[AP Recap – Game Summary – Event Summary – WashingtonCaps.com Postgame]
There’s no doubt last night’s game meant a lot more to the Hurricanes than it did to the Capitals, a consequence of the ‘Canes still being in the process of fighting for their playoff lives, while the Caps, with their comfortable division lead, are anxious for the postseason to begin. As a result, fans might have expected the Hurricanes to come out flying in an effort to channel their desperation into energy and their energy into an early lead. It didn’t quite play out like that, although the Hurricanes nonetheless were to able to gain an advantage by ensuring that the Capitals were going to have be willing to to do their dirty work – crashing the Carolina net, dumping the puck in deep and retrieving it, and clearing the front of their own net – if they wanted to win the game. Although the Capitals didn’t exactly phone it in last night, they lost in part because their opponent wanted the two points more than they did.
Aside from the result, the biggest story of last night’s game has to be the penalties by Joni Pitkanen and Rod Brind’Amour. The league and the player’s association can talk all they want about protecting players from headshots and other dangerous plays, but when cross checks to the head are met with questionable even-up calls and hits from behind three feet from the boards are met with minor penalties, it becomes awfully hard to believe them.
Some additional thoughts on the game:
On Tuesday the Capitals travel to Toronto to face a Maple Leafs team that has now won three of its last four and four of its last six. Let’s hope the team shows a little more urgency then.