Washington Capitals: Top 3 heroes against Blues

#3 Alex Ovechkin

Alex Ovechkin has had an impact on the ice the last two opening nights and this year was no different. His goal at 15:37 put the Capitals on the board and helped turn the momentum in this game.

Getting the puck in transition, the Capitals went down the ice. Lars Eller dished it off to John Carlson in the neutral zone. Ovechkin was trailing the play and took a backhanded pass from Carlson.

Ovechkin used his quick hands to fake a shot, before controlling the puck and taking another shot. His release sailed right past the stick side of Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington.

That goal led to a much better second period that saw the Capitals square the score. Washington was outshot 7-5 in the first period but flipped the script by outshooting the Blues 15-8 in the second period.

Ovechkin had a 50-goal season last year and is on a mission to chase Wayne Gretzky’s goal scoring record in addition to a second Stanley Cup. He’s off to a good start, showing no signs of aging or father time.

Ovechkin was on the ice the most among forwards, playing 23:50. He ripped off five shots on goal including 16 total and recorded a pair of hits.

#2 Braden Holtby

Many Caps fans believe Braden Holtby was the MVP of the game last night and for good reason. The St. Louis Blues were supercharged from their banner raising ceremony and they carried that momentum by scoring two early goals including one by Sammy Blais 53 seconds into the game.

The Blues added another goal later in the period at 7:55 from Alex Pietrangelo and for a while with the crowd super into it, it seemed like it would be a night that belonged to them.

Other than those two blemishes, Holtby had an excellent night and his poise throughout the rest of regulation kept the Capitals in this game.

Holtby stopped 20-of-22 shots for a .909 save percentage. He allowed just one goal on even strength and one on the power play. At 5-on-5, Holtby made 16 saves while stopping one of only two shots he faced during two power play attempts. Credit not only goes to Holtby but the new-look defense and penalty kill.

The spotlight is on Holtby all season and for good reason. An elite goaltender is due for a raise plus there’s a talented prospect backing him up and waiting in the wings to get his first taste of NHL action on Friday night.

#1 Jakub Vrana

One of Capitals General Manger Brian MacLellan’s offseason priorities was to re-sign Jakub Vrana. Despite the tight salary cap space, MacLellan, Vrana and his agent reached a two-year bridge agreement worth $6.7 million.

Sometimes when an athlete gets a well-deserved raise, they’ll have a down year that might come with the pressure of more expectations placed on you. In game one, Vrana showed no signs of that.

Vrana was paired on the second line with Lars Eller and T.J. Oshie and was on the ice for 22 shifts for a total ice time of 17:33. He had five shots on goal and when the game was sent to overtime, his speed and his grit was the difference.

In the overtime session, Vrana was on the ice with John Carlson and Oshie. After missing a shot, Vrana got the puck out to Carlson.

Carlson took his time, circled around a defender and found Vrana. Vrana went around and looked like he was going to tap the puck to Oshie. Instead, Vrana used his tunnel vision to the left face-off circle before whiffing a shot past Binnington’s glove side.

That goal completed the epic comeback and now the Capitals look to go 2-0 as they head to the Island to take on the New York Islanders on Friday night.