The Washington Capitals survived another third-period surge from the Montreal Canadiens to secure a 3-1 win in Game 2 of the first round series. Capitals forward Connor McMichael scored two goals, but it was Washington goalie Logan Thompson who stole the show with 14 saves to preserve the Capitals’ win.
Montreal’s top line started well in the opening minutes of the first period, but threats were quickly shut down by the Capitals’ defense. Thompson stopped all four shots he faced while his counterpart, Sam Montembeault, saved all nine shots sent in his direction. There was no scoring in a physical first frame.
Montreal scored early in the second period to grab a 1-0 advantage on Christian Dvorak’s goal at 1:16. Dvorak swatted at a loose puck in the crease and managed to push the frozen disc past Thompson for the opening score. It was Dvorak’s first playoff goal since his 2020 postseason experience with the Arizona Coyotes. Canadiens fans started to dream of evening up the series as Montreal was excellent when scoring first this season, with a 26-9-2 record, or a 70% win rate.
The joy was short-lived for Montreal supporters as Washington responded with a pair of quick goals, 91 seconds after the Canadiens’ opening score. At the 3:47 mark of the second period, McMichael received a bit of puck luck after a centering pass deflected off the skate of Dennis Savard and behind Montembeault to tie the score at one. Montreal’s netminder made the initial save on McMichael’s wrap-around attempt, which left him no chance to keep the deflection out of the net.
One minute later, Washington unlocked the game on Dylan Strome’s first goal of the series. After a zone entry, Ryan Leonard zipped a cross-ice pass to Anthony Beauvillier. The 27-year-old forward redirected the puck to the slot towards Strome for a one-touch shot attempt that Montembeault stopped, but the netminder couldn’t contain the rebound and watched helplessly as Strome placed the puck into the net for a 2-1 Capitals lead.
