WASHINGTON – Tage Thompson completed a hat trick by scoring in overtime and the Buffalo Sabers defeated the Washington Capitals 5-4 Tuesday night for their seventh win in eight games.
Thompson also set up Alex Tuch for his 18th goal with a spinning pass from the rush and received a great pass in his second game. He used a Capitals turnover to score three minutes past OT for his fourth career hat trick.
Even after Washington’s Alex Ovechkin scored twice, only Connor McDavid has scored more this season than Thompson, who also moved up to third in the NHL with 55 points.
Tyson Jost also scored in the third period to level it for the Sabers, who have been catching fire in recent weeks, including a six-game winning streak that ended on Sunday. During that stretch, two games were postponed because of the deadly snowstorm that killed at least 40 people and with hockey one of the furthest things from their minds.
Players wore “Love for 3” t-shirts around the arena in honor of Damar Hamlin, the Bills security who wears that number and who remained hospitalized in Cincinnati after suffering a heart attack during Buffalo’s NFL game against the Bengals on Monday night. Signs with Hamlin’s name and the Bills logo lined the glass during the warm-up, and the Sabers said neither player nor coach Don Granato would speak to reporters Tuesday because they were still processing Hamlin’s situation.
The Sabers and Bills have the same owners, Terry and Kim Pegula, and consider themselves part of the same organization. Although this was a Buffalo road game, the Capitals paid tribute to Hamlin with a moment of support before the national anthem.
When the puck dropped, a matchup between two of hockey’s hottest teams tipped slightly in Buffalo’s favor. Alongside the top line from Jeff Skinner, Thompson and Tuch producing, Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 28 saves to give Washington only its third loss in 14 games.
Luukkonen became the 167th NHL goalie that Ovechkin faced. Ovechkin beat Luukkonen twice, scoring 28 goals this season and 808 in his career, 96 fewer than Wayne Gretzky’s record.
Sonny Milano and Nic Dowd also scored for the Capitals, who brought back winger TJ Oshie after six games with an upper-body injury. Goalkeeper Darcy Kümper allowed five goals in 29 shots.
NEXT
Sabers: Hosts the Minnesota Wild on Saturday.
Capitals: Visit the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday.
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Follow AP Hockey writer Stephen Whyno on Twitter at https://twitter.com/SWhyno
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