Rangers vs. Capitals Final Score: Washington Takes 3-2 Series Lead with OT Win
By Josh Hill
The Washington Capitals have a Hart Trophy finalist on their roster and they’re the 3-seed in the Eastern Conference. Yet they’re struggling yet again in the postseason and entering Game 5 of their showdown with the New York Rangers, they were in serious danger of slipping into yet another season of Stanley Cup drought. That wasn’t the case on Friday as the Capitals used overtime to sneak past the Rangers and gain a 3-2 series edge.
New York isn’t a high seed in the postseason but they’re still battling like one. Someone was going to go up in the series and force the other to the brink of elimination, and New York fought their hardest to end up on the right side of that. They haven’t had star defenseman Marc Staal since he took a puck to his face a few months ago and at times they seem as if they don’t even need him.
They needed him on Friday.
Coming into the series, the Rangers were almost favored over the Capitals as they appear to be the more rounded team. They have defensemen who love to jump in front and block shots and even after you get past that line of defense, you have to beat one of the best goalies to ever play the game in Henrik Lundqvist.
But despite having Alex Ovechkin the only known player to the casual hockey fan, the Caps are also a rounded team and as it turns out the Caps and Rangers matchup really well.
It’s that rounded lineup for the Capitals that has proven more talents as their Game 5 win puts them a win away from advancing to a likely showdown with either the Boston Bruins or Toronto Maple Leafs. The series may be far from over, as it could still go seven games, but the Capitals have a serious advantage heading into Game in New York this weekend.