The Washington Capitals opened its season with a home matchup against the big bad Boston Bruins, and it did not go the way any fans wanted.
In the first five minutes of the game, it was ALL CAPS. It actually seemed like Washington was on another level. Boston was lagging, spending a lot of time in their zone, and the Caps had them where they wanted them. But if you can’t capitalize on those opportunities, then it doesn’t matter, which is what happened.
Now, this is where it got rocky. 7:12 into the 1st period Evgeny Kuznetsov gets a high-sticking penalty for going high against Mike Reilly. Well, the Caps pay for that as Bruins captain Patrice Bergeron nets the first one off a David Pastrnak rebound, and the scoring began.
Twelve minutes later, still in the 1st, Pastrnak showed why he is among the best players in the NHL. Dylan Strome had him stuck in the corner. Pastrnak got out of that and snapped one home as three Caps defensemen collapsed on him. 2-0 Bruins at the end of the 1st.
Washington came out flat again in the 2nd period, and Boston completed the top-line trifecta. Taylor Hall joined his linemates in the fun with a goal 6:14 into the 3rd off a David Pastrnak assist (he finished the night with 4 points).
New season, same Caps. We love a comeback.
Just over a minute later, Anthony Mantha nets one after Dylan Strome shows his puck-handling ability and does well to get one on the net (I think he will be fun to watch). 3-1 Bruins.
12:43 into the 2nd period, Connor Sheary, Nic Dowd, and Martin Fehervary find a 3-on-1 opportunity. Dowd gets it over to Sheary at center ice and rips one past Bruins net-minder Linus Ullmark. 3-2 Bruins at the end of the 2nd. (COMEBACK, COMEBACK, COMEBACK)
Sadly, that would be the last of the Capital’s comeback, at least on the scoreboard.
Late in the third, David Krejci scored his first goal in a while and made it 4-2. Then, finally, Hampus Lindholm puts in an empty net goal to make it 5-2 and put the Caps to sleep in their season home opener.
In the end, Boston is a very good team, and we all knew that. The Caps are also a good team. The difference in this game was the top-six production. Krejci had three points. Bergeron had a goal. Pastrnak had a goal and three assists. Taylor Hall scored a goal. That’s a great showing by the Bruins and a flat one by the Caps.
No need to panic, it’s only the first game of 82, and they get another chance against the Toronto Maple Leafs tonight at 7:30 pm.