CRASH THE NET: Caps beat Bruins 2-1 (OT), Advance to Conference Semifinals

April 25, 2012 10:38 pm

Photo credit: Elsa

Game Seven. You know the deal.

Jason Chimera dropped the puck to John Carlson, who fired a shot that Matt Hendricks tipped in. Tyler Seguin dove to knock in a loose puck behind Braden Holtby to tie the game heading into the third period. The game went into overtime.

And then it happened. You knew it would. Mike Knuble crashed the net and Joel Ward swept in the rebound. Caps beat Bruins 2-1 (OT).

This was the first series in NHL history in which every game was decided by a single goal. Yeah. You just watched the tightest series ever. Really. That’s not hyperbole. I know since it came from us it feels like an exaggeration, but it’s a real true fact.
Tim Thomas was sporting a two-game shutout streak in game sevens before tonight. He was a great foe and a world-class hockey player. Salute the glorious dead.
Here’s the thing about Matt Hendricks: he’s the orphaned puppy of the NHL. Released by the Avalanche two years ago, Matt Hendricks wandered the streets of DC until George McPhee found him, rain-soaked and mangy, and brought him to training camp. McPhee fed him, gave him a bath, called him a good dog, and the rest is history. Hendy recorded his first playoff goal tonight.
We all know that today’s hockey sticks have an auto-destruct button. Slashing penalties are as plentiful as drunk dudebros nowadays, so kudos to the refs for discerning Jay Beagle‘s behavior from true naughtiness. You don’t see on-ice calls reversed often, so this was a special moment in a special game.
The second period belonged to the Bruins, who asserted a plus-14 Fenwick score after forty minutes. The Caps played back, and it burned them. No one is surprised by this, and the Caps have found a way to win without the puck.
Through two periods Alex Ovechkin played under 10 minutes. At the end of regulation he played just 15:23. That’s less than… pretty much everyone except Knuble. What gives?
With 2:26 left in this elimination game, the refs whistle Jason Chimera for holding. It was certainly a penalty, but when whistles are subjective (“let the boys play”) this stuff deserves scrutiny. If every game were called by the book, this would be a no-brainer. But hockey penalties are fluid– with refs forgiving some penalties so long as the other team gets similar clemency soon after. When the refs turn off Interpretation Mode and turn By The Book Mode, they’re forcing their own narrative on a game that is supposed to be decided by the players.
But whatever. Caps killed that penalty just like they had more than dozen others in this series. The PK is owed a lot of credit for this win.
But don’t forget Braden Holtby, whose numbers are… well unbelievable. Hero Holtby will quarterback this team into the conference semifinals, and we’re gonna love watching.

Series record: Capitals 4, Bruins 3

The final Joe B suit of the night

That’s it. That’s how the series ends. In the glorious mess that is a crashed net. Tears and frustration for the defeated, and tears of another sort for the victors.

This could have been Mike Knuble‘s final game as a Cap. This could have been his final game as a pro hockey player.

But he’s not gonna go out like that.

In crashing into Tim Thomas’s net, Knuble was doing what he’s always done: create the plays that would otherwise be denied.

Joel Ward got famous from being an excellent postseason performer. He’d been mostly quiet before tonight, but no one cares about that now.

Joel Ward is your OT hero. He plays a simple game, fearless and strong on the puck, two qualities that just earned him a spot in Caps hockey lore forever.