Fleischmann leads Caps to win

RALEIGH, N.C. | Tomas Fleischmann’s campaign for a spot on one of the top lines for the Washington Capitals is off to a good start.

The right wing netted a pair of power-play goals in a 4-1 victory for the Caps in their first exhibition contest of the season against the Carolina Hurricanes at RBC Center on Wednesday night.

“It was just a preseason game, so you can’t take it as seriously, but it feels good after what we accomplished at the start of camp,” Fleischmann said.

Fleischmann batted a loose puck out of midair for his first tally and put in a rebound late in the second period for his second of the night.

Matt Bradley, whom coach Bruce Boudreau named captain for the game, and Mathieu Perreault scored the other goals for Washington, which faces Hurricanes on Thursday night at Verizon Center. Perreault poked in a loose puck after skating around a scrum in front of the net, which was caused when defenseman Milan Jurcina’s shot from the right circle hit the far post and settled behind Carolina goaltender Justin Peters.

“My record [as captain] speaks for itself,” Bradley joked. “The guys were ready to go. I just basically went out there and do what I do - I got the game-winner.”

Goalie Simeon Varlamov, a first-round pick in 2007, turned aside all 20 shots he faced in one period of action. There were some juicy rebounds, but Varlamov also made some impressive recoveries. He stopped five shots in one flurry at the end of the period.