May 14, 2013
Ceci Ferrara
Sports Writer
Sports Insider
There will be no redemption for the Capitals this year. For the second straight time, the team has been eliminated from the playoffs by the New York Rangers. After starting the series strong 2-0, they dropped two straight after returning to Washington.They won Game 5 in overtime, but failed to maintain the momentum, getting shutout 0-1 in New York two days later. There was no rest for either team as they headed back to D.C. for the deciding Game 7. On their home turf, and with something to prove, the Capitals seemed to have the upper hand.
Instead, it was the Rangers who played with strength and zeal, undeterred by the sea of screaming, red-shirted fans cheering for the home team. The Caps gave up the first goal and never really recovered. The deficit increased to two early in the second period, but the deafening blow came when the Rangers scored again, making it 3-0 within a matter of minutes. It was then that the air began to deflate from Verizon Center, and the reality of defeat emerged.
Of course, even then it wasn’t impossible to pull out a win. At the same time in Boston, the Bruins were facing a similar fate. On the brink of elimination, the home team was down 4-1 against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Instead of accepting the loss, the team rallied and stunned Toronto by coming back and winning the game in overtime.
It was the first time in NHL history that a team overcame a three goal deficit in the third period of a Game 7 to win. Unfortunately, the Caps didn’t have the same luck. The Rangers went on to score twice more, shutting out Washington 5-0. Alex Ovechkin, who had emerged as the league’s top scorer in the final month of the season, sank back into a scoring slump at the worst possible time: he didn’t score a single goal since the second period of Game 1.
When Adam Oates was asked by reporters what Ovi did, or didn’t do to help the team win, the coach said “Nothing—he played good hockey, and that’s always important.” While some may be looking for a scapegoat, at least one team member believes the loss, like any win, was a team effort. “We didn’t put in the effort for a Game 7 win…especially myself,” goalie Braden Holtby said afterwards. It will be another long off-season for the Capitals as they try to figure out what they did wrong–and how to fix it next year.
Nationals
The Nationals (21-17, .553) crushed the Dodgers 6-2 on Monday night, but winning or losing the game seemed irrelevant when their star outfielder appeared to be hurt. While chasing a fly ball in the fifth inning, Bryce Harper ran into the right-field scoreboard at Dodgers Stadium. While he was initially motionless after hitting the wall, he eventually got up and walked off the field—albeit with his neck covered in blood.
Though he may have briefly lost consciousness after the collision, doctors cleared Harper of a concussion. And while the hit was hard to watch, it’s not expected to sideline the young slugger for long. After receiving 11 stitches, Harper is expected to only miss a day or two before returning to the line-up.
