The Capitals seem to be reeling more than ever before in Bruce Boudreau's tenure as head coach. The team has never before lost five straight games with Boudreau behind the bench, but that might change tonight.
The odds of the Capitals losing seem to increase by the minute. After falling behind 2-1 in the first period, a five-minute major and game misconduct penalty to Alexander Semin has left the Capitals down by two goals and without one of their most talented forwards. Following a scrum in front Colorado goaltender Craig Anderson, a high crosscheck by Semin after the whistle had blown resulted in the Russian being ejected for "intent to injure."
As if the script had already been pre-written, the Avalanche expectedly capitalized. While Eric Fehr served Semin's penalty in the box, Kevin Shattenkirk found Paul Stastny open in front of the net with a perfect pass.
Despite Semin's ejection and Colorado's lead, the Capitals have actually played fairly well. The home team almost pulled back within one on a goalline shot by Matt Hendricks, but the referees correctly concluded that the puck had not crossed the line after review.