National Hockey League
Washington 4, Dallas 3
When: 8:30 PM ET, Tuesday, December 19, 2017
Where: American Airlines Center, Dallas, Texas
Referees: Steve Kozari, Furman South
Linesmen: Derek Nansen, Pierre Racicot
Attendance: 18112

DALLAS -- The Washington Capitals are starting a four-game road trip, and what better way to kick that off than with a dramatic 4-3 overtime win over the Dallas Stars on Tuesday night at American Airlines Center?

Andre Burakovsky had two goals and an assist, capping his impressive evening with his second goal of the game 1:51 into overtime. He beat Ben Bishop, who stopped 24 shots, far post on a wrister from the slot.

Burakovsky's third goal of the season clinched the Capitals' 11th win in their past 13 games.

"I just felt really good in the morning skate this morning and in the warmup," Burakovsky said. "I had a really good feeling going into this game. I like the players, good atmosphere. It's a fast type of hockey; that's what I like. Lot of skating. It's the type of game I like."

Brett Connolly, who also had an assist, and Dmitry Orlov scored for Washington (22-12-1), which also got two assists from Lars Eller.

Jamie Benn, Gemel Smith and Alexander Radulov scored for the Stars (18-14-3).

"You're never OK with losing," Stars defenseman Dan Hamhuis said. "You want to find a way to get the two points, especially with a lead with four or five minutes to go in the game. You want to be able to close those ones out."

Burakovsky put Washington on the board off the rush with 9:25 remaining in the first period. Burakovsky received a cross-ice pass from Connolly in the right circle and quickly beat Bishop far post on a well-placed wrist shot.

"It was nice to see (Burakovsky) get back on the goal-scoring chart. It was good to get him a couple, and I thought we just got contributions through the whole lineup, which was really good," Capitals coach Barry Trotz said.

Dallas tied it on a power play with 4:46 remaining in the opening period when Benn scored his 14th goal of the season on a redirect. Benn deflected John Klingberg's wrist shot from the high slot.

The Stars nearly took a 2-1 lead 1:57 into the second period on an apparent goal by Radulov. However, a review determined an official blew the play dead prior to the puck crossing the line.

Dallas took its first lead with 8:51 remaining in the second period when Smith scored his fourth goal of the season by collecting his own rebound. Braden Holtby, who stopped 33 shots, denied Smith's initial shot, but Smith remained in the play and buried the rebound.

It was Holtby's first career win in five starts in Dallas.

"Yes, obviously it was a gutsy win on our part. It feels nice to win in this building finally against that team," Holtby said. "They're a good team. They create a lot of chances."

Washington tied it with 6:48 remaining in the second when Orlov scored his fourth goal of the season. After receiving the puck inside the neutral zone, Orlov displayed some dazzling stick-handling to shake Klingberg inside the right circle before beating Bishop on a wrist shot for the equalizer.

"I was like everybody else, (saying) holy you-know-what," Trotz said of Orlov's tally. "That one had the wow factor. I thought (Orlov) played exceptionally well all game."

Radulov gave Dallas a 3-2 lead with his 12th goal of the season, on a low wrist shot from the slot with 4:07 remaining in regulation. However, that lead stood for all of 41 seconds before Connolly netted the equalizer on a wrist shot from the slot.

"The third goal shouldn't have gone in," Stars coach Ken Hitchcock said. "We got beat on the boards three times. Puck was in the net because of it.

"We didn't have awareness away from the puck. We had earned the right to finish the game off strong. We got beat off the boards twice and he made a play. Game over."

The Capitals are now 8-7-1 on the road.

"Yeah, it was a fast game. I thought both teams did a lot of good things," Trotz said. "They're a good hockey team. I thought we handled a lot of their skill people quite well and we had a good response. We had a good response all game."

NOTES: The Capitals scratched D Taylor Chorney and RW Devante Smith-Pelly. The Stars scratched RW Brett Ritchie. ... Capitals RW TJ Oshie returned after missing the previous six games with a concussion. ... The Stars traded D Jamie Oleksiak to Pittsburgh for a conditional fourth-round pick in the 2019 NHL Draft. ... Capitals RW Alex Chiasson and D Matt Niskanen are both former Stars.
Top Game Performances
 
Washington   Dallas
Andre Burakovsky 3 Points Alexander Radulov 2
Andre Burakovsky 2 Goals Alexander Radulov 1
Lars Eller 2 Assists Alexander Radulov 1
N/A Power Play Goals Jamie Benn 1
N/A Short Handed Goals N/A
Braden Holtby .917 Save Percentage Ben Bishop .857
Braden Holtby 33 Saves Ben Bishop 24
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
Washington 28 4 0-3 3-4 14 28
Dallas 36 3 1-4 3-3 12 28
Upcoming Games
  • Dallas will play their next game at home against Chicago. The Stars have a W/L % of .556 after a win and .471 after a loss.
  • Washington will play their next game on the road against Arizona. The Capitals have a W/L % of .591 after a win and .692 after a loss.