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Capitals beat Penguins 5–3; Wilson has goal, two assists

Alex Tuch scored the eventual winner, Ryan Leonard added a third-period power-play goal, and Logan Thompson made 27 saves in Washington’s home opener.

By The Sporting Page Editorial Staff
Penguins and Capitals players around Washington’s net during Bryan Rust’s first-period goal on October 7, 2026
Bryan Rust shoots against Washington during his first-period goal on October 7, 2026. Broadcast still from the NHL goal clip. · Credit: TNT Sports broadcast / NHL

Washington beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 5–3 at Capital One Arena on October 7, with Alex Tuch’s goal at 13:14 of the second period standing as the winner after the Capitals built a 4–1 lead.

Tom Wilson had a goal and two assists. Anthony Beauvillier opened the scoring 23 seconds into the game before Bryan Rust tied it at 1:19. Wilson restored Washington’s lead at 11:51 of the first period, and Pierre-Luc Dubois and Tuch extended it in the second.

Tommy Novak scored at 14:05 of the second period and Nick Robertson followed at 18:01 to pull Pittsburgh within 4–3. Ryan Leonard made it 5–3 with a power-play goal at 3:55 of the third, assisted by Jordan Kyrou and Cole Hutson.

Logan Thompson stopped 27 of 30 shots for Washington. Arturs Silovs made 22 saves for Pittsburgh, which finished with a 30–27 advantage in shots on goal.

Read Carbery and Muse’s postgame reaction to Washington’s 5–3 win.

FINALFinal game record · manual refresh availableNHL Gamecenter ↗

Saved official NHL final snapshot: Oct 7, 2026, 8:14:25 PM MDT. NHL may revise final statistics.

Pittsburgh Penguins3AWAY · PIT
FinalCapital One Arena
2026-10-07 · Mountain Time
Washington Capitals5HOME · WSH
Shots on goalPIT 30 · WSH 27
Special teamsGame completed.

Period scoring

Official goal sequence.
TeamP1P2P3TotalSOG
PIT120330
WSH221527

Scoring plays

  1. WSH · P3 · 03:55 elapsed · PPRyan LeonardAssists: Jordan Kyrou, Cole HutsonPIT 3 · WSH 5
  2. PIT · P2 · 18:01 elapsed · EVNick RobertsonAssists: Kaedan Korczak, Blake LizottePIT 3 · WSH 4
  3. PIT · P2 · 14:05 elapsed · EVTommy NovakUnassistedPIT 2 · WSH 4
  4. WSH · P2 · 13:14 elapsed · EVAlex TuchAssists: Tom WilsonPIT 1 · WSH 4
  5. WSH · P2 · 04:42 elapsed · EVPierre-Luc DuboisAssists: Tom WilsonPIT 1 · WSH 3
  6. WSH · P1 · 11:51 elapsed · EVTom WilsonAssists: Pierre-Luc DuboisPIT 1 · WSH 2
  7. PIT · P1 · 01:19 elapsed · EVBryan RustAssists: Ben Kindel, Samuel GirardPIT 1 · WSH 1
  8. WSH · P1 · 00:23 elapsed · EVAnthony BeauvillierAssists: Dylan StromePIT 0 · WSH 1

Penalties

  1. WSH · P3 · 20:00 elapsedJakob Chychrunslashing · 2 min
  2. WSH · P3 · 10:38 elapsedPierre-Luc Duboisboarding · 2 min
  3. PIT · P3 · 06:56 elapsedBlake Lizottetripping · 2 min
  4. PIT · P3 · 01:58 elapsedTrevor van Riemsdykhooking · 2 min
  5. WSH · P2 · 18:53 elapsedJakob Chychrunholding · 2 min
  6. WSH · P1 · 13:45 elapsedRyan Leonardroughing · 2 min
  7. PIT · P1 · 06:47 elapsedNick Robertsondelaying game puck over glass · 2 min
  8. PIT · P1 · 05:31 elapsedVille Koivunentripping · 2 min

Team statistics

Current game only. NHL may revise figures.
StatisticPITWSH
Shots on goal3027

Goalie statistics

SV: saves; SA: shots against; GA: goals against; SV%: save percentage; TOI: time on ice.
GoalieSVSAGASV%TOI
Arturs SilovsPIT222750.81556:04
Logan ThompsonWSH273030.90060:00

See the October 7 viewing guide for tonight’s other games and U.S. and Canadian broadcasts.

Sources and notes

  1. Official NHL Gamecenter: https://www.nhl.com/gamecenter/2026020053
  2. Actual-game image source: https://www.nhl.com/video/pit-wsh-rust-scores-goal-against-logan-thompson-6406445214112
  3. Official final result, scoring sequence and goalie statistics checked October 7, 2026, at 8:14 p.m. Mountain Time. NHL may revise final statistics.