Eurolanche

Avs begin road trip against Capitals

Season series: Alex Ovechkin had a goal and an assist, including the game-winner with 5:56 remaining in regulation, to lead the Washington Capitals to a 3-2 win against the Colorado Avalanche on Nov. 20. Nathan MacKinnon had two assists for Colorado. Braden Holtby made 27 saves for Washington.

Avalanche team scope: After falling behind 2-0 in the first period against the Dallas Stars on Saturday, Colorado scored four straight goals in a span of 12:33 in the second period and held on for a 4-3 victory. Matt Duchene had a goal and an assist, and has five points in his past five games. Colorado has won three straight games and five of its past six. "Our top guys are playing good hockey," said coach Patrick Roy on Saturday, according to the Avalanche website. "Right now we are a team that plays with a lot of confidence." Monday is the first of a five-game road trip for Colorado.

Capitals team scope: No team has had a better record than the Washington Capitals (12-1-4) since Dec. 4. Washington defeated the Detroit Red Wings 3-1 on Saturday, the seventh straight game in which it has earned at least a point (5-0-2). Holtby appeared in his 24th consecutive game to set a new franchise mark that he can extend if he plays against the Avalanche on Monday. "Colorado is hitting their stride right now," said coach Barry Trotz, according to the Capitals website. "They’ve got [goalie Semyon] Varlamov playing at the top of his game and they’re sort of getting their game in order, being more of the team that you saw last year and playing very well." The Capitals assigned defenseman Steve Oleksy to Hershey of the American Hockey League on Sunday.

- by Evan Sporer for NHL-