The three-game sweep starts in Washington, DC where the Capitals used a huge performance from Braden Holtby who made 32 saves for a 2-0 win over the Boston Bruins.
With the win, the Caps jumped to the number one wild card spot in the East.
Matt Niskanen – file photo by Lewis Bleiman
“We all committed in a lot of areas, some of the things that we’ve talked about. We played a much harder game and it was right from the drop of the puck,” Washington defenseman Matt Niskanen said.
“Guys had their legs moving, we played with a purpose and that set us up for the game. I think that first five minutes, especially. They had a little trouble getting out of their end and we jumped on them.”
Caps’ defensemen John Carlson and Nate Schmidt provided the offense on the night.
“He’s *Holtby) been great. It makes our job a lot easier when he plays it well around the corners,” Schmidt said. “He did a phenomenal job tonight.
“I don’t know how he does it. Everyone else is all ramped up and he’s as cool as a cucumber at all times. He never gets too up, too down, which is exactly what you need out of a goalie.”
Caps coach Barry Trotz had been disappointed in his team’s home loss to the Dallas Stars earlier in the weekend but was pleased with their response against the Bruins.
“I think this shows that there is good leadership in the room. They helped make it happen. It was a great response,” Trotz said. “Let’s get urgent, let’s get playing well, and I thought they came out with a good start.
“They had a lot of urgency, a lot of detail, a lot of commitment. They had big penalty kills when needed and had great goaltending from Holtby. We had pretty good structure against a pretty good team.”
Tuukka Rask made 36 saves in the loss.
“Obviously, when you give up the first goal it’s tougher, but I thought we just got better as the game went on. We just couldn’t score on Holtby again,” Rask said. “It’s another shutout for him in this game. It’s funny how it goes, kind of like [Carey] Price and [Holtby] against us, they seem to if not shut us down, then let in one goal max.”
In New York, Blueshirts newcomers James Sheppard and Matt Hunwick scored their first goals for their new team in a 2-1 Rangers win over the Florida Panthers.
Cam Talbot made 38 saves for the win.
“There’s no doubt that tonight was all about Cam,” Rangers coach Alain Vigneault said. “Not only from the start of the game but in the second period where we barely touched the puck. One player gave us the chance to get two points and we were fortunate that he was on top of his game.”
Cam Talbot’s 38 saves helped Rangers down Panthers – file photo by Lewis Bleiman
Talbot has been a steady presence in the net since Henrik Lundqvist went down with an injury. He is 13-2-3 in the net and seems unfazed by anything that happens including errant passes off his own stick.
“It didn’t surprise anybody in here, to be honest,” defenseman Marc Staal said. “Obviously you don’t want to see what happened to [Lundqvist] happen, but we’re excited for him to get an opportunity to show what he’s got on a consistent basis. He’s been very good for us as a backup. It’s his time to shine.”
It was a tough loss for the Panthers who continue to chase the Boston Bruins for the second wild card spot in the East.
“It’s not over,” Panthers forward Jaromir Jagr said. “We got 13 games left. If we play like that — don’t forget we played the best team in the League, nobody played them like that — we have a chance to win 11 or 12 games, you never know. At least we’re playing for something.”
Sheppard was relieved to get his first goal since being acquired from the San Jose Sharks.
“It’s huge for me just because I was sitting and watching games,” Sheppard said. “I just wanted to show that I had that passion for the guys and wanted to go that extra step. I think there were other things to my game I wanted to do besides get a goal but it was definitely something special to do that. Obviously to get the two points is big for us and it’s a very satisfying feeling.”
In Pittsburgh, the Detroit Red Wings took their frustration out on the Penguins for a 7-2 loss in Philadelphia Saturday afternoon.
“We just needed to bounce back. Everybody goes through some adversity,” Red Wings coach Mike Babcock said. “We were really dialed in. We had great leadership today. For you to win, for you to fight through adversity, you need good leadership. And [Henrik] Zetterberg, and [Niklas] Kronwall and [Pavel] Datsyuk, to me, are as good as it comes.
“All in all, it was a good win for our team. We got a day off [Monday]. We can get our group playing the right way and get after it now.”
The Wings built a 5-0 lead through the third period before the Pens got on the board.
For their part, Pittsburgh lost their cool and it seemed like there were players in the penalty box then on the bench in the second period.
Marc-Andre Fleury was chased in loss to Red Wings – file photo by Lewis Bleiman
Steve Downie in particular, continued his penchant for silly penalties when he took two 10-minute misconducts in the game.
“I met with him before the game tonight and I told him we just can’t have that,” Penguins coach Mike Johnston said. “That is a concern, for sure. Downie has to play without taking minor penalties, especially obstruction penalties. If you take a penalty where you initiate through physical play or something like that, we can accept that. And he knows that.
“He just can’t take those types of penalties. And then when he does take a penalty or something bad happens in a game, he just can’t let it go further. I thought he came out of the box and he had a couple good shifts for us. That’s what he has to do. And then he just goes back and he takes a [10-minute misconduct]. So I didn’t like that at all. He knows that.”
Petr Mrazek made 42 saves for the win.
“It felt great to bounce back after the game; the last time I played here I didn’t finish the game and that was the last game before I was sent down,” Mrazek said. “So, it’s nice to bounce back after that … If you feel pressure, it’s not good. You have to stay positive all the time and the team too. So, you get frustrated sometimes when you can’t score. And when everything’s going, everything’s going.
“You have to just battle hard and come back.”
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