John Tavares scores in overtime as Maple Leafs rally to beat Capitals 4-3
WASHINGTON– Mitch Marner equalized in the final minute of the third period, John Tavares scored the game-winning goal in overtime and the Toronto Maple Leafs overcame a two-goal deficit to beat the Washington Capitals 4-3 on Wednesday night.
William Nylander sparked the comeback with his goal with 4:09 left and set up Marner’s power play goal at 6-on-4 with 47.8 seconds left in regulation with goaltender Joseph Woll pulled for an attacker extra and Washington’s Nic Dowd in the penalty area. Nylander’s exploits came 24 hours after his first-shift turnover put the Leafs on the path to a missed a shutout loss at home against Ottawa.
The Capitals led 3-1 thanks to goals from Taylor Raddysh, Dylan Strome and Aliaksei Protas before a Tom Wilson turnover ended in a Nylander victory over Logan Thompson. Dowd’s penalty became one mistake too many and Washington lost for only the fifth time in 15 games this season.
Woll stopped 24 of the 27 shots he faced to help Toronto rebound. Thompson made 31 saves and lost for the first time since Washington acquired him from Vegas last summer.
Maple Leafs: The response expected by coach Craig Berube and veteran leaders took a while to materialize, but the team’s best players delivered when needed.
Capitals: After an enchanted start to the season, the Capitals failed to add value and paid the price for a lackluster third period.
The Leafs held the puck for the vast majority of overtime at 3-on-3 before Tavares scored with 46.2 seconds left.
Leafs defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson played in his 1,000th NHL regular season game.
The Capitals begin a three-game road trip Friday night at Colorado, while the Leafs host Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers Saturday night.
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