Round 2 - Game 5
Series Tied 2-2
Sat. May 5 Pittsburgh Penguins @ Washington Capitals
Place: Capital One Arena
Time: 7:00 p.m.
TV: NBC, SN, TVAS
Radio: 106.7 The Fan, Capitals Radio 24/7
NHL.COM for Live Box Score
Last Game: May 3 Penguins Won 3-1 in regulation
8-Ovechkin 92-Kuznetsov 25-Smith-Pelly
18-Stephenson 19-Bäckström 77-Oshie
13-Vrana 20-Eller 10-Connolly
63-Gersich 83-Beagle 39-Chiasson
9-Orlov 2-Niskanen
6-Kempny 74-Carlson
44-Orpik 29-Djoos
70-Holtby (starter)
31-Grubauer
-- SCRATCH --
43-Wilson (Suspended, 1 more game remaining)
65-Burakovsky ("upper-body")
72-Boyd
64-Pinho
28-Jerabek
22-Bowey
1-Copley
-- 1st Powerplay Unit --
20-Eller 19-Bäckström 92-Kuznetsov
8-Ovechkin 74-Carlson
-- 2nd Powerplay Unit --
13-Vrana 18-Stephenson 10-Connolly
2-Niskanen 9-Orlov
Referees: Wes McCauley (#4), Marc Joannette (#25)
Linesmen: Jonny Murray (#95), Devin Berg (#87)
Pittsburgh’s Projected Lineup Forwards Jake Guentzel - Sidney Crosby - Patric Hornqvist
Carl Hagelin - Evgeny Malkin - Phil Kessel
Connor Sheary - Derick Brassard - Bryan Rust
Dominik Simon - Riley Sheahan - Tom Kuhnhackl
Defensemen Brian Dumoulin - Kris Letang
Olli Maatta - Justin Schultz
Jamie Oleksiak - Chad Ruhwedel
Goaltenders Matt Murray (starter)
Casey DeSmith
Scratches: Zach Aston-Reese (concussion, broken jaw)
Carter Rowney
Matt Hunwick
1st Period02:23 Hens GOAL Olesiak, assists Brassard & Schultz 1-0 PIT
18:22 PP GOAL 74-Carlson, assists 92-Kuznetsov & 77-Oshie 1-1 TIE
18:55 GOAL 10-Connolly, assists 13-Vrana & 20-Eller 2-1 WSH
2nd Period04:43 Hens PP GOAL Crosby, assist Kessel & Schultz 2-2 TIE
07:45 Hens PP GOAL Hornqvist, assists Malkin & Kessel 3-2 PIT
3rd Period00:52 GOAL 92-Kuznetsov, assists 13-Vrana & 2-Niskanen 3-3 TIE
15:22 GOAL 13-Vrana, assists 8-Ovechkin & 92-Kuznetsov 4-3 WSH
18:29 EN GOAL 77-Oshie, unassisted 5-3 WSH
19:54 EN GOAL 20-Eller, unassisted 6-3 WSH
FINAL: 6-3 WSH
by Isabelle Khurshudyan, Roman Stubbs, Scott Allen and Neil Greenberg May 5 at 12:57 PM
2018 NHL Playoffs: Penguins-Capitals Game 5 analysis
Devante Smith-Pelly and the Capitals look to rebound from their Game 4 loss. (Kirk Irwin/Getty Images)
Game 5
Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Washington Capitals
Series Tied 2-2
Saturday May 5, 7:00 p.m. ET, Capital One Arena
TV: NBC, SN, TVAS
Remaining schedule
Game 5: at Washington, 7 p.m. Saturday May 5
Game 6: at Pittsburgh, 7 p.m. Monday May 7
Game 7 (if necessary): at Washington, 7:30 p.m. Wednesday May 9
- Alex Ovechkin will look to rebound from Game 4, when he didn’t get a single shot on net. (Read more)
- Penguins goaltender Matt Murray has been shaky at times this postseason, but that wasn’t the case in Game 4. (Read more)
- The spotlight in Game 5 will be on if Washington can gets its top line reignited. (Read more)
Top story lines
Alex Ovechkin: For just the third playoff game of his career, Ovechkin didn’t record a shot on goal in Thursday’s Game 4. Washington’s top line seemed to miss Tom Wilson, and Capitals Coach Barry Trotz will have Devante Smith-Pelly in the right wing spot there again for Game 5, opting to give that trio more time to jell. Ovechkin has eight of the team’s 35 goals, with Washington dependent on his production to advance. Similarly, all 10 of the Penguins’ goals in this series have come with captain Sidney Crosby on the ice.
“Obviously it was not the best game for our line, but we move forward,” Ovechkin said.
“He’ll get his opportunities,” Trotz said. “There’s not too many times that he doesn’t get shots on net. I think a couple times he tried the extra move. The most dangerous thing with Alex is his shot, so put your shot in play and then go from there.”
• No line changes: In a tight-checking Game 4, Washington struggled to generate much offense, as the team’s one goal came on the power play. The Penguins did a better job limiting the Capitals’ odd-man rushes. Trotz decided to stick with the same lineup to start Game 5, though he acknowledged that a Plan B and Plan C are ready if Washington struggles offensively again.
“Gotta get to the hard areas more, gotta get the puck there, going to have to fight for those inches, fight harder to get into the interior spaces where you can get some of those pucks,” Trotz said before Saturday’s game. “We have to do a better job than last game. I thought they had more desperation in some areas. We’ll be ready to go tonight.”
Said Oshie: “In the [offensive] zone, it comes down to shooting around blocks and getting tips. I think you saw in the Columbus series, they were doing a good job blocking shots, so we started shooting for sticks and it worked out for us. That’s kind of how we have to adjust right now because their forwards and their [defense] are doing a good job of taking away shot lanes and blocking shots.”
• Good start: The Capitals have scored the first goal in eight of their 10 playoff games so far, and that’s especially important against Pittsburgh. The Penguins are tough to wrestle the lead away from because they thrive on capitalizing on mistakes with odd-man rushes when another team is making an offensive push with more players joining the attack. In every game they’ve lead after the first period this postseason, they’ve won. They’re 4-1-0 when leading after the second period.
Players to watch
Shane Gersich: Trotz was encouraged from what he saw from the rookie in his playoff debut, especially Gersich’s early scoring chance that went off goaltender Matt Murray’s pads. With Wilson still suspended, Gersich will be on the fourth line again Saturday night, potentially a factor with his strong speed. Gersich played less than six minutes in Game 4.
“I would’ve loved to see him score on his first opportunity,” Trotz said. “He had a real good look. He did well. Shane, when you’re sitting there watching and you haven’t played a lot of National Hockey League games and you haven’t played in a playoff game and you’ve been around the intensity of the playoffs, and then all of a sudden the coach calls your name and you’re the guy going on the ice, I thought he was pretty poised. He did a real good job. You can see he’s got a real good skill set.”
Matt Murray: The Capitals seemed to be targeting Murray’s glove side through the first three games, and though the goaltender has looked shaky at times this postseason with a 2.33 goals-against average and a .909 save percentage, he was steady in Game 4, allowing just one goal. A year ago, Murray was injured and Marc-Andre Fleury was the difference in the second-round series against the Capitals. Fleury is now the starter in Vegas and Murray doesn’t need to look over his shoulder, but that also means all the pressure is on the 23-year-old to backstop the Penguins to a third-straight Stanley Cup.
Pregame reading
Immerse yourself in the Capitals’ postseason with The Post’s coverage of the Stanley Cup playoffs:
For Capitals, Game 5 focus will be on reigniting top lineAndre Burakovsky skates, but unlikely to return by end of Penguins seriesPenguins dismiss fatigue factor after 59 playoff games in three seasonsCapitals-Penguins series tied, but frustrations mount for Washington after missed chanceBuckle up: This Capitals-Penguins playoff series is a long way from overCrosby again has a hand in everything as Penguins knot series with CapitalsCapitals-Penguins means compelling hockey — and the focus on everything elseTom Wilson suspended three games by NHL for hit on Zach Aston-ReeseDown 2-1 in series with Capitals, Penguins find themselves in a rare holeTom Wilson’s most controversial hits, from Brayden Schenn to Zach Aston-Reese‘Hell yeah!’ Max Scherzer and the Nats remain all-in on the CapitalsFor one fan base at least in Capitals-Penguins series, Tom Wilson is a big hitPenguins goalie Matt Murray on winner: ‘I just have to make the save there’The subtle secret to Sidney Crosby’s greatnessNo suspension for Capitals’ Tom Wilson after hit on Penguins’ Brian DumoulinSpeedy Jakub Vrana could be the Capitals’ X-factor — if he gets on the iceWith a bit of luck — and a lot of Braden Holtby — the Capitals tie up the seriesPenguins leave town fuming after Game 2 loss to the CapitalsHow the Capitals improved their defensive play in time for the postseason
