Detroit Red Wings

Mike Green’s Homecoming: Caps beat Red Wings 3-2 (SO)

Photo: Amanda Bowen

Mike Green returned to Verizon Center for the first time since, eh, I’d rather not talk about it. The Detroit Red Wings and Washington Capitals played another one of their agonizingly tight games, but it was actually pretty good hockey, so it was fun to watch. But if this game were played in May, I’d be vomiting my soul up right now.

The Capitals didn’t wait long to score. Justin Williams took advantage of a broken play by Detroit to score his 600th career point. A little later, a dumb icing call gave Dylan Larkin the opportunity to set up Henrik Zetterberg for a smooth-looking goal. Detroit took the lead in the second period with Tomas Jurco’s first goal of the season. The Caps drew two penalties in the third period, the second of which Alex Ovechkin converted by crashing the net. Tied at two, the game went to 3v3 overtime, which is basically just NBA Jam for hockey. The Caps had to kill a big penalty in the extra period to force the shootout.

Shootout bullets!

• TJ Oshie put the biscuit in the basket.
• Gustav Nyquist did NOT put the biscuit in the basket.
• Evgeny Kuznetsov put the biscuit in the basket.
• Pavel Datsyuk did NOT put the biscuit in the basket.

Caps beat Red Wings in the shootout!

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Great Goaltending: Caps beat Red Wings 2-1 (OT)

Despite all recent evidence to the contrary, the Washington Capitals are still a hockey team. But Wednesday’s game against the Detroit Red Wings, the first Caps game since the mid 80s, intimated that the Caps may have diminished in intensity during their long break.

They looked particularly a bit rusty in the early going, especially in comparison to Pavel Datsyuk and Dylan Larkin, who combined for the Wings’ first goal. But on one of their 275 first period power plays, the Caps returned fire with a tip-in by Justin Williams.

No one scored forever, so we went to overtime, where Kuznetsov won it.

Caps beat Wings 2-1 in overtime!

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All My Exes Live in Detroit: Wings Blank Caps 1-0

The Capitals traveled to MoTown Tuesday night, where they still make cars just ones that are a little more Italian. It was a night of reunions and celebrations. But somebody forgot to invite the Caps. The fairy tale was not to be.

The Caps had a torrid pace through much of the first, Alex Ovechkin especially, but they couldn’t crack Petr Mzarek. In fact, the Wings actually scored the game’s opening goal, but Braden Holtby slipped the cookie out of the cookie jar with aplomb.

In the second, the Wings turned the nerd graphs upside down but the Capitals managed to keep the dam from overflowing.

That was until Andreas Athansiou (?) notched his first NHL tally on a fluke sharp angle shot. That was all. Ho hum. Wings blank Caps, 1-0.

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Caps beat Red Wings 2-1: Nearly a Playoff Lock

All these smiling faces.

With less than a week to go, the Capitals got an important win on the road from the Detroit Red Wings– drawing ever closer to making their playoff fate a lock.

The Caps got an early lead off Evgeny Kuznetsov’s stick (and a sick bounce). Mike Green’s Easton made it 2-0 in the second period, but Darren Helm got a power-play goal after a great pass from Pavel Datsyuk. The Caps held off a brilliant empty-net attack late to earn two crucial standings points in #rego.

Caps beat Red Wings 2-1.

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