Washington Capitals fight through adversity to hold on for Game 2 win over Vegas Golden Knights

Jay Asser 16:27 31/05/2018
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  • Braden Holtby made a jaw-dropping save to preserve a Game 2 win.

    If the Washington Capitals go on to lift the Stanley Cup, Braden Holtby’s lunging stick save to preserve a win in Game 2 will be one of the lasting images from their run.

    Just when it seemed like the Vegas Golden Knights were about to even the score with two minutes left in Game 2 on Wednesday, Holtby reacted in a split second to deny Alex Tuch’s shot on what looked like an open net.

    The save allowed the Capitals to hold on for a 3-2 victory to even the Stanley Cup Finals at one apiece, while nabbing home-ice advantage as the series now shifts back to Washington for Game 3 and 4.

    “To me, it was the hockey gods,” Washington coach Barry Trotz said. “They evened it up from the last game. Great save. You could see the emotion on our bench. Once he made that save, I knew we were going to win the game.”

    A miracle save ended up being the story of the game, but the Capitals had plenty to overcome earlier in the lead-up.

    Most notably, forward Evgeny Kuznetsov was injured on a hit in the first period that took him out for the rest of the contest. The injury was classified as being an ‘upper-body’ knock and it’s unclear if Washington’s leading scroer will return to the ice in Game 3.

    In his place, however, Lars Eller stepped up to answer the call on the second line, scoring a goal and assisting on two others.

    It’s the second time in these playoffs Eller has responded after an injury to one of the Capitals’ key players, having produced a goal and an assist in Game 5 against the Pittsburgh Penguins when Nicklas Backstrom injured his hand.

    If Kuznetsov is going to miss time, Washington has proven they’re more than equipped to handle adversity.

    “I think this group has learned so much. They’ve gotten so resilient. I don’t think there are many people in the hockey world that thought when we lost Backstrom in the Pittsburgh series that you were going to see the Washington Capitals get out of that round,” said Trotz. “This group has had everything thrown at them and they just say, ‘You know what? We’re going to push on.'”

    Washington also had to survive several penalties in Game 2 as they gave Vegas five power-play opportunities, including a 5-on-3 chance in the third period when they were protecting a one-goal lead.

    Despite that and the Kuznetsov injury, the Capitals were able to emerge unscathed, but they’ll have to be sharper to avoid dropping a game at home, where they’re just 4-5 in the playoffs.

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