Washington Capitals and Colorado Avalanche trade punches before Brock Nelson ends it in overtime at Capital One Arena

The Washington Capitals moved to 35-27-9 and 2 points while the Colorado Avalanche left at 46-13-10 and 3 points after a 3-2 overtime result at Capital One Arena.

Mar 22, 2026; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Washington Capitals center Justin Sourdif (34) score a goal against the Colorado Avalanche during the first period at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Amber Searls-Imagn Images

First period

The Washington Capitals opened the scoring with 1 goal in the first period while holding the Avalanche to 0 goals in the period.

The Caps converted 1 power-play goal on 5 opportunities in the game, and Alex Ovechkin scored on 3 shots with 1 goal.

The Avalanche finished the game with 15 hits while the Caps recorded 18 hits.

Second period

The Washington Capitals and the Avalanche each scored 0 goals in the second period as the Caps produced 22 shots and the Avs produced 24 shots in the game.

The Caps went 19-for-47 in the faceoff circle for a 40 percent win rate, and the Avalanche went 28-for-47 for 60 percent.

Logan Thompson logged 21 saves on 24 shots against with 3 goals against, and the Avalanche goaltending line finished with 20 saves on 22 shots against with 2 goals against.

Mar 22, 2026; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Washington Capitals right wing Ethen Frank (53) sliding into the net as Colorado Avalanche goaltender MacKenzie Blackwood (39) makes a save during the first period at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Amber Searls-Imagn Images

Third period

The Avalanche scored 2 goals in the third period while the Washington Capitals scored 1 goal, and the Caps finished with 13 blocked shots while the Burgundy and Blue recorded 5 blocked shots.

The Caps generated 5 power-play shots while the Avs recorded 2 power-play shots, and the Avalanche went 0-for-2 on the power play.

This Washington Capitals vs Colorado Avalanche match summary hinged on possession swings that showed up in 13 Avalanche giveaways against 12 by the Caps.

Overtime

The Avalanche scored the only overtime goal to close the game, and Brock Nelson was credited as the first star in the 3-2 overtime decision.

The Washington Capitals vs Colorado Avalanche turning point arrived when the Avs produced 3 overtime shots while the Caps recorded 0 overtime shots.

The game-changing plays Washington Capitals vs Colorado Avalanche also included the Avalanche finishing with 7 takeaways while the Caps had 2 takeaways.

Mar 22, 2026; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Washington Capitals center Justin Sourdif (34) celebrates after scoring a goal against the Colorado Avalanche during the first period at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Amber Searls-Imagn Images

The Washington Capitals vs Colorado Avalanche highlights set the Caps up for their next broadcast at 8:00 PM EDT on 3/24/2026 at Enterprise Center in St. Louis, Missouri, with viewing on ESPN+, MNMT, and FDSMW.

Catch that one, then run it back by sharing this article with other Caps fans.

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Washington Capitals and Colorado Avalanche trade punches before Brock Nelson ends it in overtime at Capital One Arena

First period

Second period

Third period

Overtime

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