Troy Brouwer scored two goals, Braden Holtby stopped 27 shots and the Washington Capitals beat the Los Angeles Kings 4-0 Tuesday night for their second win in eight games.
Playing in his 500th career game, Brouwer staked Washington to a 2-0 lead with a goal in each of the first two periods. It was his first multigoal game of the season and only the third with multiple points.
Nicklas Backstrom made it 3-0 at 5:50 of the third period following a Los Angeles turnover, and 59 seconds later Eric Fehr converted another Kings miscue into a 4-0 advantage.
Holtby, meanwhile, was rarely tested in his sixth shutout of the season and career-high 24th victory.
The Capitals were 1-4-2 in their previous seven outings, allowing at least four goals in five of those games. Their only win in that span was a 4-0 thumping of Pittsburgh.
Jonathan Quick had 23 saves for the Kings, 1-6-2 on the road since Dec. 11. The defending Stanley Cup champions are 21-17-12 overall after opening the season 6-1-1.
The Capitals outshot Los Angeles 12-6 in the first period and got the lone goal at 17:11, by Brouwer off a centering pass from Evgeny Kuznetsov.
'We are all Kings' mantra working well for defending Stanley Cup champions
In the second period, Quick denied a point-blank shot by Brouwer with Washington on the power play. Minutes later, however, Brouwer re-directed a slap shot by Mike Green into the net for a power-play goal at 16:36.
Brouwer's 15 goals rank fourth on the team behind Alex Ovechkin (31), Fehr and Backstrom (16 each).
NOTES: It was the first time since 1998 that Los Angeles lost in regulation in Washington. The Kings were 7-0-2 in that span. ... Capitals coach Barry Trotz shook up his lines, scratching LW Jason Chimera and C Michael Latta. Chimera hadn't missed a game since Dec. 27. ... The teams conclude the home-and-home series on Valentine's Day. ... Green checked Kyle Clifford over the boards and into the Capitals' bench in the third period.
