National Hockey League
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Philadelphia 3, Washington 1
When: 3:00 PM ET, Sunday, February 8, 2015
Where: Verizon Center, Washington, District Of Columbia
Referees: Kyle Rehman, Tim Peel
Linesmen: Derek Amell, Brian Murphy
Attendance: 18506

Flyers 3, Capitals 1: Wayne Simmonds scored his team-leading 19th goal early in the third period as visiting Philadelphia overcame a lower-body injury to Steve Mason and improved to 5-0-1 in its last six contests.

Defenseman Mark Streit also tallied and Jakub Voracek ended a nine-game goalless drought by scoring into an empty net for the Flyers, who began a four-game road trip by posting their fifth win in six meetings with Washington. Captain Claude Giroux notched a pair of assists and Ray Emery turned aside five shots in relief of Mason (eight saves), who exited midway into the second period.

Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin scored on the power play for his 33rd goal to pull into a tie with New York Rangers forward Rick Nash for a share of the NHL lead. Evgeny Kuznetsov had an assist to extend his point streak to a career-high four contests and Nicklas Backstrom also set up the goal for Washington, which saw a three-game winning streak halted for the sixth time this season.

Simmonds accepted a slick feed from Sean Couturier and beat Braden Holtby (22 saves) with a wrist shot from the left faceoff dot to give Philadelphia a 2-1 lead at 3:50 of the third period. Washington failed to net the equalizer, mustering just four of its 14 shots in the final session and converting on just 1-of-6 power-play opportunities in the contest.

After dropping a 1-0 decision to the Capitals on Jan. 14, the Flyers drew first blood 50 seconds into the second period as Streit's one-timer from the point sailed past Holtby. Washington failed to convert on a 5-on-3 power play, but cashed in as an unmarked Ovechkin beat Emery from his office in the left circle with 6:31 remaining in the session.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Mason, who recently returned after missing two weeks with a lower-body injury, had trouble putting weight on his right leg and needed assistance from the training staff to exit the ice during the second period. ... Philadelphia D Michael Del Zotto, who had an assist, has recorded eight points (three goals, five assists) in his last eight contests. ... Ovechkin and Backstrom continued to torment the Flyers, as the former has 29 goals and 17 assists in 36 career meetings and the latter has 12 and 30 in 29 encounters. ... Kuznetsov has recorded one goal and four assists during his point streak.
Top Game Performances
 
Philadelphia   Washington
Claude Giroux 2 Points Alex Ovechkin 1
Wayne Simmonds 1 Goals Alex Ovechkin 1
Claude Giroux 2 Assists Nicklas Backstrom 1
Jakub Voracek 1 Power Play Goals Alex Ovechkin 1
N/A Short Handed Goals N/A
Steve Mason 1.000 Save Percentage Braden Holtby .917
Steve Mason 8 Saves Braden Holtby 22
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
Philadelphia 25 3 1-1 5-6 19 35
Washington 14 1 1-6 0-1 9 22
Upcoming Games
  • Washington will play their next game on the road against San Jose. The Capitals have a W/L % of .483 after a win and .560 after a loss.
  • Philadelphia will play their next game on the road against Montreal. The Flyers have a W/L % of .500 after a win and .387 after a loss.