WASHINGTON (AP) — JJ Peterka scored in the second period on a bizarre bounce, and the Utah Mammoth beat the Washington Capitals 3-2 on Tuesday night.
Dylan Guenther and Mikhail Sergachev scored for the Mammoth, who took an early 2-0 lead and held off the Capitals in a matchup of teams near the playoff cutoff lines. Utah entered the night tied with Edmonton for the top wild card in the Western Conference.
Pierre-Luc Dubois and Ryan Leonard scored for Washington, which fell to four points behind Boston for the second wild card in the East. The Bruins also have three more games left than the Caps.
The Capitals have been hoping to add a forward before Friday’s trade deadline, and with Aliaksei Protas out for personal reasons Tuesday, they struggled to apply consistent pressure in the Utah zone until they were down two in the third. It’s not clear if Washington’s position in the standings — and losses to Montreal and the Mammoth in its last two games — will alter the team’s approach to the deadline.
Guenther scored his 28th goal of the season in the first period, then Sergachev made it 2-0 on the power play. Dubois scored for the Capitals in the final minute of the first period.
Peterka’s 21st goal put the Mammoth up 3-1. With Utah on the power play, his shot from near the slot bounced off the post and off goalie Logan Thompson. When Thompson swept his glove hand back behind him, he knocked the puck into the net.
Washington’s power play — a sore spot for much of this season — produced both its goals in this game, but after Leonard pulled the Capitals within one with 13:29 remaining, they were unable to tie it.
Up next
Mammoth: At Philadelphia on Thursday night.
Capitals: At Boston on Saturday.
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