What a crazy night for Washington Capitals forward T.J. Oshie.
After leaving the game on two separate occasions due to hits to the head (a high-stick that produced a cut in the first period; a shoulder to the head from Evgeni Malkin in the third period resulting in an ejection), he was able to return with just enough time left to score the game-winning goal in the Capitals’ 2-1 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Alex Ovechkin, doing what he does best and blasting yet another one-timer from his office on the power play, scored the other goal for the Capitals.
Sidney Crosby scored the lone goal for the Penguins, who are now stuck riding a five-game losing streak.
[Related: Obviously unhappy GM rips Penguins’ slow start]
This latest loss for the Penguins came on the same day their general manager, Jim Rutherford, absolutely ripped the team for its early season inconsistencies. The thing that had to be especially frustrating for them on Wednesday is it was probably the best game they have played over the past two weeks. The biggest reason they did not get a better result was a touch of bad luck (at least three shots of the post), and what was a pretty great performance from Capitals goalie Braden Holtby.
At one point the Capitals went nearly 20 minutes without registering a shot on goal, while the Penguins continued to pepper Holtby with chances. In the end Holtby stopped 41 out of the 42 shots he faced.
With the win the Capitals are now just one point behind the New York Islanders for the top spot in the Metropolitan Division while the Penguins go from second place to -- for now -- out a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
MORE: Your 2018-19 NHL on NBC TV schedule
—
Adam Gretz is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @AGretz.