Alex Tuch stepped straight into Washington’s top storyline, scoring twice in his Capitals debut as Washington opened the season with a 5-2 road win over the Carolina Hurricanes at Lenovo Center on Friday. Logan Thompson handled 31 shots, while the Capitals built a four-goal cushion before Carolina could settle into the game.
Tuch, 30, arrived in Washington from the Buffalo Sabres in a June 24 sign-and-trade agreement that carried an eight-year, $84 million contract with a $10.5 million annual cap hit. His first night in the red sweater included the opener and the finish on a sequence that put Carolina in an early hole.
Pierre-Luc Dubois forced a turnover behind the Hurricanes net at 6:33 of the first period, then slipped a backhand feed into the slot for Tuch to score into an unguarded net. Cole Hutson doubled the lead at 11:33, taking Ilya Protas’ pass and beating Brandon Bussi with a quick short-side shot.
Washington’s forecheck struck again at 14:23. Tom Wilson fired from above the left faceoff circle, the puck leaked through Bussi, and Tuch arrived at the crease to tap home his second goal for a 3-0 lead.
After the horn
Jakob Chychrun made it 4-0 just 1:36 into the second period, wiring a power-play wrist shot from inside the blue line. Chychrun also added an assist in the opener.
Carolina finally found a response late in the middle frame when Sebastian Aho converted on the power play at 16:50, finishing an Andrei Svechnikov setup. The Hurricanes had little time to build on it. Eight seconds later, Ryan Leonard drove to the net and redirected Dylan Strome’s pass to restore Washington’s four-goal margin at 5-1.
Logan Stankoven supplied Carolina’s final goal at 10:50 of the third, getting his stick on K’Andre Miller’s wrist shot from inside the line. The Hurricanes fell to 0-1-1 despite Bussi making 22 saves.
Dubois and Strome each finished with two assists for Washington. Tuch’s two-goal debut, Chychrun’s goal and assist, and Thompson’s steady work in net gave the Capitals a complete opening-night result on the road.
