“The guys can tell it’s a lot more fun when you put in the full commitment.… - Barry Trotz
Coming off a brutal loss to the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday, the Washington Capitals took the ice against the Blackhawks last night and dominated the game from the opening faceoff.
The Blackhawks were one day removed from a 3-0 loss to the Flyers in Philadelphia and were looking to rebound as well, but the Caps played one of their best games under the Trotz-era and kept Chicago in check in all three zones.
Scott Darling took the net for the Hawks, giving Corey Crawford a much needed rest. The Caps fired 24 shots on goal with Darling stopping 20.
Braden Holtby was very solid in goal stopping 26 Chicago shots. He let one squeak by him early in the third period when Viktor Svedberg found an opening in the circle in and fired a wrist shot past Holtby. Last nights game was indicative of what Caps fans are expecting from Holtby this season.
The top line of Alex Ovechkin, Evgeny Kuznetsov and T.J. Oshie combined for 5 points, including Oshie's first goal as a Capital which came on the power play. Oshie was more than happy to get that first one under his belt:
"Those guys have been feeding me the puck left and right it seems like, and I haven't been able to put any in," Oshie said. "It wasn't clean, but it found the back of the net. I'm so happy with it. I think a big part of that is I sort of settled down a little bit and started getting a little bit more comfortable and just playing hockey."(NHL.com)
Ovechkin finished with a goal and 6 shots while Kutznetsov tallied 2 assists.
The top trio has been playing well together, and the game of Kuznetsov has been very impressive which will make it difficult for Trotz who has to decide whether or not to keep them together now that Nicklas Backstrom has been cleared to play.
Look for Backstrom to move down to the second line, at least for now.
The Blackhawks fired 22 shots on Holtby in the first two periods, but were only able to muster 5 shots in the third. The Caps held strong all game and were able to limit zone time by keeping a close eye on Patrick Kane and company. Kane finished the game with only one shot on goal.
The Caps checking line of Chimera, Beagle and Wilson were fantastic at shutting down the Blackhawks and grinding it out in the offensive zone.
Taylor Chorney and Chandler Stephenson played in their first games as Capitals last night while Kuznetsov played in his 100th game.
Caps continue their homestand against the Hurricanes on Saturday at 7pm.
More to come...