Washington drops Game 4, down 3-1 in playoff series
NEW YORK – There is no place to turn now. The Capitals return home to the District on Friday just one game away from elimination — the exact situation they faced last spring in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs.
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Needing to bottle their brilliant performance from Game 3 against the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden and replicate it on Wednesday night, the Caps just about did it. But it still wasn’t enough.
» Boudreau on being down 3-1 again: “Different team, different year, different circumstances. But … it’s also the same situation that [New York] had last year [against New Jersey]. They know that they’re not going to wait until Game 6 to get it done. They went in and beat New Jersey in their building as well.”.
Instead, the Rangers took control early in Game 4. They drove the net hard, fired shot after shot at rookie goalie Simeon Varlamov and hoped to get lucky. Finally, they did.
Rangers at CapitalsWhen » Friday, 7Where » Verizon CenterTV » CSN (HD) / VERSUS (HD)Radio » 106.7 FM / XM» An elimination game for the Caps after 2-1 loss at Madison Square Garden in Game 4. It is the second straight playoffs where Washington returns home to Verizon Center for Game 5 with its season on the line. Only 37 teams in NHL history have overcome a 2-0 deficit.
Defenseman Paul Mara, trying to send a point shot wide of the goal on purpose to get it by traffic in front, instead watched the puck bounce off the stick of Caps defenseman John Erskine directly into the net. That gave the Rangers a lead, the crowd a reason to roar and left Washington trailing in an eventual 2-1 loss.
New York now leads the best-of-seven series 3-1 and the Caps have a monumental task to recover. They were almost up to it last April against the Philadelphia Flyers, also down 3-1 before eventually losing Game 7 at Verizon Center.
“It definitely helps us that we were in the same position last year,” said Caps defenseman Tom Poti. “It was a learning experience. We came pretty close. We took Game 7 to overtime. But we have to play the same way we played last year.”
Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist matched Varlamov — so good himself with a 4-0 shutout in Game 3. Washington dominated play as the second period progressed, outshooting New York 30-10 over the final two periods and with 39 shots overall. But Lundqvist remained calm amidst the chaos, steering aside almost every quality chance the Caps threw at him, including a pair of third-period power plays and the final minute when Washington pulled Varlamov for the extra attacker.
The 20-year-old Russian rookie, meanwhile, finally made a critical mistake in his third playoff start. He flubbed an easy rebound at 2 minutes, 23 seconds of the second and Rangers captain Chris Drury was there for a putback and a 2-0 lead. Before those goals, Varlamov had kept New York scoreless for the previous 126:11.
“If I was haunted by it I would have conceded a third and a fourth goal,” Varlamov said, through an interpreter, of his mental state after that error. “Hockey is such a game that if you make a mistake you’ve got to forget about it and move on because if you don’t it’ll be difficult for you to deal with your emotions.”
Varlamov settled down as his team heated up. Washington allowed just seven shots on goal the rest of the night. And over that final 37:37 they fired 28 of their own at Lundqvist. But the Caps couldn’t crack the 27-year-old Swede until early in the third when Ovechkin beat defenseman Derek Morris 1-on-1 and fired a wrist shot between his legs from 35 feet out at 2:13.
It was a brilliant shot and Ovechkin’s first goal of the playoffs. But the chances were there later to tie the game. Washington finished 0-for-6 on the power play, including just two shots total on its third period power plays — both penalties to Rangers forward Sean Avery.
“We just didn’t play our game on the power play. Sometimes we play well and sometimes we get too cute,” Ovechkin said. “We were trying to open up the play and get some good shots. But [Lundqvist] saved the game again. He’s playing great right now. But it’s not done yet.”
