Alex Ovechkin’s first NHL playoff goal was certainly a memorable one.
Ovechkin potted the game-winner with 4:32 remaining in the third period of a wild 5-4 victory for the Washington Capitals over the Philadelphia Flyers last night in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference quarterfinal series.
Ovechkin broke up a pass by Flyers defenseman Lasse Kukkonen intended for his partner Jaroslav Modry and then took the puck off Kukkonen’s stick right in front of Philadelphia goaltender Martin Biron. He skated to the right, waited for Biron to go down and roofed a shot over the sprawling netminder to cap an incredible Washington comeback in the final period.
The sold-out crowd was in a frenzy after the goal and serenaded Ovechkin with chants of “M-V-P” before letting out a deafening roar at the final horn.
Down two entering the final period, Mike Green made it a one-goal game 1:50 in on a beautiful feed from Sergei Fedorov. After Alexander Semin skated out along the left wall, he sent a pass to Fedorov in front, who directed it to a cutting Green for a one-timer from near the right faceoff circle.
Green tied the game 4-4 with a power-play goal 6:26 into the third. His first slap shot from the point hit a diving Patrick Thoresen in the side. The Flyers forward remained crumpled on the ice, and the Caps kept possession with essentially a 5-on-3. Green’s second blast from the point beat Biron.
David Steckel, back in the lineup after missing 14 games with a broken finger, gave the Caps a 2-1 lead 4:08 into the second period. Matt Bradley slipped Steckel a backhanded pass from behind the net before getting crunched into the boards. He collected it near the right faceoff circle and tucked a wrist shot under the crossbar over Biron’s left shoulder.
Daniel Briere scored his first of the night to tie the score 2-2 eight seconds after leaving the penalty box. He hopped out of the box and took a pass from Mike Knuble before breaking in alone on Washington goalie Cristobal Huet and beating him to the wide side.
Vinny Prospal gave the Flyers their first lead 33 seconds later. A turnover in the neutral zone led to a 3-on-2 for Philadelphia and Briere fed Prospal in the middle. When neither Caps defensemen — Green nor Shaone Morrisonn — stepped in his way, Prospal ripped a shot through Huet’s legs.
Washington failed to capitalize on its first two power-play chances, but the Flyers made sure to convert their second chance. Mike Richards walked the puck out from the right corner and fed Briere with a cross-crease pass for an easy tap-in at 15:22 of the period. Huet probably wasn’t going to make it across to make a save, but Scott Hartnell was planted in front to provide traffic problems.
The Caps received the first goal of the series from an unlikely source. Two seconds after Knuble was released from the penalty box for slashing, Donald Brashear turned a fortuitous bounce into his third career play goal in 50 games.
Tom Poti’s shot from the point glanced off Bradley and then hit Modry’s skate right to Brashear at the right of Biron, and he flipped it into the open net and leapt into Bradley’s arms behind the net in celebration 3:16 into the opening period.
Prospal tied the game 1-1 five minutes later. He sneaked a slap shot from along the right boards past Huet and the near post with the help of a screen in front by Hartnell.
After a quick start, the Caps did not record a shot in the final 13:37 of the period and finished with only four in the opening 20 minutes. Green stopped the drought with a shot from near the blue line 58 seconds into the second, but the Caps failed to really take advantage of some shaky work by Biron in the game’s first 30 minutes.
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