Ovechkin, Trotz over the hump and into new territory with Capitals in East final
ARLINGTON, Va. — The smiling side of a handshake line at the end of the second round was a brand-new experience for Alex Ovechkin and Barry Trotz.
Ovechkin received a message of good luck and a pat on the chest from Sidney Crosby, while Trotz got to enjoy a happy moment with longtime coaching friend Jacques Martin.
Ovechkin acknowledged he’d been in that position a lot of times — though never as the one moving on to the third round. Until now. The Washington Capitals reaching the Eastern Conference final for the first time since 1998 is perhaps most special to the star captain and his coach who had never made it out of the second round before.
No coach in NHL history had been behind the bench for more games than Trotz and no active player had been in as many playoff games as Ovechkin without reaching the conference finals.
“There is a kinship there, there’s no question,” Trotz said. “I’ve been at this for a while and it’s so hard to move forward sometimes. It’s always thrown in your face everywhere your turn. I know it’s thrown in Ovi’s face everywhere he turns, and he’s a great player in this league . . . .
“You just got to stay with it.”
After 51 playoff games together, Ovechkin and Trotz will take part in their first East final starting Friday night in Tampa Bay against the Lightning.
Now that they’ve gotten over a hump that defined their respective careers, Ovechkin, Trotz and the Capitals are in unfamiliar territory.
“It’s something new for us and cool,” Ovechkin said Wednesday, less than 48 hours after Washington eliminated the defending champion Pittsburgh Penguins. “Right now it’s just satisfaction we beat the Stanley Cup champions finally and we move forward. And now we’re going to play against a very good team, against very good goaltending and solid players over there.”
The Atlantic Division champion Lightning do present a formidable challenge for the Capitals, who had lost in the first or second round in all nine prior playoff appearances during the Ovechkin era dating to 2008. Beating the rival Penguins in overtime in a Game 6 on the road made the breakthrough even more emotional.
“We should be proud of that,” said Matt Niskanen. “It’s a big achievement.”