Washington goalie Yeats gets first win

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Game Information

Arena: Verizon Center Location: Washington, DC

Referees: TomKowal, BobLangdon Linesmen: DavidBrisebois, TimNowak

Attendance: 13,417 (71.9% full)

Team Stat Comparison
190	Goals	186
303	Goals Against	253
65	Power Play Goals	64
84	Power Play Goals Allowed	75
7	Shorthanded Goals	4
15	Shorthanded Goals Allowed	5
1270	Penalty Minutes	1282
15	Average Penalty Minutes	16

Scoring Summary
1ST PERIOD			PIT	WAS
3:55		Jeff Halpern Assists: Trent Whitfield, Brad Norton	0	1
19:12		Alexander Semin Assists: Craig Johnson	0	2
19:47		Dick Tarnstrom Assists: Aleksey Morozov, Ric Jackman	1	2
2ND PERIOD			PIT	WAS
0:25		Trent Whitfield Assists: Brendan Witt, Jeff Halpern	1	3
4:27		Trent Whitfield Assists: Jeff Halpern	1	4
18:04		Ric Jackman (Power Play) Assists: Konstantin Koltsov	2	4
3RD PERIOD			PIT	WAS
No scoring this period			2	4

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Washington goalie Matt Yeats doesn't know how many NHL victories he'll get. But he won't ever forget his first one.

Trent Whitfield had two goals and an assist to help Yeats earn his first NHL victory, and the Washington Capitals avoided falling into the league's cellar with a 4-2 win Tuesday night over the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Washington called up Yeats on March 19, and he made 27 saves in his third straight start. The 24-year-old goalie improved to 1-2-0 and made 13 saves in the third period in another strong effort.

"It's a great feeling," Yeats said. "I counted down the last three seconds and gave myself a little fist pump. I was cheering inside."

Washington coach Glen Hanlon is a former NHL goalie who appreciated what this moment will mean for Yeats.

"It's a reward for a lot of hard work," Hanlon said. "I'm sure there's a lot of emotions going through him right now. He likely won't have a better day with the exception of winning the Stanley Cup."

Washington's Jeff Halpern had a goal and two assists -- tying a career high with three points -- and Alexander Semin also scored for the Capitals. Washington snapped a three-game losing streak with the win, which gave them 57 points.

"The guys in the locker room obviously want to win," Halpern said. "For the last two or three weeks, any chance you get to have a win, it gives you two days when you don't have to think about losing. At this point, sometimes that's enough."

Pittsburgh, which got goals from Dick Tarnstrom and Ric Jackman, has an NHL-worst 54 points.

Whitfield never had more than one point or goal in a game during his first 143 NHL contests. But he assisted on Washington's first goal and scored the final two.

Halpern gave Washington a 1-0 lead 3:55 into the game by grabbing a loose puck behind the net and tucking it into the left side as goalie Jean-Sebastien Aubin appeared to lose track of it momentarily.

Semin made it 2-0 with 48 seconds left in the period. But Pittsburgh bounced back 35 seconds later when Tarnstrom scored from in front after a slick drop pass from Aleksey Morozov.

The Capitals retook a two-goal edge when Whitfield redirected a slap shot by Brendan Witt past Aubin 25 seconds into the second period.

Whitfield scored his second goal at 4:27 on another assist from Halpern.

Jackman scored Pittsburgh's other goal late in the period.

"They played really well," Pittsburgh coach Eddie Olczyk said of Washington. "They were competitive and physical. They're not in a whole different situation than we are."

The Penguins pressured Yeats in the third period, even getting a rare five-minute power play when Washington's Darcy Verot was given a major for elbowing. But Pittsburgh couldn't score with the extra man.

Game notes
Linesman Tim Nowak didn't return after leaving with 15:13 left in the second period after appearing to be kicked in the head while trying to break up a skirmish between Verot and Pittsburgh's Rico Fata. ... Verot finished the night with 23 penalty minutes. ... The Penguins earned a season-best 19 points in March.