#CapsIsles Postgame Notebook: Two For Tuesday

Matt Niskanen scored his first two goals of the season in the third period of Tuesday's game against the New York Islanders in Brooklyn, scoring what would prove to be the game-winning goal early in the final frame and adding a key insurance tally on the power play with 1:58 remaining.

Prior to his two-goal game on Tuesday, Niskanen's last previous regular season goal came 43 games ago, on March 5 against Boston. He recorded the second two-goal game of his NHL career against the Isles; he also scored twice against Nashville on March 4, 2014 while playing for the Pittsburgh Penguins.

"It's good," says Caps coach Barry Trotz. "Matt is known for his shutdown role. Anytime you can get a couple of goals, it's a feather in his play. And the guys were excited. They were trying to get him a third one."

Niskanen becomes the first defenseman and the ninth different Caps skater to record as many as two goals in a game this season. Through 28 games, the Capitals have had a grand total of 13 multiple-goal games this season.

Most of Niskanen's value is in areas outside of lamp lighting, but he has a good, hard shot. He's usually good for a handful of goals a season, and he's had as many as 10 in a season (in 2013-14) at the NHL level.

Five Spot - Washington's winning streak stretched to five straight with Tuesday's victory in Brooklyn, matching the team's longest winning run of the season. The Caps also earned five straight victories from Oct. 29-Nov. 5.

"Obviously you don't want to pay attention to the standings too much," says Caps goaltender Braden Holtby. "You want to focus on every game and see what's going to make you successful. But it's hard to not realize it with the division we're in. At the same time, we realized last year, it doesn't matter how you get into the playoffs. You have a chance whatever. So we're just trying to build our game, get wins when we possibly can and focus on the process."

Back In The Saddle Again - After being a healthy scratch for each of the four previous games, winger Brett Connolly was re-inserted into the Washington lineup on Tuesday, and he supplied the Capitals' first goal of the game at 2:09 of the second period.

Connolly went to the net hard on a rush play, and converted a good feed from linemate Lars Eller to tie the game at 1-1 at that point. The goal was Connolly's third of the season.

"On that play he drove the net really hard," says Trotz. "A great play by Eller using his strength and his power to power through the defender and get that puck over to Cono. You want guys to get in the lineup and show that they want to stay in the lineup, so that was a real good response by them."

Connolly has played well in the 16 games in which he has played, even in limited ice time. Washington has a strong team, and a team that has been relatively healthy. Those factors have made it tough for Connolly to remain in the lineup on a regular basis.

"You've got to take it day by day," says Connolly. "I'm not disappointed with the way I've been playing this year. I think I've been good when I've been in; it's just a matter of getting a few breaks. Every night I've been getting chances on a consistent basis.

"We've got a good team. There are decisions that need to be made, and it is frustrating when you're out. No one wants to be out of the lineup, but when you're in there you play hard and try and earn more minutes. Hopefully, I did that tonight."

Helping Hands - Rookie Caps winger Jakub Vrana earned the first two assists of his NHL career, and was briefly credited with Washington's second goal of the game, a power-play tally that was ultimately credited to Justin Williams.

Vrana started the play that led to Connolly's goal, and also picked up an assist when Williams tipped his shot from the slot on the power play in the second period. Playing in the seventh game of his NHL career, Vrana picked up his first career multiple-point game in the NHL.

By The Numbers - Niskanen led the Caps with 23:00 in ice time, six shots on net and eight shot attempts … Ovechkin led the Capitals with four hits … Eller, Nicklas Backstrom, Tom Wilson, T.J. Oshie and Evgeny Kuznetsov - forwards, all - each had two blocked shots on the night to lead Washington … Jay Beagle won 13 of 19 face-offs (68%).