Wood helps Avalanche beat Ovechkin-less Capitals 2-1

WASHINGTON (AP) Miles Wood scored the tiebreaking goal early in the third period and the Colorado Avalanche beat the Washington Capitals 2-1 on Thursday night.

Mikko Rantanen also scored for the Avalanche, who have won five of their last six games. Alexandar Georgiev stopped 29 shots to get his fourth straight win in his return after missing the last two games due to an upper-body injury.

Pierre-Luc Dubois scored for the Capitals, who snapped a three-game win streak. Logan Thompson had 25 saves while taking his first regulation loss of the season.

Earlier in the day, the Capitals learned they will be without superstar Alex Ovechkin for the next four to six weeks due to a broken left fibula, an injury he suffered on Monday against Utah.

Avalanche: Although Nathan MacKinnon was held off the scoresheet for the second time in three games - both against the Capitals - Rantanen kept his hot streak alive and has points in five of his last six games.

Capitals: Without Ovechkin, Washington struggled to get much going offensively. The power play, which had found life in recent games thanks to its captain, went 0 for 2.

Just 3:29 into the third period, Wood got to the front of the net and deflected a point shot from Cale Makar past Thompson for the go-ahead goal.

Dating back to the 2021-22 season, Washington has gone 4-14 without Ovechkin in the lineup. The captain was leading the league with 15 goals at the time of his injury and is just 27 away from Wayne Gretzky's record.

Avalanche visit defending Stanley Cup champion Florida on Saturday, and Capitals host New Jersey.

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