Well, there was plenty to get your blood hot in the second period.
Islanders wunderkind Mathew Barzal knotted the game up 1-1 early with a bardown demand for satisfaction.
Then, New York’s Ross Johnston indulged in some goonduggery, fighting Tom Wilson before Wilson even got his gloves off. THEN, Cal Clutterbuck laid a dirty high hit on T.J. Oshie that got him two minutes. On the ensuing 5-on-3 power play, Nicklas Backstrom struck like Swede lightning, staking the Capitals to a 2-1 lead.
Then, cold-blooded, pure-scoring sniper Matt Niskanen ripped a laser to make it 3-1 Caps at the break.
And with 5 seconds left, Evgeny Kuznetsov went into the back boards very hard and appeared to injure his left arm. He was on the ice for a long time, and went straight to the locker room.
Third period ahead…