Hendrix Lapierre ends 90-game scoring drought in Capitals’ 3-1 win over Flames

By Canadian Press on January 23, 2026.

CALGARY — Hendrix Lapierre ended a run of 90 NHL games without a goal by scoring for the Washington Capitals in a 3-1 win over the Calgary Flames on Friday.

Aliaksei Protas also scored and Alex Ovechkin added an empty-net goal for Washington (25-21-6), which snapped a four-game losing streak.

Capitals goaltender and Calgary native Logan Thompson, who along with teammate Tom Wilson was named to Canada’s Olympic team, made 25 saves in the win.

Morgan Frost scored for Calgary (21-25-5) and Devin Cooley stopped 35 shots in the loss.

Protas scored a go-ahead goal for the Capitals at 7:35 of the third.

When Cooley slid to his left to defend against Wilson, a rebound squirted out to the Belarusian, who fired the puck into an open net.

Lapierre, of Gatineau, Que., pulled the visitors even 1-1 at 6:33 of the second period.

A John Carlson shot deflected off the leg of Yan Kuznetsov and onto Lapierre’s stick for the 23-year-old’s first goal since March 18, 2024, which also happened to be against Calgary.

Calgary countered a Washington short-handed, odd-man rush with a power-play goal on the Flames’ next trip down the ice.

Frost skated the puck into the zone and beat Thompson with a wrist shot below the goalie’s outstretched stick at 6:09 of the first period.

Takeaways

Flames: Outshot the Capitals 16-8 in the first period, but were outshot 30-10 the rest of the game. Penalty kill went 3-0 and hasn’t allowed a power-play goal in five straight games and 12 of Calgary’s last 13. Minus forward Blake Coleman (upper body) a sixth straight game.

Capitals: Defenceman Jacob Chychrun attempted the “Michigan”, which is a lacrosse style wraparound goal, during a power play early in the third period, but was denied by Cooley. Didn’t score a power-play goal after six straight games with at least one. Tom Wilson has two assists in two games after sitting out eight (lower body).

Key moment

Capitals forward Justin Sourdif won a puck battle with Calgary defenceman Brayden Pachal along the boards and threw the puck on net to generate Protas’ winning goal in the third period.

Key stat

Ovechkin, with 12 goals and 15 assists, leads Washington in road goals and points this season. Washington improved to 14-2-1 when he scores a goal.

Up next

Flames: Host the Anaheim Ducks on Sunday

Capitals: Visit the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 23, 2026.

Donna Spencer, The Canadian Press