The Flyers celebrate around Vincent Lecavalier after he scored in overtime to give the Flyers a 5-4 win over the Washington Capitals on Sunday afternoon. (Photo Courtesy of ESPN.com)
Trailing 4-2 with 10 minutes left in the third period, Dmitry Orlov, who scored two of the Washington Capitals goals, took a five-minute major for boarding.
The Flyers managed one goal on the power play, but that set off a shooting gallery until the end of the period. With 1:05 left in the third, captain Claude Giroux netted his second goal of the game to even the score.
Midway through overtime, Vincent Lecavalier scored to register his 900th NHL point to give the Flyers the 5-4 come-from-behind win over the Capitals on Sunday afternoon from Verizon Center.
The Capitals took an early lead just 6:06 into the game on Orlov's first of the game. Giroux would score his first at 11:22 on a one-time blast on the power play.
The tie was short-lived as Marcus Johansson put the Capitals back in front just two minutes later following a Washington power play.
The Capitals led 2-1 after the first 20 minutes. They out-shot the Flyers in the first, 17-6.
The Flyers responded with a much-better second period, but still would trail where it counted. A short-handed goal by Adam Hall at 12:50 evened the score. But Jay Beagle gave the Capitals the lead again just 54 seconds later. With 3:37 left in the period, the Capitals would add another goal as Orlov scored his second.
As the game entered the final 10 minutes of play, Orlov responded to a solid hit by Brayden Schenn by drilling him into the boards for a five-minute boarding major. Jake Voracek scored halfway through the five-minute power play to cut the lead to one.
In the waning moments of the third, Voracek set up the game-tying goal. His shot through traffic tipped off Giroux and past Braden Holtby to even the score with 1:05 remaining in the third.
Both teams applied pressure in the early stages of overtime but the Flyers were clearly getting the better chances. A simple rush up ice by Kimmo Timonen would lead to the game-winning goal. Timonen laid a drop-pass to Lecavalier who threw it on goal and scored to give the Flyers the win.
Holtby made 31 saves in a losing effort for the Capitals. Steve Mason made 25 saves in back-to-back starts, earning the win.
After firing 17 shots on Mason in the first 20 minutes, the Capitals managed just 12 shots in the final two periods. The Flyers took 28 shots in the final 40 minutes and two more in overtime.
Despite giving the Capitals six power-play chances, the Flyers penalty kill held Washington 0-for-6 on those opportunities. The Flyers were 2-for-4 on power plays.
The Flyers also controlled play in the face-off circle. The Orange and Black won 37 face-offs compared to Washington's 23.
The Flyers also held the Capitals' two top scorers off the board. Alex Ovechkin didn't register a point and was minus-3. Nicklas Backstrom was also held without a point and was minus-1.
Timonen recorded three assists in the win. Giroux also had a three-point game with two goals and one assist as did Voracek with one goal and two assists. Braydon Coburn also added two assists in the win.
The Flyers improve in the standings for the moment ahead of the Rangers while holding the Capitals behind them in the standings. They will host the Capitals on Wednesday night at Wells Fargo Center.
Kevin Durso is the lead beat writer for Flyerdelphia. Follow him on twitter @KDursoPhilsNet.
