The Capitals best the Detroit Red Wings in an exciting contest

The Detroit Red Wings didn’t fair well in D.C this afternoon, but it was not for lack of effort.  The Stanley Cup Champions struck late to clip the Wings 3-1.

The Capitals scored three unanswered goals to beat the Detroit Red Wings this afternoon in Washington.  It wasn’t an ugly start for once on the part of the Wings.  They actually came out flying for once.

As the first period was trekking on the Wings found themselves well ahead in the shots on goal category.  It was a pleasant site to see.  I was wondering where this team has been all year long. They outshot the Caps to the tune of 14-5 in the first frame.

Andreas Athanasiou continued his hot scoring streak.  He scored the lone goal for the Wings and had a handful of quality chances as the game went on.  Double-A is really coming into his own, and it is great to see.  We’ve talked about it many times, but it is sure impressive to be able to back up his talk with exceptional play.  He asked Jeff Blashill for more ice-time this summer at training camp saying he would score more.  Well, he has 10 goals already for the Wings, and he’s been able to score the teams last 3.

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His goal was a beauty.  Thomas Vanek was behind the goal and waited patiently for goaltender Brayden Holtby to turn his head away from AA, as he was trying to guard against a potential Vanek wrap around.  Once Holtby turned Vanek delivered a beautiful pass the opposite way where AA was waiting.  He buried it short side, with a one-time shot.

The Wings would carry the 1-0 lead to about halfway through the second period when Tom Wilson fired a shot from the hash marks beating Jonathan Bernier high over the shoulder.  Wilson displayed a beautiful shot something I didn’t exactly know he had.  I am anything but a Tom Wilson fan mostly because of his “head hunting” reputation but I like the way he forechecks and works hard down low in the corners.  Of course, he is physical any chance he gets which is admirable.  He was also taking some draws from his strong side.  I realized today he isn’t just an enforcer on Ovechkin’s line, he serves a role and does his job.  Now he seems to of added a decent shot into his repertoire.

The Detroit Red Wings played in the second period like they have been starting games of late.  The Caps really carried the play and dominated in the shot category.  The Caps are a team that doesn’t fire everything at the goal they sort of wait for a golden opportunity and capitalize on that.  Some lesser skilled teams like the Wings are expected to fire the puck on goal from all different directions and angles hoping for a bounce or a rebound.  A team like the Caps can possess the puck and look for the perfect opportunity to strike.

The Caps got their game-winning goal from an unlikely hero at the 6:38 mark of the third period..  Michael Kempny scored from the point through a double screen.  Nick Jensen skated out and turned sideways dropping to a knee taking away the low part of the ice.  Kempny whistled a rising shot through the traffic and into the top right-hand side of the goal from the left point.  Bernier couldn’t see it through the Caps players in front and failed to pick up the puck through Jensen’s low screen.

Alex Ovechkin would add the insurance goal to secure the Caps victory late in the third period.  All in all the Wings played a very good road game against a quality opponent.  They held their own against the Stanley Cup Champs but fell short.  They can’t be too disappointed with their play.  If they play hard, they will continue to win games but they are not going to win every night.  We just want to see exciting hockey and not see our team get blown out and the Wings have certainly provided some excitement especially of late.

The Detroit Red Wings have a quick turn around and will host the Buffalo Sabres at Little Ceasers Arena tomorrow evening at 7:00 pm. They will look to get back on the winning side of things against Jack Eichel and Rasmus Dahlin.