Voracek, Laughton net 2 each in Flyers win
October 10, 2018
OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) Jakub Voracek rebounded quickly from an embarrassing loss.
Voracek had two goals and three assists and Scott Laughton also scored twice in Philadelphia's 7-4 victory over the Ottawa Senators in Wednesday, a night after an 8-2 loss to San Jose in the Flyers' home opener.
''It was a tough start at home for us, but we scored seven and I think we played a pretty good hockey game,'' Voracek said. ''We just have to take it to the home ice now.''
Sean Couturier, Robert Hagg and Claude Giroux also scored, and Calvin Pickard stopped 31 shots.
Brady Tkachuk scored his first NHL goal and finished with two goals and an assist for Ottawa.
''(My mother's) birthday is (Thursday), so it's a nice little pre-gift for her because as of right now I don't have a gift for her yet,'' said Tkachuk, the No. 4 pick in the June draft. ''Maybe try to send flowers overnight, but it's kind of my gift for her.''
Maxime Lajoie also had two goals and an assist for the Senators, who were playing the first of a five-game homestand.
Craig Anderson made 38 saves, but the Flyers victimized him with four goals through two periods before they pulled away in the third.
Philadelphia took the lead for good with 4:15 remaining in the second period when Thomas Chabot missed an opportunity to clear the puck down low and Laughton beat Anderson off a backhand.
The game took a nasty edge in the second that continued in the third.
Playing his second career game, the 19-year-old Tkachuk endeared himself to fans with his scoring touch, but also showed his propensity to mix things up when he took a double minor for roughing early in the final frame.
The Flyers didn't score on the ensuing power play, but Hagg picked up his second of the season shortly thereafter.
Giroux scored his first goal of the season late in the period on a power play to make it 6-3.
Tkachuk, making his home debut with the Senators, got his first goal when he redirected a shot by Chris Tierney off his skate on the power play midway through the first period. He became the fastest Tkachuk to score in the NHL. It took his father Keith five games, and brother Matthew, who plays for Calgary, scored in his fourth outing.
The Flyers tied it on the power play as Voracek, at the side of the net, redirected Shayne Gostisbehere's one-timer.
Tkachuk picked up his second of the night early in the second period as he carried the puck in and beat Pickard shortside, but less than two minutes later Couturier grabbed a rebound and backhanded it past Anderson to tie it 2-2.
The Flyers took the lead on Voracek's second of the night as he showed great patience before beating Anderson through the five-hole. The Senators managed to tie it when Lajoie fired a rebound past Pickard.
NOTES
Ottawa C Paul Carey and D Ben Harpur were healthy scratches.
UP NEXT
Flyers: Return home to face the Vegas Golden Knights on Saturday.
Senators: Host the Los Angeles Kings on Saturday.
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Kuznetsov's 4-point night helps Capitals beat Golden Knights
October 10, 2018
WASHINGTON (AP) Evgeny Kuznetsov is dancing with the puck and celebrating when it's in the net just like last June.
Kuznetsov continued his wizardry against the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday night, scoring a goal and assisting on three more as part of a 5-2 Washington Capitals victory in a rematch of last season's Stanley Cup Final.
Kuznetsov assisted on two goals by Alex Ovechkin and one by Nicklas Backstrom and scored his own on the power play. The leading scorer in the Cup Final with eight points in five games, Kuznetsov has seven points through the defending champions' first three games of the regular season.
''If you play with the good players, you're always gonna get points,'' Kuznetsov said after one of the best all-around games of his career. ''It's just about have fun every night you go out there. If you don't have fun and you don't want to enjoy, you don't want to play hockey, you should be retired. But you can see we always have fun.''
The Capitals are having plenty of fun right now with the franchise's Stanley Cup banner in the rafters and almost the same team back. Perhaps most importantly, they still have Kuznetsov and Ovechkin, whose sublime chemistry from the playoffs was again on display against the Golden Knights.
''He knows when to pass, he knows when to shoot,'' said Ovechkin, who has four goals in three games. ''Sometimes he try to make crazy pass. You think, `What's he doing?' But he have his own mind. ... You just have to be ready at any second.''
The 610th and 611th goals of Ovechkin's career put him in sole possession of 17th on the NHL's career list, passing Bobby Hull. Kuznetsov pointed out that Ovechkin passes someone every 10 games or so and joked, ''That's a free meal for me.''
Braden Holtby, who made ''the save'' with his stick in Game 2 of the Final, stopped 29 of 31 shots and bailed out his teammates during an especially sloppy second period. Holtby allowed goals to Cody Eakin in the second period and Reilly Smith in the third.
''We've played against them enough to know that they're going to come at some point,'' Holtby said. ''It's a matter of keeping your cool and not getting frustrated. You need a couple big plays, be it blocks or saves or guys getting the puck out.''
Vegas goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury, who wanted to start this game instead of facing his former team in Pittsburgh on Thursday night, allowed four goals on 28 shots.
''I think just a few mistakes here there, including myself and guys in our defensive zone maybe,'' Fleury said. ''But if we clean that up, we'll be in good shape.''
His teammates hit the post a handful of times and went 0 for 3 on the power play and are 0 for 11 so far this season. The Golden Knights fell to 1-3-0 at the beginning of their second season a year after starting 8-2-0.
''It's a long year and we have to figure out things quick,'' Vegas defenseman Shea Theodore said. ''We definitely have to work some things out and find our game.''
Notes: T.J. Oshie sealed the Capitals' victory with an empty-net goal with 1:55 remaining, sparking chants of ''back-to-back.'' ... Washington D Brooks Orpik returned early in the second period after taking a big hit from William Carrier and landing awkwardly in the first. ... Vegas C Paul Stastny will miss at least the next two games with a lower-body injury. Coach Gerard Gallant said Stastny will be re-evaluated when the team returns home over the weekend after this road trip. ... Washington D Michal Kempny made his season debut after missing the first two games with a suspected concussion. ... F Dmitrij Jaskin made his Capitals debut after they claimed him off waivers from St. Louis.
UP NEXT
Golden Knights: Continue their Eastern Conference road trip at the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday night.
Capitals: Expected to give backup goaltender Pheonix Copley his first start of the season at the New Jersey Devils on Thursday night.
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Coyotes beat Ducks in shootout for 1st win
October 10, 2018
ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) Nick Cousins and company took a deep breath.
The first goal is on the board. The first win is in the books.
Cousins scored in the shootout, Antti Raanta made 23 saves and the Arizona Coyotes beat the Anaheim Ducks 3-2 on Wednesday night for their first win.
Dylan Strome and Brad Richardson scored for Arizona (1-2), which dropped its first 11 games last season.
''It's huge. Because of what happened last year it is a big relief,'' Cousins said. ''I think it relieves some pressure.''
The Coyotes got their first goal this season when Strome converted a power-play opportunity with 2 1/2 minutes left in the first. They were the last NHL team to score.
''I just looked and there was a lot of relief. We didn't want to go another period without scoring a goal,'' Strome said.
Coach Rick Tocchet also looked relieved that he didn't have to answer any more questions about when his team was going to get its first victory.
''We are going to enjoy the win,'' he said. ''We have some work to do, but there was a lot of chances on both teams tonight, especially early on.''
Anaheim was trying for the first 4-0 start in franchise history. Ryan Kesler and Ben Street scored for the Ducks (3-0-1), and John Gibson made 37 saves.
''We didn't manage the puck properly in some areas,'' coach Randy Carlyle said. ''We had people on the wrong side of it in some of the battles.''
Kesler returned to the lineup after missing the first three games. The center had hip surgery in June 2017 and played in only 44 games last season.
Kesler centered the third line and scored on his third shift 5:52 into the first period. He battled for the puck in front of the Arizona goal before firing it past Raanta to give Anaheim a 1-0 lead.
''To be able to score that goal that early on in the game definitely feels really good,'' Kesler said. ''Everything I went through for the past year and a half, it hasn't been fun. I had fun out there tonight.''
Street's goal at 14:39 of the second period was his first in the NHL. At 31 years and 240 days, he is the oldest player to score his first NHL goal with Anaheim in the 25-year history of the franchise.
NOTES: The Ducks have allowed only six goals in their first four games, which is the lowest total in franchise history. ... Anaheim's Andrew Cogliano has an assist in two straight games. ... It was Arizona's longest goal drought to open a season, more than doubling the 67:11 mark at the start of the 1996-97 season. ... Two of the six goals Anaheim has allowed this season were short-handed. The Ducks and Flyers are the only teams to have allowed two so far this season. ... Arizona's Derek Stepan played in his 600th NHL game. He is the ninth player from the 2008 draft class and first non-first round pick to reach that milestone.
UP NEXT
Coyotes: Return home to face Buffalo on Saturday before embarking on a four-game road trip.
Ducks: Have back-to-back road games beginning on Saturday against Dallas.