Holtby makes 29 saves, Capitals defeat Oilers in shootout

WASHINGTON -- T.J. Oshie scored the only goal in the shootout to lift the Washington Capitals to a 2-1 win against the Edmonton Oilers at Capital One Arena on Sunday.
Braden Holtby made 29 saves for his sixth consecutive victory, and defenseman Dmitry Orlov scored in the third period to tie it for Washington (10-7-1), which has won five of its past six games.

WATCH: [All Oilers vs. Capitals highlights]
"We're getting on the same page," Holtby said. "Obviously, every game is getting stronger. The biggest thing is we keep on it, keep growing, keep working on the small things. Those are the little things that win you games."
Jujhar Khaira scored, and Laurent Brossoit made 18 saves for the Oilers (6-9-2), who went 2-1-1 on a four-game road trip.
Iiro Pakarinen's pass, with a scrum in front of Holtby, deflected off Khaira's stick at 1:32 of the third period to put Edmonton ahead 1-0.

"That was a great goal for our line and for our team," said Khaira, who was in the lineup for the first time since Oct. 28. "Those are the goals we're going to need from the third, fourth line. [Ryan Strome] and Pakarinen made a great play, and we were just whacking away and it went in."
A mistake by Khaira led to Orlov's goal to tie it 1-1 at 5:14 of the third. Orlov skated by Khaira after passing from the blue line to Tom Wilson along the boards, and Wilson completed the give-and-go with a backhand pass across the top of the left face-off circle to Orlov for a wrist shot from the left hash marks over Brossoit's glove.
Edmonton had the only shot on goal in overtime.
Oshie opened the shootout with a goal, and Holtby denied Oilers forwards Leon Draisaitl, Connor McDavid and Mark Letestu.
"It's funny. I was told that Oshie likes to go five-hole in a shootout, so I was prepared for it," said Brossoit, who made his second start of the season. "And he still snuck it through."

The Capitals went 0-for-3 on the power play. The Oilers did not have a man-advantage opportunity.
Holtby's best sequence came between 17:58 and 19:09 of the second period when he stopped six Oilers shots, including consecutive right-pad saves on Pat Maroon.
"That was a pretty stupid sequence there," Wilson said. "It's amazing every night you get to watch [Holtby]. It's an absolute treat. He's one of the elite goalies. ... We're lucky to have that pleasure."
Oscar Klefbom appeared to give the Oilers a 1-0 lead at 6:16 of the second period, but Washington coach Barry Trotz challenged for goalie interference, and video review showed Edmonton center Ryan Nugent-Hopkins contacted Holtby before the puck crossed the goal line.
"If you take away the empty-net goal [in a 4-2 loss to the New York Rangers on Saturday], they're all one-goal games that we played here," Oilers defenseman Darnell Nurse said of their Metropolitan Division road trip. "You've got to take that as a positive. We showed that we can defend against some really good offensive teams, and it needs to continue."

Goal of the game

Orlov's goal at 5:14 of the third period.

Saves of the game

Holtby stopping Maroon at 18:59 and 19:00 of the second period.

Highlight of the game

Khaira's goal at 1:32 of the third period.

They said it

"Some of them showed up with some urgency, and it paid off. We were able to get something out of those bottom-six players, and that's nice to see. Now carry it forward. You've got a little momentum going. Put it on the ice again Tuesday [against the Vegas Golden Knights] and repeat it." -- Oilers coach Todd McLellan
"That was probably the most boring 3-on-3 I've played. Everyone was just winding back and winding back. There was barely anything. It was kind of disappointing." -- Capitals goalie Braden Holtby on an overtime that had one shot on goal

Need to know

Capitals forward Alex Ovechkin was held without a shot on goal for the first time since Feb. 25. His four-game point streak ended. … Oilers center Connor McDavid had three shots on goal, but his three-game point streak ended.

What's next

Oilers: Host the Vegas Golden Knights on Tuesday (9 p.m. ET; SNW, ATTSN-RM, NHL.TV)
Capitals: At the Nashville Predators on Tuesday (8 p.m. ET; NBCSN, NBCSWA, NHL.TV)