📸: DrKat, Discord emoji innovator
The Washington Caps inaugurated the Cole Hutson era with a win on home ice over the Ottawa Senators. A sturdy win over a team that has dogged them all season.
No one scored in the first period, but the Caps got two in the second period: Alex Ovechkin on a one-timer and Tom Wilson with a sneaky boi that Linus Ullmark didn’t expect.
With 2:41 left in regulation, Tim Stutzle stuffed a shot to bust Thompson’s shutout late. Aliaksei Protas sunk one empty-netter, then Cole Hutson got his first NHL goal in his first NHL game against zero NHL goalies.
Caps win!
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- The Senators have had the Caps’ number this season. They were the authors of that miserable 7-1 beatdown and another one-goal loss. They generally dictate play, but for some reason it was closer tonight.
- Alex Ovechkin, a Russian player on the Capitals, scored a goal. It was a slick deflection of Rasmus Sandin‘s pass, it was the 25th of Ovechkin’s season, and it was his first since a two-goal outing on February 28. Ovi’s got a couple trivia milestones about home-ice goals, 25-goal seasons, and nearing 1000 career goals (rego szn plus loffs), but I don’t want to write about those so I’m not going to.
- Did you know this was game 69 of the season? Check our player pages tomorrow morning. I spent hours agonizing over a stupid bit that only works for one game a year, so you need to appreciate it.
- Tom Wilson had a fun night bullying Nick Cousins, removing the latter’s lid twice, earning a penalty both times. The Senators didn’t score on their PPs, and Wilson got a goal, and Cousins looked goofy, so I’m counting it as an unqualified victory for Tom. Tactically, morally, whatever.
- Hendrix Lapierre almost scored. He hit the post. This is bullet-worthy to me. Anthony Beauvillier playing his 700th game is not bullet-worthy. This is my logic.
- A brilliant outing for goalie Logan Thompson, whose glove hand was busy early and often. The Caps weren’t a disaster at possession, but the Sens still fired way more shots. LT had the answer for quite nearly all of them. He says he doesn’t do shutouts. Fine. Good for him. I don’t eat fish. It takes all kinds.
Maximum Statler and Waldorf energy #joebsuitofthenight
— RMNB (@rmnb.bsky.social) 2026-03-18T23:28:35.672Z
I’m sure growing pains are coming for Cole Hutson, but not tonight. Hutson, 19, made his NHL debut just days after BU’s season ended. Is he just not going to do the rest of his classes? Is there an essay he started and it’s just going to be in drafts forever? Is there a group project where the other members are wondering why the guy with the nice hair has ghosted them and they still don’t have their bibliography on the eight banking panics of the gilded age? Fine, because Hutson looked great: fast, assertive, creative.
He started the game, he played on PP1, he funneled passes to Ovi, he generated scoring chances, he led the team in on-ice attempt differential, and he scored a goal. He’s exactly what the Caps need at a pivotal time. I’m not saying if I mean a pivotal time within this season or on the macro scale.
Devils Friday. They’re a mess but 7-3-0 in their last ten.
