A Win within a Defeat

It was a painful game to watch Saturday, with New York scoring first in the opening seconds of the game. But I do need to back up a few games.

In Game 3, it could have been called a endurance match. The Capitals and the Rangers played almost two whole games by the time the Rangers broke the dead lock. The players had to be giving their all in every period but thought three extra periods they must have been ready to drop. How they managed to play as hard as they did, even in the end, I don't know but it must have been a relief for everyone (players, coaches, management, staff, etc.) on both teams to just go home and sleep. Unfortunately, when the game closed the wrong team won. Final score 2-1 Rangers.

Games 4 and 5 could have been the same game played twice but with a different victor. Both ended 3-2, the Caps won game 4, the Rangers won the game 5.

Game 6, the pivotal match to decide if the Rangers would take the series in Washington or would the Caps force a final game in New York. The Caps came through and gave the Rangers some tough love. Final Score 2-1.

Back to Saturday's game. It was hard yes, painful yes, and caused many a Caps fan to try and find a silver lining in the hard loss that put the Capitals out of the running for the Stanly Cup this year. If anything these playoffs have shown us about the Caps is that for once they seem to work almost better in the postseason than in the regular season. Yes, it might have been hard at first for some of the players to change halfway thought the season to the new style of coaching brought by Dale Hunter. But it all seemed to come together just in time. The team worked in sync with each other to unseat the reigning champs and worked hard to put the Rangers out of the playoffs. Even if they didn't succeed with the Rangers they did prove to everyone (even if some won't admit it) that they still have a chance and still have what it takes. They may view it as a loss or failure but I don't think it was a complete loss. Being transformed into the gritty, grind-it-out-no-matter-how-long-it-takes type of team they were in the playoffs was no easy task. If they had beaten the Rangers and moved on to the 3rd round I'm confident that they could have beaten the Devils.

On a final note, for any skeptics out there still, why don't you try and do what those guys just did with a rookie (in the playoffs) goalie and a 'rookie' coach who they had to adjust to midway into the season and totally change how they play. Pretty good and I don't doubt it.