D6
CAPITALS vs.
CANADIENS
[ROUND ONE]
Series is tied at 3
4
GAME
K
S
KLMNO
STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS
GAME GAME GAME GAME GAME GAME
Canadiens 3
Capitals 2 (OT)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Capitals 6
Canadiens 5 (OT)
Capitals 5
Canadiens 1
Capitals 6
Canadiens 3
Canadiens 2
Capitals 1
Canadiens 4
Capitals 1
TV: CSN
Consecutive Capitals playoff series that have gone to seven games. This series marks the first of those four in which Washington didn’t need to win Game 6 to avoid elimination.
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SCENES FROM GAME 6
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STAY UPDATED
Check Capitals Insider for news and analysis from Caps beat writer Tarik El-Bashir.
TUESDAY, APRIL 27, 2010
PHOTOS BY JOHN MCDONNELL/THE WASHINGTON POST
Capitals Coach Bruce Boudreau talks with his players during Game 6 of their first-round playoff series. The Capitals outshot the Canadiens, 54-21, but were 0 for 6 on the power play.
Capitals can’t wrap up the series in Montreal
capitals from D1
“The key for us is to play with the same pressure as we had to- night,” Mike Knuble said. “There can’t be any frustration in our game.” Halak finished with 53 saves and has now stopped 90 of the past 92 shots he’s faced over the past two games. One must also wonder if he’s in the Capitals’ heads.
If the final 40 minutes are any
indication, he most certainly is. Halak was grandstanding glove saves to the roaring approv- al of the manic capacity crowd. The Capitals’ sharpshooters, meantime, were attempting to put perfectly placed shots past him instead of simply shooting the puck on net and hoping for a rebound. “That’s absolutely what hap-
pens,” Boudreau said. “Instead of just keep shooting you try to get too fine and pick two inch spots and what ends up going in is the shot that went in — a wide shot that was redirected that he had no chance on.” Halak was the best player on the ice. His counterpart, Semyon Varlamov, on the other hand, has seen better days. The rookie faced only 21 shots. “The third goal,” Boudreau said, referring to Maxim La- pierre’s first career playoff goal, “I’m not a goalie. But maybe he should have had it.” Goaltending, however, wasn’t the only reason the Capitals lost. In addition to taking six minor penalties, the power play went 0 for 6, including coming up empty on a 75-second two man advan- tage in the first period as the Ca- nadiens clung to an early 2-0 lead. The league’s top-ranked unit in the regular season is now 1 for 30 in this series. The Capitals’ best scorers also continued to struggle. Mike Green took six shots and notched an assist, but remains without a goal. Alexander Semin doesn’t have a goal in the playoffs in 13 games, despite taking seven shots. Alex Ovechkin also took eight shots. “Nothing to say,” Ovechkin said. “You can see how we play. I
CANADIENS 4, CAPITALS 1
SCORING
Washington ............................. 0 0 1 — 1 Montreal ................................... 2 0 2 — 4
FIRST PERIOD
Scoring: 1, Montreal, Cammalleri 4 (Bergeron), 7:30 (pp). 2, Montreal, Cammalleri 5 (Subban, Ple- kanec), 9:09. Penalties: Morrisonn, Was (cross- checking), 7:06; Green, Was (elbowing), 11:30; Metropolit, Mon (holding), 13:10; Hamrlik, Mon (delay of game), 13:56.
SECOND PERIOD
Scoring: None. Penalties: O’Byrne, Mon (holding), 1:56; Lapierre, Mon (diving), 5:46; Green, Was (tripping), 11:02; Fehr, Was (cross-checking), 18:37.
THIRD PERIOD
Scoring: 3, Montreal, Lapierre 1 (Gorges), 4:17. 4, Washington, Fehr 3 (Green, Chimera), 15:10. 5, Montreal, Plekanec 4 (Cammalleri, A.Kostitsyn), 19:03 (en). Penalties: Fleischmann, Was (tripping), 4:44; Gionta, Mon (diving), 4:44; Lapierre, Mon (diving), 6:32; Belanger, Was (hooking), 9:12; O’Byrne, Mon (interference), 12:42.
SHOTS ON GOAL
Washington ................................... 18 14 22 — 54 Montreal ........................................ 10 3 9 — 22
Power-play opportunities: Washington 0 of 6; Mon- treal 1 of 5. Goalies: Washington, Varlamov 3-2-0 (21 shots-18 saves). Montreal, Halak 3-2-0 (54-53). A: 21,273 (21,273). T: 2:24.
TRACK EVERY SHOT
The Caps took 22 of their 54 shots in the third period
Monday. To see every shot from both teams, view our interactive graphic at washingtonpost.com/capitals.
the failed two man advantage for the Capitals. After Cammalleri’s goal, the Capitals had a chance to get back into the game and take the crowd out it. But they logged only three shots on goal during a 5-on-3 ad- vantage.
Washington’s Brooks Laich crashes into his own goaltender, Semyon Varlamov during the first period.
think we play great. We just didn’t score. We just have to find a way to score more goals.” The only goal was scored by Er-
ic Fehr, who redirected a shot by Green with 4 minutes 50 seconds left to play. But any hope of a Cap- itals’ comeback had ended earlier in the period when Lapierre
ripped a shot over Varlamov from the top of the circle to put the Habs up 3-0 and ignite an already wild capacity crowd. “I could,” Boudreau said when
asked if he would consider chang- ing goalies. “I haven’t gotten that far yet. I’m sure [José Theodore] would be ready if we decided to
do that.” Halak’s best work, meantime, came in the third period when he stopped 21 of 22 shots. “Sometimes goalies get into a zone where nothing was going to beat him,” Boudreau said. “He got in that zone.” The outcome was almost pre-
dictable after a fast paced first pe- riod that featured a total of 28 shots (18 by the Capitals). Despite the disparity in shots, the Cana- diens headed to the dressing room buoyed by a ear-splitting ovation and in complete control of the game, 2-0, after a pair of goals by Michael Cammalleri and
“I thought if we were going to score, that would have been it,” Boudreau said. “But we were try- ing to be too cute again.”
Capitals notes: Forwards
Brendan Morrison, Scott Walker and Quintin Laing and defense- men John Erskine and Tyler Sloan were healthy scratches. . . . Top Montreal prospect P.K. Sub- ban was recalled from the minor league Hamilton Bulldogs and made his NHL playoff debut.
elbashirt@washpost.com
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