Kempny’s return a success
Defenseman underwent hamstring surgery in April
Every small step Michal Kempny made in his recovery since tearing his hamstring on March 20 was increasingly momentous for the 29-year-old defenseman. Each progression, every second he got faster on the ice and felt his body get ramped up into game shape meant he was one minute closer to donning his Washington Capitals sweater and playing in his first game of the season.
Finally in the Capitals 5-2 win Friday over the New York Rangers at Capital One Arena, Kempny got that chance to push the past behind him and erase the long days of rehab after his April surgery. He contributed early, scoring in his season debut after he jumped on a rebound at the front of the net, breaking a 1-1 tie in the first period to give Washington (5-2-2) the go-ahead goal.
The Capitals looked to be the dominant team for most of the evening, going up 3-1 after center Nic Dowd’s first goal of the season at the 3:45 mark of the second period, until Artemi Panarin’s late second period goal cut the Capitals’ two-goal lead down to one, but the Rangers could get no closer. Forward T.J. Oshie scored his second power-play goal of the evening midway through the third period to give the Capitals some breathing room and goaltender Braden Holtby held strong with 26 saves. Garnet Hathaway scored the empty-netter with 27.7 seconds left.
Friday, Dowd, who had been in and out of the lineup on the fourth line, was playing beside Brendan Leipsic and Chandler Stephenson after Richard Panik (upper-body) was placed on long-term injured reserve earlier in the day. Panik took the brunt of a collision with defenseman Jonas Siegenthaler during the Capitals’ 4-3 win over Toronto on Wednesday. Siegenthaler, who was a game-time decision Friday, played on the top pairing with defenseman John Carlson.
Carlson continued his hot-streak, with three assists Friday, giving him 17 points (three goals, 14 assists) through nine games. The franchise record for points by a defenseman is 81, set by Larry Murphy during the 1986-87 season.
While Kempny’s spot is typically next to Carlson, Capitals Coach Todd Reirden wanted to ease Kempny back before letting him play an extended amount of minutes. Kempny played just over 14 minutes of ice time and had one goal and one minor penalty.
While Kempny’s return was filled with many positives for a Capitals blue line that finally had all six defensemen projected to start the season, Kempny felt the physicality early from the Rangers. Brendan Lemieux hit Kempny high with his shoulder, which caused Radko Gudas to drop the gloves with Lemieux early in the first period. The hit, which was right through the center of the chest, which fits the definition for unavoidable head contact, is not expected to result in supplementary discipline.
In a physical matchup, Hathaway left the game midway through the second period after he was hit hard in the chest by Jacob Trouba. Hathaway missed 8:51 of the second period, but returned to the ice in the third period, wiping away any further health woes to the Capitals’ forward corps. He subsequently dropped the gloves with Brendan Smith and had to leave the ice once again, but returned to the bench with 4:31 left in the game.
Oshie got things going early for the Capitals, credited with an early power play goal at the front of the net at the 2:24 mark of the first period. After Oshie was flattened by Trouba, he recovered, and jammed home the rebound that hit off Marc Staal’s skate and in. Oshie now has six goals through nine games, the most on the team.
The Rangers were able to tie the game after Pavel Buchnevich scored on the power-play at the 12:25 in the first period, but Kempny’s first goal of the season gave the Capitals the 2-1 advantage headed into the middle frame. Forward Jakub Vrana had another chance to extend the team’s lead with 9:44 left in the second period after he was awarded a penalty shot, but Henry Lundqvist’s left pad saved the tally.