Capitals overwhelm Penguins 5-2 to force Game 7

A much better, team effort will be needed to win and advance.

Pittsburgh’s Nick Bonino drew criticism for selling a high-sticking penalty against Washington’s T.J. Oshie. “We wanted to spread our scoring out”.

“Our group has pretty good resolve and we’ve grown through our past”, Trotz said. Game 6 was the rare misfire.

Including a third-period comeback the Capitals authored in Game 5, they scored eight unanswered goals in the series in a span of 69 minutes and 40 seconds.

Fleury has allowed nine goals on 58 shots the past two games after nine on 142 shots the first four games against the Capitals.

Game 7 in the Stanley Cup Finals, well, that’s the pinnacle of pinnacles. It’s going to be the toughest game of the series. Is Mike Sullivan just protecting his players from the information going public like a lot of coaches in sports do? Those Caps arrived home with all sorts of momentum and anticipation, and they were simply overwhelmed in a 6-2 Penguins victory.

The Penguins have to get back to their game. First period is really important. On it is a cartoon image of an unnamed Washington player with a devil sitting over his shoulder. Now, it certainly seems like Washington has the advantage, especially since it has arguably outplayed the Penguins for most of the series.

It looked bad five minutes into the first period when Crosby was chasing a puck behind the Capitals net and he got tangled up with Matt Niskanen. [Monday], we weren’t able to do any of that. Crosby finished the period with his teammates and was back on the ice to start the second period.

Ducks coach Randy Carlyle didn’t blame Gibson and said it’s about the entire team being better. “We turned the puck over and then we started chasing the game a bit”.

What the Penguins need to do if they want to take the next step in becoming the first Stanley Cup champion in almost 20 years to repeat is pretty clear.

Nicklas Backstrom is leading the Capitals with six goals and 13 points, but it has been the depth players doing the most damage lately. “I think they’re the better team right now, so hopefully they play that way”. They are still in a good position to win now, but they need one or two more players to round out their roster. “There was a little of frustration, but I thought we talked about making sure that we grab ahold of ourselves and stay focused and just try to play the game the right way”. “What you’re talking about is the difference between checking with a doctor and entering concussion protocol, they’re two separate things”.

Both teams have had their share of Game 7 experiences over the years. Equipped with newfound defensive dominance, or at least a dependence on those defensive strengths, they will get one final shot at beating the Pens in the playoffs for the first time since 1994 in an anticipated Game 7 on Wednesday. But what he meant to say, apparently, is that Crosby did not go through the protocol.

Every day during the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs, Canes Country recaps the night before, previews the games for that night, and gives you game times and broadcast information. However, Washington generated 23 shots from medium-danger zones in Games 5 and 6.

The story of the series has been: Washington will outshoot, outhit and command play against Pittsburgh, but Marc-Andre Fleury will steal a win.

We have seen better hockey from Olli Maatta, Justin Schultz, and Brian Dumoulin. “We’re excited for that opportunity and that challenge”. The eyes of the hockey world will be on Washington on Wednesday.

Will Pittsburgh’s Sidney Crosby play after clearing concussion protocols after Game 5 only to get drilled into the boards in Game 6?

Which brings us back to Fleury.

And then, the play last night, where a barreling Crosby tripped over Braden Holtby’s stick and was nudged off-balance by contact with John Carlson. Neither team is backing down physically, which should lead to some bone crushing hits in Game 7. It’s its own entity. “So when we are relying on a spotter with no objective medical test it’s going to be an imperfect system”.