Dowd scores in OT, Caps beat Bruins in Game 1

Nic Dowd deflected in T.J. Oshie’s shot from the blue line 4:41 into overtime to give the Washington Capitals a 3-2 victory over the Boston Bruins on Saturday night in Game 1 of the first-round playoff series.

The Capitals weathered the loss of starting goaltender Vitek Vanecek to a lower-body injury early on, with backup Craig Anderson making 21 saves without allowing an even-strength goal.

Tom Wilson and Brendon Dillon also scored for the Capitals. Daniel Sprong and Anthony Mantha, making their playoff debuts, each had an assist.

Jake DeBrusk and Nick Ritchie scored for Boston, and Tuukka Rask made 29 saves.

Wilson opened the scoring 6:22 into the game. Boston’s Charlie McAvoy broke his stick on a shot attempt, leading to a 3-on-2 Washington breakaway with Oshie at the center of it. After a few quick passes, Wilson roofed it over Rask’s far shoulder.

MacKinnon on track to return for Game 1

DENVER >> Nathan MacKinnon returned to the ice for practice Saturday and all signs point to him being back in the lineup for Game 1 of a first-round series against the St. Louis Blues.

The difficult-to-contain Colorado Avalanche forward missed four of the final five games of the regular season with a lowerbody injury. But coach Jared Bednar said he expects MacKinnon and forward Brandon Saad to be ready to go Monday night for the start of their best-of-seven series at Ball Arena. The top-seeded Avalanche went 5-3 against the Blues this season.

“He’s such a big part of our hockey team, especially driving our offense,” Bednar said of MacKinnon.