Miller's late OT goal lifts Canucks past Capitals

WASHINGTON -- J.T. Miller scored with 4.8 seconds remaining in overtime to give the Vancouver Canucks a 3-2 win against the Washington Capitals at Capital One Arena on Sunday.

Miller scored blocker side from the right circle after Connor McMichael passed the puck behind John Carlson in Washington's zone.

“It's a good finish by [Miller],” Canucks forward Conor Garland said. “That's why he's one of the best players in the League. Not many guys can get it coming off their stick that quickly. It was a great play."

Garland and Nils Hoglander also scored for the Canucks (35-12-6), who had lost two in a row, including 4-3 in overtime at the Detroit Red Wings on Saturday. Thatcher Demko made 31 saves.

“Back-to-back is tough. It's always tough. Travel’s tough,” Vancouver defenseman Ian Cole said. “That being said, I thought we showed a lot of mental fortitude getting through that, battled back, had a response every time they were able to score. [Demko] came up and made some great saves for us. I think overall it was a really good team effort.”

Alex Ovechkin scored for the fifth straight game for the Capitals (23-20-8), who were coming off a 3-0 win at the Boston Bruins on Saturday but are 1-5-2 in their past eight games. Darcy Kuemper made 26 saves.

“I think a little frustrating not getting another win, but it’s nice to get points on the board,” Washington forward T.J. Oshie said.

“Yesterday’s win was a great stepping stone for our team. Tonight, I think we might have fallen back just a little bit at times, but for the most part, we played a good team pretty hard.”

Nic Dowd gave the Capitals a 1-0 lead at 1:08 of the first period. Rasmus Sandin sent the puck in and around to Nicolas Aube-Kubel, who then centered it to Dowd for a redirection in front.

Garland tied it 1-1 at 11:09 of the first. He received an outlet pass from Noah Juulsen following a turnover by Washington and beat Kuemper under his blocker with a wrist shot from the right circle.

Ovechkin put the Capitals back in front 2-1 at 7:37 of the second period when his backdoor pass for Oshie deflected in off the skate of Vancouver forward Nils Aman.

“I saw 'Osh' right away sprinting there,” Ovechkin said. “Osh said it doesn’t matter if it hit the skate or [his] stick, he was good with it.”
Hoglander tied it 2-2 at 8:48 of the second. He took a drop pass from Elias Pettersson on a rush and lifted in a backhand over Kuemper’s left shoulder.

“These games, when you know some guys are tired, you can tell for whatever reason guys like 'Hoggy' shine because he’s a motor,” Vancouver coach Rick Tocchet said. “I thought Garland and him were our best players. Garland was excellent tonight, so give those two guys a lot of credit tonight.”

Washington had a chance to win it in overtime, but Sandin hit the post with 1:04 remaining.

“Tough finish. Guys competed,” Capitals coach Spencer Carbery said. “They did some things that stressed us, but just disappointing the way that ends. It’s just a tough mistake for a young player (McMichael), but we’ll learn from it.”

NOTES: Ovechkin has eight points (five goals, three assists) during a six-game point streak. ... Canucks defenseman Nikita Zadorov served the first of a two-game suspension for an illegal check to the head against Red Wings forward Lucas Raymond on Saturday. … The Capitals have lost seven straight games on Super Bowl Sunday.