This one wasn’t as bad as it looked. The Capitals outshot and outplayed the Sabres, basically everything but outscore them, which is kind of how you win games.
Matt Niskanen
He scored the lone Capitals goal (his first in a Capitals sweater) in the 2-1 loss, registered 4 shots on goal, and played 24:16 (tied with John Carlson for team-high TOI). The goal came on the power play, where Niskanen filled in capably for Mike Green, who left the game after taking only one shift in the third period.
Braden Holtby
Holtby keeps getting better and better. This one loss didn’t mar his SV% too much (he finished the night with a .923), and he’s looking more like the goaltender that the Caps need and expect him to be each night.
Alex Ovechkin:
He didn’t score a goal in the loss, but he registered 8 shots on goal and 5 hits. He played 20:06, which was second to Nicklas Backstrom’s (who played 21:56) TOI for forwards.
About Katie Brown