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Bounce back: Caps beat Wild 3-1

By Chris Cerullo

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November 18, 2017 11:12 pm

The Caps badly needed a good win and would have to get one facing a hot Minnesota Wild team on a four-game winning streak. Old friend Bruce Boudreau was back in town. Would Bruce and the team with the best logo in the NHL throw the Caps a bone?

Thomas Jehoshaphat Oshie scored his tenth goal of the season on the powerplay to give the Caps a rare early lead. Said lead was quickly erased by Nino Niederreiter on the Wild’s own power play. The lead was restored by Dmitry Orlov after he slammed home a point drive.

Nada in the second.

Alex Stalock stopped a Chandler Stephenson penalty shot. Evgeny Kuznetsov struck on a clutch, late double minor power play drawn by Lars Eller.

Caps beat Wild 3-1!

  • Braden Holtby didn’t really need a personal bounce back game as it was hard to fault him for most of the goals against in Nashville, but he still showed up big time in this one. Holtby stopped 29 of 30 Minnesota shots. His most notable stop of the night was definitely the fantastic glove save that he made late in the second period with two players literally sitting on him.
  • No surpise here. Nicklas Backtrom‘s line was dominant once again. This time they were very good and also on the ice for a Capitals goal five-on-five. More please.
  • Dmitry Orlov has been reunited with his best buddy Matt Niskanen and the pairing has already been pretty great at even strength. Orlov was able to pick up his second goal of the season, rocketing home a slap shot drive from the point in the first period. More O from the D is always appreciated.
  • Alex Ovechkin took an errant puck to his face in the second period which resulted in blood and possible chiclet loss. Good thing Ovi never said Russian machine never bleeds, cause he damn sure does. He returned for the third period, because he’s Alex Ovechkin. RMNB.

  • Lots of penalties in this one that your high school hockey coach would call “soft man, that’s real soft”. Refs called this one tight. I have yet to really form an opinion on the crack down of stick infractions this season. I don’t think hockey players are ever going to stop slashing, cross-checking, hooking, etc. A lot of that is just instinct.
  • What’s going in Montreal you ask? Oh nothing:

Joe B suit of the night

That was a much much much much better effort. The Calgary Flames are in town Monday night. Lets hope it’s a barn…burner.

Full Coverage of Caps vs Wild

Headline photo: Patrick McDermott

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