TAMPA, Fla. -- The Washington Commanders continue to prove one thing this season: They're ahead of schedule. They also know how to win close games.

Washington, which won eight more games this season than a year ago, emerged victorious yet again with a dramatic finish. Zane Gonzalez hit a 37-yard field goal to beat Tampa Bay 23-20 in the wild-card round -- providing Washington with its first playoff win since the 2005 postseason.

It has become a habit this season for a team that loves talking about "winning moments," and coach Dan Quinn said he focused more on late-game situations in practice than he had at any point in his career.

The Commanders ended the regular season with five straight wins -- three occurred on the last play from scrimmage and a fourth ended with Washington stopping a 2-point conversion on the final play.

In Week 8, Washington beat Chicago on a 52-yard Hail Mary pass at the buzzer and, in Week 2, defeated the New York Giants a last-second field goal.

The Commanders, who went 4-13 last season, have won by paying attention to detail. Late-game success enabled them to post a 12-5 record in Quinn's first season. Quarterback Jayden Daniels was a huge key in Sunday's win, but the Washington defense allowed 284 yards, slowing the Bucs' high-powered offense.

Here are the most important things to know from Sunday night for both teams:

Washington Commanders

Pivotal play: For the fourth time in the game, Washington went for it on fourth down. This time it was from the Tampa 5-yard line with 9:46 left. The Commanders had failed on a fourth-and-goal from the 3, but this time Daniels connected with receiver Terry McLaurin for the touchdown and 20-17 lead. It was McLaurin's 11th red zone touchdown catch of the season; he had 11 in his first five years combined. The drive was set up by linebacker Bobby Wagner's fumble recovery at the Tampa 13.

QB breakdown: Daniels did not look like a rookie playing his first playoff game. He completed 24 of 35 passes for 268 yards and two touchdowns. He rushed for another 36 yards on 13 carries. He also made plays he could not make in the season-opening loss to Tampa because of one big change: He kept his eyes downfield when he scrambled. It resulted in key plays, such as a 9-yard completion to tight end Zach Ertz on a third-and-6 from the Commanders' own 12-yard line.

Troubling trend: Cornerback Marshon Lattimore has not played the way Washington hoped in his two games against big-time receivers since being acquired from New Orleans ahead of the trade deadline. He was flagged for three pass interference penalties versus Philadelphia's A.J. Brown on Dec. 22 and one against Mike Evans Sunday night. Evans got open against Lattimore, making him look like a player who had played in just two games since Oct. 27 because of left hamstring issues. -- John Keim

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The Buccaneers should have gone for it while they had the chance.

They had the opportunity to tie or go for it on fourth-and-3 at the Washington 14-yard line with 4:45 to go and kicked a tying field goal to make it 20-20. ESPN Analytics disagreed with that decision, having their win probability at 46.1% (57.4% chance to convert) if going for it, whereas their win probability with a field goal was 43.6% with a 93.2% chance to make the field goal.

After the Bucs tied it up, Washington strung together chunk pass plays of 21, 18 and 8 yards while eating up valuable clock time, setting up the Commanders' 37-yard winning field goal.

Pivotal play: After a hard-fought goal-line stand at the Tampa Bay 3 that preserved the Bucs' 17-13 lead, Baker Mayfield fumbled a handoff that was recovered by Commanders linebacker Bobby Wagner at the Tampa Bay 13. With Josh Hayes stepping in for injured cornerback Jamel Dean, Jayden Daniels connected with Terry McLaurin on an in-route to retake the lead at 20-17 with 9:46 to go. It was the first time in six games that the Bucs had allowed a second-half touchdown.

Biggest hole in the game plan: The Bucs' defense could not get off the field. The Commanders were 8-of-15 on third down, none bigger than Daniels' keeper around the right side in the final minute. Their zone defense struggled against plays going across the field, including a 30-yard reception by Dyami Brown, and in-routes, such as Brown's 10-yard touchdown and 17- and 18-yard receptions by McLaurin. And then there were the penalties: They had seven for 65 yards.

Most surprising performance: Evans vs. Lattimore is typically a more tightly contested matchup, but this time it was all Evans. The Bucs' top receiver caught all five targets with Lattimore as the nearest defender for 73 yards and a touchdown. It was the second-highest receiving total Evans has had against Lattimore, behind a 115-yard performance in 2018. Evans had seven receptions for 92 yards on the night. -- Jenna Laine

At last some positive injury news with the rare sight of a fit and healthy Wales hooker.

Elliot Dee's timely return from a lengthy ankle problem will be welcomed by Gatland, who is without Dewi Lake, Ryan Elias, Liam Belcher and Efan Daniel.

"It was great to see him out there. He's led with a real competitive edge and has the mentality to play at this and the next level," said Dragons head coach Filo Tiatia.

Sam Parry, a try scorer for Ospreys on Saturday, is the most obvious selection on paper, but only if he can resolve his differences with Gatland after walking out of the Wales camp last summer.

"Parry is a great set-piece hooker and whatever has gone on between them, they've got put it aside for the best of the team, especially given the injuries," said Hook.

Elias may yet be picked, for the latter stages of the tournament, as well as Cardiff's Evan Lloyd, despite his wayward throwing in Perpignan.

Gatland also has concerns over a third tight-head behind Henry Thomas and Keiron Assiratti.

Archie Griffin, Harri O'Connor and Sam Wainwright are all out and Leon Brown has been forced to retire, so could the coach recall Six Nations winner Dillon Lewis, as he did for the summer tour?

Bath: De Glanville; Cokanasiga, Lawrence, Ojomoh, McConnichie; Russell, Spencer (capt); Obano, Dunn, Du Toit; Roux, Ewels, Hill, Reid, Barbeary.

Replacements: Annett, Van Wyk, Stuart, Molony, Bayliss, Schreuder, Bailey, Staddon.

Clermont Auvergne: Newsome; Delguy, Fouyssac, Simone, Tauzin; Belleau, Jauneau; Akhaladze, Fainga'a, Montagne, Simmons, Yato, Tixeront, Kremer, Lee (capt).

Replacements: Fourcade, Lotrian, Ala'alatoa, Ceyte, Rixen, Bezy, Giral, Raka.

Referee: Mike Adamson (Sco)

PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Penguins put center Evgeni Malkin on injured reserve Sunday due to an upper-body injury.

Malkin missed his fourth consecutive game against Tampa Bay. He was a late scratch before Tuesday's home game against Columbus when he participated in the morning skate, but wasn't available for pregame warmups.

Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said before the matchup with the Lightning that Malkin's IR move was procedural to activate forward Philip Tomasino from injured reserve. Sullivan labeled Malkin as day-to-day.

Malkin had a streak of 209 consecutive games before the injury, the 12th longest in team history. Pittsburgh is 1-1-1 during the current stretch without Malkin, a two-time NHL scoring champion and 2012 Hart Trophy winner.

Malkin, who scored his 500th goal and posted his 1,300th NHL point earlier this season, has eight goals and 24 assists in 41 games.

Sullivan also said Sunday that Malkin's linemate Michael Bunting was involved in a car accident outside PPG Paints Arena before the game. Sullivan said Bunting is OK, but he did not play against Tampa Bay. Bunting has 13 goals and 12 assists in 43 games this season.

RALEIGH, N.C. -- Eric Staal became the fourth player to have his number retired by the Carolina Hurricanes when his No. 12 was raised at the Lenovo Center prior to the team's 3-2 overtime loss to the Anaheim Ducks on Sunday.

The Thunder Bay, Ontario, native and former No. 2 draft pick spent 12 of his 18 NHL seasons with Carolina, recording 455 goals and 608 assists over 1,365 career games. He served as captain from 2009 to 2016 and appeared in six NHL all-star games, winning MVP honors in the 2008 contest.

The 40-year-old Staal, who retired in July after signing a one-day contract with the team, joined Rod Brind'Amour (17), Ron Francis (10) and Glen Wesley (2) in the rafters.

He set several franchise records after the team relocated from Hartford, Connecticut, in 1997, including for goals scored (322), assists (453), points (775), games played (909), power-play goals (105), power-play points (252) and hat tricks (13).

Aside from the individual accomplishments, Staal saw the franchise carve its place in history after winning a Stanley Cup in 2006. He called that the highlight of his career.

"The memory I have of a Hurricane is of a Stanley Cup champion," Staal said. "It's not easy to win one. I only have one, and I won it here."

Staal was joined for the ceremony by family, including his brothers Jordan, who is the current Hurricanes captain, and Marc, a former NHL defenseman. Current Hurricanes players took in the festivities from the bench, and several of his former teammates were also present. Cam Ward and Justin Williams, members of the Hurricanes Hall of Fame, donned varsity jackets and watched the ceremony from the ice.

A video montage was played, featuring highlights and interviews from Staal's playing days.

"Words can hardly do justice how much this means to me," said Staal, who was occasionally interrupted by fans chanting his name. "Growing up ... playing in the NHL felt like an impossible dream."

Staal was presented with a Breitling watch engraved with his name and number and the phrase "Forever a Hurricane."

Speaking with reporters afterward, Staal said he'd like to get involved with hockey again in some capacity. But for now, he's busy at home.

"I have three boys. They're 15, 13 and 10," Staal said. "I'm helping coach my oldest son and my youngest. ... Time just kind of goes fast."

The night ended when Anaheim's Cutter Gauthier scored in overtime, his seventh of the season, off assists from Jackson LaCombe and Frank Vatrano.

AC Milan are leading the chase for Kyle Walker, sources have told ESPN, after he told Manchester City he wants to leave the club.

Walker was left out of the squad for the 8-0 FA Cup victory over Salford City on Saturday after informing director of football Txiki Begiristain that he wants to move abroad in the January window.

The 34-year-old was close to joining Bayern Munich in 2023. He is under contract at the Etihad Stadium until 2026 but a source has told ESPN that Milan are open to offering Walker a deal until 2027.

"I said to him now it's a question of the market," Guardiola said.

"He is an incredible player with his incredible physicality, when he is focused he is unstoppable as a right-back, He's a top class player, if he is fit he can play one, two, three, four more years as a professional.

"I never see a player with these physical conditions in my career, and of course I never, never, never have a desire for one player, but he has to have agreement with the club and I'm sorry, I was never involved with all the players."

Guardiola revealed the uncertainty around Walker's future meant he was left out of the squad to face Salford. City face Brentford in the Premier League on Tuesday and Guardiola says Walker could miss out again.

"I don't know, it depends on how we are going to train, I don't know," Guardiola said.

"I think I was clear all the time, if he wants to explore, the club is going to explore, and he has to decide, not me. It's not my decision.

"The situation is different now but the transfer window will finish when it finishes and I don't know what's going to happen."

Mikel Arteta described Arsenal's FA Cup third-round defeat to Manchester United on Sunday as a one-in-a-thousand occurrence after losing in a dramatic penalty shootout at Emirates Stadium.

Bruno Fernandes put the visitors in front on 52 minutes before Diogo Dalot was sent off nine minutes later for a late tackle on Mikel Merino.

Gabriel Magalhães equalized in the 63rd minute, but despite playing almost an hour against 10 men, Arsenal were unable to find another breakthrough, with captain Martin Ødegaard missing a penalty 18 minutes from the end of normal time.

United felt justice was done given the spot kick was awarded despite Harry Maguire making minimal contact with Kai Havertz in the box (there is no VAR in the FA Cup until the fifth round). But United were left to defend for long periods afterward, as Arsenal probed for a winner.

The hosts registered 26 shots in total, with Havertz guilty of two bad misses. He was also the only player to fail in the shootout, as Altay Bayindir saved his spot kick to give Joshua Zirkzee the chance to win the game and set up a fourth-round tie for United at home vs. Leicester City.

"It's unbelievable," Arteta told the BBC. "Obviously, you measure the performance and what we did in relation to the position, you know, you deserve to win the game by a mile. But the reality is we are out, and the only thing that's going to be judged is that, but internally, I can't.

"I love my players. I love our team and I love how good they are and what they do because in a thousand games, you should lose one, and probably it was this one. You have to understand this as well, it's part of our industry, our game and move on because you don't have time to do that, because on Wednesday we have a massive one."

Arsenal face a home clash with north London rivals Tottenham in the Premier League on Wednesday.