In Washington, DC, the Capitals broke out to a 3-0 lead in the first period over a shell-shocked Carolina Hurricanes squad in Game 1 of the opening round of the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs on Thursday night.
The Caps fended off a late rally for a 4-2 win and 1-0 series lead.
Nicklas Backstrom struck for the first goal of the series to get the caps a 2-0 lead and then Alex Ovechkin added a power play goal to close the first period.
“We got some energy off our [three] goals in the first, but overall I think we got fortunate a little bit,” Backstrom said. “They’re a good team. They’re aggressive all over the ice and didn’t give us a lot of time out there, but I think as a team we can play a little bit better. We got lucky there.”
Braden Holtby made 27 saves to get the win but needed to be sharp as the Canes rallied in the third period on two goals from Andrei Svechnikov.
“It means a lot for me,” Svechnikov said of his goals, “but we lost the game.”
Svechnikov‘s strikes closed the gap to 3-2 and left the arena and the Caps buzzing with anxiety.
“It’s a tough game. We did a lot of good things,” Hurricanes coach Rod Brind’Amour said. “Obviously special teams got us, and that’s pretty much the whole story in that game.”
The Canes appeared nervous and out manned in the opening 20 minutes. They settled down in the middle frame before staging the rally in the third.
“Tremendous game from Nick,” Capitals coach Todd Reirden said. “His consistency is off the charts in terms of the game that he brings night after night. And then when it comes time to elevate your game, he’s right there.”
Two of the Caps first period goals were on the power play.
Carolina was scoreless in three power play chances and the Caps went 2-for-4 with the extra man.
Lars Eller scored an empty-net goal to close out the match.
“You leave from a game like this, you’re happy with a win. But we can play better than that, especially 5-on-5,” Reirden said. “There’s an area that we’ve got to do some work on and there’s room for improvement in that spot, for sure.”
The Caps had nine shots on goal in the first period and managed only another nine shots over the final 40 minutes of play.
The Canes out hit the Caps 37-35.
John Carlson had three assists in the first period outburst by the Caps to tie an NHL record.
[WATCH: Hurricanes vs. Capitals Game 1 highlights | Complete series coverage]
Petr Mrazek made 14 saves in the loss.
“We know we can’t get frustrated against that team. They play a tight defensive game and they don’t give you much. I thought we were still generating a lot and doing the things we do in that second and third period especially. I think we can build on that and find a way to steal one in this building.” the Canes’ Jordan Staal said after the loss.
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