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A 6-3 Washington Capitals comeback win against the Pittsburgh Penguins will at least temporarily shut critics up about last season’s playoff series.
The first half of the game, although fast-paced and action-filled, was still tough for Caps fans to watch. The Capitals struggled to keep the opposition out of the defensive zone (again!) and allowed the Penguins to stand around the net with no defenders on them. Not only was all of this going on, but the Caps were called for 3 consecutive penalties before the Penguin’s visited the penalty box in the second period.
By the time the Caps got their first power play in, the Caps were down 3-2 late in the 2nd period. Mike Knuble, who scored the first goal for Washington, passed the puck up to Alex Ovechkin. Ovie made the Penguins pay on the PP on a nice wrist shot from the slot, tying the game 3 all.
This PP goal for the Caps would be the turning point of the game, as Washington entered the final frame stronger than ever. Tomas Fleischmann takes advantage of a perfectly drawn set of passes from John Carlson and Alex Semin from center ice. Flash then head-fakes former Caps’ goalie, Brent Johnson, and the Caps obtained the lead.
Following this play was a Kris Letang penalty, which gave the Caps a power play that would stretch the lead to now 2 goals, courtesy of Nicklas Backstrom on a breakaway. Pittsburgh was unable to score after that, and Ovechkin sealed the game with an empty-netter. Final score: 6-3 in the Caps’ favor.
Tonight also happened to be a milestone night for the Caps; John Carlson received his first NHL point of his career from the assist on the goal from Flash on the PP. Alex Ovechkin of course had some shots tonight, enabling him to achieve scoring the 250th goal of his career.
Not necessarily a milestone, but something to mention as well, the Caps killed all 4 of the penalties called against them. And did a heck of a job staying out the box for the rest of the game.
This game of course meant more than just the first regular season matchup between the Caps and Pens this season. I mustn’t have to remind the audience of the shenanigans that caused the Caps to exit the playoffs last season. The only thing worse than losing again would be to lose tonight and to have everybody questioning the Caps true dominance.
However, the Caps were able to silence the critics tonight by playing a decent game to defeat their arch nemesis on the road. A win like this will keep the “haters” quiet, at least until the next game or the playoffs, and it does well for the Caps’ psyche as well.
Even before all of this Sidney versus Alex bull, the Caps and Penguins have hated each others’ guts. Thus, the desire to win against the rival Pens will always be there. Beating the Penguins makes the fans feel GREAT and the team can put a checkmark next to that one game out of four.
Of course, the Caps know that the feeling after such a win will last only so long, and Caps fans only have so long before the next game to savor this win.
There’s no question that the playoffs mean so much more. But to continue to beat competing teams, especially your arch rival, is pretty important, at least in my eyes.
Some Other Articles That You May Enjoy:
Ten in A Row for The Capitals
It’s Now or Never for Washington’s Eric Fehr
Is This the Best Capitals Team in Franchise History?
Capitals “Storm” with Comeback Against the Penguins
No Trades for the Washington Capitals Powerhouse
While Caps Defeat Wings, Theodore Puts on His Best Performance.
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