Caps vs. Jets Recap: O Captain My Game-Winning Captain, Caps Win 4-3

Sixty minutes, six regulation goals, and an appearance by #TopLineTomWilson weren’t enough to decide Thursday night’s tilt. With just 90 seconds left in overtime, Alex Ovechkin put the game’s fortunes on his back and blasted home the GWG from the Ovi Spot.

Here's Thursday night's Plus/Minus:

• Plus: Andre Burakovsky is a stud, folks. He dominated possession with a 77.5% 5v5 Corsi For percentage, recorded an assist, and out-bodied Dustin Byfuglien. Seriously.
• Minus: The Capitals power play went 0-4, including with a chance to take the lead late in the third period. I haven’t seen a man advantage so useless since 10 guys with knives fought 9 guys with guns. EDIT: They scored the game-winner, folks! Do 4v3 goals count? Sure, okay, yeah!

And now, this...

1. Ten more notes on the game:

• 1 Dmitry Orlov looked a little lost early in the first period, and he and John Carlson struggled to clear the Zone like failed diets. Orlov got deployed on the PK tonight, something Barry Trotz has been...well, EXTREMELY HESISTANT to do in the past. He looked...well, Midwest folk would say, "Bless his heart." He made some bad decisions moving the puck around when down a man, and generally seemed a step behind in his positioning. He's fast, which I'm sure Trotz likes on a spacious PK, but he'll need to batten down his hatches and do other vaguely nautical things to right the ship.
• 2 The Caps struck first, as Nicklas Backstrom put home a sick backhanded goal off of an Alex Ovechkin rebound, cellied like a stone cold killer, and told the Jets, "It's Miss Backstrom if ya nasty."

• 3 The first period ended with the Capitals leading 1-0, and Andre Burakovsky decided to make his own luck just two minutes into the second. Burakovsky caught a set-up pass and quickly fired a rocket off the pads of Jets goalie Michael Hutchinson. Bura followed up his own shot, chasing down his Howitzer like a suicidal Spaniel. He got to the rubber first, looped around behind the net, and found an ever-aware TJ Oshie waiting in front of the door step. Burakovsky gave him a smooth feed like Gerber peas, Oshie hit the three-wheel motion and pulled a nifty little forehand-backhand move, and it was 2-0 Capitals.
• 4 Later in the second period, O Captain My Captain Alex Ovechkin got in on the backhand rebound action himself, beating a sprawling Hutchinson to give the Capitals a 3-0 cushion like a trifecta of ottomans (which are quite versatile. Seriously, diversify your furniture portfolio.)
• 5 Andre Burakovsky deserves further recognition. He was all over the place in the second period, making big, talented power-forward plays like winning loose pucks in the crease, and out-assing Dustin Byfuglien for space down low (which, let me tell you, is not easy to do.)
• 6 Speaking of Byfuglien, Ol’ Dusty Buff tried to start some you-know-what with Zach Sanford midway through the period, putting the Caps rookie in a headlock that had to smell like poutine and oafishness. Byfuglien finally let Sanford go, and Sanford gave him a shove to let him know that he was sub-optimally pleased.

• 7 The third period got off to a fart-like start, stinking up the place and leaving the home team looking gassed. A streaking Toby Enstrom got loose on a breakaway, and Braden Holtby, ever-bold and never-scurr’d, came way the heck out to meet him by way of collision. Holtby accidentally bowled over his own samurai, John Carlson, and Enstrom fired one home into an empty net.
• 8 Just three minutes later and still very early in the final period, the Jets potted another nerve-wracking ficus, denting the Capitals’ lead to just 1 off an Adam Lowry snipe from down low.
• 9 And wouldn’t you know it, those pesky ‘Peg puckheads knotted it all up midway through the third, Marko Dano simply walking in on Holtby like he caught him dressing before prom. Wails of “not again!” went up from the 400s in Verizon, and a rousing “Unleash the Fury” was just what the doctor ordered. The game would still head deep into the tensest and cruelest of temporal states, overtime. The Caps pounded chances, over and over until a power play put Washington on the advantage...
• 10 HAHAHAHAHA, Ovechkin goal from the #OviSpot! #Obestkin! This guy, what a mensch. Chalk up two more for the world’s greatest goal scorer.

You hate to see the Capitals give up a 3-0 lead, but to stay strong and win it in overtime is better than...well, not. Lots of fun line combinations to talk about this weekend, everyone! Happy Friday!