JOHN CARLSON

Garnet Hathaway a pair of goals during a two-minute span in the third period and the Washington Capitals snapped the Los Angeles Kings eight-game point streak with a 2-0 victory Wednesday night.

Alex Ovechkin scored his 741st career goal to tie Brett Hull for fourth on the NHL’s all-time list and help the Washington Capitals to a 5-3 victory over the Buffalo Sabres.

Michael Raffl scored from a tight angle with 1.8 seconds remaining, Alex Ovechkin saw his first extended action in a couple weeks and the Washington Capitals beat the short-handed Boston Bruins 2-1 in the teams’ regular season finale.

Conor Sheary scored the overtime winner and the short-handed Washington Capitals beat the Philadelphia Flyers 2-1 to guarantee they’ll open the playoffs at home.

Alex Ovechkin scored twice to move within one goal of Marcel Dionne for fifth place on the NHL’s career goals list as the Washington Capitals downed the Philadelphia Flyers 6-3.

Mathew Barzal had three goals and two assists, Jordan Eberle scored twice, and the New York Islanders beat the Washington Capitals 8-4.

Washington Capitals right wing T.J. Oshie (77) celebrates his goal during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the New Jersey Devils, Sunday, Feb. 21, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)WASHINGTON – T.J. Oshie scored twice to end a lengthy drought, Alex Ovechkin had a late power-play goal and the Washington Capitals erased a two-goal deficit to beat the New Jersey Devils 4-3 on Sunday. Anderson and New Jersey's Aaron Dell each hadn't started an NHL game in more than 11 months. Ovechkin made Washington 3 of 4 on the power play, just his second goal on the man advantage this season. The Capitals and Devils each played at home Saturday afternoon, so this adjustment was possible.

New York Rangers left wing Alexis Lafrenire (13) scores a goal past Washington Capitals goaltender Vitek Vanecek (41) during the second period of an NHL hockey game, Saturday, Feb. 20, 2021, in Washington. Also seen are Capitals defenseman John Carlson (74) and Rangers center Mika Zibanejad (93). Lafrenière scored his second NHL goal, Panarin had two assists and the Rangers made the best of a new-look lineup, beating the Washington Capitals 4-1 Saturday for their second consecutive victory. Panarin set up Lafrenière on the doorstep late in the second period, and his shot provided the rebound for Chris Kreider's power-play goal in the first. Zibanejad's goal was just his second since last season after scoring 41 in 57 games in 2019-20.

Boston Bruins right wing David Pastrnak (88) celebrates his goal with the bench during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Washington Capitals, Monday, Feb. 1, 2021, in Washington. Buoyed by their top scorer's first two goals of the season and a big rookie's fight against one of the toughest players in hockey, the Bruins erased a three-goal deficit to beat the Washington Capitals 5-3 on Monday night. “In the box, I was like a little kid in there just jumping around when we scored,” Frederic said. The Capitals had front-row seats for Pastrnak's breakout performance in his second game after undergoing offseason hip surgery. Former Bruins captain Zdeno Chara scored in his second game against his old team.

(AP Photo/Nick Wass)WASHINGTON – Jakub Vrana had a goal and an assist, Vitek Vanecek made 24 saves through overtime and the short-handed Washington Capitals beat the Buffalo Sabres 4-3 in a shootout Friday night in their home opener. Vanecek was perfect in the shootout to pick up his second victory of the season as defenseman John Carlson scored the shootout winner. Buffalo rookie Dylan Cozens scored his first NHL goal on a top-shelf snipe past Vanecek in the second period. Eric Staal and Riley Sheahan each scored his first goal since joining the Sabres. Linus Ullmark made 29 saves and was spotless in the shootout until Carlson beat him.

Zdeno Chara is no longer in Boston after the Bruins captain signed with Washington. And the Sabres made an even bigger splash in free agency by landing 2018 NHL MVP Taylor Hall in October. Hall, for example, signed a one-year, $8 million deal with Buffalo by realizing the free-agent market was going to be tight. Oilers general manager Ken Holland chalked it up to the new economic realities facing the NHL. “It’s salary-cap related, which is related to the pandemic, which has given us a hard, flat cap for the foreseeable future,” Holland said.

DETROIT – Bobby Ryan was looking for a fresh start and a place to revive his career after it was stunted in part by alcohol issues. Ryan was sold on that happening with the Detroit Red Wings. The 33-year-old Ryan missed more than two months of last season after entering the NHL/NHLPA players assistance program in November, 2019. A decade ago, Ryan ranked among the league's top scorers when he had 35 and 34 goals in consecutive years. Simmonds signed a $1.5 million, one-year deal to bring some of what he called “functional toughness,” to the skilled team.

TORONTO, ONT After his team gave up two goals less than halfway through the first period, Washington coach Todd Rierden called a timeout. It was also the first goal Washington scored after the second period in this series. Washington controlled the play in the second period, keeping the puck in the offensive zone for much of the time. The Capitals outshot the Islanders 15-7 in the period and scored twice to tie it. ... New York's Cal Clutterbuck left the game in the second period after a hit by Washington's Radko Gudas and did not return.