If you enjoy fast, fun hockey, this was the game for you.
It seemed like the first period went by in a flash and the rest of the game didn’t let up. The first period was a fun back and forth, but the second period the Blue Jackets owned the territorial battle before John Carlson potted a late-period goal from the point. The Caps came out in the third period ready to bounce back, scoring two quick ones (much like they did last game against Seattle), with a goal from Alex Ovechkin off the faceoff and Justin Sourdif getting his first as a Cap on a breakaway off a great pass by Logan Thompson to Ryan Leonard, then Leonard to Sourdif.
The Blue Jackets got one back and thought they had another but it was called back for a kicking motion. That was followed by a five-minute major for Mathieu Olivier for elbowing Declan Chisholm (who thankfully would return to the game), and Tom Wilson and Connor McMichael took advantage of the man advantage to put the game out of reach. Overall, it may have been one of the worse games the Caps played this season but they found a way to win and that’s what matters.
Plus: The Caps continue to find offense up and down the lineup, and it was nice to see a couple of new guys hit the scoresheet, especially McMichael grabbing his first of the season after being snake bitten to start the year.
Minus: Overall, especially defensively, the Caps weren’t at their best. They did a lot of bending and not breaking which is all you need sometimes, but it mainly came down to the…
Caps Star of the Game: Logan Thompson. He was the best player by far, making some huge saves, especially in the second period when the game was tied at zeroes. He was standing on his head through out the whole game and even added a beautiful secondary assist. Caps are certainly blessed with their goaltending.