Leonard and Ovechkin help the Capitals beat the Oilers 7-4
WASHINGTON (AP) — Ryan Leonard has two goals and Alex Ovechkin also scored, helping the Washington Capitals beat the Edmonton Oilers 7-4 on Wednesday night.
John Carlson and Connor McMichael each had three assists for Washington in its second straight win. Tom Wilson had two empty-net goals, and Logan Thompson stopped 24 shots.
Leonard's fourth goal of the season gave the Capitals a 3-1 lead at 10:34 of the first period. He beat Stuart Skinner again in the second, making it 4-2 at 11:49.
Darnell Nurse had two goals for Edmonton, and Leon Draisaitl had a goal and an assist. Connor McDavid had two assists.
The Oilers dropped to 2-3-0 on a seven-game trip.
Up nextBoth teams play again on Thursday night. The Oilers visit the Tampa Bay Lightning, and the Capitals are at the Montreal Canadiens.
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AP NHL: https://www.apnews.com/hub/NHL
![](/<figure><img alt="" src="https://media.zenfs.com/en/sb_nation_articles_115/95e122ef3236898d05f0006216f4f548" data-uuid="7cb7b7cd-8d78-33b6-819c-148649fa322e"><figcaption></figcaption></figure><p class="has-text-align-none">As if this week couldn’t get any worse, the Wildcats missed out on a 5-star forward in the class of 2026. <a href="https://www.on3.com/rivals/baba-oladotun-237822/">Baba Oladotun</a> is going to Maryland, a decision he announced on Wednesday.</p><p class="has-text-align-none">The 6-foot-10, 190-pound small forward from James Hubert Blake (MD) announced his commitment to Maryland on Wednesday. He chose the Terrapins over the likes of Kentucky, Arkansas, and Georgetown.</p><p class="has-text-align-none">Things definitely aren’t well right now in Lexington. Kentucky has lost to Louisville and Michigan State in the past week, and they still haven’t landed a commit in the class of 2026.</p><p class="has-text-align-none">Oladotun is the No. 7-ranked player in the <a href="https://www.on3.com/rivals/rankings/industry-player/basketball/2026/">Rivals Industry Ranking</a>. Rivals ranks Oladotun as the No. 4 small forward and the No. 9 overall player in the 2026 class.</p><p class="has-text-align-none">2026 5-star center <a href="https://www.on3.com/rivals/arafan-diane-241018/">Arafan Diane</a> committed to Houston on Wednesday. This leaves only a few players left with serious Kentucky interest on UK’s big board. </p><p class="has-text-align-none">All eyes remain on Tyran Stokes, as he’s down to Kentucky, Kansas, and Oregon. Stokes is waiting until the late signing period before making it official with a school, <a href="https://www.aseaofblue.com/kentucky-wildcats-basketball/153825/christian-collins-decision-uk-recruiting">as is 5-star forward Christian Collins</a>.</p><p class="has-text-align-none">Kentucky will get some high-end recruits, even if things don’t seem great right now surrounding Big Blue Nation, but it does appear it will be a bit before that happens.<br><br></p>)