WASHINGTON (AP) — Brent Burns scored his 11th goal of the season, Frederik Andersen made 34 saves and the Carolina Hurricanes beat the depleted Washington Capitals 3-2 on Tuesday night.
Burns had one of three Hurricanes goals scored thanks to a point shot from a defenseman. The 2017 Norris Trophy winner scored through traffic, Calvin de Haan's shot went in off Paul Stastny, and Brady Skjei's shot was redirected in by Stefan Noesen on the power play.
Those hard-earned goals and Andersen's solid performance helped Carolina get back on track after losing 6-2 at home to the New York Rangers over the weekend. The Hurricanes have won 10 of their past 12 to pad their lead atop the Metropolitan Division.
This was the kind of response coach Rod Brind'Amour wanted from his team after the defeat Saturday and with players' fathers and mentors in attendance. It's a good start to the week for the Hurricanes, who are set to play their first outdoor game Saturday night against Washington at North Carolina State's football stadium in Raleigh.
The Capitals could get top winger Tom Wilson back by then, but they'll still be without captain Alex Ovechkin, No. 1 defenseman John Carlson and likely fourth-line center Nic Dowd.
Ovechkin left the team Tuesday to attend to a family health matter, and coach Peter Laviolette expects the Russian winger to be out at least the rest of the week and away “for the foreseeable future.” Carlson has been out since Dec. 23 after taking a slapshot to the head, while Dowd has missed 10 consecutive games because of injury.
Joe Snively, only in the lineup because of the absences of Ovechkin and forward Aliaksei Protas — who's out to be with his wife for the birth of the couple's first child — had a goal and a primary assist. The Northern Virginia native set up T.J. Oshie with a perfect pass in front and later picked a corner on Andersen to score his first goal since Feb. 17, 2022.
Kuemper made 27 saves and could hardly be blamed on any of Carolina's goals. Trevor van Riemsdy's would-be tying goal for the Capitals midway through the third period was disallowed after Brind'Amour successfully challenged for goaltender interference.
“Video review determined Washington’s T.J. Oshie impaired Frederik Andersen’s ability to play his position prior to Trevor van Riemsdyk’s goal,” the NHL's Situation Room said in explaining the ruling.
Washington has lost two in a row since beating the league-leading Boston Bruins on Saturday.
UP NEXT
Hurricanes: Host the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday night.
Capitals: Host the Florida Panthers on Thursday night.
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Follow AP Hockey Writer Stephen Whyno on Twitter at https://twitter.com/SWhyno
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