The Washington Capitals needed a win, and Alex Tuch made sure they got one.
Tuch scored twice and added an assist, Justin Holl broke a 3-3 tie midway through the third period, and the Capitals edge Canadiens 5-4 on Wednesday night at Capital One Arena. The win snapped a two game losing streak and moved Washington to 4-3-0 on the season.
A Back and Forth First Period
Montreal struck first when Josh Anderson scored at 4:29 of the opening period. Jordan Kyrou answered for Washington a little over three minutes later, with rookie defenseman Cole Hutson and Tuch picking up the assists.
The Canadiens went back in front at 11:15 on a goal from Lane Hutson, Cole’s older brother and the 2025 Calder Trophy winner. Ivan Miroshnichenko tied it again on a power play with 26 seconds left in the period, set up by Ilya Protas and Kyrou.
Tuch Keeps Rolling
Tuch gave Washington its first lead of the night at 6:16 of the second period, scoring shorthanded on an unassisted play. Anderson tied it for Montreal later in the period with his second goal of the game.
That set the stage for Holl. The veteran defenseman beat Jakub Dobes at 12:29 of the third, with Protas collecting his second assist of the night. Tuch added an insurance goal at 17:05, and that cushion mattered when Nick Suzuki scored on a Montreal power play at 18:21 to make it 5-4. Washington held on from there.
Tuch now has six points (five goals, one assist) in seven games since joining the Capitals.
Charlie Lindgren made 26 saves for the win. It was his 68th career win with Washington, which moves him into sole possession of seventh place on the franchise list.
Brother vs. Brother
The game was the first NHL meeting between the Hutson brothers, and both found the scoresheet. Lane scored a goal and added an assist for Montreal, while Cole picked up an assist on Kyrou’s first period goal.
According to the NHL, they are only the second pair of defenseman brothers to each record a point in their first meeting against each other, joining Luke and Quinn Hughes in December 2023.
Who Was Missing
Washington played without center Pierre-Luc Dubois (illness) and defensemen Matt Roy (lower body) and Rasmus Sandin (knee).
The Capitals had dropped their previous two games, including a 4-2 loss to Carolina on Tuesday, before bouncing back on the second night of a back to back. Montreal fell to 3-3-1 with the loss, ending a two game winning streak.
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