I wouldn't quite say that tonight's contest has the feeling of a playoff game, but its quite evident that we're watching two very good teams battle it out at Verizon Center.
Unfortunately for the Capitals, they're on the losing side of that battle thus far. The home team fell behind to the Vancouver Canucks by two goals in the second period.
After the first period ended without a single penalty for either team, we thought we were witnessing a really well-played mistake-free game, but the second period was quite different. With the Canucks earning the first power play of the game thanks to a Jason Chimera roughing penalty, Christian Ehrhoff made the Capitals pay. With a man-advantage, the Canucks worked the puck around their offensive zone and Ehrhoff lasered a shot through the legs of Semyon Varlamov.
The Canucks extended their lead later in the period, beginning from a beautiful poke check by Jannik Hansen to knock the puck away from Chimera. As Mike Green went for a big hit on Hansen, Daniel Sedin had a one-on-one opportunity against Varlamov of the Washington goaltender stood no chance against the All-Star.
The period finished 3-1.