Meeting for the second time this season, the Carolina Hurricanes faced the Washington Capitals and skated away with a 3-2 shootout win in their first away game of the month.

The Carolina Hurricanes (19-9-2) were guests at Capital One Arena, with goaltender Brandon Bussi starting in net. Since the beginning of the season, Bussi has flourished and proven that the decision to acquire him was a smart one. Against the Columbus Blue Jackets at home, Bussi made history as one of five goaltenders in NHL history to win nine of their first 10 games. Tonight, he added one more win to his impressive record, leading the Canes to victory over a dangerous Washington Capitals (18-9-4) squad.

A matchup between the Canes and the Caps is always a tense one — full of fights, goals and intensity.

The first period was goalless, but not for lack of trying. Carolina had 13 shots on goal compared to four from Washington. The trend of numerous shots on goal has become a common occurrence for head coach Rod Brind’Amour’s team. This season, the Canes have averaged 33.5 shots on goal per game, the second highest mark in the league.

Washington’s Connor McMichael opened the scoresheet five minutes into the second period. The center breezed the puck past Bussi after a pass from left wing Alex Ovechkin.

With six minutes left in the second period, left wing Nikolaj Ehlers evened the score. Using the wall to his advantage, center Logan Stankoven rounded the puck from the far side of the rink around the Capitals’ net to reach right wing Jackson Blake, who started the sequence towards the goal. He passed the puck to defensemen Alexander Nikishin, who sent it back towards Stankoven to then tip it towards the goal-scoring Ehlers.

Tensions are always high when these two powerhouse teams play each other, and this game was no different. Right as the third period began, Carolina left wing Jordan Martinook and Washington center Nic Dowd dropped the gloves. Helmets were dropped and jerseys were pulled on, but their physical altercation was brought to an abrupt halt when Martinook tackled Dowd onto the ice. Both men were given five-minute fighting penalties.

Almost halfway into the final period, Dowd remained in the spotlight for the Caps. With the precise pass work from defensemen Rasmus Sandin and McMichael, Dowd tipped the puck past Bussi to put Washinton ahead.

As the end of the game inched closer and the hopes of a nine-game winning streak for the Canes’ goaltender seemed to be slipping away, Stankoven tied up the game mere seconds after coming off the bench, knotting it up with 2:15 to play and sending it to overtime.

Going into overtime with 39 shots on goal, Carolina failed to take a single one in those five minutes. Washington, however, had three in overtime, but couldn’t get one past Bussi.

Thus, the game went to a shootout. Carolina sent in the best of their men in hopes of winning. They forgot that their knight in shining armor had already been playing on the ice the entire game.

The home team went first, sending in left wing Anthony Beauvillier, but his attempt was blocked by Bussi’s glove. Next, center Seth Jarvis was up from Carolina’s side. Making his way around goaltender Logan Thompson, Jarvis scored the first and only penalty of the night, with both the puck and himself making their way into the net after tripping over the goaltender’s glove.

Dylan Strome was next to represent the home team, but his attempt was also denied by Bussi. Right wing Andrei Svechnikov came onto the ice to try and score for Carolina, but he lost control of the puck in the process of trying to maneuver around Thompson, sending the puck to the outside of the net. Wanting to come back, left wing Sonny Milano came on the ice with the game on the line. Once again, the puck couldn’t get past Bussi, winning the game for Carolina.

Canes players rushed towards Bussi from the bench to both celebrate their win and to congratulate him on his achievements. It’s not everyday a player acquired off waivers puts up such a historic performance.

Once a player who was put up for grabs, Bussi continues to make a name for himself in the NHL and is fitting in nicely with his new team.

Carolina will next head up north to face the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday Nov. 13. Puck drop is set for 7 p.m.