CAPS FLATTEN BRUINS BEHIND OVECHKIN’S BIG GAME

It’s only the first game of the NHL season, but the Washington Capitals Alex Ovechkin is already hard at work defending his back-to-back MVP awards.  That’s bad news for the Boston Bruins, who had the misfortune of facing Ovechkin and the Caps on opening night.  ‘Ovie’ scored two goals and added an assist, and the Caps’ defense limited the Bruins to 20 shots on goal as Washington got the NHL season off to a winning start with a 4-1 win.

NHL hockey betting enthusiasts who backed the Caps as +115 road underdogs were rewarded with the victory.  The 5 goals scored went UNDER the posted total of 6.  The game marked the second in time Ovechkin’s NHL career that he scored more than one goal in the first game of the season.   Showing the flair for the dramatic that would become his trademark, he scored twice in his NHL debut against the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2005.
 
It’s never a good sign for the NHL team when your defenseman are marveling at the talents of the opposing team’s superstar player, but that’s exactly what Bruins’ backliner Dennis Wideman did after the lopsided loss:

"If you give him too much time to shoot, he will make you look bad. He is the hardest-working and hardest-hitting superstar in the league. He is the Rafael Nadal of hockey, and Sidney Crosby is Roger Federer."

The Caps had a great effort from the rest of the team as well.  Brooks Laich matched Ovechkin with two goals and an assist, while Niklas Backstrom had three assists and Alexander Semin two.  The Capitals won at Boston in regulation in their past fourteen games.  Washington coach Bruce Boudreau was clearly pleased with his team’s effort:

"If you could bottle that game up, we'd take it. Every night."

As was Ovechkin himself:

"They pushed on us hard. We played great defensively in the second period and we made that push and bounced back. That second goal was big."

Bruins’ coach Claude Julien suggested his team had an off night:

"We had too many good players probably at their worst. You don't want to take credit away from him, but you also want to expect more of your players, especially when he's on the ice."

"This is not the same team you're going to see on the ice night after night. That I can guarantee. As a home opener, it's certainly not what you want to demonstrate. We have a chance to redeem ourselves soon. Hopefully the guys take advantage of that."

The Bruins will try to put one in the win column at home on Saturday as they host the Carolina Hurricanes.  They’ll remain at home next week playing the Anaheim Ducks on Thursday and the New York Islanders on Saturday.  Washington will make their 2009 NHL home debut on Saturday against the Toronto Maple Leafs.  They’ll play at Philadelphia next Tuesday before returning home for a Thursday night game against the New York Rangers.