The Capitals looked out of sorts in the first five minutes of Game #1 and it led to the first opening period goal against in this year's playoffs. The six day layoff showed as the Lightning took the play to the Caps but Washington clawed back and got their legs back in the second ten minutes of the game. Alexander Semin evened the score when Marco Sturm deflected an outlet pass in the Tampa zone. Semin gathered the puck and fired a wicked wrister between Tampa goalie Dewayne Roloson's pads for a 1-1 score that would hold up until intermission. The Capitals were more steady coming out in the second and took the lead on an Eric Fehr score. Off a face-off in the Tampa zone Jason Chimera beat the defenseman off the boards and fed the puck to the slot where Fehr roofed it before Roloson could react. From there the Capitals went to the penalty box 3 times and lost their momentum. The Lightning saterted winning the board battles and tied the score when an attempted pass deflected off of Scott Hannan's stick and into the net. Caps goalie Michal Neuvirth had no chance on the play. On the final power play of the period for Tampa Bay, Neuvirth made the initial stop but the rebound was put back giving Tampa a 1-goal advantage with 32-seconds remaining in the period. The third period saw the Capitals frustrated by the Tampa 1-3-1 trap and Washington's inability to capitalize on two power play attempts. Tampa put the game away with an empty net goal in the game's final minute. Game #2 is Sunday in Washington.
Of Note:
Michal Neuvirth stopped 20 of 23 shots he faced for his second playoff loss. The young goalie held the Caps in the game in the fist ten minutes and seems to make all the key saves when needed. The offense owes him a better effort in Game #2.
Alexander Semin has goals in 3 consecutive games. Semin is battling well but needs to get more rubber to the net. He is shooting at over 18% and can help lift some of the pressure on the team.
John Carlson was shaken up at the beginning of the third period and only played 14:39. Hopefully it is nothing major and will return to the lineup for Game #2.
The Caps out shot the Lightning 28-24 but allowed the only power play goal in the game. The Bolts went 1 for 4 while the Caps were 0 for 5 with the extra man.
In addition to the goals scored by Semin and Fehr, Jason Chimera, Marcus Johansson and Marco Sturm were each credited with one assist.
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