It took exactly one shot for the nightmare start to rear its ugly head.
Capitals goalie Jose Theodore, in his first game with the organization since signing as a free agent in July, allowed four goals on just 17 shots against the Atlanta Thrashers on Friday and was unceremoniously banished to the bench in the second period.
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Eager to put that sorry start behind him, Theodore instead watched the very first shot of Saturday’s home opener against the Chicago Blackhawks — all of 26 seconds into the game — sail right under him and into the net. So much for quick redemption.
But on a team loaded with scoring options, Theodore knew he only had to steady himself and the Caps would still be in position to win.
Washington rallied from two goals down in the first 10 minutes of play and forward Brooks Laich swatted home the go-ahead goal with 4 minutes, 27 seconds remaining in the game. Forward Alex Ovechkin also contributed a pair of goals as the Caps earned their first win of the season, 4-2.
“Obviously the first two goals I shouldn’t have allowed. I’m not happy with them,” Theodore said. “It’s just about finding a way with experience to forget about them and bounce back. And I think the victory is so much sweeter when you are able to face adversity.”
The Caps (1-1) allowed 10 shots in the first period. Chicago (0-2) managed just 11 the rest of the night. Theodore settled down after a pair of shaky early goals by forwards Kris Versteeg and Jack Skille — although the Blackhawks did ring the post on a power play late in the first period. But Theodore was rarely challenged in the second and came up with a sweet save on Chicago forward Patrick Kane to preserve the 3-2 lead late in the third.
After Friday’s disaster in Atlanta, Theodore needed that confidence boost, according to Caps coach Bruce Boudreau. The goalie was so eager to put that game behind him he attended Saturday’s optional morning skate at Kettler Capitals Iceplex.
“I knew [Theodore] wanted more than anything the start tonight and I knew he wanted to redeem himself for his new teammates,” said Boudreau. “And then when that [quick goal] happens you just felt so bad for him.”
Theodore’s performance gave the Caps, who also trailed 3-0 on Friday, a chance to recover. The play of fourth-liners Matt Bradley, Dave Steckel and Donald Brashear increased the energy level in the first. Bradley put the Caps on the board at 13:26, converting a perfect cross-ice pass from Steckel to make it 2-1.
In the second, the Caps managed to kill four Chicago power plays. Ovechkin made the Blackhawks pay. Using Chicago defenseman Brian Campbell as a shield on the right wing, Ovechkin streaked up ice and whipped a shot through goalie Nikolai Khabibulin to tie the game at 2.
“Actually, my shot wasn’t good. It was probably five percent chance to score and I scored,” said Ovechkin, who recorded his 32nd career multi-goal game. “It was pretty funny. But a goal is a goal and it doesn’t matter how the puck goes in the net.”
Other than that play, Khabibulin, a Stanley Cup champion goalie with Tampa Bay in 2004, was stellar. Despite allowing four goals, he kept Chicago close with several quality saves, finishing with 34 total against 38 shots.
“We kept pushing,” said Boudreau. “But we thought [Khabibulin] made a lot of ten-bell saves to keep them in it during the second and the third.”
But one of Khabibulin’s misses came at 15:33 of the third. The go-ahead tally was set up by forward Alexander Semin, who drove the net hard and had the puck pop into the crease. Laich took a hard hit from Campbell, but as he was falling managed to swat the puck past Khabibulin as the goalie tried in vain to swipe it out of the air. The play was reviewed, but upheld when replays clearly showed Khabibulin caught it inside the goalline. Ovechkin then smothered any chance for late drama when he skated into the slot and smashed home a shot that made it a two-goal advantage at 18:24.
“We wanted to keep the pace up. We thought if we kept going that they couldn’t keep up with us,” said Laich, who scored a career-high 21 goals last season. “In the third period we started taking over. We looked like the fresh team and they looked a little bit tired. This is their second road game in two nights.”
CAPS NOTES
» Capitals forward Alex Ovechkin had never scored against Chicago Blackhawks goalie Nikolai Khabibulin before registering two goals Saturday. Ovechkin has now scored vs. 54 different NHL goalies.
» Ovechkin apparently loves Opening Night at Verizon Center. He has scored at least one goal in the home opener during his four years with the Caps.
» The Caps played before a sell-out crowd on Opening Night (18,277) for the first time since 2001.
» Washington raised its 2007-08 Southeast Division championship banner in a brief ceremony before the game.
» Three of forward Brooks Laich’s last four regular-season goals have been game-winners.
» The Caps’ penalty kill bounced back after allowing three power-play goals vs. Atlanta. Washington killed all five Chicago power plays on Saturday. The Caps were 0-for-4 on their own power play.
