Takeaways: Protas & Dubois Power Offense, Thompson Shines As Capitals Surge Past Penguins

WASHINGTON — The Washington Capitals knew that it'd be a hard battle with their rival Pittsburgh Penguins in D.C. on Saturday, and also knew 5-on-5 offense would be key for a fourth straight win. They got just that.

Aliaksei Protas, Pierre-Luc Dubois and Connor McMichael had multi-point nights, and Logan Thompson stood tall again en route to a 4-1 victory over the Penguins.

Here are all the takeaways.

Protas Busts Out To Power 5-on-5 Offense, Dubois Adds Insurance As Second Line Shines

In the last five games leading up to Saturday's matchup, Aliaksei Protas' red-hot production had hit a bit of a wall amid continued tweaks on the top-6. But after one last change he finally busted out.

Reunited with Pierre-Luc Dubois and Tom Wilson on the second line, Protas played one of his strongest games of the year. He was all over the ice, and he and his line generated quite a few chances.

In the first period, he fed Jakob Chychrun at the point to give D..C a 1-0 lead, then in the second, he added a goal of his own on a bang-bang passing play courtesy of Dubois and Connor McMichael.

Protas now sits second on the team in scoring with 19 goals on the season and is tied for 14th in the NHL in points at 5-on-5. The Belarus native is on pace for 65 points this season.

Meanwhile, Dubois picked up his eighth goal of the season on a late third-period power play and added an assist of his own to stay ho. He now has 22 points in his last 23 outings, and his 20 assists at 5-on-5 are tied for the sixth-most in the league to boot.

Thompson, Defense Step Up To Shut Down Penguins

Making his fourth consecutive start, Logan Thompson stayed hot, dominating once again between the pipes.

The 27-year-old, who has taken the reins in goal after Charlie Lindgren's injury held him out for a week, came up with some clutch saves against the Penguins' top brass. He finished the night with 18 saves on 19 shots.

Thompson ranks second among goalies with at least 18 games played in save percentage (.925) behind only reigning Vezina winner Connor Hellebuyck. He has stopped 76 of the last 78 shots he's faced.

Meanwhile, the defense in front of Thompson played a tremendous game, limiting Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Pittsburgh's stars opportunities over the course of the night. The only goal against came on a break for Bryan Rust, and the Capitals also blocked 15 attempts.

Top Shelf Takes

- Jakob Chychrun's 23 points over the last 26 games rank fourth among all NHL defensemen.

- Connor McMichael picked up two assists to end a four-game point drought, and he now has 20 points in 15 games against Metropolitan Division opponents this season.

- Brandon Duhaime picked up an empty-net goal and has three points in his last three games.

- Washington had no problem getting shots on net, outshooting Pittsburgh 32-19.

- Saturday's game marked Tom Wilson's 800th career NHL game. He picked up an assist on Duhaime's goal, moving him one helper away from 200.