Askarov gets 1st NHL win, Predators edge Capitals in shootout

WASHINGTON -- Yaroslav Askarov made 26 saves then stopped two more attempts in a shootout to earn his first NHL victory for the Nashville Predators, 3-2 against the Washington Capitals at Capital One Arena on Saturday.

The 21-year-old, who was selected with the No. 11 pick in the 2020 NHL Draft, was making his first start this season and second in the NHL.

“It's the best feeling,” Askarov said after stopping fellow Russians Evgeny Kuznetsov and Alex Ovechkin in the shootout. “It's crazy. The game only finish now, and I need more time to just think about it.”

Luke Evangelista and Roman Josi scored for the Predators (20-16-1), who had lost three straight (0-2-1).

“I thought the first 10 minutes were really good, then we started getting back to some of the things that make us unsuccessful,” Nashville coach Andrew Brunette said. “But we self-corrected after the first and I thought the last two periods we played our game.”

Ovechkin scored his seventh goal of the season for the Capitals (17-11-6), who have lost four straight (0-2-2). Hunter Shepard made 33 saves after he was recalled from Hershey of the American Hockey League earlier in the day.

“’Shep’ was excellent,” Capitals coach Spencer Carbery said. “Had a chance to win it in overtime. Had some decent looks. There were some good things and then some things we could have done better.”

Evangelista gave the Predators a 1-0 lead at 2:44 of the first period when he got to a loose puck in the slot and beat Shepard with a wrist shot while down on one knee.

"No, not for a while,” Evangelista said when asked the last time he scored a goal on his knees. “Maybe back in my minor midget days, but not in a while."

Josi pushed it to 2-0 at 6:55 with a power-play goal. He received a pass in the right circle from Gustav Nyquist, skated to the high slot and scored with a wrist shot.

Beck Malenstyn pulled the Capitals to within 2-1 at 10:25, scoring on a rebound in front afterNic Dowd redirected Trevor van Riemsdyk’s one-timer from the point.

“[We] had a focus today of sending more pucks to the net with body presence, and I was fortunate to be on the right side of that one,” Malenstyn said. “I think we just have to be a little more conscious of our starts. Puts us behind the eight ball a little bit. Thought we did a good job of clawing back.”

Ovechkin tied it 2-2 at 14:59 of the second period on a one-timer from the left circle off a pass from Dylan Strome just after a power play expired.

Ovechkin then appeared to give the Capitals a 3-2 lead during a delayed penalty with one minute remaining in the third period, but a video review determined that Dowd interfered with Askarov.

NOTES: Both teams were playing the second of a back-to-back. ... Nyquist and Ryan O'Reilly scored for Nashville in the shootout. … Josi tied Shea Weber (166) for the most goals by a defenseman in Predators history. … Nashville center Colton Sissons won 11 of 16 face-offs (69 percent). … Askarov is the 171st different goaltender Ovechkin has scored against in his NHL career. Only Jaromir Jagr (178) and Patrick Marleau (177) have scored on more goaltenders in League history. … Capitals defenseman Ethan Bear, who signed a two-year contract on Dec. 28, played 20:05 and blocked three shots in his debut. … Washington is 16-0-5 when scoring at least two goals this season.