Everything to know from the Capitals win over the Blue Jackets

On Sunday in DC, Washington did not dazzle, it survived. Thompson turned aside 39 shots for his first shutout since last January, and the Capitals pushed their heater to a 10 1 1 tear that now tops the East.

Jakob Chychrun opened the scoring early in the second, ripping his 11th of the season from the left circle after Tom Wilson's feed.

That tally moved the 27 year old to the top of the league's goal chart among defensemen, a ridiculous weapon from the blue line.

Aliaksei Protas iced it with an empty netter, stretching his point streak to six games with four goals and two assists in that span. For a 24 year old former third rounder drafted by the Washington Capitals in 2019, that is quiet breakout territory.

Late in the third, everything hinged on a double minor against Hendrix Lapierre. The penalty kill answered with four huge blocks from Tom Wilson, Trevor van Riemsdyk, Connor McMichael and Rasmus Sandin, collapsing tight, clearing sticks, and letting Thompson see pucks.

You could feel it in the building, this looked like the grind it out Capitals team fans wanted all fall.

Spencer Carbery said the four minute kill summed up their recent stretch, bodies on the line, just finding a way.

Thompson, picked up to stabilize the crease at age 28, looked every bit a true number one. His calm on broken plays around the crease might have been the biggest difference between another blown lead and a statement shutout.

Quietly, Justin Sourdif did some heavy lifting down the middle, winning 11 of 14 draws and starting several clean exits on that marathon kill. Those are the little details that keep Carbery going back to him in tough matchups.

The win came with a reminder of how thin the margin is. Ryan Leonard is out long term, Charlie Lindgren remains sidelined, and call ups Clay Stevenson and Bogdan Trineyev are plugging gaps while the big club keeps banking points.