Marchessault adds ‘hot lap’ to practice

Jonathan Marchessault is adding to the team’s road routine by skating a lap around the rink prior to practice.

Marchessault wasn’t exactly burning it Saturday morning, going more at Capitals coach Barry Trotz’s speed than Alex Ovechkin’s. But it was a way to keep things loose.

“I’ve done it Game 2 in Winnipeg, Game 5 in Winnipeg and I’ve done it (Friday),” Marchessault said. “You can check it out in Winnipeg, it’s the same thing. I saw (Ovechkin) doing it against Tampa and the next day I did it in Winnipeg, Game 2. Guys liked it. So we’ll keep it going on the road.”

Not all the Knights saw the lap, however.

“He did a hot lap?” Nate Schmidt said. “I wasn’t paying attention. I was on the bench talking to (Colin Miller).” excited to see my Capitals in the finals!!”

The author was @RealLyndaCarter. The original Wonder Woman.

It was as if Golden Knights goalie Marc-Andre Fleury and Capitals nemesis Alex Ovechkin were wearing her indestructible Amazon bracelets under their gloves.

The showdown among hockey superheroes that had been bubbling beneath the surface in the Stanley Cup Final erupted over the cauldron rim in Game 3, a 3-1 Washington victory at raucous Capital One Center that gave the home side a 2-1 series edge.

Borg vs. McEnroe, Palmer vs. Nicklaus, Chamberlain vs. Russell.

Ali vs. Frazier?

No. Not Ali vs. Frazier. Not yet. But only three games are in the books, with as many as four yet to be played. Ovechkin and Fleury might just be getting started.

Wheel of misfortune

Ovechkin shoots, Fleury saves. Ovechkin shoots, Fleury saves. Ovechkin shoots, Fleury saves again.

That’s how it went almost from the time Pat Sajak announced the starting lineups. And then, early in the second period, this memorable sequence:

Evgeny Kuznetsov shoots. Fleury saves. Tom Wilson shoots, the puck hits the post. No time for Fleury to give it a thank-you rub because:

John Carlson shoots, Fleury saves. Fleury saves big-time.

Rebound goes to Ovechkin. Ovechkin backhands puck past Fleury for a 1-0 lead. Ovechkin goes wild. Crowd goes wild.

It was his 14th goal of the playoffs, tying a Washington record. It took four whacks on Fleury to get it. It’s hard to beat Fleury with just one whack during these playoffs, or any other playoffs.

Last season when he was the Penguins, Fleury pitched a 2-0 shutout against Ovechkin and the Capitals in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference second round. In 2009, Fleury and Pittsburgh also got the best of Ovechkin and Washington in the Eastern Conference Final, and the Pens went on to win the Stanley Cup.

Fleury’s record in 38 regular-season games against the Caps is 22-12-2, but regular season games don’t count for a whole lot right about now, especially with Ovechkin and pals heating up against Fleury’s new team.

“I thought I was done with them for a little bit,” the Vegas netminder said before the series began. “I guess not.”

Pinball wizardry

Ovechkin’s goal that got Washington rolling happened with the puck bouncing like a pinball in front of Fleury’s crease. The Knights’ defense couldn’t keep it from finding the blade of Ovechkin’s stick, which seems to happen a lot in situations like those.

“It started with a scramble,” said Fleury, who made only 23 saves, but faced significantly more quality attempts than counterpart Braden Holtby. “They got a shot, got a tip. It was between my legs. I didn’t really know where it was. There was no whistle. They kept coming.

“It’s tough to defend (on) these guys, when they keep putting pucks on net, and they keep bouncing around a bit. Ends up on Ovi’s tape on the other side.”

Then it winds up in the back of the net.

Hard to blame Fleury. Gerard Gallant didn’t.