Jackets take down East's best Caps in shootout
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- Jack Johnson and Brandon Saad each had two goals, Ryan Johansen scored in the third round of the shootout and the last-place Columbus Blue Jackets beat the Capitals 5-4 to give Eastern Conference-leading Washington its first losing streak this season.
Columbus goalie Anton Forsberg relieved injured Curtis McElhinney 55 seconds into overtime and picked up his first career win after making six saves before the shootout.
Columbus beat NHL-leading Dallas 6-3 on Tuesday night.
Johansen slowed at the hash marks and flipped a shot over Braden Holtby's glove. Brandon Dubinsky also scored in the shootout and Forsberg made stops on Evgeny Kuznetsov and Nicklas Backstrom.
Holtby allowed more than three goals for only the second time this season. T.J. Oshie and Jason Chimera had power-play goals for Washington, and Marcus Johansson and Kuznetsov also scored.
Saad tied it with 1:08 left after Kuznetsov's go-ahead tally early in the third.
McElhinney stopped 23 of 27 shots before leaving early in overtime after falling awkwardly and appearing to catch a leg under his weight. Forsberg, up on emergency recall, made his season debut and just his sixth career appearance.
After McElhinney was helped off, Dubinsky was called for slashing. Facing the league's second-best power play, Forsberg stopped four shots, including one on his back from Backstrom.
With 30 seconds left, Columbus had their turn on an overtime power play, but Johansen sent a shot wide then had another blocked.
The Capitals have lost two in a row following a nine-game winning streak, tied for the longest run this season. Tom Wilson had two assists, and Washington finished 2 for 6 on the man advantage.
Holtby leads the league with 24 wins and entered 16-0-1 in his past 18 games. He made 25 saves.
Capitals captain Alexander Ovechkin entered the game with 496 goals and finished with six shots on goal. Forty-two players have scored 500 or more goals in their careers.
Johnson scored his second -- both on the power play -- with a low shot from the point through traffic 4:47 into the third to tie it 3-3.
But 40 seconds later, Kuznetsov split Johnson and Dalton Prout on a give-and-go with Wilson, then beat McElhinney on a nice move for his 12th.
With McElhinney pulled for the extra attacker, Saad got behind Matt Niskanen on an entry pass from Johnson. He beat Holtby with a hard backhand shot to the near post for his 16th. Saad extended his career-long point streak to seven games.
Johnson and Oshie exchanged power-play scores over the first 7:12 to make it 1-1. Just 44 seconds after Oshie's goal, Saad maneuvered around Holtby to put Columbus ahead. Chimera tied it with his 11th goal with 8:13 left in the first.
William Karlsson appeared to have a short-handed goal early in the second period for Columbus, but Capitals coach Barry Trotz successfully challenged that Cam Atkinson was offside on the 2-on-1.
Johansson scored his goal with 3:53 left in the second.
NOTES: Columbus G Sergei Bobrovsky, nursing a strained groin since being hurt Dec. 8 against Los Angeles, still isn't ready to return. He was activated off the injured reserve list on Wednesday but put back on it retroactive to Thurs. ... Capitals RW Jay Beagle, injured Wednesday night against Buffalo, underwent successful hand surgery on Sat. and is expected out six weeks. ... RW David Clarkson suffered an upper-body injury in the second period and did not return to start the third. ... Washington D John Carlson missed a fourth-straight game with a lower-body injury. ... Johansen has gone 14 games without a non-shootout goal.
