Last-minute letdown

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This article was published 01/11/2016 (3357 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

How do you solve a problem like the Washington Capitals?

The Winnipeg Jets would have trouble with this task in the best of circumstances. On Tuesday, with injuries piling up, the Jets didn’t seem to have an answer for the Caps’ experience, depth and firepower and were trailing 2-0 heading into the third period.

But the plucky hosts rallied, getting late goals from Mark Scheifele and Adam Lowry, before losing 3-2 on Jay Beagle’s winner with 30 seconds remaining before 15,294 fans at the MTS Centre. 

“We played pretty well all night, so to give up a goal in the last 30 seconds after you worked so hard, it sucks,” said Lowry. “I mean, we did a lot of good things and they’re a good team, but points are important and it’s important we find a way to close it and at least get it to overtime.”

The Caps rode the steady goaltending of Braden Holtby and some timely scoring — getting goals from Karl Alzner, Marcus Johansson and Beagle — to their third victory in four games during a Western Canada roadtrip. 

Beagle’s goal, coming after he beat Lowry cleanly on a draw deep in Winnipeg’s zone and swept the puck past goalie Connor Hellebuyck, was tough to accept.

“You get out there with 30 seconds left and you’re trying to win the draw, or at least tie it, and I lost it pretty clean,” said Lowry, who tied the game 2-2 with 2:25 left in the third period. “I know Beagle’s a good faceoff guy, but, you know, that’s one I want to win.”

Added Jets head coach Paul Maurice: “There’s going to come a time when he takes that draw in a far more important game. With the experience tonight, he digs in a little harder, gets a little better at it. He’s made improvements in his faceoffs this year. That’s the job he’s training do to.”

The Jets, who fell to 4-6-0, outshot the Caps 45-27.

“We played pretty good throughout the game,” said Scheifele. “We had 45 shots… against a team like that is big for us and it definitely tough to lose a game when you come back like that.”

A veteran blue-line corps was the glue holding everything together for the Capitals, who play with a calm befitting their elite pedigree.

Defencemen Alzner, Matt Niskanen, Dmitry Orlov, John Carlson, Brooks Orpik and Nate Schmidt came into the 2016-17 season with a combined 37 seasons of NHL experience.

“They’re good,” said Scheifele. “They’re simple, they put pucks out, they jump into the rush when they can. It’s tough to get an odd-man rush on a team like that.”

The Jets, meanwhile, countered with Josh Morrissey, Dustin Byfuglien, Toby Enstrom, Paul Postma, Ben Chiarot and AHL call-up Julian Melchiori. That crew, minus injured veterans Tyler Myers (lower body) and Mark Stuart (lower body), clocked in with a modest 20 years — 18 of those supplied by Enstrom and Byfuglien.

Laine vs. Ovie

The game featured the first NHL meeting between Jets rookie winger Patrik Laine and his idol, Caps sniper Alex Ovechkin. Coming into Tuesday’s game, the young Finn had six goals in nine games, while Ovechkin had four in eight — and 529 during a career that began 11 years ago.

Ovechkin, setting up at the top of the faceoff circle on a third-period power play, came the closest to denting the twine. His one-timer blast after Nicklas Backstrom’s perfect cross-ice feed was gobbled up by Hellebuyck.

“He’s been my idol and he’s a very good player, so it’s always nice to play against good players,” Laine said before the game. “We have to be careful all the time when he’s on the ice. He’s dangerous with the puck and he can score from not-so-good angles.”

Ovechkin said Laine is not unlike so many other great young players making their mark early in the NHL.

“Those kids have talent and skills, and, obviously, it’s nice when they have a chance to play in the NHL and they blow up and play well. It’s always nice to see new players and new faces,” he said.

Ovechkin had an interesting story when asked who he idolized growing up in Moscow: “Back then, we don’t have a TV,” he said. “Of course, we knew (Sergei) Fedorov, (Igor) Larionov, (Mario) Lemieux, (Wayne) Gretzky, and you only watched on videotape, what you buy in the store videotapes with highlights and the goals, like hits and fights and all of that kind of stuff.

“My favourite team was (the) San Jose (Sharks). I was cheering for them, especially when (Owen) Nolan was there.”

The 31-year-old left-winger said one of his young teammates turned him onto the California-based squad in the 1990s. “(He) wore the hat with a shark, and we were like, ‘What is it?’ Because we don’t know the team. He said it’s the team over in San Jose. So, I have a hat, I have a hoodie and a jacket. My dad gave me a jersey of Ulf Dahlen. It was on my wall,” Ovechkin said.

mike.sawatzky@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @sawa14