Avalanche beat Capitals in OT to clinch playoff spot

Field Level Media|published: Sun 22nd March, 15:42 2026

Mar 22, 2026; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Colorado Avalanche left wing Gabriel Landeskog (92) battles for the puck with Washington Capitals right wing Tom Wilson (43) in front of Capitals goaltender Logan Thompson (48) during the second period at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Amber Searls-Imagn Images

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

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