the sky in celebration of his team-leading 12th of the season.
The joy was short-lived. Less than a minute after Ryan scored, the Capitals struck on the power play, evidence of their NHL No. 3 rank in the department.
Still, it was hardly classic. Alex Ovechkin fired a shot that seemed to hit both Troy Brouwer of the Caps and Ottawa’s Marc Methot, springing free to Marcus Johansson, who slammed it into a wideopen net.
More distressing was Washington’s third of the period, less than a minute later, as Joel Ward won a puck battle and threw it out front, finding Brooks Laich all alone. Laich, a former Senators forward who came to Washington in a deadline deal for Peter Bondra (an old wound, I know), waltzed in on Craig Anderson and lifted a backhand over his shoulder.
Despite some dazzling shifts by Washington’s skill forwards, the Senators tested Holtby with some quality chances. Taking advantage of a second-period power play, the veteran Phillips pulled the Senators to within one at 3-2 when he ripped a slapshot over the glove hand of Holtby.
Greening, fresh off a fight, used Chris Neil and Capitals defenceman Karl Alzner as a screen to beat Holtby on a wrist shot just inside the stick side post.
A relieved Anderson made 29 saves for his first victory since Nov. 15 versus Boston.