Jake Guentzel lifts Penguins past Capitals

[January 18, 2021]  Jake Guentzel scored in the fourth round of the shootout on Sunday to give the Pittsburgh Penguins a 4-3 win over the visiting Washington Capitals.

Guentzel got in tight and slipped the puck under the pads of goaltender Ilya Samsonov.

It was the first win in three games for Pittsburgh; it was the first loss, albeit with a shootout point, for Washington.

Marcus Pettersson scored the tying goal in the second period for the Penguins, who also got goals from Evan Rodrigues and Colton Sceviour.

Casey DeSmith, in his second appearance and first start, made 20 saves. He stopped all four Washington players in the shootout, including captain Alex Ovechkin after Guentzel's goal to seal it.

Ovechkin had a goal and an assist during regulation. Nic Dowd and Nicklas Backstrom also scored, Evgeny Kuznetsov had two assists and Samsonov made 24 saves.

The Penguins scored on the game's first shift. A shot from the right point by Brian Dumoulin caromed off Rodrigues and past Samsonov just 19 seconds into the game.

Dowd tied it at 12:04 of the first on a backhander from above the crease that fluttered past DeSmith.

Washington took a 2-1 lead at 14:24 of the first on Ovechkin's first goal through three games. Tom Wilson stole the puck from Pittsburgh defenseman John Marino in the Penguins' end, leading to Ovechkin cashing in on a Kuznetsov rebound with a backhander.

Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) carries the puck against the Pittsburgh Penguins during the second period at the PPG Paints Arena. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Sceviour tied it with his first goal as a Penguin. Samsonov played the puck behind his net, but Pittsburgh's Teddy Blueger intercepted it and got it to Sceviour in front. His lofted shot was upheld as a goal after a review to make it 2-2 at 2:10 of the second period.

The Capitals moved ahead 3-2 midway through the second period during a four-on-three power play. Backstrom converted a pass from Kuznetsov on a back-door play.

Pittsburgh tied it 3-3 at 12:57 of the second. Jason Zucker carried the puck behind the net and passed it out to Pettersson, who roofed a shot past Samsonov.

--Field Level Media

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