The two top teams in the East, the Washington Capitals and New York Islanders, met for a big battle on Tuesday. Your Washington Capitals emerged victorious.
TJ Oshie scored the game’s first goal, cleaning up a Kuznetsov rebound. Then Alex Ovechkin took an Ovi Shot from the Ovi Spot to pass Phil Esposito with his 718th goal. Nick Backstrom added a power-play goal 28 seconds into the third period, taking a great pass from Jakub Vrana to make it 3-0. Then, Oliver Wahlstrom scored as an iffy penalty from Jakub Vrana and a failed clear by Zdeno Chara cost Samsonov his shutout. But that was it.
Caps win! Six in a row!
- The Caps kinda got worked in the first period, with Barry Trotz’s Isles doubling up the Caps in shot attempts.
- Evgeny Kuznetsov got away with a cross-check in the first period. It only cost him his stick:
Kuznetsov broke his stick cross-checking Barzal #ALLCAPS pic.twitter.com/moIfd6epY4
— Alec Gearty (@gearty83) March 16, 2021
- Alex Ovechkin recorded his 1300th point with a secondary assist on the Oshie goal, a chip pass from like 100 feet away from the net. That’s okay, because he scored a proper goal five minutes later, a classic Ovi PPG marker, to pass the great Phil Esposito.
- Ilya Samsonov had a no-no going until 45 minutes and 16 shots in. That’s when Jakub Vrana got busted for holding. Samsonov had a very strong outing both before and after that.
Meme que define o Ceps… #ALLCAPS #CapsIsles pic.twitter.com/qYZAf52ZWy
— Washington Capitals Brasil 🇧🇷 (@WCapitalsBR) March 17, 2021
- I just want to share my favorite Caps Twitter account, the Brasilians above. Portuguese is a pretty language. Diminui af.
- Finally, Trevor van Riemsdyk was the team’s ornamental seventh defender yet again. He played 51 seconds.
#JoeBSuitOfTheNight #CapsIsles Top’ of the puck drop to ya @JoeBpXp pic.twitter.com/CyKc4HSVcY
— Ian Oland (@ianoland) March 16, 2021
This was a good game. It wasn’t a silly blowout like Monday against the Sabres. The Caps did not drive play or run up the score. To be honest, they kinda got trounced in puck possession. But overall it was competitive and close, and the Caps won it against the current/temporary tenants of first place. That’s a huge two points, and now I think I know which of the two is the better team.
It’s not the one with Barry Trotz behind the bench.
The Caps now have two days off before they host the Rangers.
RMNB Coverage of Caps vs Islanders
Screenshot courtesy of NBC Sports Washington
