The Original Game » yed, Ethan Thompson said. If I go in there and compe

WASHINGTON -- Washington goalie Philipp Grubauer insisted his focus Friday night was like any other, even with his parents watching for the first time. Wholesale Coyotes Jerseys .Whatever he did worked.Grubauer made 32 saves in relief of normal starter Braden Holtby, helping the Capitals scrap their way to a 3-1 victory over the Buffalo Sabres on Friday night.When the puck drops, its all business, said the German-born Grubauer, who also turned 25 on the day his parents first watched their son in an NHL arena. But its pretty special for me. Its one of my favorite moments.Marcus Johansson scored his eighth goal of the season, and Daniel Winnik and Brett Connolly also added goals as Washington closed its five-game homestand with its fourth victory.Connollys goal on a late third-period power play added some needed insurance.With Holtby resting for Saturdays game at Toronto, Grubauer made 26 saves after the first intermission, and seven seven came against a Buffalo power play that entered Friday ranked ninth in efficiency.He played really well, (and) we played well in front of him, Capitals coach Barry Trotz said of Grubauer, who has won three of his five starts. When things got a little hairy on the penalty kill, he came up with a couple of big stops.Sam Reinharts third-period goal helped Buffalos NHL-worst offense avoid being shut out for the third this time this season. The Sabres are averaging 1.81 goals.Anders Nilsson made 29 stops for the Sabres, as coach Dan Bylsma also gave No. 1 netminder Robin Lehner the night off.We dont have the bounces with us right now, Nilsson said. Weve been having to work really hard for every goal we score. Hopefully we can turn it around soon.Two days after Alex Ovechkins hat trick pushed the Capitals to a 4-3 victory over St. Louis, Washington grinded out a more workmanlike victory, with each goal coming off a rebound or redirection.Winnik put Washington ahead early in the first after Lars Ellers shot from the left struck off Nilssons pads.Johansson made it 2-0 about a third of the way through the second on another broken play that began when he found Justin Williams on the right to spark an odd-man rush.Williams tried to pass across the crease to Nicklas Backstrom. The puck knocked off defender Josh Gorges skate and to the trailing Johansson, who beat Nilsson over his stick side.Reinhart cut it to 2-1 midway through the third. But the Capitals added insurance on their fourth power play with 3:55 left, as Connolly slammed home a rebound after Ovechkin forced Nilsson into another pad save.It was a good time of the game to get one, Connolly said. They were coming pretty hard there and it was good to see that one go in.Buffalo was left frustrated by its inability to find a similar goal.I think we couldve probably had more than a handful of scoring chances with the power play, but nothing to show for it, Bylsma said.Game notes The Capitals have earned at least a point in 13 of their last 15 home games against the Sabres. ... The Sabres have scored two goals or fewer in 12 of their last 13 games. ... Washington RW Nate Schmidt was a healthy scratch for the first time this homestand. ... Buffalo makes its second and final regular-season trip to Washington on Dec. 5, just 10 days after its first.UP NEXTSabres: Close a two-game road trip at Ottawa on Tuesday.Capitals: Conclude their fourth back-to-back set of the season at Toronto on Saturday. Cheap Adidas Coyotes Jerseys . The Islanders dealt Thomas Vanek to the Montreal Canadiens after less than a year on Long Island. Meanwhile, the Oilers dealt long-time sniper Ales hemsky to the Ottawa Senators on Wednesday for a fifth-round pick in 2014 and a third-rounder in 2015. Cheap Adidas NHL Jerseys . The team also announced Tuesday that the Braves will wear a commemorative patch on the right sleeve during the season. The patch, shaped like home plate, carries the number 715, Aarons autograph and a "40th Anniversary" banner. http://www.cheapcoyotesjerseys.com/ . 4 Villanova with a 96-68 drubbing on Monday. Wragge hit 9-of-14 from behind the arc, matching Kyle Korvers school record for 3-pointers in a game set in 2003, as Creighton (16-3, 6-1 Big East broke a conference record with 21 treys in the rout. ESPN 100 shooting guard Ethan Thompson committed to Oregon State on Monday night.The Beavers already had a strong connection to Thompson, whose father, Stephen, is an assistant coach under Wayne Tinkle, and whose older brother, Stephen Jr., is a sophomore guard for the Beavers.It would have been tough to turn down family, Ethan Thompson told ESPN.com.Thompson said he also considered Syracuse, his fathers alma mater, and Stanford before choosing the Beavers.On my official visit, it was really a family connection all around, on and off the court, Thompson said. All the people they had me meet, from the president all the way down to the academic advisor and compliance people, they all want to see the players succeed.Thompson, a 6-foot-4 shooting guard from Bishop Montgomery (California) High School, is ranked No. 51 in the ESPN 100. He averaged 10.8 points, 3.7 rebounds and 3.0 assists on the Nike EYBL circuit last spring and summer with the California Supreme program.Tinkkle guided Oregon State to the NCAA tournament last season in just his second season as coach; it was the schools first tournament appearance since 1990. Cheap Coyotes Jerseys China. Stephen Thompson Jr. played a key role in that run, averaging 10.6 points as a freshman.Ethan Thompson will be the third coachs son to play under Tinkle at Oregon State, joining Stephen Jr. and Tres Tinkle (13.1 points per game, 5.4 rebounds).Coach Tinkle is a great coach, and he will make everybody compete for every single spot and every single minute played, Ethan Thompson said. If I go in there and compete like my brother did, I can make an impact as a freshman.I feel like there should be no limits with us. We should be able to make deep runs into the tournament, and we shouldnt just settle for making the tournament.Thompson is Oregon States first commitment in the 2017 class. ' ' '