Holtby after giving up the game-winning goal in the Bruins 4-3 victory. (Photo by Clydeorama)
Bruins 4, Capitals 3: The Capitals found themselves trailing Boston for most of the game, yet each time in the first three periods, they were able to claw back. After a first period in which the Bruins went ahead 2-1, Capitals forward Jason Chimera evened the score with his first playoff goal with just seconds left in the second. The squads seemed evenly matched for the first chunk of the final frame, but the Capitals fell behind yet again when Boston’s Andrew Ference slipped a rebounding puck past Braden Holtby, who looked not quite as impermeable Sunday as he did earlier in the series. But the Verizon Center surged to life with five minutes left in regulation, when Alexander Ovechkin scored his first goal of the series. Unfortunately for the Capitals, the momentum did not last. The third period ended in a 3-3 tie, sending the series to overtime for the third time. The Capitals had some chances in the extra frame, but when center Nicklas Backstrom botched a pass, Boston pressed its advantage. With the Bruins front line approaching from all sides, Holtby could not protect the entirety of his goal, providing Tyler Seguin with an open net for the game-winning goal. And so, the series extends again, returning to Boston for the deciding game Wednesday night.
Marlins at Nationals, postponed: An East Coast weather pattern that also scratched games in New York and Boston determined otherwise, bumping the Nationals’ intimidating rotation back a day. Originally, Stephen Strasburg, who pitched Saturday, was due to make his next start Friday and face the Los Angeles Dodgers’ Clayton Kershaw in what was anticipated as a matchup of two young hurlers with amazing stuff. Instead, he will make his next start this coming Saturday.
But they were playing in Syracuse, N.Y., where Deadspin founder Will Leitch’s rookie crush Bryce Harper hit his first home run at the AAA level.
Correction: This post originally identified Clayton Kershaw as a member of the Miami Marlins. He plays for the Los Angeles Dodgers.
