Simeon Varlamov closes off goal mouth April 20, 2009.
Photo by Bruce Bennett / Getty Images.
Photo by Bruce Bennett / Getty Images.
Capitals 4 - Rangers 0
The Washington Capitals turned things around in Game 3 of the Quarterfinals versus the New York Rangers. Down two games to none, they broke through the barriers to score four goals on netminder Henrik Lundqvist. Meanwhile, goalie Simeon Varlamov and the Caps held the Rangers scoreless.
Washington had done many things right in their two playoff loses, but they improved on the aspects that were lacking. The forwards drove to the net, with all four goals shot from close range (Alex Semin - 2 Goals, Brooks Laich - 1 PPG, Tom Poti - 1 PPG). Nicklas Backstom was brilliant in every facet, including two perfect passes that led to goals. The defensemen kept the level of traffic in front of the Capitals net under control. Forward Alex Ovechkin still hasn't scored a goal in the series, but he's lent a hand to defense by clearing some of that traffic himself, among other things. Washington players worked as a team in this one, and kept to simple play. They also only had one giveaway, after having been very genorous in that area the previous two games.
Goaltending is one of the areas that didn't need improvement, at least not since the second game. Simeon Varlamov who only allowed one goal in Game 2, the first in which he played, continued to breathe hope into the hearts of Caps fans. Since that one goal, Varlamov has stopped 55 consecutive shots on goal through over 112 minutes of play. He became only the fourth NHL goalie in history to shutout an opponent in the playoffs before the age of 21.
The future, both near and far off, looks very bright for this team. I'm confident they will go far in the playoffs this year and many years to come.
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