York.DAVID PERRONThe expansion Vegas Golden Knights struck gold with Perron, whose 66 points are a career high and a big reason they are leading the Pacific Division. The soon-to-be 30-year-old winger got his game back a

WASHINGTON (AP) — Angry and determined to find some consistency Alex Ovechkin Jersey Kids , the defending Stanley Cup champion Capitals got contributions from unlikely sources to snap their two-game skid.The new-look fourth line scored twice in the first six minutes, backup goaltender Pheonix Copley made 31 saves and Washington beat the Edmonton Oilers 4-2 on Monday night. Alex Ovechkin scored on the power play to continue his climb up the career list, T.J. Oshie had the winner, but the Capitals essentially won the game on quick goals by Jakub Vrana and Devante Smith-Pelly that the Oilers couldn’t recover from.“We needed that win and we knew they have a pretty good team,” Ovechkin said. “I think tonight the (fourth) line set the tone. Two shifts, two goals, it’s pretty big.”Vrana scored 2:44 into his first shift after coach Todd Reirden demoted him to the fourth line following a turnover in a mistake-filled overtime loss to Dallas on Saturday. Travis Boyd assisted on each of the first two goals in his season debut as the Capitals came out flying and jumped all over Cam Talbot and the Oilers.“They got two quick goals on a couple turnovers,” said Talbot, who allowed four goals on 23 shots in his first start since Oct. 30. “That’s just kind of the way that team can go. They don’t need a lot of chances or a lot of shots Braden Holtby Jersey , but when they get them, they’ve got some good shooters on that team that can put them in.”Ovechkin’s 11th goal of the season was his 234th career on the power play, tying him with Marcel Dionne for eighth on the career list. John Carlson’s point shot banked off two Edmonton defenders and right to Ovechkin in his usual spot in the faceoff circle.“I was only here for a year, but I’ve seen him score about 20 from there,” said Oilers forward Alex Chiasson, who won the Cup with Capitals last season. “Kind of an unfortunate bounce for us. … Out of 600 and something (goals), he’s probably scored half of them from there, so he’s familiar with that spot.”Oilers captain Connor McDavid extended his point streak to eight games with his 10th goal of the season. Leon Draisaitl scored for Edmonton, which lost for just the second time in seven games.“I think we gave it away in the first 10 minutes Youth Christian Djoos Jersey ,” Oilers coach Todd McLellan said. “When you chase the game against a real, real good team — the Stanley Cup champs — you’re probably going to lose more often than not.”Copley stopped all 11 shots he faced in the third period of a surprise start over Braden Holtby and picked up his second NHL victory. He benefited from playing behind an angry Capitals team that blew a lead last week at Montreal and was eager to get back on track.“Everyone kind of buckled down,” Copley said. “They blocked a lot of shots. They kept a lot to the outside. We’d talked a lot about that, and I thought they played really well and made my job a lot easier.”Washington in particular did a good job defending McDavid at even strength, bottling up the reigning Art Ross Trophy winner and limiting his scoring chances. McDavid is now two points back of Colorado’s Mikko Rantanen for the league lead.NOTES: Capitals D Brooks Orpik missed his third consecutive game with a lower-body injury. … Oilers F Ty Rattie missed his ninth game with an upper-body injury.UP NEXTOilers: Visit the Tampa Bay Lighting on Tuesday in the second half of their back-to-back on their Eastern Conference road trip.Capitals: Host the rival Pittsburgh Penguins on Wednesday, their first meeting in Washington since the playoffs. John Carlson can’t forget that he is fighting for the NHL lead for points among defensemen because his Washington Capitals teammates keep razzing him about it.”The guys do a good job of pumping that up in the locker room,” Carlson said.Carlson’s 61 points have him tied with the Dallas Stars’ John Klingberg, and he is a dark horse candidate for the Norris Trophy as the league’s top defenseman.”John’s having just a whale of a year,” teammate Matt Niskanen said. ”Monster year – production http://www.officialcapitals.com/authentic-adidas-andre-burakovsky-jersey , been carrying the load all year. He’s been a stalwart back there for us.”This breakout season with a career-high 15 goals and 46 assists is coming at a perfect time for Carlson, who is set to be an unrestricted free agent this summer but has been flying under the radar compared to New York Islanders captain John Tavares. Carlson command upward of $7 million per season on a deal that’s almost certain to be eight years if Washington re-signs him or seven if he hits the market July 1.The 28-year-old has outperformed the six-year contract he signed in 2012 that pays him just under $4 million a year. He has shown the ability to be a dominant No. 1 defenseman by averaging 25 minutes a game, running the point on the top power-play unit, killing penalties and drawing the toughest matchups.A 2008 first-round pick of the Capitals, Carlson likes Washington and would like to stay if the fit is there. General manager Brian MacLellan has said he believes each side wants to get a deal done but will wait until after the season to try to make it happen.The big question is whether the Capitals can make it work under the salary cap, which might require trades even though the ceiling is expected to go up to between $78 million and $82 million from $75 million.Carlson might not reach the $7.875 million annual salary of Tampa Bay defenseman Victor Hedman, who along with Drew Doughty of the Los Angeles Kings is a Norris front-runner, but he might not be far off. Carlson has more of an offensive punch than San Jose Sharks defenseman Marc-Edouard Vlasic, whose new deal pays him $7 million a year http://www.officialcapitals.com/authentic-adidas-evgeny-kuznetsov-jersey , and he has almost double the points of the next-highest potential free agent defenseman, former Capitals teammate Mike Green, who’s 32.”He’s always been steady,” Washington goaltender Braden Holtby said of Carlson. ”His role’s expanded, obviously, which shows: time on ice and points and such. He’s got all the tools of a great defenseman. “Carlson isn’t the only player excelling in a contract year. Here are some others:JAMES VAN RIEMSDYKThirty-goal scorers get paid handsomely in free agency because they are so rarely available. Van Riemsdyk’s 33 goals are 11th-most in the NHL, and the 6-foot-3, 217-pound left-winger has gotten better around the net. Van Riemsdyk, the second overall pick in 2007 Jakub Vrana Jersey , has another one of the league’s best bargain contracts at $4.25 million a year, which Toronto inherited from Philadelphia. The Maple Leafs have expressed interest in keeping the 28-year-old.JOHN TAVARESUndoubtedly the best pending free agent, Tavares still not having a new contract with the New York Islanders is generating buzz and whispers like Steven Stamkos two years ago. Stamkos re-upped with Tampa Bay on the eve of free agency, which Tavares could do. The Islanders will miss the playoffs for the second consecutive season and sixth time in Tavares’ nine years in the league. The point-a-game player with 32 goals and 43 assists could fetch $10 million a year or more if he isn’t back with New York.DAVID PERRONThe expansion Vegas Golden Knights struck gold with Perron, whose 66 points are a career high and a big reason they are leading the Pacific Division. The soon-to-be 30-year-old winger got his game back after bouncing around to four different teams the past five seasons and could easily re-sign with Vegas like teammate Jonathan Marchessault did.JOE THORNTONKnee surgery knocked Thornton out of the San Jose Sharks’ lineup in January, cutting short a season in which he had 36 points in 43 games at age 38. If Thornton shows he can still play at the top of his game when he returns, he will be in demand for another one-year contract.RICK NASHGoing from the New York Rangers to Boston appears to have reinvigorated Nash’s game after just 28 points in 60 games before the trade. The 33-year-old power winger’s contract year won’t truly be judged until the playoffs, where he gets another chance to exorcise some past demons.—