When the Caps played the Pens a few months ago, Alex Ovechkin slashed Kris Letang in the ankles, sending that game into pure chaos. On the next face-off, Chris Kunitz infinitely cross-checked Ovechkin. The Russian machine responded with infinite laughter.
It seems like Ovechkin’s best buddy Evgeny Kuznetsov learned from that example. On Sunday, Tyler Kennedy shoved Kuzy and was greeted with a laugh.
Photo: Bruce Bennett
The Washington Capitals lost just fifteen seconds into overtime of game three, and it was totally preventable.
After a comedy of errors and poor decisions by the Capitals, John Tavares chipped a loose puck over Braden Holtby‘s shoulder to give the Islanders a 2-1 series lead.
I asked former Caps blogger Eric Rigsby– a coach, an ex-college club player, and current Old Fat Bald Guys hockey player– to break down the play for us.
If you’re a child, please X this post out and ask mommy or daddy to explain what he said.
After the game, Cal Clutterbuck noticed NBC’s cameras were on him, so he uttered some nasty words for Alex Ovechkin.
Hockey hugs.
The New York Islanders were apparently unhappy with their performance on Friday, so they opted to pound the hell out of the Capitals on Sunday. Without Braden Holtby standing on his head, this would have been a blow out. It was a constant onslaught with immense tension. It was the Ardennes forest of hockey games.
Despite a ton of Isles chances, we were scoreless until halfway through the game, when Kyle Okposo deflected a shot by Lubomir Visnovsky to finally crack Holtby. With six minutes left in the third, the Capitals finally beat Halak with Nick Backstrom’s heavily trafficked shot– off the crossbar and in. That was where we stood at the end of rego.
John Tavares won it immediately in overtime.
Isles beat Caps 2-1. I’m crestfallen.
By Peter Hassett 8 years ago
Photo: Mike Stobe
Nicklas Backstrom just scored another game-tying goal. Today it came as the Caps were six minutes away from losing 1-0 to the Islanders.
Backstrom just shot it through a maze of players. Jaro Halak, screened, was eluded.
Scary moment, but a false alarm. First, Eric Fehr went down after a shoulder hit by Kyle Okposo, then Marcus Johansson suffered what could have been a bad injury from Cal Clutterbuck.
(Mojo’s okay now. Deep breaths, everybody.)
During game three on Sunday, Washington Capitals forward Eric Fehr absorbed a clean, shoulder-to-shoulder hit from Islanders forward Kyle Okposo. Fehr, who has a history of shoulder injuries, was pressed into the boards, his right shoulder first.
He left the game. His return is questionable.
Photo: Alex Brandon
“He acts like it’s his.” That’s how my mom characterized Alex Ovechkin‘s celebrations for other players’ goals on Friday night. And while I used that to make a cheap joke about selfish Russians, my mom was right. Ovi got to celebrate four times on Friday night’s excellent win over the Islanders (one for him, three for others). It was one of the best games these Caps have played all season, and they’re gonna need more of it today on Long Island.
The series is tied 1-1.
Game starts a little after noon on NBC proper, so if you’re watching from brunch and Pierre mentions the Brandon Wheat Kings, take a deep swig of your mimosa.
| Team | Record | Possession | PDO | Power Play | Penalty Kill |
| Washington Capitals | 45-26-11 | 51.9% | 100.3 | 25.3% | 81.2% |
| New York Islanders | 47-28-7 | 53.5% | 99.1 | 18.7% | 78.0% |
By Peter Hassett 8 years ago
