Avalanche beat Capitals in OT to clinch playoff spot

Brock Nelson scored the game-winning goal at 1:22 of overtime as the Colorado Avalanche rallied for a 3-2 victory against the Washington Capitals on Sunday.

Nelson won the game for the Avalanche (46-13-10, 102) when Martin Necas set him up for a slap shot past Logan Thompson.

Gabriel Landeskog and Nicolas Roy also found the back of the net for Colorado, which is the first team to secure a spot in the Stanley Cup playoffs. Necas had two assists, and Mackenzie Blackwood made 20 saves.

The win was the second straight for the Avalanche after a stretch in which they won just one of five games.

Alex Ovechkin and Justin Sourdif scored, and Thompson made 21 saves for the Capitals (35-28-8, 78), who had previously won two straight games and three of their last four.

Sourdif put Washington ahead 1-0 at 11:53 of the first period. The 23-year-old center caught the bouncing puck on a breakaway and beat Blackwood with a snap shot.

Landeskog tied it 1-1 at 1:05 of the third period. Thompson was caught out of position when Necas set Landeskog up from behind the net for an uncontested snap shot.

Colorado went ahead 2-1 at 6:03 when Roy collected his own rebound and scored shortside on Thompson.

Ovechkin tied the game back up 2-2 at 14:17 with a slap shot on the power play.

The Avalanche are part of the playoff field for the ninth straight season. They were Stanley Cup champions in 2021-22.

Washington is on the outside of the Eastern Conference wild-card race.

--Field Level Media