Hockey returns to Capital One Arena on Wednesday night for Game 2 of the First-Round series between the Washington Capitals and the Montreal Canadiens. While Capitals fans soaked in the joy of Alex Ovechkin’s first-ever overtime winner in the playoffs to take Game 1, 3-2, Canadiens fans were hopeful after their team came so close with a third-period comeback to force overtime. As the teams prepare for Game 2 tonight, here are a few storylines to follow in this Eastern Conference series.
Dylan Strome’s Impressive Contributions in Game 1
While Ovechkin received all the glory for kickstarting the Capitals’ victory party in Game 1, Dylan Strome’s contributions are worth mentioning. Strome was credited with the secondary assist on all three Washington goals and was plus-2 on the night in over 17:49 minutes of ice time.
On Washington’s first goal, Strome used his speed to enter the zone before dishing the puck off to Tom Wilson. His drive through the middle helped create the seam for Wilson to pass the puck to Ovechkin before the NHL’s all-time leading scorer blasted the puck past Canadiens goalie Sam Montembeault for a 1-0 lead.
In the second period, Strome tracked down a failed Lane Hutson clearing attempt along the boards and quickly moved the puck to the blue line for Ovechkin. Washington’s captain noticed Anthony Beauvillier alone in front of the net and fired a quick puck toward Montembeault, who couldn’t handle the rebound. Beauvillier deposited the rebound into the net for a 2-0 Washington advantage. Without Strome’s slick pass and Ovechkin’s quick thinking, the Capitals’ second goal wouldn’t have happened.
This Ovi-Stromer-Beauvi line got the JUICE pic.twitter.com/vBkUVIkeQ0
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) April 22, 2025
Strome then helped the Capitals win the game by batting the puck to Beauvillier after a clean face-off win against Alex Newhook in overtime. Ovechkin surged to the middle of the ice, collected the loose puck, and slipped a pass for Beauvillier, who rushed a shot toward Montembeault before finding Ovechkin with a pass for the game-winner. “I think it was a great play by [Dylan Strome] to win the face-off,” Ovechkin said. “It was kind of a scrum, and ‘Beauvi’ have a first shot and then tried to find me out there, and good things happen when you go to the net.”
Logan Thompson Should Expect Even More Pressure in Game 2
Montreal did not go easy on Capitals goaltender Logan Thompson, who missed several weeks with an upper-body injury before returning to the lineup for Game 1. Head coach Spencer Carbery did not name a starter ahead of the series, but Thompson was first on the ice ahead of Charlie Lindgren for pre-game warmups, which indicated his status as the starting netminder.
The Canadiens fired 13 shots towards Thompson in the opening period, which featured 27 shots on goal between the two teams. Washington’s netminder made eight saves to keep his shutout bid alive through two periods before Montreal’s third-period onslaught. The Canadiens doubled up the Capitals in shots, 14-7, leading to two goals, including Nick Suzuki’s game-tying goal with under five minutes to play in regulation.
Thompson did not need to make a save in overtime, and overall, he made 33 saves on 35 shots. Nearly half of those shots (40%) came in the final period under heavy pressure. To tie the series, the Canadiens will look to generate the same chaos they created in the third period on Monday night and keep the pressure on Washington. It will be up to Thompson to thwart those offensive chances if the Capitals hope to claim a 2-0 series lead.
Capitals Must Avoid Canadiens’ Power Play at All Costs
Washington escaped with an overtime win in Game 1, but they would have had themselves to blame if they had let the opening contest in the series slip through their hockey gloves. Pierre-Luc Dubois was whistled for a tripping penalty at 10:03 of the third period with his team up 2-0. Less than 30 seconds later, Cole Caufield stashed a rebound behind Thompson to cut the lead to 2-1. The Canadiens fed on the momentum of that goal to tie the game 5:12 later. Thompson did everything humanly possible to deny the tying goal. Still, the goalie lost his crease before Suzuki calmly fired the puck past Nic Dowd and into the empty net.
Related: 4 Keys to the Capitals Winning Round 1 Against the Canadiens
In Game 1, Washington took two penalties and finished 50% on the penalty kill. If Washington hopes to capture a 2-0 series lead, the Capitals must avoid taking trips to the penalty box and allowing time and space for Montreal’s offensive threats to operate.
Puck drop for Game 2 is at 7 pm tonight.
