Ivan Miroshnichenko received just five shifts combined in the final two periods of play in the Washington Capitals’ 3-1 win over the Los Angeles Kings on Sunday evening. The 20-year-old winger found himself in head coach Spencer Carbery’s doghouse after a poor series of plays in the second period that led to the Kings tying the game 1-1.
“Just didn’t like his sequence there in the second period where we take the penalty,” Carbery said postgame. “He’s fine. He’s a young player. He’ll learn from it in those situations.”
With 17:01 remaining in the frame, Miroshnichenko spun an errant pass through the neutral zone to Kings forward Andre Lee. After the Kings spent 30 seconds cycling around the Capitals’ zone, Miroshnichenko got another opportunity to clear the puck but turned it over to Lee again in the neutral zone.
The young Russian then got a third bite at the apple 18 seconds later, and instead of getting to center ice and dumping the puck in, he iced the puck on a low-percentage stretch play to Jakub Vrana. Trevor van Riemsdyk took a delay of game penalty on the following defensive-zone faceoff.
“It’s not the first mistake,” Carbery said. “The first one is fine – the turnover through the neutral zone, throws it. Not a great decision. Okay, it’s the ones after that. When we’re in a tough situation, when everybody’s tired, just go get the red line and put that puck in. [He] ices it, and now it’s a penalty.”
Los Angeles needed just 17 seconds of the power play to tie the game 1-1 after Aliaksei Protas had given Washington an early lead. Kevin Fiala pumped a one-time blast shortside on Logan Thompson for his 13th goal of the season.
Miroshnichenko did not take another shift after that play in the second period. He was reunited with linemates Nic Dowd and Brandon Duhaime to start the third period, but, after hitting the crossbar on a near-empty net, was sat back on the bench for most of the final frame.
Taylor Raddysh was moved onto the team’s fourth line in Miroshnichenko’s place and ended up skating five minutes of ice time at five-on-five as part of a reunited trio from earlier in the season. Miroshnichenko ended the game with 10:07 in total ice time, one shot on goal, and four hits.
The 2022 first-round draft pick has four points (1g, 3a) in 14 games for the Capitals this season. Miroshnichenko has not recorded a point since grabbing an assist on December 3 against the San Jose Sharks and has been without a goal since November 25 against the Florida Panthers.
