WASHINGTON (AP) — Johnny Gaudreau had a goal and an assist to extend his career-best point streak to 10 games and the Calgary Flames beat the Washington Capitals 4-1 on Monday night.
Gaudreau scored and assisted on Sean Monahan’s goal, one of two on the power play for Calgary, which has won four of its past five. Mikael Backlund and captain Mark Giordano also scored for the Flames, who got 29 saves from Mike Smith.
Gaudreau, nicknamed “Johnny Hockey,” has eight goals and 11 assists during his point streak. Led by the Carneys Point, New Jersey, native, the Flames are 7-3-0 in that time.
Lars Eller scored the only goal for the Capitals, who took five minor penalties and lost for the third time in four games. Braden Holtby allowed four goals on 39 shots.
The Flames came in feeling good after a comeback victory in Philadelphia and a 1950s-themed train ride to Washington. But the Capitals took a 1-0 lead just 62 seconds in when Jakub Vrana found Eller for his fourth goal of the season.
Calgary controlled much of the play from that point on, tying it on Gaudreau’s goal 4:49 in and taking a lead on Monahan’s power-play goal 5:22 into the second. Monahan had a goal and an assist after a power-play hat trick Saturday against the Flyers.
Washington’s parade to the penalty box gave the Flames momentum and then their third goal at 4:38 of the second when Backlund buried a loose puck. Giordano’s goal to make it 4-1 was effectively a third power-play goal as it came 1 second after ex-Flames forward Alex Chiasson’s penalty expired.
NOTES: Flames F Matthew Tkachuk had two assists in his return from a one-game suspension for his role in a brawl at Detroit last week. F Freddie Hamilton also played for the first time since Oct. 21 as Curtis Lazar and Matt Stajan were healthy scratches. … Jaromir Jagr had an assist on Giordano’s goal in what could be his final visit to Washington, where he played parts of three seasons. … Capitals coach Barry Trotz said D Christian Djoos, who’s out with an upper body injury that may be a concussion, hasn’t skated since being injured last week at Nashville.
UP NEXT
Flames: Continue their six-game trip Wednesday night at Columbus.
Capitals: Host Ottawa on Wednesday night.
___
Follow Hockey Writer Stephen Whyno on Twitter at https://twitter.com/SWhyno
___
More NHL hockey: https://apnews.com/tag/NHLhockey
Copyright © 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
