Capitals at Maple Leafs
The Washington Capitals find themselves losing ground as they fight an uphill battle against both the upstart Toronto Maple Leafs as well as their own postseason demons. After sustaining back-to-back post-regulation losses, the Presidents' Trophy-winning Capitals look to avert being pushed to the brink of elimination on Wednesday when they play Game 4 against the Maple Leafs at Air Canada Centre.
Early exits are nothing new for Washington, a perennial Stanley Cup favorite that often hears the ever-growing whispers if another red-hot season will be followed by an ice-cold performance in the playoffs. "Until we change the narrative, that's going to be the question. It's up to us to change it," defenseman Matt Niskanen said after Toronto overcame an early two-goal deficit and recorded a 4-3 overtime triumph on Monday. While the Capitals are carrying the mantle of perennial playoff underachiever, the Maple Leafs are playing with an air of freedom that is being spurred on by a hockey-mad metropolis that relishes each passing moment. "We've always been confident in here. We've always believed in ourselves," said Tyler Bozak, who scored on a power play at 1:37 to whip the city into a frenzy. "It's never bad to be in an underdog position. There's a little less pressure, but we put a lot of pressure on ourselves to perform and we believe in ourselves in here, and that's the most important thing."
TV: 7 p.m. ET, NBCSN, CBC, TVA Sports, CSN Mid-Atlantic (Washington)
ABOUT THE CAPITALS: Alex Ovechkin's resume certainly is impressive with three Hart Trophies and six Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophies among his many honors, but the captain refuses to fret despite having yet to find his way out of the second round since joining Washington in 2005-06. "It's a situation when you have to fight through it," said Ovechkin, who scored in his second consecutive game to increase his franchise-best playoff totals in goals (43) and points (84). "Obviously we don't have to panic or do some crazy stuff out there. We just have to play our game. I think we're experienced enough and old enough to manage it and just forget about it and move forward."
ABOUT THE MAPLE LEAFS: Toronto is receiving dividends from its rookies as Mitch Marner scored in the series opener, Kasperi Kapanen capped a two-goal performance in double overtime of Game 2 and top overall pick Auston Matthews and William Nylander chimed in with a tally apiece in Game 3. The rookie quartet is the Maple Leafs' first since Vic Lynn, Howie Meeker, Joe Klukay and Gus Mortson each scored their respective first goals during the 1947 playoffs. Matthews had entered the playoffs with a flourish, recording 14 points (nine goals, five assists) in the last 13 games of the regular season before being held off the scoresheet in Games 1 and 2 in Washington.
OVERTIME
1. Washington veteran Justin Williams has scored five goals and set up four others during his seven-game playoff point streak dating to last season while fellow RW T.J. Oshie has two tallies and five assists during his five-game playoff run.
2. Toronto D Morgan Rielly has three points (one goal, two assists) in the series after being held off the scoresheet in each of his last 11 contests of the regular season.
3. Capitals D Karl Alzner will miss his second straight game on Wednesday with an upper-body injury.