Via the team:
Washington Capitals head coach Adam Oates on the team’s performance tonight…
“We did some good things. We did. It still doesn’t have the feeling of last year in the second half of the year. It doesn’t. I still think we have too many breakdowns in our own end, but I’m glad the guys got a win. It’s been a tough home stand.”
Washington Capitals head coach Adam Oates on what forward Martin Erat brings to the second line…
“He has great vision, skates well, handles the puck well, [and] makes good reads. He’s an all-around good hockey player.”
Washington Capitals forward Martin Erat on the play of the Capitals…
“You wear them [Columbus defense] down. It’s a 60 minute game and the D [defense] is going to feel it in the end and we capitalized on our chances. We get them tired. That’s our game.”
Washington Capitals forward Martin Erat on his playing with Brooks Laich and Troy Brouwer…
“It’s nice to have a good game, but in the end it is all about the wins, and we got the win and that is the bottom line.”
Washington Capitals forward Brooks Laich on getting the win before going out on the road trip…
“We’re not going to pat ourselves on the back for too long. It was a nice win, but we’re still sub .500 right now, but we did what we wanted tonight and now we need to get back to work on Monday and be a tough team on the road.”
Washington Capitals forward Alex Ovechkin on the play of Capitals goaltender Braden Holtby…
“You can see how we play when he is on fire. We have a lot of confidence, especially when he makes a big save and we can see he feel[s] the puck.”
Washington Capitals forward Alex Ovechkin on the play of Capitals forward Martin Erat…
“He was flying tonight. He was the best player for us tonight. He shows who he is.”
Columbus Blue Jackets head coach Todd Richards on what happened after the Capitals went up 2-0…
“We unraveled. I think even after those first two goals, we started to go after them, but we weren’t good enough. We got what we deserved. I think the chances were there. They had some chances, but we got what we deserved tonight.”
Columbus Blue Jackets head coach Todd Richards on being upset how the game progressed in the third period…
“It’s [about] doing the right things. It’s a 2-0 game and we were still in it at that time, its still 2-0. What’s frustrating is how the game ended. Systematically, we unraveled.”
Columbus Blue Jackets forward RJ Umberger on how the first goal in the second period was a key point…
“I think we wanted to play with them and play our game, just play fast from the get-go. 0-0 game after the first period on the road, you’ll take that. We had some grade A chances. Going into the second [period], tie game, you’ve got to find a way to get that first goal.”
Columbus Blue Jackets forward RJ Umberger on how things went downhill after the Capitals third goal…
“They got that third one (goal) and it just cracked us, I guess. We turned the puck over. They capitalized on their chances tonight and we didn’t. That’s kind of the name of the game. We had plenty of chances, but we didn’t score on any of them.”
Columbus Blue Jackets forward Blake Comeau on the first Capitals goal and how the team can improve next time out…
“They scored on their power play, and we just couldn’t bury our chances. We had some good scoring chances but with that being said, we’ve been talking about getting in front of the net more. We’ve got to keep continuing to get more second and third chances. When you’re not scoring, it’s not going to be the pretty ones that you’ve got be looking for, it’s just those greasy goals throwing things on net.”
Columbus Blue Jackets forward Blake Comeau on being disappointed in the start to the season…
“We’ve got higher expectations than our record, that’s for sure. I think that’s a good thing to have. Guys are frustrated, we’re frustrated, we know that we’ve got to get better. I think everyone in this locker room knows that when we’re not winning, we’ve got to find that little extra gear.”