Photo credit: Mitchell Layton

After the grueling march of disappointment that was Game Three, we expected a rallying effort from the Caps. But we weren’t naive enough to expect a different kind of game. We know by now that the Capitals are capable of playing only one-goal games. What we didn’t know is that they could get goals out of Alex Ovechkin, Nick Backstrom, and Mike Green in the same game. It was like 2009 up in here.

Here’s how it went:  After a battle in the corner, Alex Ovechkin ripped a one-timer that beat Lundqvist’s glove for the game’s first goal.

Artem Anisimov tied it up early in the second by beating Braden Holtby, who was left helpless when Brooks Laich and Alex Ovechkin couldn’t block a weirdly bouncing pass. Nick Backstrom reasserted the lead by tenderizing Artem Anisimov and then putting Chimera’s pass in the net. Artem Anisimov won an icing race against Jeff Schultz and set up Marian Gaborik for another tying goal through Holtby’s five-hole.

Mike Green put the Caps up with a powerplay goal late in the third. It was the game-winner. Caps beat Rangers 3-2.

In the second period, Alex Ovechkin delivered a hit on Dan Girardi that earned him a minor penalty for charging. Ovechkin’s skates clearly left the ice before the hit, raising the specter of suspension. NBC’s Mike Milbury says the hit was unacceptable and deserves a fine or suspension, Keith Jones says it was a defensive move and the charging penalty will suffice. Here’s the hit:

Apparently I’m so tainted by my biases that my opinion doesn’t matter, but I’m on Keith’s team. It looked shoulder-to-shoulder to me, although we’ve seen how Shanahan considers any kind of airborne hit equivalent to the wild west. If Ovi did indeed connect with Girardi’s noggin, the “principal point of contact” line of reasoning is irrelevant. Ovechkin is responsible for what happens when he launches himself off the ice.

Regardless, we’d really appreciate it if Ovechkin gets this out of his game. Not the dirty hits; I mean hitting in general. Uncle Ted doesn’t pay nine gazillion dollars a year so Alex can hit dudes, he does it so Alex can SCOAR MOAR GOALS. Ted can probably find $600k for some mook to hit guys, but goals are so much more precious.

Photo credit: Mitchell Layton

• Alex Ovechkin‘s goal was a happy accident made possible by an uncharacteristically rookie goof from stud Chris Kreider and a bad glove save by Henrik Lundqvist. Let’s see more of those mistakes please, kthxbye!
• Jeff Schultz is gonna get a lot of flack for losing the icing race (although icing had already been waved off) against Artem Anisimov, but the blame should be shared with the team’s Escape Goat, Dennis Wideman. Wideman allowed Anisimov to get past him, and sent the puck behind the net off his glove– nullifying the icing. But let’s not forget that Jeff Schultz led the Caps in blocks with 9 (6 more than any Caps player, 8 more than any Ranger) and looked tough throughout the game. With some better communication, this pivotal play would’ve been no big deal at all. So lay off the Giraffe. He’s still better at hockey than you are.
• We saw one of our all-time favorite traditions today: the washed-out Mike Knuble playoff goal! Along with the puck, Kanoobs was shoved into Lundqvist by Stu Bickel. The puck must’ve gone in, but there was no evidence. Besides, the officials already waved the goal off. How many times have we seen this? I can recall three Knuble goals– all potential game-winners– that have been nullified in the playoffs since 2009. That’s Mike’s style of play and a big part of why we love him, so I guess we’ve gotten used to this. The NHL has made us cynical.
• Players sort of underestimate Nick Backstrom, don’t they? He’s got the reputation of a effete Swede, so when he decked Artem Anisimov to open up ice for a big goal, everyone was shocked. Anisimov didn’t see it coming: he was skating in to give 19 a tough hit to the shoulder, but Backstrom anticipated and delivered a pre-emptive response. I’d love to see more of that kind of grit from Backstrom. He’s already a three-dimensional player with upsides in every game situation, but being a more physical player might earn him a little space to make the magic we know he can.
• Alex Semin was the only Young Gun not to score today, but it doesn’t matter. Sasha was one of the best forwards on the ice (plus-7 Fenwick, 4 shots)– and  without any of those wacky stick penalties that are so often concomitant.

Series record: Capitals 2, Rangers 2

Knotted. Like each game so far, this series is tight. The tension is high. But like your boy RG3 says: no pressure, no diamonds.

How great was it– not just to win– but to do so on the backs of the stars? Alex Ovechkin, Nick Backstrom, and Mike Green were your goal scorers today. Each of those players had a tough season: Ovi with his suspension and media scrutiny, Backstrom with a concussion, Mike Green with a defective body that is apparently no longer covered by a manufacturer’s warranty.

But here they were, playing great hockey when it mattered most.

The Capitals and Rangers are tied. We’re looking at a best-of-three series now– two in New York, one more at home. If the Caps can win, they’ll advance to the Conference Finals for the first time in more than a decade.

They can do it.

Now: go celebrate. It’s a beautiful Saturday afternoon. It’s Cinco de Mayo. It’s Free Comic Book Day. Go have a party.

Here: I’ll get you started with this dance remix of Bailamos.

Photo credit: Patrick McDermott

Four hours and 34 minutes, 222 attempted shots, and a 2-1 lead in the series for the New York Rangers. Those are some numbers from Wednesday/Thursday’s triathlon triple overtime Game 3, which ended with a Marian Gaborik wrist shot after over 102 minutes of play.

For those who left "early" because you had "work" in the morning: shame on you.

“Probably half the players on the ice have blood on their jerseys by the end of it,” Brooks Laich said after the game.

It was a battle all the way to the end. Both teams had numerous chances to put it away in the overtime periods, hitting posts and missing pointblank.

“When you get into that many hours of playing it becomes a mental game,” said Rangers coach John Tortorella. “Just not giving in. That’s the key, just don’t give in.”

“The impact is that we’re up a game,” he added. “They have to win three, we have to win two.”

The game was the third longest the Caps have played all-time (and the longest at Verizon Center) and the lengthiest one New York has played since 1939. The Rangers played much of the game with five defensemen after Stu Bickel was benched in the second period, causing Ryan McDonagh to skate a mind blowing and leg numbing 53:17. And Caps fans shouldn’t be worried about Alex Ovechkin’s ice time in this one, as the captain registered 35:14.

“It’s really tough,” Karl Alzner said. “Your mind starts to go a little bit. You take a stride off, a step off and the guys get a chance.”

“The team that wins is not always the one that has the most energy but [the one] that’s still the most mentally sharp — most cases that’s true,” he continued, echoing Tortorella.

Karl Alzner's dogs were not as equally upbeat. (Via @KarlAlzner)

For the Caps, it’s a deflating loss. To play so long and come up with nothing is obviously tough. But in the Washington’s locker room after the game, the players projected a largely positive, forward-looking aura. It ended in defeat, but the Caps went toe-to-toe with the number one seed in the East for the length of almost two games after splitting the matches in New York. And for a team (perhaps refreshingly) with a shadow of the postseason expectations of pervious years, they did also just finishing knocking off the defending Stanley Cup champions.

“We weren’t able to get the goal, but it’s no reason to hang your head or pout,” Laich said. “We were right there. We got to rebound. We get a couple days of rest, a practice and come back for Game 4.”

Karl Alzner seemed equally upbeat as he spoke outside his stall in the early hours of Thursday morning.

“We’ve lost in overtime in the playoffs already and we’ve found a way to bounce back, he said. “I think we’re a lot mentally tougher team then we have been in the past.”

The Caps and Rangers are back at it noontime Saturday. Let’s try to keep this one under four hours. We have the Derby to watch afterwards.