The Washington Capitals did it. They finally slayed the black and gold dragon known as the Pittsburgh Penguins.
To really sell how tough a mountain this was to climb, of course the Penguins forced the Capitals to end it via sudden death.
Evgeny Kuznetsov experienced plenty of frustrating moments on Monday, but the talented center ended Game 6 in overtime with a semi-breakaway 2-1 goal. It only makes sense that Alex Ovechkin was the one to send Kuznetsov on that breakaway, and for Sidney Crosby to be on the ice for that season-ending goal.
With that, the Penguins’ bid at a “threepeat” is over after the Capitals took this second-round series 4-2.
[NBC’s Stanley Cup Playoff Hub]
Game 6 feels like a decent microcosm of the series as a whole. There were plenty of sloppy moments, surprisingly tepid stretches, and Washington ended up scoring the majority of the big goals (aside from that bizarre Penguins win in Game 1).
For much of this series, the first period has been barren when it comes to goals, and this one followed suit with a 0-0 start. Alex Chiasson gave the Capitals a 1-0 goal on one that Matt Murray would like back, and there was a surprising amount of doom and gloom surfacing for some Pittsburgh fans. To be fair, the Penguins looked remarkably flat at times with their season on the line.
That doesn’t mean that they just rolled over and gave Game 6 up, mind you.
Kris Letang’s 1-1 goal included a fortunate bounce, yet the Penguins’ play improved. Granted, the Capitals still seemed like the better team during much of the third period and overtime, yet Matt Murray helped the Penguins hang in there.
The Capitals ended up eliminating the Penguins with Nicklas Backstrom missing Game 6 with an injury and Tom Wilson wrapping up his controversial suspension. Washington likely would have taken a victory over the Penguins under any array of circumstances, but advancing this way has to be a true confidence-booster.
And, of course, an igloo-sized relief.
This is happening, Caps fam. This is real life. #ITSOKTOBELIEVE pic.twitter.com/G8Wwamc9bH
— NBC Sports Capitals (@NBCSCapitals) May 8, 2018
Ovechkin & Co. won’t exactly get eased into their maiden voyage in the third round, as the Tampa Bay Lightning stand as a fresh, formidable opponent. Chances are, the Lightning will be far less leaky than the Penguins appeared at times during this series, including tonight.
The Penguins have as many giveaways (14) as they've had in any game of this series, tying their total from Game 1, a game in which they played well for roughly 5 minutes.
— Greg Wyshynski (@wyshynski) May 8, 2018
Despite some incredible play from Sidney Crosby and Jake Guentzel during this series, the Penguins couldn’t best their rivals this time around. After consecutive titles, they must lick their wounds following their first failure with Matt Murray in net and Mike Sullivan behind the bench.
(Yes, that’s quite the accomplishment, and one that might soothe some wounds in Pittsburgh.)
It’s up to management to make sure that this wasn’t the last gasp of a great era. That sounds tough to fathom, yet championship windows can slam shut with cold suddenness in sports. These Penguins aren’t spring chickens, after all, and Game 6 gave the impression that some key guys were fatigued, hurt, or both.
Wait, about the Penguins being a dragon or spring chickens... maybe they were more like Washington’s Bowser?
It's game over for the Pittsburgh Penguins. #StanleyCup pic.twitter.com/gILGmqIqZR
— NBC Sports Hockey (@NBCSportsHockey) May 8, 2018
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James O’Brien is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @cyclelikesedins.