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Round 1 - Game 4
Blue Jackets lead series 2-1
Thu. April 19 Washington Capitals @ Columbus Blue Jackets
Place: Nationwide Arena
Time: 7:30 p.m.
TV: NBCSWA, USA, SN360, TVAS, FS-O
Radio: 106.7 The Fan, Capitals Radio 24/7
NHL.COM (https://www.nhl.com/gamecenter/2017030134) for Live Box Score
Columbus Blue Jackets 97-44-28-9 Last Game: Apr 17 Lost 3-2 Against Capitals
Washington Capitals 105-49-26-7 Last Game: Apr 17 Won 3-2 Against Blue Jackets
8-Ovechkin 92-Kuznetsov 43-Wilson
18-Stephenson 19-Bäckström 77-Oshie
10-Connolly 20-Eller 25-Smith-Pelly
13-Vrana 83-Beagle 39-Chiasson
9-Orlov 2-Niskanen
6-Kempny 74-Carlson
44-Orpik 29-Djoos
70-Holtby (starter)
31-Grubauer
-- SCRATCH --
65-Burakovsky ("upper-body" injury)
63-Gersich
72-Boyd
64-Pinho
28-Jerabek
22-Bowey
1-Copley
-- INJURED RESERVE --
-- 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: Francis Charron (#6), Brad Watson (#23)
Linesmen: Jonny Murray (#95), Ryan Gibbons (#58)
Columbus’s expected lineup
Forwards
Artemi Panarin - Pierre-Luc Dubois - Cam Atkinson
Boone Jenner - Nick Foligno - Thomas Vanek
Matt Calvert - Brandon Dubinsky - Josh Anderson
Sonny Milano - Mark Letestu - Oliver Bjorkstrand
Defensemen
Zach Werenski - Seth Jones
Ian Cole - David Savard
Ryan Murray - Markus Nutivaara
Goaltenders
Sergei Bobrovsky (starter)
Joonas Korpisalo
Scratches:
Markus Hannikainen
Alex Broadhurst
Taylor Chorney
Jack Johnson
Scott Harrington
Dean Kukan
Lukas Sedlak (upper body)
Alexander Wennberg (upper body)
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1st Period
06:16 GOAL 43-Wilson, assist 92-Kuznetsov 1-0 WSH
2nd Period
09:19 PP GOAL 77-Oshie, assists 8-Ovechkin & 74-Carlson 2-0 WSH
3rd Period
02:49 GOAL 8-Ovechkin, assists 92-Kuznetsov & 43-Wilson 3-0 WSH
06:22 Jackets GOAL Jenner 3-1 WSH
17:41 GOAL 92-Kuznetsov, unassisted 4-1 WSH
FINAL: 4-1 WSH
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by Isabelle Khurshudyan, Roman Stubbs and Mike Hume April 19 at 11:38 AM
Capitals-Blue Jackets Game 4: Can Washington back up Ovechkin’s guarantee?
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Alex Ovechkin guaranteed a win in Game 4, can the Caps back up his words? (Jonathan NewtonThe Washington Post)Game 4
Washington Capitals vs. Columbus Blue Jackets
Series: Columbus leads, 2-1
Thursday, 7:30 p.m. ET, Nationwide Arena
TV: NBCSWA, USA
- Despite blowing another lead, Washington heads into Game 4 trailing Columbus by just one game after a strange double-overtime goal by Lars Eller. (Read More (https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/capitals-insider/wp/2018/04/19/2018-nhl-playoffs-capitals-blue-jackets-game-4-analysis-and-updates/?utm_term=.37a0d3958c19#story))
- Capitals defenseman John Carlson has seven points through the first three games of the series. (Read More (https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/capitals-insider/wp/2018/04/19/2018-nhl-playoffs-capitals-blue-jackets-game-4-analysis-and-updates/?utm_term=.37a0d3958c19#players))
- With both teams playing an extra 47:24 in this series because there’s been so much overtime, fatigue could play a factor going forward. (Read More (https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/capitals-insider/wp/2018/04/19/2018-nhl-playoffs-capitals-blue-jackets-game-4-analysis-and-updates/?utm_term=.37a0d3958c19#links))
Top story linesTop-six scoring:
Washington’s top two lines finally got on the board at even strength in Game 3 with Tom Wilson’s goal, but the Capitals’ most skilled players have still struggled to get production outside of the power play. Meanwhile, Columbus has five even-strength goals from its top line alone. The Capitals have been carried by their bottom-six forward corps, goals from third-liners Devante Smith-Pelly and Lars Eller and fourth-line center Jay Beagle, but Washington needs its top players to contribute, too. Coach Barry Trotz made one top-six change, moving Chandler Stephenson to the second line with rookie Jakub Vrana bumped down to the fourth.
Goaltending:
The Capitals arguably played their best in Game 2, but they lost because Columbus goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky was the best player on the ice, making 54 saves. On Tuesday night, Blue Jackets Coach John Tortorella thought his team played its best game, and perhaps Columbus lost because of Braden Holtby. Holtby thought he was “rusty” with how he played the Blue Jackets’ first goal, but he finished with 33 saves, including seven in the first overtime period. When Trotz was asked if he’d be back in net for Game 4, he said, “I don’t think there’s any doubt about that.”Holtby owns the NHL’s second-best career postseason save percentage, and after how he struggled in the second half of the season, several players said he looked like his Vezina Trophy-winning self again in Game 3. The Capitals will need that form again to win Game 4 and return to Washington with the series tied.
Djoos vs. Jerabek:
Trotz made a small change on his blueline before Game 3, swapping rookie Christian Djoos for Jakub Jerabek. Djoos took three shots on goal and played 17:17 of the 89-minute game, and Trotz praised his performance in a conference call with reporters on Wednesday.“
I thought he had a real strong game,” Trotz said. “The thing that he has is obviously that he’s got real good poise and hockey sense. I thought he came in and was fresh, he gave us meaningful minutes in terms of playing against some top-end guys at times. I thought he just managed the puck really well. I thought he showed a lot of poise for his first game.”
Players to watch
John Carlson:
Carlson scored his first goal of these playoffs in Game 3 and now has one goal and six assists in the first three games of the series. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Carlson became the first defenseman in franchise history to record seven points within the first three games of a series and the first Capitals player since 1990 to do so. Additionally, Carlson became just the seventh defenseman in NHL history to record seven points through the first three games. In 79 career playoff games, Carlson has 42 points (14 goals and 28 assists) and two game-winning goals. He scored a career-high 15 goals and 53 assists this season, and his 68 points led NHL defensemen.
Pierre-Luc Dubois:
The 19-year-old first-line center has two goals in this series and has outplayed two of the best centers in the league in Washington’s Evgeny Kuznetsov and Nicklas Backstrom. Trotz has had Kuznetsov matched against Dubois for the majority of the past two games, but while the Capitals’ top line has managed just one even-strength goal, the trio of Dubois, Artemi Panarin and Cam Atkinson has five. He played in every game this season, scoring 20 goals and 28 assists to set franchise rookie marks for goals, points and games played.
Pregame reading
Immerse yourself in the Capitals’ postseason with The Post’s coverage of the 2018 Stanley Cup playoffs:
With minutes piling up for Capitals and Blue Jackets, fatigue could become a factor (https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/capitals-insider/wp/2018/04/18/with-minutes-piling-up-for-capitals-and-blue-jackets-fatigue-could-become-a-factor/?utm_term=.bd19373cf056)
Seth Jones is following his father’s path — on ice, not the basketball court (https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/capitals/seth-jones-is-following-his-fathers-path-on-ice-instead-of-a-basketball-court/2018/04/18/e4f2adde-432d-11e8-ad8f-27a8c409298b_story.html?utm_term=.7ca7bb70d424)
The D.C. sports trifecta didn’t happen, but Caps’ double-OT win was a jackpot moment (https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/dc-sports-bog/wp/2018/04/18/the-d-c-sports-trifecta-didnt-happen-but-caps-double-ot-win-was-a-jackpot-moment/?utm_term=.70225e2706b8)
‘Weird things happen’: Lars Eller’s game-winner sums up Capitals playoff hockey (https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/weird-things-happen-eller-game-winner-sums-up-capitals-playoff-hockey/2018/04/18/69423ec6-4282-11e8-8569-26fda6b404c7_story.html?utm_term=.fb163b5035a1)Capitals’ Tom Wilson knows he has to be smarter and stay out of the penalty box (https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/capitals-insider/wp/2018/04/17/capitals-tom-wilson-knows-he-has-to-be-smarter-and-stay-out-of-the-penalty-box/?utm_term=.c007b54a3ca1)
Capitals-Blue Jackets Game 3: In a playoff plot twist, Washington’s familiar script ends with a win (https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/capitals-insider/wp/2018/04/20/capitals-blue-jackets-game-3-coverage-and-analysis/?utm_term=.72cf1a881d35)
History not on Caps’ side, but they’ve erased 2-0 hole against John Tortorella before (https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/dc-sports-bog/wp/2018/04/16/history-not-on-caps-side-but-theyve-erased-2-0-hole-against-john-tortorella-before/)
As Capitals run into another ‘hot goalie,’ they face their own net dilemma (https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/capitals-insider/wp/2018/04/16/as-capitals-run-into-another-hot-goalie-they-face-their-own-net-dilemma/)
Penalties are a problem for Capitals, but a different stat could signal disaster (https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/fancy-stats/wp/2018/04/16/penalties-are-a-problem-for-capitals-but-one-stat-could-signal-disaster/)
Capitals’ Andre Burakovsky will miss at least two games with upper-body injury (https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/capitals-insider/wp/2018/04/16/capitals-andre-burakovsky-will-miss-at-least-two-games-with-upper-body-injury/)
Sergei Bobrovsky is ‘dead on his game’ as Columbus staggers Washington in Game 2 (https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/capitals-insider/wp/2018/04/16/sergei-bobrovsky-is-dead-on-his-game-as-columbus-staggers-washington-in-game-2/)
Barry Svrluga: If the Capitals don’t get smarter, it soon will be too late for them to learn their lesson (https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/capitals/if-the-capitals-dont-get-smarter-it-will-soon-be-too-late-for-them-to-learn-their-lesson/2018/04/16/daae281c-40e4-11e8-bba2-0976a82b05a2_story.html)
Capitals’ Kuznetsov, Blue Jackets’ Panarin shared a rink in Russia and the NHL playoff spotlight (https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/capitals-insider/wp/2018/04/13/capitals-kuznetsov-blue-jackets-panarin-shared-a-rink-in-russia-and-the-nhl-playoff-spotlight/?utm_term=.630dad81f524)
The Capitals and Blue Jackets are already bloody. There could be more to come. (https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/capitals-insider/wp/2018/04/13/the-capitals-and-blue-jackets-are-already-bloody-and-there-could-be-more-to-come/?utm_term=.c0ac97dab0b9)
Barry Svrluga: It’s the Capitals. It’s the playoffs. And ‘easy’ just isn’t in the vocabulary. (https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/capitals/its-the-capitals-its-the-playoffs-and-easy-just-isnt-in-the-vocabulary/2018/04/12/a4155546-3e87-11e8-a7d1-e4efec6389f0_story.html?utm_term=.7ec1eb703158)
The Capitals preach quality over quantity when it comes to shots. Here’s what they mean. (https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/capitals-insider/wp/2018/04/11/capitals-start-stanley-cup-playoffs-bent-on-taking-better-shots-not-more-shots/?utm_term=.c52de11e781f)
Barry Svrluga: For Capitals’ Barry Trotz, the future is at stake in these Stanley Cup playoffs (https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/capitals/for-capitals-barry-trotz-the-future-is-at-stake-in-these-stanley-cup-playoffs/2018/04/11/247b8e1e-3db9-11e8-974f-aacd97698cef_story.html?utm_term=.b13de7702735)
DAMN! Sharks & Knights wasting no time getting it done!
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