National Hockey League
Washington 5, San Jose 4
When: 12:30 PM ET, Sunday, January 5, 2020
Where: Capital One Arena, Washington, District of Columbia
Referees: Kendrick Nicholson, Kevin Pollock
Linesmen: Ryan Daisy, Mark Shewchyk
Attendance: 18573

Washington scored twice in a 32-second span late in the third period and Lars Eller tallied 2:01 into overtime to lift the Capitals to a 5-4 victory over the visiting San Jose Sharks on Sunday afternoon.

The Capitals had to overcome a second-period hat trick from San Jose's Evander Kane and a late 4-2 deficit.

Captain Logan Couture seemed to seal it for the Sharks on an empty-net goal for that two-goal edge with one minute left in the third period. Washington, however, trimmed the deficit after Jakub Vrana's second of the game with 47 seconds left before T.J. Oshie tallied with 15 seconds left.

Goalie Braden Holtby then stopped two breakaways in overtime and made a pass that started the rush on Eller's goal. Eller took a cross-ice feed from defenseman John Carlson and fired a high shot past goalie Martin Jones. The assist was Holtby's first of the season.

Holtby struggled earlier in the game, giving up three goals in the second period but came up big in the overtime, giving the Capitals' offense a chance to respond.

Kane made life tough for Washington. He now has posted 20 goals in just 34 games against the Capitals during his career. He needed just 10 minutes, 24 seconds in that second period for his hat trick.

Neither team scored in the first period but Kane started things in the second with his extra-man goal from the high slot at 6:25. Nic Dowd tied it for Washington just over one minute later before Kane struck again.

He joined the rush after coming out of the penalty box following a two-minute slashing penalty and beat Holtby with a shot from outside the right circle 10:06 into the period.

Kane then registered his second power-play goal of the period and completed the hat trick by scoring on a rebound with 3:11 left in the second. Washington sliced the lead to 3-2 when Vrana put a high shot past Jones just under two minutes later.

The third period was quiet until the wild final minute when the game turned around.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
San Jose   Washington
Evander Kane 3 Points Jakub Vrana 2
Evander Kane 3 Goals Jakub Vrana 2
Timo Meier 2 Assists Lars Eller 1
Evander Kane 2 Power Play Goals N/A
N/A Short Handed Goals N/A
Martin Jones .828 Save Percentage Braden Holtby .893
Martin Jones 24 Saves Braden Holtby 25
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
San Jose 29 4 2-4 2-2 4 27
Washington 29 5 0-2 2-4 8 31
Upcoming Games
  • Washington will play their next game at home against Ottawa. The Capitals have a W/L % of .655 after a win and .714 after a loss.
  • San Jose will play their next game on the road against St. Louis. The Sharks have a W/L % of .579 after a win and .320 after a loss.