The Caps lost a close one yesterday, 2-1, but they played really well considering they were without Alex Ovechkin, Rasmus Sandin, and Sonny Milano – and playing one of the better teams in the league on their ice. It’s a game they should not be upset about at all (although given the extremely tight standings race in the Metropolitan Division these days, it’s not ideal any time you fail to come up with two points).
The only thing that was definitely bad was giving up goals in the first and last minute of the first period. Those type of goals are momentum killers. If the Caps had been able to prevent at least one of those, it’s likely the Caps leave New York with at least a point.
Three Takeaways:
- Evgeny Kuznetsov stayed wing again for the second game in a row and third time this season. It’s hard to stress how much better the team looks when he’s not playing at center. It’s unknown if Carbery will keep him there (and it’s doubtful that he will) but it’s something he should consider if he’s serious about winning.
- The Caps’ penalty killers came up huge against the second-best power play in the league, killing all five chances given to the Rangers – including a five-on-three that was over a minute long. This was after they killed off three penalties in Saturday’s win. Going eight-for-eight against the firepower of the Rangers was impressive.
- Speaking of penalties, the officiating was…interesting, and perhaps a little lopsided, with the Rangers getting those five chances and the Caps only drawing two (despite there being some fairly obvious calls that could have been made). Head coach Spencer Carbery was not happy about that.
They Said It: