NHL 20: Simulating Capitals in the NHL Playoffs
The (virtual) Washington Capitals did it in our NHL 20 simulation.
After a successful Stanley Cup sweep over the Colorado Avalanche, the Washington Capitals put a bow on our NHL simulation series in the best way possible, capturing the Stanley Cup.
The road to the Cup wasn’t an easy one. The Caps first had to face a pesky Buffalo Sabres team in the first round where they prevailed in six games, setting up a matchup with the Pittsburgh Penguins in the second round.
In that second round, the Caps would come out on top in six games, setting up an epic third round series with the Tampa Bay Lightning.
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That series would go the full seven games with the Caps winning a thrilling one on the road with a final score of 6-3. From there, the Caps took care of the Avalanche finishing up a four game sweep to win the Stanley Cup.
Alex Ovechkin led the Caps with 17 assists and 27 points adding 10 goals including the empty netter that clinched the Cup. Nicklas Backstrom and Evgeny Kuznetsov tied for the team lead in goals with 12, both becoming impact players throughout the spring.
Backstrom finished with 12 goals and 14 assists while Kuznetsov finished with six assists and 18 points, capping off another successful playoff performance. Jakub Vrana added 10 goals and nine assists for 19 points. T.J. Oshie and Lars Eller were also impact players, with nine goals each. Oshie had 11 assists for 20 points while Eller added five assists for 14 points.
But the biggest success for any playoff run also comes down to goaltending and Braden Holtby was excellent in the playoffs like he always is. The Holtbeast went 16-7-0 with a shutout, a 2.76 goals-against average and a .903 save percentage.
With the hockey world still waiting for games to come we’ll still provide plenty of content for you including more NHL 20 stories.