Ovechkin’s late goal gives Caps 2-1 series lead

PITTSBURGH — The shift started disastrously for the Washington Capitals. With less than two minutes left in regulation, the Pittsburgh Penguins circled in front of goaltender Braden Holtby, appearing to have a power play without the actual man- advantage. Center Nicklas Backstrom finally got the puck out, he and captain Alex Ovechkin skating together down the ice.

The Penguins have tortured those two in playoffs past, Washington’s longest-tenured

players on the roster. On Tuesday night, Backstrom passed to Ovechkin on the two-on-one, and after goaltender Matt Murray saved the first shot, Ovechkin batted in the rebound with just 1:07 left in the game. That lifted the Capitals to a 4-3 win and a 2-1series edge. Washington has now won all four of its playoff games on the road this postseason.

The Capitals scored all three of their goals in Game 2 on Murray’s glove side, perhaps identifying a weakness. With the Penguins leading by one through 40 minutes, it was Murray’s glove side that enabled Washington to tie the game. Defenseman Matt Niskanen’s shot from the point seemed to be going wide until Murray tipped it with his glove, deflecting it into his own net.

The game seemed to be heading to overtime until Ovechkin’s late goal stunned the crowd of yellow.

Both Washington special teams have improved in the postseason. A power play with Ovechkin in the left faceoff circle is always dangerous, and the Capitals had scored at least one man-advantage goal in all but one of their nine playoff games. But it’s been the penalty kill that’s often been the difference for Washington. The team hasn’t allowed a power-play goal since Game 2 against Columbus in the first round, and in Game 3, the Capitals’ shorthanded unit allowed Washington to settle in after a jumpy start.

Brett Connolly and T.J. Oshie were called for offensive-zone infractions within the first 10 minutes, but then the Capitals killed their 23rd and 24th straight penalties. Washington’s penalty kill was ranked 15th during the regular season.

Washington’s power play scored with John Carlson’s point shot 48 seconds into the period, but the Penguins answered less than four minutes later, Jake Guentzel tipping a Justin Schultz shot past goaltender Braden Holtby. Then on Pittsburgh’s third power play, Washington’s penalty kill finally broke. Patric Hornqvist outmuscled Dmitry Orlov in front, swatting in a rebound from Evgeni Malkin to take a 2-1 lead 6:49 into the second period.

The Penguins’ lineup got a boost with the return of Malkin, who’d missed the first two games of the series with an apparent leg injury. Malkin, who led Pittsburgh in scoring this season, added even more firepower to the team’s power play, and he also allowed Penguins coach Mike Sullivan to spread his top scorers across multiple lines, making Pittsburgh deeper and harder to matchup against.

But after Capitals winger Chandler Stephenson tied the game with a snap shot in front, the teams went to four-on-four for two minutes 15:55 into what was an eventful second period. Washington had Orlov and Niskanen on the ice against the Penguins’ dynamic duo of Guentzel and Crosby. Guentzel turned Orlov inside-out, stick-handling around him and pushing the puck through his legs before setting up Crosby’s go-ahead goal. Pittsburgh took that 3-2 lead to second intermission.