clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

Capitals vs. Lightning Game Two Recap: Lars Lifts Washington to Second Victory

The Capitals’ three goal second period put Tampa Bay away in a 6 to 2 Washington win

By Geoff Thompson
Washington Capitals v Tampa Bay Lightning - Game Two Photo by Mike Carlson/Getty Images

Coming off a convincing Game One victory the Capitals looked to repeat the performance once again on the road. A second period offensive outburst from Washington gave them a lead they would not relinquish on their way to a convincing 6 to 2 Game Two victory.

Here’s Sunday night's Plus/Minus:

Plus: Washington took two games from the Lightning in Tampa Bay to begin their Eastern Conference Finals series.

Minus: T.J. Oshie’s first period minor penalty that directly led to Tampa Bay’s second goal. No comment.

Nine more notes on the game.

  1. 28 seconds into the contest Matt Niskanen and Tom Wilson connected for an early Washington lead. Niskanen picked the puck off of the boards and fired a shot that Wilson chipped up and over Andrei Vasilevskiy’s glove from thirty feet out.
  2. The Lightning would quickly cash in on their first power play with Brayden Point depositing a partially blocked shot into a wide open goal. A Steven Stamkos shot created chaos in the slot before Point picked up the puck and knotted the score.
  3. Tampa Bay also connected on their second power play of the first period, this one courtesy of a phantom high stick from Oshie. The Lightning moved the puck quickly, tying up Washington’s defense long enough for Stamkos to get his chance and he would not miss.
  4. Less than three minutes into the second period the Capitals would tie the score at two. Alex Chiasson picked up the puck in neutral with speed, powering an odd-man rush alongside Devante Smith-Pelly. Chiasson dished the puck to Smith-Pelly in the slot and he ripped home a shot off of the post and in.
  5. The Capitals would regain the lead at the game’s 39 minute mark. With Anton Stralman on his butt behind Tampa Bay’s net Jakub Vrana whipped a quick cross-crease pass that Lars Eller slammed home to make it 3 to 2.
  6. And seconds before the forty minute mark Washington put themselves ahead by two. On a late power play Evgeny Kuznetsov snuck a shot pass from the corner that took a fortuitous Capitals’ bounce under Vasilevskiy and over the goal line.
  7. That goal marked the second in as many games to be scored by Washington with less than ten seconds to play in a frame. Both tallies were with the man advantage and came immediately after an offensive zone faceoff win.
  8. Kuznetsov and Alex Ovechkin would extend the Capitals’ lead to three with the latter firing home his tenth postseason goal. A two-on-one break for Russian pair allowed Kuznetsov to dance around a sprawled Stralman before placing a perfect pass to Ovechkin for his finish,
  9. With seven minutes to play Brett Connolly whipped home his third of the postseason to put the finishing touch on the contest.