📸: Ian Hopper
The Washington Capitals visited the ascendant Buffalo Sabres on Thursday. If you told me in October this would be a scheduled loss I would have scoffed at you like a Victorian dandy. And despite playing on their heels for most of the night, the Caps grinded out an unlikely win.
Sam Carrick took a sharp pass from ex-Cap Beck Malenstyn to put Buffalo ahead early. Ryan Leonard tied it with a solo effort early in the second period.
Late in rego, Aliaksei Protas won a scramble below the goal line and found Jakob Chychrun for the game-winner.
Caps win!
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On October 25, the Caps put 13 shots on goal in a blowout loss to the Ottawa Senators. Through two periods in this game, the Caps were on pace to do worse. Well, not worse on the scoreboard. They were actually tied there. And that matters more, almost certainly.
On a first-period power-play, Sabres forward Tage Thompson fired five shots on goal in half a minute, all from the Ovi spot. Three of them were 90 mph. None of them hit the net. Well done, Charlie Lindgren. Huge game by Chuckles.
Playing on the second line, Hendrix Lapierre got more ice time than he has in four months. Good for him.
Ryan Leonard is on a three-game goal streak. There’s something poetic about scoring this goal alone after being 100 percent of the team’s offense last night.
I am an ardent fan of Joe Beninati and Craig Laughlin, but they and I were watching different games tonight. “This is Caps hockey,” Laughlin said – as a compliment! – of a miserable second period in which the Caps got outshot 16 attempts to 9. After Thompson’s barrage, they praised Washington keeping shots to the outside, which RMNB lifers know as a classic Adam Oates PK boast. I don’t see how someone can say the Caps played “extremely well” if they’re in their own zone so much. They did an okay job mitigating being unable to make a successful zone entry.
But they were right about the Caps being better in the third period, starting with a breakaway attempt by Tom Wilson, despite that esteemed chirper being gassed at the end of a shift.
To the peanut gallery, no, Travis Konecny did not invent the term “f—ing nerd.” Ian’s favorite band OK GO did.
last hurrah for Joe B’s winter wardrobe #joebsuitofthenight
— RMNB (@rmnb.bsky.social) 2026-03-12T22:59:07.919Z
As a bitter and petty person, I will take this moment to say the Sabres are a FRAUD. They’re bottom-ten in five-on-five shot-attempt percentage with a median power play, but they’re shooting better than all but three teams. That plus a great PK has given them the fifth best record in the league, and I wish them luck riding the PDO train into the postseason.
Alan May’s advice to the team at the final commercial break was “stay gritty.” Branding problems aside, that was the right call. Led by Charlie Lindgren the Caps won that game despite a big shot deficit.
See you Saturday afternoon for a date with the Boston Bruins.