SUNRISE, Fla., Feb. 15 (UPI) -- Ivan Ciernik scored his first goal in 11 games Saturday night to give the Washington Capitals a 2-1 victory over the slumping Florida Panthers.
With 88 seconds left in the second period, Ciernik got a rebound of Jeff Halpern's shot and wristed it into an open net after goaltender Jani Hurme thought he had the puck trapped.
It capped a dominant 20 minutes by the Capitals, who outshot the Panthers, 14-0. It was the second time this season Florida had been held without a shot in a period and the first time Washington held an opponent without a shot since Feb. 24, 1994 against the Panthers.
Halpern scored Washington's other goal 3:36 into the game. After fighting off defenseman Pavel Trnka, he flipped the puck over Hurme's left shoulder.
Less than five minutes later, Viktor Kozlov redirected a shot past rookie goalie Sebastian Charpentier.
But Charpentier stopped 16 shots in his first start in 13 games and recorded his first win since Dec. 13.
Washington improved to 12-3-1 against Southeast Division opponents and opened an eight-point lead over second-place Tampa Bay. The Capitals are unbeaten in the last five meetings with the Panthers (4
1).
Hurme turned aside 28 shots for Florida, which has lost three straight and is 2-7-2-1 in the last 12 games.
