We're down to the NHL's Final Four, with three teams still having a chance for their first cup. This series will cover the Eastern Conference's entire series.
Game 1: Amalie Arena, St. Petersburg, Florida. In goal: Braden Holtby for the Capitals and Andrei Vasilevskiy for the Lightning. Washington led off in the first period with a Michal Kempny goal, passed from Evgeny Kuznetsov. The Capitals added on with an Alex Ovechkin power play goal, his ninth of the postseason, powered by Kuznetsov and T.J. Oshie. Washington extended the lead as Jay Beagle scored in the second period, his second of the playoffs, guided in by Brett Connolly and Dmitry Orlov. The Capitals padded the lead with a Lars Eller power play goal, his fourth of the postseason, fueled by Oshie and Ovechkin. Tampa Bay got on the board in the third period with a Steven Stamkos power play goal, his fourth of the playoffs, made possible by Nikita Kucherov and Victor Hedman. The Lightning got closer with an Ondrej Palat goal, his fifth of the postseason, assisted by Tyler Johnson and Anton Stralman. The Capitals held on to win 4-2, with the three stars going to Ovechkin, Oshie, and Kuznetsov. The Capitals have a 1-0 series lead.
Game 2: Amalie Arena, St. Petersburg, Florida. In goal: Braden Holtby for the Capitals and Andrei Vasilevskiy for the Lightning. Washington began in the first period with a Tom Wilson goal, his third of the postseason, coming off of Matt Niskanen and Evgeny Kuznetsov. Tampa Bay got on the board with a Brayden Point power play goal, his fifth of the playoffs, powered by Steven Stamkos and Victor Hedman. The Lightning took the lead with a Stamkos power play goal, his fifth of the postseason, with assists provided by Nikita Kucherov and Point. The Capitals tied it in the second period on a Devante Smith-Pelly goal, his third of the playoffs, assisted by Alex Chiasson and John Carlson. Washington regained the lead with a Lars Eller goal, his fifth of the postseason, with a lone assist by Jakub Vrana. The Capitals added on with a Kuznetsov power play goal, his eighth of the playoffs, guided in by Alex Ovechkin and Eller. Washington extended the lead in the third period as Ovechkin scored his tenth of the postseason, with the help of Kuznetsov and Wilson. The Capitals padded the lead with a Brett Connolly goal, his third of the playoffs, fueled by Eller and Carlson. This stood for a 6-2 win, with the three stars being Eller, Kuznetsov, and Ovechkin, while Wilson, Carlson, Stamkos, and Point get the honorable mentions. Washington heads home with a 2-0 series lead in hand.
Game 3: Capital One Arena, Washington, DC. In goal: Andrei Vasilevskiy for the Lightning and Braden Holtby for the Capitals. Tampa Bay opened in the first period with a Steven Stamkos power play goal, his sixth of the postseason, powered by Victor Hedman and Brayden Point. The Lightning added on with a Nikita Kucherov power play goal in the second period, his seventh of the playoffs, via Hedman and Stamkos. Tampa Bay extended the lead as Hedman scored, thanks to Kucherov and Ondrej Palat. Washington got on the board with a Brett Connolly goal, his fourth of the postseason, helped along by Chandler Stephenson and Matt Niskanen. The Lightning shot back with a Point goal, his sixth of the playoffs, guided in by Tyler Johnson and Braydon Coburn. The Capitals pulled one back in the third period with an Evgeny Kuznetsov goal, his ninth of the postseason, courtesy of T.J. Oshie and Lars Eller. This only made it 4-2, the final, with the three stars given to Hedman, Kucherov, and Stamkos, while Point gets an honorable mention. The Capitals maintain a 2-1 series lead.
Game 4: Capital One Arena, Washington, DC. In goal: Andrei Vasilevskiy for the Lightning and Braden Holtby for the Capitals. Washington started in the first period with a Dmitry Orlov goal, his second of the postseason, coming off of T.J. Oshie and Matt Niskanen. Tampa Bay tied it on a Brayden Point goal, his seventh of the playoffs, via Yanni Gourde and Tyler Johnson. The Lightning took the lead with a Steven Stamkos power play goal, his seventh of the postseason, powered by Point and J.T. Miller. The Capitals retied it in the second period with an Evgeny Kuznetsov goal, his tenth of the playoffs, helped along by Alex Ovechkin and Tom Wilson. Tampa Bay took the lead back in the third period with an Alex Killorn goal, his fifth of the postseason, fueled by Ondrej Palat and Mikhail Sergachev. The Lightning iced it at 4-2 with an empty net goal by Anthony Cirelli, his second of the playoffs, going in unassisted. The three stars were Vasilevskiy (36 for 38 in saves), Point, and Killorn. The series returns to Florida tied at 2.
Game 5: Amalie Arena, St. Petersburg, Florida. In goal: Braden Holtby for the Capitals and Andrei Vasilevskiy for the Lightning. Tampa Bay struck first in the first period with a Cedric Paquette goal, via Ryan Callahan. The Lightning added on with an Ondrej Palat goal, his sixth of the postseason, made possible by Nikita Kucherov. Tampa Bay extended the lead in the second period as Callahan scored his second of the playoffs, assisted by Anton Stralman and Chris Kunitz. Washington got on the board with an Evgeny Kuznetsov goal, his eleventh of the postseason, courtesy of Matt Niskanen and T.J. Oshie. The Capitals got closer in the third period with an Alex Ovechkin goal, his eleventh of the playoffs, guided in by John Carlson and Lars Eller. They fell short at 3-2, with the three stars being Callahan, Palat, and Paquette. The Lightning have a chance to advance on the road, currently leading 3-2 in the series.
Game 6: Capital One Arena, Washington, DC. In goal: Andrei Vasilevskiy for the Lightning and Braden Holtby for the Capitals. Washington got going in the second period with a T.J. Oshie power play goal, his sixth of the postseason, powered by Nicklas Backstrom and Evgeny Kuznetsov. The Capitals added on in the third period with a Devante Smith-Pelly goal, his fourth of the playoffs, assisted by Chandler Stephenson and Jay Beagle. Washington iced it at 3-0 with an Oshie empty net goal, his second of the game and seventh of the postseason, set up by Backstrom. The three stars were Oshie, Holtby (24 save shutout), and Smith-Pelly, while Backstrom earns an honorable mention. The series heads south one more time, tied at 3.
Game 7: Amalie Arena, St. Petersburg, Florida. In goal: Braden Holtby for the Capitals and Andrei Vasilevskiy for the Lightning. Washington kicked off the scoring in the first period with an Alex Ovechkin goal, his twelfth of the season, assisted by Evgeny Kuznetsov and Tom Wilson. The Capitals added on in the second period with an Andre Burakovsky goal, going in unassisted. Washington extended the lead as Burakovsky scored again, thanks to John Carlson. The Capitals iced it at 4-0 with an unassisted empty net goal by Nicklas Backstrom, his fourth of the playoffs. The three stars were Holtby (29 save shutout), Burakovsky, and Ovechkin. The Capitals are off to face the Vegas Golden Knights for the Stanley Cup after this 4-3 series win.
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