Tuesday's NHL Capsules

Games played Jan. 22, 2012

WASHINGTON (AP) - Evander Kane and Blake Wheeler each provided a goal and an assist, and the Winnipeg Jets suddenly transformed into an offensive juggernaut, beating Alex Ovechkin's struggling Capitals 4-2 Tuesday night to end Washington's 10-game winning streak in home openers.

Two games and two losses into the lockout-shortened season - and new Washington boss Adam Oates' NHL head coaching career - Ovechkin doesn't have a goal, the Capitals have been outscored 10-5, and their opponents are 5 for 12 on power plays.

Andrew Ladd and Jim Slater also scored, and Tobias Enstrom had three assists for Winnipeg (1-1-1), which outshot the Capitals 39-34.

The Jets scored only two goals in their first 137½ minutes of play this season. They matched that total with a pair of power-play scores in a 4-minute span during the first period Tuesday.

DEVILS 3, FLYERS 0

NEWARK, N.J. (AP) - Martin Brodeur made 24 saves for his 120th NHL shutout, Ilya Kovalchuk scored on a short-handed penalty shot, and the Devils won their home opener in front of an enthusiastic sellout crowd with a victory over the winless Flyers.

Travis Zajac and David Clarkson scored first-period goals for the defending Eastern Conference champions, 2-0 in the lockout-shortened season.

The Flyers dropped to 0-3, matching their worst start since they also lost their first three games in the lockout-shortened 1995 season.

Philadelphia rebounded that year to win the Atlantic Division, and the Devils won their first Stanley Cup championship that season with Brodeur in goal.

Brodeur was the difference this time in recording his 10th shutout against Philadelphia. He was outstanding in the first period, stopping nine shots when the Flyers played with desperation.

LIGHTNING 4, HURRICANES 1

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) - Keith Aulie scored the momentum-shifting goal that propelled the Lightning past the Hurricanes.

Tom Pyatt and Cory Conacher scored early goals, Ryan Malone added a power-play tally, and Vincent Lecavalier had two assists. The Lightning pulled away with two goals in the third period.

Jeff Skinner scored a power play goal for the Hurricanes, who had their home opener spoiled by Tampa Bay for the second straight season.

Mathieu Garon stopped 35 shots - including all 15 he faced in the third period of his first start this season for the Lightning, who opened the lockout-compressed season with two wins in three games.

Cam Ward made 22 saves, but allowed four goals for the second straight game. The Hurricanes have started a much-anticipated season with two losses and have been outscored by a combined 9-2. Carolina has dropped four straight home openers.

CANADIENS 4, PANTHERS 1

MONTREAL (AP) - Andrei Markov scored two goals, his first in two seasons, and Alex Galchenyuk had the first of his NHL career to help the Canadiens beat the Panthers 4-1 on Tuesday night.

Tomas Plekanec also scored for Montreal (1-1-0), while Rafael Diaz and Max Pacioretty each had two assists.

Tomas Kopecky scored for Florida (1-2-0), which was coming off a 4-0 loss in Ottawa on Monday night. The Panthers have played three games in four nights.

Markov had played only 17 games since he last scored on Nov. 9, 2010 due to two successive surgeries on the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee. Both his goals came on power plays.

Florida goalie Scott Clemmensen went into the game with a 6-0 career record against Montreal, but it was Carey Price who got the win as the Canadiens had a 33-28 shot advantage.

STARS 2, RED WINGS 1

DETROIT (AP) - Michael Ryder scored in the first and third periods, and Kari Lehtonen came within 3.4 seconds of a shutout in the Stars' win over the Red Wings.

Lehtonen made 39 saves, but allowed Damien Brunner's first career goal in the final seconds. Ryder had already added an insurance goal with 14:26 to play.

Detroit's Jimmy Howard had 30 saves - including 16 in the second period - to keep his team in it.

Jaromir Jagr went without a point for Dallas for a second straight game after posting two goals and two assists in the season opener Saturday.

BLACKHAWKS 3, BLUES 2

CHICAGO (AP) - Patrick Kane, Brent Seabrook and Viktor Stalberg scored to back Corey Crawford, and the Blackhawks hung on to beat the Blues.

The Blackhawks looked sharp in their home opener after impressive wins at defending champion Los Angeles and Phoenix, the team that knocked them out of the playoffs in the first round last season.

This time, they took out the reigning Central division champions, with Kane scoring in the first period, Seabrook deflecting a shot into the net with his skate in the second and Stalberg coming through early in the third to make it 3-0.

Crawford made 32 saves and was in line for his first shutout since March 2011 when Andy McDonald beat him with a wrist shot shortly after Stalberg scored.

PREDATORS 3, WILD 1

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) - Martin Erat scored an unassisted goal for Nashville with 8:15 left when Minnesota goalie Niklas Backstrom couldn't clear the puck cleanly, and the Predators earned their first victory by beating the Wild.

Ryan Spaling had a goal late in the first period, and Chris Mason made 29 saves for the Predators in his first start of the season. He denied Dany Heatley off a rush and then on a rebound around the 5-minute mark. He stayed steady while the Wild tried to tie it.

Heatley scored for the third time in three games for the Wild, who failed to finish their three-game homestand unbeaten. The Predators, who lost in a shootout in their previous two games, started a franchise-record-tying, seven-game trip with a strong finish.