SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — The Washington Capitals rallied from a late two-goal deficit and produced their first winning streak of the season.
Troy Brouwer scored 32 seconds into overtime to lift the Capitals to their first road victory, a 6-5 win against the Florida Panthers on Tuesday night.
Washington trailed 5-3 before Eric Fehr scored on a redirect at 14:53 of the third period. Alex Ovechkin netted a power-play goal with 2:49 left to tie it.
"We've had a few games we've given away two points, now it's our turn to battle back and get those two very important points," Brouwer said.
Mike Ribeiro, Karl Alzner and Matt Hendricks also scored for the Capitals. Braden Holtby, who shut out Florida 5-0 on Saturday, stopped 27 shots.
"This win will do us wonders in the long run, knowing that we can come back," Holtby said, "but at the same time, (if) we play like that against one of top teams, it's real ugly."
Florida rookie Jonathan Huberdeau had his first multigoal game, and Drew Shore scored his first NHL goal. Tomas Fleischmann and Shawn Matthias also scored for the Panthers, and Scott Clemmensen made 23 saves.
Washington, which had been 0-4-1 on the road, improved to 22-8-1 in its last 31 games against Southeast Division rival Florida.
"I think our composure is something we have to continue to work on," Panthers coach Kevin Dineen said. "Feeling the pressure, it's how you respond to it and we didn't respond to it well. Obviously, sometimes you survive those, and tonight that's certainly a tough loss."
Brouwer took a pass on the right wing from Nicklas Backstrom and skated in alone on Clemmensen. His first shot was stopped, but Brouwer put in the rebound.
Shore's goal, the result of being hit by the puck after Holtby mishandled Jack Skille's centering pass, gave the Panthers a two-goal cushion at 6:25 of the third.
"It's kind of a tough pill to swallow, especially we know how in this season, every point is important," Shore said. "We let one slip away."
The 19-year-old Huberdeau, the No. 3 pick in the 2011 draft, scored two second-period goals — one on a double re-direct — to give the Panthers a 4-3 edge. Alzner and Hendricks also scored in the second.
"In the third, we let go of all the good things we did in the second," said Huberdeau, whose slashing penalty led to Ovechkin's goal.
Holtby stopped Peter Mueller from in close on a two-on-none rush with Shore to keep the game tied at 3.
Florida led 2-1 after one period on goals by Fleischmann and Matthias.
Ribeiro's power-play goal gave Washington a 1-0 lead at 4:26 of the first period. The Capitals have scored a power-play goal in five consecutive games.
NOTES: Fleischmann has scored 99 NHL goals. … Capitals D Tom Poti (upper body) missed his third straight game. … The Panthers, who began a four-game homestand, will host Montreal (Thursday), Tampa Bay (Saturday) and Toronto (Monday). … The Capitals have two games left on a three-game trip: Tampa Bay on Thursday, and the New York Rangers on Sunday.
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