WASHINGTON -- The Washington Capitals offseason acquisitions are already paying dividends.

Newcomers Justin Williams and T.J. Oshie each scored a goal, Braden Holtby stopped 29 shots and the Capitals defeated the Columbus Blue Jackets 2-1 on Friday night.

Right winger Oshie, acquired in an offseason trade with St. Louis, made it 2-0 with just over eight minutes left in the game when he completed a pretty passing sequence by firing past goalie Sergei Bobrovsky from the slot.

Williams, a three-time Stanley Cup winner who signed as a free agent, opened the scoring in the second period with his second goal of the season.

"They bring energy to the room," Capitals head coach Barry Trotz said of Oshie and Williams. "They've been a really seamless fit, with some new blood if you will in the dressing room, and that's fantastic."

Oshie's goal, his fourth of the young season, came after left winger Alex Ovechkin took a pass from Holtby and skated in on a 3-on-1 break. He passed across ice to center Nicklas Backstrom, who passed up the shot and fed Oshie.

"It looks nicer," Backstrom joked of feeding Oshie rather than shooting the puck.

"I saw he was coming in and he's got a better shot than I do. I probably could have shot it too. It was a nice pass by Ovi."

The Capitals (7-2) bounced back from a 3-1 loss to the Penguins and have yet to lose consecutive games.

"Good teams don't lose two in a row," said Williams, who has scored a point in five straight games. "You certainly have to take care of your home ice -- which we need to get a little better at -- but certainly don't go on these lulls and lose two, three, four in a row."

Columbus left winger Matt Calvert cut the deficit to 2-1 with 5:15 remaining when he scored during a scramble in front of Holtby. The goal was upheld after being review for goaltender interference.

Bobrovsky had 26 saves for Columbus (2-9), which fell to 2-2 under new head coach John Tortorella, all coming on a just-completed four-game road trip.

"We struggled a little bit in the neutral zone in the second period, but I also saw some good things," Tortorella said. "That's a good hockey team we played against. We've got to get our offense right."

Columbus continued its stingier play under Tortorella. The Blue Jackets allowed 34 goals in the first seven games (all loses) and nine in their last four.

The Blue Jackets had a solid chance to go in front early in the second period, but Holtby made a nice pad save on center Boone Jenner during a scrum in front of the net.

Late in the second period, the Capitals began sustaining offense in the Blue Jackets end and it eventually paid off.

With 5:44 left, left winger Marcus Johansson fed right winger Williams, who beat Bobrovsky with a one-timer from high in the slot.

"We had some turnovers," Tortorella said. "We turned one over on Williams' goal. We're down in the hash and instead of protecting, we throw it away."

A holding call on Capitals right winger Tom Wilson less than one minute after the goal gave Columbus a chance to tie, but Holtby made three saves as Washington killed off the penalty.

"I think they are a good defensive team," Blue Jackets center Ryan Johansen said of Washington. "They have a lot of two-way forwards. They use their size and strength and that made it tough on us."

NOTES: Coming off Wednesday's 3-1 loss to Pittsburgh, Capitals coach Barry Trotz made a pair of lineup changes. RW Michael Latta was in the lineup in place of C Chandler Stephenson, and D Nate Schmidt replaced D Taylor Chorney. RW Stanislav Galiev was a scratch. ... Columbus C Ryan Johansen (undisclosed illness) returned after missing two games. ... Blue Jackets LW Brandon Saad (undisclosed illness) remained in Ohio. ... RW Jared Boll and D Fedor Tyutin were also scratched for Columbus. ... Washington completes back-to-back games Saturday night at Florida. ... Columbus returns home to face Winnipeg Saturday night.