Kuznetsov goal not enough in his return
WASHINGTON— Through the first three games of the Washington Capitals’ season, Evgeny Kuznetsov was stuck being a spectator. Confined to watching his teammates through a television screen or from a box high above the ice at Capital One Arena, Kuznetsov started to feel the itch.
He wanted to get back to playing the game, to prove to the organization, his teammates and his fans that he could bounce back from the suspension he served for inappropriate conduct. For weeks, Kuznetsov emphasized that desire while answering question after question on how he could show it. It always led back to the same answer: He had to prove it on the ice.
So as Kuznetsov’s slick backhander from the slot zipped past Dallas Stars goaltender Ben Bishop in the first period of the Capitals’ 4-3 overtime loss Tuesday night at Capital One Arena, the roar from the crowd was a simultaneous surge of excitement and collective sigh of relief. The 27-year-old center, who had 21 goals and 51 assists last year, had bounced back.
But the Capitals as a unit did not.
While Kuznetsov’s early goal opened the door, Washington struggled to close another game. After Nicklas Backstrom scored the tying goal with 30.7 seconds left in regulation, the Stars’ Tyler Seguin spoiled Kuznetsov’s season debut with the game-winner 43 seconds into overtime.
The Capitals let the Stars tie the score twice — at 1-1 and 2-2 — before Nick Caamano put Dallas up 3-2 with 7:57 left in regulation. The Capitals got a standings point thanks to Backstrom’s goal but fell to 2-0-2 when Dallas picked up its first win.
Coming off an 0-for-6 power-play performance in their 3-2 overtime loss to Carolina in Saturday’s home opener, the Capitals again failed to convert, going 0 for 5. With 5:33 left, the Capitals had a four-on-three advantage for 54 seconds and were set to have a five-on-three for 1:06. But they struggled even with Kuznetsov back on the first unit, and the Russian center took a costly penalty with 3:53 left to put the Stars on the power play.
The Capitals struggled mightily in the third period, failing to put a shot on goal until past the midway point after holding a 27-11 advantage entering the final frame. Dallas forward Alexander Radulov broke through for the game-tying score at 7:53 when he slipped the puck past goaltender Braden Holtby.
The Stars had tied the score at 1 on Roope Hintz’s laser from the left circle early in the second. Center Lars Eller, who earned the praise of Coach Todd Reirden for his play through three games, made an ill-timed cross-ice pass at the blue line that was picked off by the Stars and led to Hintz’s goal.
After failing to covert multiple chances at the front of the net, the Capitals relied on Holtby to keep the score tied late in the second period, and he made a sharp save on Mattias Janmark’s high-danger opportunity. Sliding to his right, Holtby splayed out to deny Janmark — and Washington gained a one-goal advantage just moments later.
Defenseman John Carlson slipped the puck past Bishop at 15:55 to put the Capitals up 2-1, with his shot from above the right circle going off Bishop’s left arm and into the net on the short side. Carlson has a goal and four assists through four games.