Pettersson scores twice, Canucks top Capitals to end three-game slide

WASHINGTON -- Elias Pettersson scored twice, and the Vancouver Canucks ended their three-game losing streak with a 4-2 win against the Washington Capitals at Capital One Arena on Sunday.

The goals were the first Pettersson had scored in eight games.
"I know what I'm capable of. Of course, there's been a very slow start for me," said Pettersson, who has scored 19 points (eight goals, 11 assists) in 38 games this season. "But it's a good win for us today, and I'm very happy with my two goals today."
Bo Horvat and J.T. Miller each had a goal and an assist for the Canucks (17-18-3), who had lost four of five after winning their first seven games under coach Bruce Boudreau. Thatcher Demko made 31 saves.
"I think we deserved better in some of the games," Pettersson said. "It was like we just have to stay the course. We've been playing good hockey. … I think we just came into this game with the right mindset: keep on working, keep playing the game."

Alex Ovechkin scored, Evgeny Kuznetsov had two assists, and Ilya Samsonov made 28 saves for the Capitals (21-9-9), who are 1-3-2 in their past six games.
Ovechkin tied Leon Draisaitl of the Edmonton Oilers for the NHL lead in goals (26) and points (54).
"I think in the first half of the game we didn't go to the front of the net, especially when we moved the puck to our blue line, we just stayed on the perimeter and every shot, he sees it," Ovechkin said. "In this League, it is hard to score from the blue line if there's no traffic in front. We are going to watch the video, make some adjustments and move on."
Tom Wilson pulled Washington within 3-2 when he scored a power-play goal on a one-timer from the right circle at 6:22 of the third period, but Miller shot into an empty net at 19:02 for the 4-2 final.
Ovechkin made it 1-0 when he scored on a one-timer from the left circle during a power play at 10:31 of the first period.
"The first power play [unit], I thought, generated a lot of chances," Capitals coach Peter Laviolette said. "There's a lot of movement, a lot of chances that came from the first power play, and right at the end we got one."
The Canucks tied it 1-1 when Pettersson's wrist shot from the right circle deflected in off the post 33 seconds into the second period.
Pettersson then got his own rebound below the goal line and scored with a backhand off Samsonov to give the Canucks a 2-1 lead at 4:48.
"Maybe we're almost too aggressive up top," Capitals forward Carl Hagelin said. "We didn't really have the sticks in the lanes where we need to have them."

Horvat extended the lead to 3-1 with a one-timer from the slot during a power play at 18:50.
The Canucks were 2-for-4 with the man-advantage after going 0-for-12 during their losing streak.
"I thought we played a 60-minute game," Boudreau said. "We backed up a little bit a little bit in the third period, but we did one of those bend and not break type situations. But everybody did their job, and when they did their job and the power play is working, you're going to have some success."
NOTES:Miller has scored 18 points (five goals, 13 assists) in his past 15 games. … Canucks defenseman Quinn Hughes had two assists and has 14 in his past 15 games. … Horvat has scored 10 points (six goals, four assists) in his past 12 games. … Canucks forward Conor Garland was placed in COVID-19 protocol on Sunday. … Capitals defenseman John Carlson was also placed in protocol on Sunday. … Ovechkin has scored four points (two goals, two assists) in a four-game point streak. He tied Mike Modano (1,374 points) for 24th in NHL history. … Kuznetsov has scored five points (one goal, four assists) in a four-game point streak. … Hagelin and Capitals defenseman Dmitry Orlov were each minus-1 in their return after missing two games while in COVID-19 protocol.