Walker scores twice in Washington debut, Capitals beat Lightning 5-4

Walker scores 2 goals in Capitals debut

WASHINGTON — Scott Walker scored twice in a 3-minute span in the third period in his first game with Washington, leading the Capitals to a 5-4 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday night.

Walker, acquired from Carolina on Wednesday, broke a 4-all tie by putting in a rebound at 13:09 in the third period. It was his first multigoal game of the season, giving him five total. He was one of three Washington players who were making their debut after being acquired in moves at the trade deadline.

Vincent Lecavalier scored two goals for the Lightning, including a breakaway that tied the it 41 seconds before Walker’s winner.

Mike Knuble had two goals in the second period for the Capitals, who have won 12 straight home games.

Knuble broke a 1-all tie in the second period on a 2-on-1, finishing after taking a pass from Brooks Laich.

Knuble’s second goal gave the Capitals a 3-1 lead at 8:21 in the period, but Tampa Bay quickly answered, with Lecavalier scoring on a power play less than a minute later.

Tampa Bay had a big advantage late in the second period. The Capitals were called for three penalties in less than a minute — the first of which was paired with a Lightning penalty — to give Tampa Bay a 4-on-3 advantage. It turned into 4-on-2½ when Washington’s Nicklas Backstrom broke his stick.

Backstrom blocked two shots without his stick and earned a standing ovation with about 5 minutes left in the period. The defensive plays seemed to give Washington a lift, and the Capitals killed all three penalties to hold onto their 3-2 lead.

Tampa Bay’s Steven Stamkos scored his 38th goal of the season during the wild third-period. His goal came 24 seconds after Walker’s first score.

Washington’s Eric Fehr opened the scoring with an unassisted goal from the top of the left circle. Tampa Bay tied the game at 1 when Steve Downie deflected a shot from Kurtis Foster on a power play at 11:55 in the first period.

NOTES: The Capitals wore camouflage sweaters in pregame warmups as part of the team’s Military Night. … Washington’s D John Erskine, R Matt Bradley and C David Steckel were healthy scratches to make room for the team’s additions. D Milan Jurcina, the fourth player the Capitals added at the trade deadline, is out 2-4 weeks for sports-hernia surgery. … Stamkos extended his franchise-record points streak to 15 games.