Tom Wilson started the scoring with his 19th goal of the season at 5:55 of the first. Dmitry Orlov made a good play at the left point, keeping the puck in the Philly zone by putting a one-timer on net. Although the Caps were outnumbered down low, Alex Ovechkin got the rebound, and as he was losing his balance he adroitly fed Wilson in the slot for the opening salvo.
In the back half of the first, the Caps doubled their lead with five-on-five rush goal from the third line, a goal that wasn't immediately evident. With an indirect cross-ice pass, Carl Hagelin sprung linemate Brett Connolly into the Philly zone in a one-on-one situation with a Flyers defender. Coming down the left side, the right-handed Connolly fired from the left circle, and his shot beat Philly goalie Brian Elliott, caromed off the net camera and came right back out, looking like a shot off the crossbar to the naked eye. Play continued, but during the next television timeout, another look revealed that Connolly had netted his 17th of the season.
The Caps took command of the game in the second period, scoring three goals on three shots in a span of just 3:05 before the first television timeout, and chasing Elliott to the bench in the process.