Capitals will play for Stanley
TAMPA, Fla. Alex Ovechkin lifted the Prince of Wales Trophy, spun around and set it back down on a table.
The rest of the Capitals joined him for a team photo after beating the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-0 on Wednesday night in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference final, a victory that sent Washington to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time in 20 years.
A decade of playoff frustration is fading fast.
“I think Ovie has been on a mission,” Capitals coach Barry Trotz said. “They wanted this game, no question.”
Ovechkin scored early and Andre Burakovsky added two second-period goals as the Caps continued to shed a label as post-season underachievers.
Braden Holtby stopped 29 shots for his second straight shutout and the Lightning, who led the NHL in goals during the regular season, failed to score in the last 159 minutes, 27 seconds of the series — a stretch of nearly eight periods.
Ovechkin, who had never advanced beyond the second round, scored 1:02 into the winner-take-all showdown he had described as probably the “biggest game in my life.”
“The first goal was very important,” Ovechkin said. “After that you could see we have all the momentum on our side. Holts was unstoppable today. He was special. Everybody was all in. Everybody was sacrificing their bodies. I think we all deserve the win.”
To earn a spot in the Stanley Cup Final, where they’ll play the Vegas Golden Knights, the Capitals beat the top-seeded Lightning three times on the road, improving to 8-2 away from home this post-season.
Tampa Bay had plenty of chances. A couple of shots clanged off the post, Yanni Gourde was unable to get his stick on a loose puck in front on an empty net and the game gradually slipped away.