CAPITALS FORCE GAME 7 AGAINST PENGUINS

The Washington Capitals played a near-perfect defensive game to defeat the host Pittsburgh Penguins 5-2 on Monday and force Game 7 in their Eastern Conference semifinal series. The decisive game is scheduled for Wednesday in Washington. Andre Burakovsky scored twice,

Nicklas Backstrom got his sixth goal of the playoffs and Bra

den Holtby stopped 16 shots for Washington, the NHL’s No. 1 team in the regular season. Penguins captain Sidney Crosby, who missed Game 4 after being diagnosed with a concussion, slid headfirst into the boards in the second period and was slow to get up. The NHL has a “spotter” program, but Crosby didn’t seem to be flagged to be checked out. By the end of the second period, he had played more than any forward on either team.