Capitals’ coach Carbery after big third-period rally: ‘We showed a ton of character’

WASHINGTON — The dog days have arrived for the Washington Capitals, who are struggling to maintain playoff position after an injury to Tom Wilson.

Every victory — especially a come-from-behind effort like this one — feels big.

Ethen Frank scored twice in the third period to tie the game, and then Connor McMichael added the winner in the final minute of overtime for a 3-2 victory over the Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday night.

“As a group, we’re working through, trying to find ourselves through this stretch with some injuries, battling through some things, missing some key guys,” coach Spencer Carbery said. “But we showed a ton of character and fight in that third period.”

With Wilson missing a fifth straight game, the Capitals allowed an early shorthanded goal, and in the second period their power play was so bad it drew boos from the home crowd. Montreal was up 2-0 after two, but Washington responded by outshooting the Canadiens 15-5 in the third and then 10-1 in overtime.

The 27-year-old Frank can be a solid depth player, but the Capitals needed more from him Tuesday and he delivered. He was on the ice with standouts Alex Ovechkin and Dylan Strome when he deflected Matt Roy’s shot into the net to make it 2-1.

Then, when Washington pulled the goalie late, Frank scored on a redirect with 1:54 remaining to force overtime.

He now has 10 goals and eight assists on the season.

“It’s meant a lot. It’s been quite a ride,” Frank said. “I don’t even know if I could find the words to describe it. It’s been pretty chaotic. It’s been a lot of fun for sure.”

The win left the Capitals in sole possession of third place in the Metropolitan Division, two points ahead of Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. Washington is tied for fourth in the league with 21 regulation wins, but an 0-5 record in shootouts has hurt. The Capitals avoided another shootout when McMichael stuffed home a rebound to win it.

“A night like tonight usually kick-starts a team into something special,” McMichael said. “The race in the East is so tight. Every point is huge.”