The Washington Capitals staved off the Pittsburgh Penguins 2-1 in overtime Monday night to advance to the Eastern Conference finals against the Tampa Bay Lightning.
In a word, finally.
The Washington Capitals’ Alex Ovechkin — and the rest of his team, of course — will advance to the Eastern Conference Final for the first time in his career after defeating the two-time defending Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins on Monday night.
The milestone is massive for Ovechkin, of course — one of the greatest to ever do it who has nevertheless never won a Cup — but tonight was Evgeny Kuznetsov’s time to shine as he netted the game-winner in overtime.
Here’s what the Stanley Cup Playoff bracket looks like with only the second team in the Western Conference Final left undecided:
Ovechkin was so overcome with emotion after the Capitals’ gritty win that he dropped an f-bomb on national television. Warning, this is NSFW:
Don’t worry, Ovi. We likely would have done the same.
The Capitals have earned this celebration. After all, they’re off to a conference final for the first time since 1998. Some currently players in the NHL weren’t even born then.
But Barry Trotz’s team will have to refocus and get ready to face an extremely dangerous team in the Tampa Bay Lightning, who dismantled the Big, Bad Bruins 4-1.
Oh, but by the way, these Capitals were playing without injured center Nicklas Backstrom. So, good luck, Tampa Bay, defending this team that takes a mile for every inch you give it offensively and has a goaltender in Braden Holtby who continues to prove to the world that he never, ever should have been benched.
Next: 10 reasons Stanley Cup Playoffs are better than NBA Playoffs
For more from the NHL playoffs, make sure to follow FanSided and stay tuned to our NHL hub for all the latest news and results.