The Washington Capitals just came off a disappointing and less-than encouraging five-game home stand. They only picked up half of the 10 points that were available and each of those came off the strength late comebacks. Considering the opponents and their reliance all season on home points, it was a massive disappointment.
You started to get the feeling that it severely hampered their playoff chances because nine of their final 15 come on the road. The majority of those coming against playoff teams to boot. Translation: Not a lot of points figured to be forthcoming.
That's where hockey is weird, you see. Because the Caps lumbered into Boston on Saturday for a matinee and took it to the Bruins , going ahead early and holding on for a 4-3 win. Alexander Semin was terrific, scoring the first of four Washington goals and contributing a beautiful assist on another, the go-ahead goal from Jay Beagle . Tomas Vokoun was stellar in net, being particularly ornery with Tyler Seguin .
To sum: It was a massive win. It's hard to overstate its importance for a team that could have easily felt down. A confidence boost was sorely needed and this one win can do wonders in that department. It might feel like four points instead of two.
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The key to the win? The Caps power plays in the second period. That was the crucial time in which the Caps built a two-goal lead to take into the third period. They're now 20-0-0 when taking a lead into the third period this season. That's remarkable. They only scored on one of the three chances, but they scored just moments after another ended and more importantly, they used that time to regain their hold on the game.
The interesting part about that all is that they did it with Mike Green suspended. He is their power-play captain, yet the unit looked 10 times better on Saturday than it had in a while. In fact, they snapped an 0-for-18 stretch. But the unit was in control and smooth. The focus on Alex Ovechkin and Dennis Wideman at the points allowed Brooks Laich to sneak into the crease and put one home for the game-winner.
So the roller-coaster of a season that is the Capitals’ year carries a much more optimistic tone after a rare road win on Saturday. Consider this: Entering the day the Caps had the worst road record in the Eastern Conference of any team not named Carolina.
Now they head to Sunday with a shot to regain first place in the Southeast Division, just one point behind Florida with each team in action. That's the fun of a playoff race where no team can consistently win. Win one or two in a row and you might find yourself in first.
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