1/1/15

Brouwer's Late Goal Lifts Capitals Past Blackhawks in Winter Classic

The 2015 Bridgestone Winter Classic is in the books. The Washington Capitals defeated the Chicago Blackhawks by a score of 3-2. It was a very tight and exciting game. Both teams looked like they wanted this game. The game started at 1:00 with Corey Crawford in net for the visiting Blackhawks and Braden Holtby in net for the Capitals. At 7:01 of the first period, Capitals' forward Eric Fehr was on a breakaway and he fired the puck past Crawford to give the Capitals a 1-0 lead. At 11:58, Alex Ovechkin increased the Capitals' lead to 2-0 when he rifled a shot past Crawford. Ladies and gentlemen, if you read my "Players to Watch For" entry, you saw that I pointed out that Ovechkin is very good at coming out of nowhere to find the puck and score. He validated by point. At 13:29, Capitals' forward Nicklas Backstrom was assessed a two-minute holding penalty to put the Blackhawks on the power play. The Blackhawks capitalized, as Patrick Sharp buried a shot past Holtby to cut the Capitals' lead to 2-1. After a very exciting start to the game, the Capitals led 2-1 after one period of play. The Blackhawks entered the second period looking to tie the game. They did just that when Jonathan Toews found Pittsburgh's own Brandon Saad, who scored at 3:15 to tie the game at 2-2. Just 42 seconds later, Capitals' forward Jason Chimera was assessed a two-minute holding penalty. The Blackhawks were unable to capitalize. The Blackhawks went back on the power play at 9:18 when Tom Wilson was called for a two-minute goalkeeper interference penalty. The Blackhawks went on a 5-on-3 power play when John Carlson was given a two-minute high-sticking penalty at 9:47. The Blackhawks were unable to capitalize on the golden opportunity. After two periods of play, the score remained a 2-2 tie. The Capitals were given an advantage to take the lead when Blackhawks' forward Andrew Shaw was assessed a two-minute tripping penalty at 8:21 of the third period. The Capitals were unable to convert. At 16:49, Capitals' defenseman Matt Niskanen was called for a two-minute boarding penalty. With two seconds remaining on the Niskanen penalty, Blackhawks' captain Jonathan Toews was assessed a two-minute hooking penalty to force a brief 4-on-4 and then a Capitals' power play. Alex Ovechkin was about to fire a shot on goal, but his stick broke. Luckily for the Capitals, Troy Brouwer was near and he picked up the puck and fired it past Crawford at 19:47 to give the Capitals a late 3-2 lead. The score held true and the Capitals won the Winter Classic 3-2. It was a great game. Both teams played very well. It will be interesting to see what two teams will play in the 2016 Winter Classic.