NHL Highlights | Red Wings vs. Capitals – December 20, 2025

NHL Highlights | Red Wings vs. Capitals – December 20, 2025

Red Wings for the first of two times this weekend will be at each other once more tomorrow in Mottown. But for the moment, the Capitals are rocking the red here on home ice. We’re off and running. Brandon Blandina, Francis Chiron, the referees. Uh first minute of the opening period now complete. Red Wings on the run. Snap shot there for Logan. He juggled it to the slot. Rebound pumped home. Wings wasting no time getting on the board. That’s John Leonard, Ryan’s brother. >> Now, John Leonard had a breakaway the last game. He’s picked up an assist. This his third game with the Wings this season. He came over as a free agent. Pulls in 20 games. And this is what he brings to the table. Much like his younger brother Ryan, they’ve got a great knack around the net. And there it is being put in by number 43 Leonard. He gets the Red Wings and his club out with a one- nothing early lead here. John Leonard on the back end for Todd Mlen. Racing his way through center. Snaps one to the goal. Gobbled up by Thompson on a skip. He’ll hang on to this one. The Cavs had two shots during the man advantage. Yeah, for Raymond that was hard pick up on the backhand there. >> Drien off the steel. Looks for the short side. He snapped it high. Wow. >> Check there ferociously out on Casper. Soderblum gets into the mix. Danielson for Casper at the doorstep right through the paint. It dribbles wide still free. Caps able to clear and that there’s skill to it. Flap shot cider knocked away by Thompson. Check a goal from our Tammy Paneri. From our NBC Sports Washington family to you and yours, happy holidays. Happy Hanukkah. As the second period unfolds, John Leonard has the Edmonson on a takeback. This is a two-on-one. It’s Leonard and Debrink. De Brink fires up the outside of the frame. Yeah, good pass there again. Beautiful pass coming up the ice and de Brink’s not going to miss too many of them. Broken down in the neutral zone defensively were the Caps. >> CIDER GUNS IT WIDE ON THE CARUM that was played to perfection for a putaway. James Van Reesdike. >> Rey over 11 games in his NHL career. Look at the puck going wide. Bounces past a couple of guys including Matt Roy. And Cider will get the primary assist on a lucky bounce. Neither of those goenders have had luck against the Caps in their career. A combined eight wins in about 30 plus games. >> Cop right on in. Kick out save by Thompson. Albert Johansson dancing with it. Bad angle backhand that stopped. Casper comes away with a biscuit. Soderblam setting a huge screen in front there on the back hand. He scores. >> Elmer Soderblah makes it three love. A huge screen, that’s for sure. He is huge. 68 252 lb chance for Logan Thompson. Here’s Stro defending against Sodloom. He gets inside position there and able to spin around and get it on the backhand underneath the goalie. The Capitals are having a problem when they cycle the puck. When they’re moving the puck up high, they get they’re getting shots through. That causes >> Wilson gets to the interior. Ovuchkin’s pass. Czech’s drive is blocked. Rebound doorstep. Gibson shuffled there to make the stop on Stone. Unlucky there for Chick. You see the little shake of the head by Czech. He thought he had it for sure, but it hits the blocker in front Conor Mcichael before it gets to Gibson and he caught a lot of that. Good puck movement there. It sort of shanked a little bit. Didn’t have a whole lot of >> sort of turned it for Frank. Carlson right back to 53. Back door. Look. Gibson. Great stop. Carlson was there at the doorstep and it’s covered by the Wings keeper. Getting a little frustrated. Here’s a pass by Vano across. gets a piece of this stick, but also the charging in John Carlson who got a chunk of it from the stick and the fender did a nice job preventing a lot of mustard for being on that shot. Good look again from another angle. Here’s John sneaking in. He made it around the Dan and able to get a good shot off the right pad and Gibson makes the stop. Bollier will gun it in. Prots. Sandee slots it to Bollier. Forced away by Cider. Cider makes the strip and he could go alone. Morit Cider. Two on with Soderblow. He scores. Cider. And that’s been the case this whole game, guys. And then Cider just calls his own number and rips it. Top corner. There’s a turnover. Off to the races. And there’s the shot side. The goalender sort of has to pay attention to Soda Bloom, too. Going hard to the net. The shot beats the goalender cleanly. It’s 4 nothing Red Wings. >> Larkin to the middle. Larkin pumps this one. That’s blocked. Wilson will steer it on out for Prous. Getting to the outside on Sandine Pelican. Rich shot. Score. Proous. An individual effort. They definitely needed that one. So did the fans. are up on their feet for the first time here at Capital One Arena. Here comes Pro down the wing. Gets around the young defenseman, Sandine Pelica. And there it is to the top corner. You can see the shrug at the end by John Gibson. That’s one that he must have on that sharp of an angle. He’s sitting on the goal line and he’s able to put it far side past the crux of the >> as the Wings are feeling the pressure now able to clear >> because the D for the capture involved. That was Matt Roy down next to the net. They got >> visit of the year to Washington. The Caps and Red Wings play tomorrow at Little Caesars. We’ll keep you company for that one, too. Be sure to join us for Caps pregame live at 12:30. Collected on the run by Larkin out to Raymond looking back to the front door. There’s Thompson made the stop. Wilson banned on it. breakaway. De Brink in alone. A solo effort to his back hand stopped by Thompson. Caught in his equipment there. De Brink thought he had one. Sider goal this one by Tom unfortunately. And to Brink off to the races. He tries to go to the backhand and slide it under the right pad. Logan secures and seals the ice and keeps that puck out. Even as the continuation of that play, it’s not only the puck and the stick that pushes a pet piece of that left pad or right pad there. And that’s a good save here in the third period. >> De Brink’s been smiling a lot like Farravari. >> I’m hearing that with just a little bit of a shot just pressured by Cider off the curl. There’s Dylan Stro Chism shot. score catching Gibson leading the Cats at two. Back to back. It’s Farravari for Washington. Be a comeback. Here they are along the wall. Good work just spinning out to Dean. The shot comes and then the followup is Farravari sneaking in. And it’s all set up by Dylan Stro. And there comes the shot across his body. Foiled the goalender. He’s sliding the other way and slid too far. And Marty put it exactly where he had third of the season. The others against the Islanders and the Blue Jackets. The first time Marty’s ever scored against Detroit. Here comes Washington looking for more. Roll it back for a Royer. Ped save Gibson. Chicken follows that goes high off the glass. >> It’s a shooting gallery and I LOVE IT. >> CHICKEN WIDE OPEN. HE SCORES. >> NO MORE. washed out immediately for goalie interference by referee Francis Chiron. >> Defenseman, you can read his lips there. Push pro into the goalie in front. >> Yep. And that again is a gray area. Here comes the push. A little bit of a push by Sherat and Pro goes into their goalender. Washington is using their coach’s challenge to challenge it. There was no goalender interference in the place. >> Here’s Sherat. Here’s the push and the grab pushing him into him and Pro is just trying to stay out of his direction. Then Gibson, as you mentioned, Joe, telescopes out and catch a piece of Prous to sell it that it is goalender interference. Let’s hope it’s a goal. >> After reviewing the play, the call, the ice is confirmed. There was goender interference by the goal. No goal. Washington will be trying the best line for tonight. >> Trying again for Rasmus Sandee. John Carlton absorbed the hit but gave it up. The brinket two tow drag fanned on it. Followup stick save. Raymond Cavs heading up ice. Chan doing the honors. Czech off the head fake right up the gut fires. Good glove save there. Caps still have possession along the wall. Edmonson didn’t get it out on the first try. Miss fired there looking for the winger and the winger wasn’t there in the spot he thought. Empty cage bullseye. Perfect shot from Larkin out of nowhere. >> Yep. All the way down the ice. Icing on the cake for the Detroit Red Wings. There’s a look at it. The win of the puck. The little shake getting it around Chickin and then firing it all the way down past three different caps. >> So we’ll check the tape, go through the scouting report again. Break it all down. Get after it tomorrow. The front leg of this home and home belongs to Detroit.

Moritz Seider tallied a goal and an assist, and John Gibson stopped 24 shots as the Detroit Red Wings took a 5-2 win over the Washington Capitals.

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00:00:00 – 1st Regulation Period
00:01:40 – 2nd Regulation Period
00:05:56 – 3rd Regulation Period