D6
CAPITALS vs.
CANADIENS
[ROUND ONE]
Series is tied, 1-1
GAME
S
KLMNO
STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS
GAME GAME GAME GAME GAME GAME
April 15
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
April 17
Canadiens 3
Capitals 2 (OT)
Capitals 6
Canadiens 5 (OT)
Monday
at Montreal
7 p.m.
TV: CSN
Wednesday
at Montreal
7 p.m.
TV: CSN
Friday
at Washington
7 p.m.
TV: CSN, Versus
April 26
at Montreal
7 p.m.
TV: CSN, Versus
April 28
at Washington
TBA
TV: CSN
wise from D1
Thursday night in Game 1 — Theodore repelled at least 20 point-blank shots — was only overshadowed by Jaroslav Halak stopping 45 of 47 shots in Montreal’s upset. He’s also well known for his mental toughness, being able to rebound from adversity. “It’s something I always take
a lot of pride in — bouncing back,” Theodore said Sunday after the team practiced. “The good thing about the playoffs is you play pretty much every other day, so it’s easy to forget about it and bounce back.” No awful night on the ice
JOHN MCDONNELL/THE WASHINGTON POST
Capitals goalie Semyon Varlamov stops the Canadiens’ Benoit Pouliot in overtime of Game 2. Varlamov made 19 saves on 22 shots in the win.
Theodore, Varlamov are both in mix
capitals from D1
“There is no short leash,” Bou- dreau said Tuesday. That kind of talk is fresh enough that Theo- dore — who allowed Montreal’s first goal to Brian Gionta on a knuckler, and the next one to an unimpeded Andrei Kostitsyn be- fore he was yanked — seemed confident he would return for Game 3. “I’m feeling good,” Theodore said. “Either way, I’ll be ready to go, and it’s going to be the coach- es’ decision. But obviously, you always want to have the chance to get back in there and bounce back.” There is, though, a history
with Varlamov now, something the young Russian didn’t have a year ago, when his pre-playoffs résumé consisted of six NHL games. He appears to be recov- ered from groin and knee in- juries that limited his appear- ances during the season, when he went 15-4-6 with a 2.55 goals against average and a .909 save percentage. Saturday, when he replaced Theodore, he didn’t ex- actly force Boudreau’s hand, making 19 saves on 22 shots — a performance that wasn’t spectac- ular, but was good enough to help force overtime, when Nick- las Backstrom’s third goal of the night won it for Washington. Sunday, Boudreau said his as- sessment of Varlamov will have more to do with the present than his sterling playoffs a year ago, when he didn’t relinquish his spot until the seventh game of
the second round, when the Cap- itals were eliminated by Pitts- burgh.
“I just know what I believe in
Varly,” Boudreau said. “If I had just seen him this year and I hadn’t had him last year, it wouldn’t have made any differ- ence.”
Another difference from a year
ago: The city to which the Cap- itals now travel. Theodore is a native of Quebec. He came up through the Montreal system, made his NHL debut with the Ca- nadiens in 1996, won the Hart Trophy as the NHL’s MVP there in 2002, yet was traded away to Colorado in the middle of the 2005-06 season. Theodore’s only appearances at Bell Centre as an opposing player have been statis-
STANDINGS AND SUMMARIES
National Hockey League Playoff Schedule
First Round (Best-of-Seven)
Eastern Conference
Montreal and Washington tied, 1-1
Thursday: Montreal 3 .......... at Washington 2 (OT) Saturday: at Washington 6............ Montreal 5 (OT) Monday: Washington at Montreal...........................7 Wed., April 21: Washington at Montreal ................7
Fri., April 23: Montreal at Washington....................7
x-Mon., April 26: Washington at Montreal .............7 x-Wed., April 28: Montreal at Washington .......TBD
Philadelphia leads New Jerse, 2-1
Wednesday: Philadelphia 2 ........... at New Jersey 1 Friday: at New Jersey 5...................... Philadelphia 3 Sunday: at Philadelphia 3 ................... New Jersey 2 Tuesday: New Jersey at Philadelphia ................7:30 Thu., April 22: Philadelphia at New Jersey.............7 x-Sun., April 25: New Jersey at Philadelphia....TBD x-Tue., April 27: Philadelphia at New Jersey ....7:30
Buffalo and Boston tied, 1-1
Thursday: at Buffalo 2.................................. Boston 1 Saturday: Boston 5 ................................. at Buffalo 3 Monday: Buffalo at Boston........................................7
Wed., April 21: Buffalo at Boston..............................7
Fri., April 23: Boston at Buffalo .................................7
x-Mon., April 26: Buffalo at Boston..........................7 x-Wed., April 28: Boston at Buffalo..........................7
Pittsburgh leads Ottawa, 2-1
Wednesday: Ottawa 5 ..................... at Pittsburgh 4 Friday: at Pittsburgh 2.................................Ottawa 1 Sunday: Pittsburgh 4 ............................. at Ottawa 2 Tuesday: Pittsburgh at Ottawa ................................7
Thursday, April 22: Ottawa at Pittsburgh...............7 x-Sat., April 24: Pittsburgh at Ottawa.....................7 x-Tue., April 27: Ottawa at Pittsburgh.....................7
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Colorado and San Jose tied, 1-1
Wednesday: Colorado 2 ...................... at San Jose 1 Friday: at San Jose 6........................ Colorado 5 (OT) Sunday: San Jose at Colorado............................ Late Tuesday: San Jose at Colorado...............................10 Thu., April 22: Colorado at San Jose.................10:30 x-Sat., April 24: San Jose at Colorado................TBD x-Mon., April 26: Colorado at San Jose..............TBD
Nashville leads Chicago, 1-0
Friday: Nashville 4 ................................. at Chicago 1 Sunday: Nashville at Chicago ............................ Late Tuesday: Chicago at Nashville..................................9
Thu., April 22: Chicago at Nashville....................8:30
x-Sat., April 24: Nashville at Chicago ......................3
x-Mon., April 26: Chicago at Nashville...............TBD x-Wed., April 28: Nashville at Chicago...............TBD
Vancouver and Los Angeles tied, 1-1
Thursday: at Vancouver 3 ........ Los Angeles 2 (OT) Saturday: Los Angeles 3 ................. at Vancouver 2 Monday: Vancouver at Los Angeles......................10 Wed., April 21: Vancouver at Los Angeles ...........10 Fri., April 23: Los Angeles at Vancouver...............10 x-Sun., April 25: Vancouver at Los Angeles......TBD x-Tue., April 27: Los Angeles at Vancouver ......TBD
Phoenix leads Detroit, 2-1
Wednesday: at Phoenix 3............................Detroit 2 Friday: Detroit 7 ..................................... at Phoenix 4 Sunday: Phoenix 4 ................................... at Detroit 2 Tuesday: Phoenix at Detroit.................................6:30
Fri., April 23: Detroit at Phoenix..............................10 x-Sun., April 25: Phoenix at Detroit..........................2 x-Tue., April 27: Detroit at Phoenix.....................TBD
x-If necessary
COYOTES 4, RED WINGS 2
Petr Prucha and Radim Vrbata
scored midway through the third pe- riod, lifting Phoenix to a win over De- troit.
Coyotes D Sami Lepisto scored 29 seconds into the game, the fastest playoff goal in franchise history, and Wojtek Wolski also scored late in the second period.
Ilya Bryzgalov made 29 saves for Phoenix.
Detroit’s Valtteri Filppula made it 1-1 late in the first period and Johan Franzen also scored for the Red Wings. Jimmy Howard made 29 saves for Detroit.
Detroit will host Game 4 on Tuesday
night, needing a win to avoid being on the brink of elimination after ad- vancing to the past two Stanley Cup fi- nals. The Coyotes quickly quieted a fired-
up crowd at Joe Louis Arena when Le- pisto got the third shot of the game past Howard, scoring the quickest goal for the franchise since it was in Winnipeg. Filppula’s power-play goal got the fans back into it at the 14:42 mark of the first period, but the Red Wings failed to score in the second period.
SCORING
Phoenix ..................................... 1 1 2 — 4 Detroit ....................................... 1 0 1 — 2
FIRST PERIOD
Scoring: 1, Phoenix, Lepisto 1 (Hanzal, Prucha), :29. 2, Detroit, Filppula 3 (Stuart, Zetterberg), 14:42 (pp).
SECOND PERIOD
Scoring: 3, Phoenix, Wolski 3 (Lombardi, Stemp- niak), 19:28.
THIRD PERIOD
Scoring: 4, Phoenix, Prucha 1 (Vrbata, Hanzal), 8:16. 5, Detroit, Franzen 1 (Bertuzzi, Zetterberg), 9:59. 6, Phoenix, Vrbata 1 (Lombardi, Michalek), 11:38.
SHOTS ON GOAL
Phoenix .......................................... 7 12 14 — 33 Detroit ............................................ 13 9 9 — 31
Power-play opportunities: Phoenix 0 of 3; Detroit 1 of 5. Goalies: Phoenix, Bryzgalov 2-1-0 (31 shots-29 saves). Detroit, Howard 1-2-0 (33-29). A: 20,066 (20,066). T: 2:33.
FLYERS 3, DEVILS 2 (OT)
Dan Carcillo scored 3:35 into over- time to give Philadelphia the victory over New Jersey and a 2-1 advantage in the Eastern Conference first-round series.
Carcillo knocked in a rebound off of
Mike Richards’s shot for his first goal of the postseason. The Flyers pound- ed Devils G Martin Brodeur all game and outshot the Devils 6-1 in the brief overtime.
Carcillo, who scored only 12 goals all season, was instantly mobbed by his teammates. Claude Giroux and Richards also
scored for the Flyers. Brian Rolston had two power-play goals for the Dev- ils.
Game 4 is Tuesday night in Phila- delphia.
Brodeur did just about all he could for the Devils to keep them in the game on hostile ice. But Carcillo, known more for his punches and sus- pensions than scoring, found just enough of a hole to knock in the win- ner. The Flyers already had home-ice
advantage. They can take control of the series with another win in front of their orange-clad fans Tuesday.
SCORING
New Jersey ........................... 1100 — 2 Philadelphia ......................... 1101 — 3
FIRST PERIOD
Scoring: 1, New Jersey, Rolston 1 (Kovalchuk, Za- jac), 7:15 (pp). 2, Philadelphia, Giroux 2 (Timonen, Pronger), 8:49 (pp).
SECOND PERIOD
Scoring: 3, Philadelphia, Richards 2 (Carcillo), 1:15. 4, New Jersey, Rolston 2 (Kovalchuk, Elias), 16:38 (pp).
FIRST OVERTIME
Scoring: 5, Philadelphia, Carcillo 1 (Richards, Gagne), 3:35.
SHOTS ON GOAL
New Jersey ................................ 5 10 3 1 — 19 Philadelphia .............................. 8 8 12 6 — 34
Power-play opportunities: New Jersey 2 of 8; Philadel- phia 1 of 5. Goalies: New Jersey, Brodeur 1-2-0 (34 shots-31 saves). Philadelphia, Boucher 2-1-0 (19-17). A: 19,957 (19,537). T: 2:47.
PENGUINS 4, SENATORS 2
Sidney Crosby had a goal and an
assist, Evgeni Malkin scored his third playoff goal and Pittsburgh beat Otta- wa to take a 2-1 lead in the Eastern Conference series. Marc-Andre Fleury made 20 saves
and Alexei Ponikarovsky and Bill Gue- rin also scored for the defending Stan- ley Cup champion Penguins, who won their second in a row following a 5-4 loss to the Senators in the series opener. Mike Fisher and Matt Cullen scored power-play goals for the Senators. Bri- an Elliott stopped 20 shots. Game 4 is Tuesday night in Ottawa. Malkin restored Pittsburgh’s one- goal lead at 2-1 in the second not long after Fisher drew the Senators even with a power-play goal 1:53 into the period. The 2009 Conn Smythe Trophy win- ner as the playoff MVP, Malkin jumped on a loose puck beside Elliott and fired into an open net at 5:57 after the Ottawa goalie failed to poke it away. Maxim Talbot had an assist on the play, pushing the puck away from Erik Karlsson as the two raced toward the goal to recover the puck after it got away from Malkin on a rush into the Senators’ zone.
SCORING
Pittsburgh ................................ 1 2 1 — 4 Ottawa ...................................... 0 1 1 — 2
FIRST PERIOD
Scoring: 1, Pittsburgh, Ponikarovsky 1 (Dupuis, Gonchar), 1:17.
SECOND PERIOD
Scoring: 2, Ottawa, Fisher 1 (Regin, Cullen), 1:53 (pp). 3, Pittsburgh, Malkin 3 (Talbot), 5:57. 4, Pittsburgh, Crosby 2 (Cooke, Guerin), 19:15 (pp).
THIRD PERIOD
Scoring: 5, Pittsburgh, Guerin 1 (Kunitz, Crosby), 4:27. 6, Ottawa, Cullen 1 (Alfredsson, Spezza), 12:58 (pp).
SHOTS ON GOAL
Pittsburgh ...................................... 4 11 9 — 24 Ottawa ............................................ 5 8 9 — 22
Power-play opportunities: Pittsburgh 1 of 5; Ottawa 2 of 4. Goalies: Pittsburgh, Fleury 2-1-0 (22 shots-20 saves). Ottawa, Elliott 1-2-0 (24-20). A: 20,119 (19,153). T: 2:29.
Late Saturday
KINGS 3, CANUCKS 2 (OT)
Anze Kopitar scored on a power play in overtime, and Los Angeles overcame a two-goal deficit to beat Vancouver, tying the Western Confer- ence series at a game apiece. With the Canucks penalized for too many men on the ice after a sloppy line change, Kopitar got his own re- bound in the slot and fired a quick shot that hit Roberto Luongo and then bounced in off the butt end of the goalie’s stick. Fredrik Modin and Wayne Sim- monds scored 35 seconds apart mid- way through the second period to tie it for the Kings.
Jonathan Quick overcame a soft early goal to finish with 24 saves for his first win in 10 starts. Steve Bernier and Mikael Samu- elsson scored first-period goals, Ryan Kesler had two assists and Luongo made 29 saves for the Canucks. Modin scored on the Kings’ fourth power play after Luongo got out of po- sition making a backdoor save on Jack Johnson’s one-timer. Johnson took the rebound behind the net and threw it out front, where Modin knocked it past a couple of Canucks defenders sprawling to block it.
SCORING
Los Angeles .......................... 0201 — 3 Vancouver ............................ 2000 — 2
FIRST PERIOD
Scoring: 1, Vancouver, S.Bernier 1 (Kesler, Well- wood), 7:33 (pp). 2, Vancouver, Samuelsson 3 (De- mitra, Kesler), 9:49.
SECOND PERIOD
Scoring: 3, Los Angeles, Modin 2 (J.Johnson, Brown), 10:58 (pp). 4, Los Angeles, Simmonds 1 (Kopitar), 11:33.
FIRST OVERTIME
Scoring: 5, Los Angeles, Kopitar 1 (Doughty, J.John- son), 7:28 (pp).
SHOTS ON GOAL
Los Angeles ............................... 8 11 11 2 — 32 Vancouver ................................. 4 13 5 4 — 26
Power-play opportunities: Los Angeles 2 of 6; Van- couver 1 of 3. Goalies: Los Angeles, Quick 1-1-0 (26 shots-24 saves). Vancouver, Luongo 1-1-0 (32-29). A: 18,810 (18,630). T: 2:45.
Player
Devin Setoguchi
PLAYOFF LEADERS
Entering Sunday’s Games
Points
Player Team
N. Backstrom Washington A. Kostitsyn Montreal Sidney Crosby Pittsburgh M. Cammalleri Montreal Alex Ovechkin Washington
Player Team
Montreal Henrik Zetterberg
Player
Sidney Crosby
Vancouver Colorado Detroit
Team
Pittsburgh
Michael Cammalleri Montreal Matt Duchene Patrik Elias
Colorado New Jersey
Alex Ovechkin Mike Richards Paul Stastny
Player
Evgeni Malkin Fredrik Modin Chris Pronger
Player
Zach Parise
Player Player
Derek Morris Mike Richards
Mike Richards
GP G A Pts
2 4 1 5 2 3 2 5 2 1 4 5 2 1 3 4 2 1 3 4
Mike Richards Philadelphia 2 1 3 4
Goals
GP G
Nicklas Backstrom Washington 2 4 Andrei Kostitsyn Mikael Samuelsson Chris Stewart
Assists
GP A
2 4 2 3 2 3 2 3
Washington 2 3 Philadelphia 2 3 Colorado
Power-Play Goals
Team
Pittsburgh
Short-Handed Goals
Team
Power-Play Assists
Team
Power-Play Points
Team
Phoenix
Shots
Team
San Jose Detroit
Player
Plus/Minus
Team
GP S
2 13
Nicklas Backstrom Washington 2 12 Henrik Zetterberg
2 12
GP +/-
Nicklas Backstrom Washington 2 3 John Carlson Sidney Crosby Bill Guerin
David Legwand Alex Ovechkin Zach Parise Travis Zajac
Henrik Zetterberg
Washington 2 3 Pittsburgh Pittsburgh Nashville
2 3 2 3 1 3
Washington 2 3 New Jersey 2 3 New Jersey 2 3 Detroit
2 3 2 3
GP PP
2 2
Los Angeles 2 2 Philadelphia 2 2
GP SH
New Jersey 2 1
GP PPA
Philadelphia 2 3
GP PPP
2 3
Philadelphia 2 3
2 3 2 3 2 3 2 3
“If one guy didn’t play well, a
different guy step up,” star wing- er Alex Ovechkin said. “It’s all about results. It’s all about win- ning right now.” Theodore did not argue with
JOHN MCDONNELL/THE WASHINGTON POST
José Theodore skates away after Montreal scored the game-winner in Game 1. He yielded two goals in Game 2 before being yanked.
tical disasters — eight goals on 36 shots while with Colorado in 2006, and a relief appearance in February in which he allowed four goals on 25 shots. Montreal’s fans will, no doubt, be ready to mockingly sing-song their for- mer hero’s name should Theo- dore play Monday night. “I know they’re going to try to
distract me, but I take it as moti- vation,” Theodore said. “As play- ers, you want to be in those situa- tions. That’s going to be a situa- tion that it’s going to be fun to play in, especially.” The rest of the Capitals tried to
play down the goaltender issue Sunday, and it’s not unprec- edented for a team to toggle be- tween goalies as it advances deep into the playoffs.
that assessment. “We have one goal in mind here,” he said. “It’s to win.” When he came off the ice after his final drills — leaving Varlamov alone to pantomime saves, sliding from one pipe to the next — Theodore pulled his mask back and perched it atop his head. He headed to a group of fans who pressed up against a gate that separates the players from the public. As he signed au- tographs, a kid asked if he could have his glove. “I need it,” Theodore said. “I
need it.” Whether he would need it
Monday night, he did not know at that moment. But Boudreau and the Capitals figure two things: That when Theodore does return to the net, be it Mon- day or later on, he will be better. And even if the choice is Varla- mov for Game 3, Theodore won’t publicly complain. “Throughout the season,
sometimes I wanted to play, [and] I didn’t play,” Theodore said. “But we’re all so close on this team that we want to win games, and whatever the coach- ing staff decides to do, it’s for the best of the team and you don’t want to be that guy to have a bad or negative thought. I know that I’m always ready to go. . . . I’m just really confident right now.”
svrlugab@washpost.com
will ever equate to losing his infant son, Chace, last August from respiratory complications related to a premature birth — a tragedy that led Theodore to create the Saves for Kids program, in which he donates $2 for each save, $100 for every win and $500 for each shutout to the benefit the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Children’s National Medical Center. But even in the aftermath of
a traumatic instance no parent should ever have to deal with, Theodore’s professional resilience was on display. After he was given time off during the grieving process in November when he struggled for a while, he came back determined and ready after missing five games. Boudreau, who said he planned to make the decision on the plane ride to Montreal whether Varlamov or Theodore will start in goal, often goes to the numbers when he is unsure of his gut. Theodore hasn’t been swell
at the Bell since he starred for the Canadiens between 2000 and 2005. In two games as an opposing goalie in Montreal, he’s 0-1-1 and he’s given up 12 goals on 61 shots — not exactly Ken Dryden numbers. Varlamov has conversely been money, stopping 93 percent of the shots he’s faced. Boudreau might be influenced by the idea of a mob of Habs’ fans chanting, “TAY-OH! TAY-OH!” and how that might affect Theodore. Heck, 22,000 fans doing that at once would make the hairs stand up on anyone’s neck — even a thick-skinned, 33-year-old veteran. But why shouldn’t he get a
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PHOTO GALLERIES
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MONDAY, APRIL 19, 2010
MIKE WISE
Capitals should dance with the goalie who brung ’em
second chance in Game 3? Not because Theodore would be the sentimental choice, which he would especially after everything personally and professionally he’s gone through this season. Not because Varlamov has hardly been the Varly of a year ago, when he stoned Sidney Crosby in one of the great playoff saves ever. Even though he got the win on Saturday night in Washington’s first overtime playoff victory at home since 1998, the kid gave up three goals after Theodore was pulled (irrespective of whether one of them was directly Mike Green’s fault). Varlamov was solid, not spectacular. Starting him for Game 3 is the equivalent of picking the less-cold goalie at the moment. Starting Theodore should also not happen because Boudreau needs to right a wrong from last season when he didn’t go to Theodore in Game 7 against the Penguins until the Capitals trailed 4-0. It’s much simpler than that.
It’s because Theodore is the goaltender that got the Caps here. It’s because Boudreau knows how much the team’s success is related to Theodore’s play in net. And why not see if he can
carry this team to victory in his old stomping ground, however wrought with emotion that will be for Theodore?
If he can banish his Bell Centre ghosts, he can pretty much banish anything from his conscience. It would be a mistake to further toy with the confidence of a player that the Capitals will need to depend upon again if they are truly going to win the Stanley Cup this season. “It’s pretty much the
building where I had the most success, the most shutouts, the most starts, the most wins,” Theodore said. “For me, it’s a good building. When I’m on the ice in that building, I remember some good memories.” Bottom line, José Theodore was Boudreau’s far and away No. 1 goalie just a week ago. After less than one period of not-so-great play between the pipes, have things really changed that much?
wisem@washpost.com
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