Caps Postgame – 6-5 loss at Montreal

That will be difficult with a game Thursday night at Ottawa – a team that has almost been as hot lately as Washington. But it was a thrilling run, tied for the third-longest streak in NHL history. And the Caps almost made it 15. Down 5-2 after two periods, defenseman Mike Green scored in the first minute of the third to put the pressure back on Montreal. Brooks Laich added his second goal of the night at 9 minutes, 2 seconds of the period and then – with goalie Jose Theodore pulled – he tipped home a pass from Mike Knuble to improbably tie the game at 5 with 19 seconds remaining.

If Washington had found a way to win in overtime or the shootout it would have been its jaw-droppingest Houdini act yet. And there were a few of those during this long streak after the Caps fell behind to start a game nine different times, including tonight. But a defensive breakdown late in overtime led to the game-winner from Tomas Plekanec who stood alone in front of Theodore’s crease. Tough way to end it – especially with just eight seconds left and the Caps “confident” that they could pull through in a shootout. 

Boudreau called out his team for its play through the first two periods. Simply put – it wasn’t good enough. Forwards weren’t helping defensively, ceding the slot to whatever Canadiens player wanted that space, and defensemen were routinely losing battles down low. “Too much swinging and floating” Boudreau lamented.

Just something to remember as the team tries to avoid its first losing streak since Jan. 2. As Boudreau said, these issues have been creeping into Washington’s play for a while and it’s been getting away with it. But put all that aside for now. It’s hard to be too critical of a team that just won 14 straight. That comeback was a thing of beauty as Green’s goal just 16 seconds into the third period swung the momentum completely. The Caps did have to kill off two Montreal power plays. But then Laich took over, delivering the first hat trick of his NHL career and reaching the 20-goal mark for the third time in a row. The other day after practice Laich called teammate Nicklas Backstrom “the quietest superstar in the NHL.” He’s not a superstar. But Laich is pretty under appreciated himself at this point.

Controversy reigned over the Alex Ovechkin goal late in the second period that was wiped out. He drilled big defenseman Hal Gill to the ice and Gill in turn slid into goalie Carey Price. It should have counted. The puck was at Gill’s feet when Ovechkin hit him and Price had a chance to play the puck before it slid under his pads and Gil crashed into him. The referee called it a good goal. But I believe I saw a linesman dispute that immediately – which is why a confused Boudreau thought it was called good from the start. The referees huddled and eventually said no goal because of incidental contact with the goalie. Considering Ovechkin hit Gil about five feet in front of Price – seriously, the play should lead every highlight package tonight – that seems suspect.

But the Caps played poorly enough that you can’t blame a loss on one play. They had other chances, ringing the post twice as they tried to rally. Theodore heard it from his hometown fans after he replaced the injured Michal Neuvirth in goal during a timeout in the second period. He stopped 21 of 25 Montreal shots and was left out to dry early and often by his defensemen. Boudreau said on Comcast SportsNet that Neuvirth is day-to-day. I’m sure the injury is related to his undisclosed ailment last week during a brief stint at AHL Hershey. In other injury news: Tom Poti didn’t play the final 13 minutes because of an undisclosed injury and Boudreau seemed to think he’d be questionable at best for the Ottawa game. But we’ll see on that one.

“If they’d have called it no goal from the start I’d accept it,” Boudreau told reporters in Montreal about the Ovechkin play. “But they didn’t have enough evidence to overturn a good goal. And it didn’t stop Carey Price from having a chance at the puck anyway.”

The Caps did get a standings point out of the night. That was little consolation, though. “We were trying to do something special,” Boudreau said. They stand at 41-12-7 with 89 points and remain 14 points ahead of the New Jersey Devils, the second place team in the Eastern Conference. Alex Ovechkin had a pair of assists and rang the post once. Mike Green also had two points and finished a +2 – no easy feat when you give up six goals. 

“It’s over. When only two teams have gotten better than you in that situation in all of hockey it’s a great run,” Boudreau said. “That’s why the guys were so deflated…and I’m more disappointed because I knew they really wanted it.”