On a 5-on-3 advantage, John Carlson threaded the puck down to Tom Wilson at the goalmouth. He slid the puck across to a wide-open Strome, who tapped it into the open cage with 11:35 left in the first.
Alex Ovechkin then fed a cross-ice pass to Strome, who put the puck on net before Sourdif hammered home his 10th of the season.
Boeser put his team on the board by deflecting an end-boards pass from David Kampf past Thompson for his 11th of the season. With 1:38 remaining in the opening frame, Kane tied the game with a wraparound that bounced off the skate of Capitals defender Matt Roy.
Vancouver gained its first lead of the night when O’Connor converted from the low slot. Hronek finished a give-and-go with Jake DeBrusk three minutes later to make it 4-2, before Strome scored his second of the night with 3:23 remaining.
TAKEAWAYS
Canucks: Teddy Blueger rejoined the lineup after missing three months with a lower-body injury. To make room for the Latvian forward, Vancouver scratched Aatu Raty and reassigned Arshdeep Bains to AHL Abbotsford.
Capitals: Wilson returned after missing eight games with a lower-body injury.
KEY MOMENT
After coach Adam Foote challenged his veterans to step up following Vancouver’s 4-3 loss to the New York Islanders on Monday, Boeser’s goal at 13:32 in the first period kicked off four unanswered Canucks goals by veteran players.
KEY STAT
The win was just the fifth of the season on home ice for the last-place Canucks.
UP NEXT
Canucks: Host the New Jersey Devils on Friday.
Capitals: Visit the Calgary Flames on Friday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 21, 2026.
Carol Schram, The Canadian Press