KANATA, Ont. – There are candy canes on the chin of Pheonix Copley’s goaltending mask, an homage to his hometown of North Pole, Alaska, where the Santa Claus House is open year-round. With Christmas just three days away and the Washington Capitals eager to get on with their holiday break, Copley got an early present, a keepsake puck to commemorate his first NHL shutout.

The Capitals are most known for their superstars, like captain Alex Ovechkin, center Nicklas Backstrom and top goaltender Braden Holtby. But against the Ottawa Senators on Saturday night, it was Washington’s supporting cast that starred, from Copley making 35 saves to defensemen scoring two goals. It’s that depth that has propelled the Capitals atop the Metropolitan Division over the past month with wins in 14 of their past 17 games, and the 4-0 win over Ottawa keeps Washington’s cushion over second-place Columbus at four standings points.

With this the Capitals’ last game before a four-day break for Christmas, Coach Todd Reirden was hopeful his players would be able to focus for just a few more hours so the team could part on a happy note after this game. Back-to-back sets of games were a bugaboo for the team to start the season, but Washington had swept its past two entering this stretch of two games in as many nights.

Considering the Capitals had played the Buffalo Sabres less than 24 hours earlier, the start to Saturday’s game was ideal. Just 1:32 into it, defenseman Jonas Siegenthaler’s point shot was tipped by forward Brett Connolly in front for an early lead. That marked Connolly’s eighth goal of the season, and while he plays on Washington’s third line, his production this season ranks fifth on the team. As far as supporting-cast members go this year, he’s been the most consistent.

With 22 points in 35 games, he’s just five tallies away from tying his career-high of 27 points, set last season. If he keeps up this scoring pace, he could finish the year with nearly double that, good timing since he’s due to become an unrestricted free agent this summer.

With injuries thinning the Capitals’ forward corps all season, the third line with center Lars Eller has been a revolving door, but now that everyone up front is healthy for a change, Rierden has reverted to a trio that’s had chemistry in the past. After skilled winger Andre Burakovsky was a healthy scratch for four straight games, he skated a second straight game beside Eller and Connolly, and the strong play from that line to start the game allowed Reirden to play those three as much as he did his top-six forwards in the first period.

That line was on the ice for a goal in the second period, too. Connolly set up defenseman Michal Kempny’s point shot, and the floater weaved its way through traffic to find the back of the net 13:44 into the second frame. That’s his third goal this season, tying his career-high from 53 games with Chicago and Washington last year.

He wasn’t the only blueliner to make the scoresheet. With 2:04 left in the first period, defenseman Matt Niskanen joined the rush, skating up towards the net as Backstrom sent a puck ahead, the pass hitting Niskanen’s blade and then redirecting past Senators goaltender Mike McKenna. Niskanen now has five goals this season, and this is tied with his 2013-14 campaign for the best goal-scoring pace of his career.

Forward Jakub Vrana extended that cushion 9:05 into the second period, when he swiped the puck off Ottawa’s Mark Stone, then drove the net and beat McKenna for Washington’s third goal. Though the 22-year-old isn’t part of the Capitals’ superstar core yet, he’s solidifying himself as part of the franchise’s future with this impressive second-year campaign. That was Vrana’s 11th goal in 35 games, just two short of his rookie year total of 13 in 73 games.

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