Baidu_NHL/NHL_Chicago Blackhawks vs Washington Capitals January 1st 2015.mp4

Way

above

the

stadium.

Which

is

feet

below

street

level.

Corey

Crawford

turned

yesterday.

He

has

won

a

Stanley

Cup.

He

has

been

in

an

outdoor

game.

Just

two

years

ago.

A

champion.

A

native

of

Montreal.

At

the

other

end

is

Braden

Holtby.

From

farm

country.

acres.

Lloydminster.

Saskatchewan.

He

is

the

main

man

for

Washington.

It

is

his

consecutive

start.

Alexander

Ovechkin

is

always

near

the

top

in

scoring

and

in

registering

hits.

He

is

not

dull.

As

a

personality

or

as

a

hockey

player.

He

stands

out.

He

likes

the

big

stage.

There

is

bigger

for

him

than

this

one.

Jonathan

Toews.

The

smooth-skating,

playmaking

captain

of

the

Chicago

Blackhawks.

These

guys

have

mostly

been

in

outdoor

games

before.

but

everyone

quickens

the

pulse

just

a

little

bit

more.

Partial

sunshine

as

we

begin

here

this

afternoon

at

Nationals

Park.

Poised

and

ready.

Francois

St-Laurent,

Kelly

Sutherland,

The

referees.

Scott

Cherry

and

Tim

Nowak

are

the

linesmen.

The

signal

is

given.

And

this

Winter

Classic...

Underway.

Always

fascinating

to

hear

how

the

crowd

roars

at

the

start.

Ovechkin's

first

chance

save

made

by

Crawford;

one

shot

on

goal

registered

early.

You

heard

both

coaches

in

their

pregame

speech

talk

about

shooting

the

puck

from

anywhere

at

any

time,

especially

with

these

elements

that

all

players,

especially

the

goaltenders,

have

to

deal

with.

A

good

opportunity

there

for

Alexander

Ovechkin.

Toews

controlled

on

this

faceoff.

Brent

Seabrook

throws

it.

Kept

alive

by

Carlson.

John

Carlson

saw

one

go

to

the

corner

and

a

big

roar

from

the

crowd

as

it's

played

along

now

by

Jay

Beagle.

Jammed

around

behind,

and

Beagle

has

that

one.

Nudges

it

on

to

Backstrom.

Nicklas

Backstrom

able

to

lay

it

onto

the

back.

Brooks

Orpik

was

a

question

mark,

but

decisively

in

after

he

took

the

skate

prior

to

the

game.

Game

time.

Decision,

and

he's

there.

This

is

his

fourth

outdoor

game

for

number

brought

back

ahead

by

Beagle.

Then

poked

on

the

right

near

Ovechkin.

but

sent

across

by

Niklas

Hjalmarsson.

who

gets

it

back

again

from

Swedish

compatriot

Johnny

Oduya.

Alzner

twirled

it

along.

and

offside

is

called.

We

mentioned

Brooks

Orpik.

Daniel

Carcillo

has

played

in

four

of

these.

and

so

has

Brad

Richards.

The

difference

between

Richards,

Orpik,

and

Carcillo

he

does

have

a

major

penalty

for

fighting

at

Fenway

Park.

During

the

game,

That

is,

brought

on

by

Leich,

and

a

shot.

and

that

turned

aside.

And

then

we

get

a

stoppage

as

it

goes

out

of

play.

Eddie

and

Doc,

we've

been

in

a

lot

of

these

games,

But

this

is

about

the

best

I've

ever

seen

the

ice;

I

know

it's

early

in

the

game.

but

I

think

the

ice

will

continue

to

evolve

and

get

better.

But

look

how

flat

the

pucks

are

when

they're

being

passed.

That

says

a

lot

about

the

quality

of

the

ice.

The

weather

has

really

helped

out,

And

they're

probably

going

to

have

a

little

maintenance

here

with

the

left

goalpost,

the

device

that

holds

the

net

in

place

for

Corey

Crawford,

but

they've

only

had

about

hours

of

actual

ice

time.

over

the

course

since

the

rink

was

put

in

here

at

Nats

Park.

And

that

includes

the

two

teams

practicing

yesterday

and

the

skate

around

with

their

families

and

members

of

each

organization.

On

a

sunny

day

the

eye

black

is

very

important,

and

even

in

the

family

skate

yesterday

some

of

the

children

had

eye

black

on.

It

made

sense;

it

was

sunny

out

here.

Smith

trying

to

work

behind

Ben

Smith

at

the

Blackhawks.

Carcillo,

mentioned

earlier,

played

that

one

along

wearing

number

tied

up

right

along

the

Washington

Capitals

bench

area

right

in

front

of

Pierre.

There

go

Latta

and

Carcillo,

drawing

at

one

another.

Carcillo

pushes

back.

And

Latta

gives

him

a

hard

shove.

Carcillo

shoves

back.

They

jab

at

one

another

and

play

continues;

now

Latta

is

having

words

with

Krueger.

That

is

probably

not

a

matchup,

but

would

have

been.

Sent

right

back

in

again

and

along

near

Matt

Niskanen

of

the

Caps'

defense.

Poked

along

by

Patrick

Kane.

Guided

back

out

again.

And

a

nice

pass

ahead

for

Marcus

Johansson.

Johansson

dips

the

shoulder.

Tries

to

get

by.

And

around

behind

is

able

to

feed.

Olsner's

shot

and

it

wouldn't

go.

They

battle

on

the

boards

further

and

it's

pushed

around

behind

where

it

can

be

played

on

the

outside

by

Troy

Brouwer.

The

ex-Blackhawk.

Over

games

with

both

franchises.

Here's

Chalmerson

taking

over.

Guiding

it

off

the

glass

to

the

safety

of

center.

It

is

an

international

cast.

Fourteen

Olympians

among

the

players

suited

up

today.

Impressive:

at

center,

Brian

Bickell

was

pressed

to

the

glass

by

Karl

Alzner.

This

one

guided

ahead

by

Patrick

Sharp.

Reaching

is

Carlson.

Persisting

is

Shaw.

Saving

on

the

play

is

Holtby.

And

a

disagreement

out.

A

nice

little

play

there

by

Patrick

Sharp

entering

the

Capitals'

zone

and

then

all

of

a

sudden

Andrew

Shaw

finds

his

way

with

an

opportunity.

And

Braden

Holtby

stands

tall.

There's

the

play

from

Sharp.

Good

support.

Strength

in

numbers.

A

miniature

two-on-one.

And

Shaw

with

the

chance.

And

the

points

matter

right

in

front

of

me.

Dan

Carcillo,

Michael

Latta,

one

year

in

Phoenix.

Dan

Carcillo

at

minutes

in

penalties,

so

he

knows

what

he's

doing

out

there,

and

he's

trying

to

go

at

Latta,

maybe

a

little

bit

of

an

intimidation

kind

of

situation.

We

are

very

close

to

the

ice.

Patrick

Sharp

is

poised

at

the

edge

for

this

face-off.

I

think

he

might

be

wearing

those

special

glasses.

Here's

one

that's

guided

away

by

Holtby.

We'll

get

a

better

look

here.

Another

shot.

Oh,

And

Holtby

got

a

piece

of

that.

They

practiced

some

with

sunglasses

yesterday,

And

we

were

curious

how

many

were

going

to

wear

them.

There's

another

hard

shot

on

goal

by

Sharp.

Picked

up

there

and

cleared

back

out

to

center.

Brooks

Laich

is

able

to

bring

it

ahead.

Here's

Laich

with

a

man-breaking

shot

one.

And

that

one

was

flopped

away

by

Crawford.

Bickell

able

to

guide

it

ahead.

The

big

winger

brings

it

on,

Trying

to

work

in.

Pressed

there

by

Matt

Niskanen.

Jammed

along

behind

by

Ward

and

taken

by

Orpik.

Turned

back

over

and

Bickell

with

a

little

pass

that

will

be

chased

down

by

Hossa.

Fed

to

the

front,

Taken

on

by

Toews.

Back

to

Hjalmarsson.

Drive!

And

that

one

waffle-boarded

away

to

the

corner

by

Holtby.

Dug

out

there

and

worked

along

by

Hossa

again

and

a

quick

shot

got

the

glass.

The

try

coming

from

Saad.

It

is

Saad

around

behind

again.

Saad

just

twirling

to

the

outside.

Puts

on

the

brakes

trying

to

shake

his

man.

Fair.

Around

behind

further.

It's

given

to

Hossa,

a

shot.

And

that

one

is

blocked

aside.

Again

it's

taken

in

deep

by

Oduya.

Fed

it

across

to

Saad.

Grabbed

off

by

Alzner.

Connects

off

the

stick

of

Toews.

Rescued

by

Niskanen.

Played

back

on,

and

Oduya

skittered

it

around

behind.

Here's

Toews

sending

one

across.

And

that

one

escaped

to

the

wall,

where

it's

played

back

out

by

Joel

Ward.

It's

called,

but

the

action

has

not

stopped.

You

see

shadows

on

the

ice,

and

some

players

may

be

wearing

sunglasses,

but

this

is

yesterday.

Karl

Alzner

wearing

them.

Patrick

Sharp

has

darkened

eyes,

but

not

because

of

sunglasses,

just

because

of

the

eye

black

that

the

players

often

wear.

And

it's

interesting,

Eye

black

was

developed

in

this

very

city

in

the

Half

shield

as

well

for

Patrick

Sharp.

Sticked

aside

by

Crawford

and

fed

on

a

cross.

Has

to

be

played

hurriedly

by

Seabrook.

And

he

will

retreat

to

play

behind

Crawford

again.

From

the

sun

to

the

shade,

we

often

talk

about

that

in

terms

of

baseball,

but

not

hockey.

But

you

do

see

a

shaded

side,

the

side

right

in

front

of

us.

The

near

side

as

you

watch.

Play

to

the

outside

by

Kris

Versteeg.

Round

behind

for

Patrick

Kane.

Here's

Kane

shoved

down

but

gets

right

back

up

to

play.

And

Versteeg's

shot,

and

that

one

was

turned

aside.

As

Holtby

has

been

the

busier

of

the

men

right

now.

Guided

on

by

Alzner

and

back

out.

Caught

back

ahead

and

played

on

by

Kruger.

Chased

down

by

Smith.

Dropped

on

back

and

it's

picked

up

there

by

Mike

Green.

Carcillo

is

out

there

again

and

I'm

sure

Pierre

heard

more

than

he

wants

to

talk

about

when

they

were

colliding

right

around

him

at

center

ice,

but

another

big

collision

and

a

crowd

gathers.

Tom

Wilson

in

the

middle

of

it

with

Ben

Smith,

so,

Doc,

as

you

like

To

say

the

tough

guys

are

out

there

pushing

there's

Carcillo

and

Jason

Chimera,

now

Wilson

with

Carcillo.

So

these

guys

are

playing

for

keeps.

This

is

not

an

exhibition

game

outdoors

on

January

Right

across

from

the

Chicago

Blackhawks'

bench,

Physical

play.

Tom

Wilson,

known

for

that.

Ben

Smith

gets

a

little

help.

From

the

official's

helmet-cam

there,

He

gets

a

real

good

look

at

the

pushing

and

shoving,

and

there

will

be

some

penalties.

Probably

more

to

control

the

game

and

send

a

message

to

Wilson

and

Carcillo.

They'll

be

running

around

recklessly.

The

fans

don't

like

it,

though.

The

fans

want

to

keep

seeing

the

hitting.

Why

is

that,

Pierre?

They're

carnivores,

Doc?

No.

The

H

in

hockey

stands

for

hits,

And

we've

seen

a

lot,

and

I

think

that

adds

to

the

verve

of

the

game.

They

can

travel

miles

an

hour

and

collide

with

stationary

objects.

I'm

right

up

next

to

one.

This

glass

here

is

more

than

stationary.

It

doesn't

give

a

whole

lot,

and

Carl

Alsner

still

has

the

shades

on,

So

he

is

going

with

those

sunglasses

today.

I

sense

a

new

cottage

industry,

hockey

sunglasses.

for

outdoor

play.

Probably

not.

I'm

sure

it's

big

business

already.

A

lot

of

room

four-on-four

here.

Here

charges

Ovechkin.

Flying

ahead,

the

Caps.

The

captain

fired

one

that's

turned

aside

by

Crawford.

Worked

back

to

the

outside

for

another

pass

to

the

back.

Carlson

the

shot,

and

that

one

held

by

Crawford.

Play

stopped

here

with

about

six

minutes

and

seven

seconds

gone.

Gone.

Exciting

afternoon

here,

but

scoreless.

Big

time.

Here's

Backstrom

on

this

faceoff.

As

you

see

the

left-field

crowd

in

the

background.

He

is

chased

out.

Ovechkin

will

come

in

to

take

this

draw

against

Toews.

Toews

right

on

goal.

Had

to

be

spiked

away.

And

another

save.

Hits

made

by

Crawford.

Both

goaltenders

have

been

sound.

Brought

right

back

ahead

by

Toews.

Finesses

it

one-handed.

Saad

around

behind.

It's

checked

off

by

Carlson.

In

deep

is

Hjalmarsson

to

play.

Floated

behind

for

the

turn

by

Toews.

And

Saad

fanning

on

it.

A

perfect

pass,

it

seems.

Ovechkin

gallops

right

back

and

tries

to

pull

his

way

through

Johnny

Oduya.

Neither

guy

gave

on

that

one.

So

it

is

Toews.

A

horn

will

sound

three

minutes

and

seconds

from

now.

Halfway

through

the

period,

they'll

change

in.

Here's

one

shot.

Here's

another

shot

by

Saad.

And

Braden

Holtby

got

them

both.

A

near

miss

for

Brandon

Saad

at

one

end,

He

comes

right

back

and

creates

two

chances

here.

Good

save

by

Holtby,

Left-pad

save.

And

Saad

stays

right

with

it

off

the

backhand.

Go

back

to

the

Capitals'

chance.

Alexander

Ovechkin

comes

in

and

takes

that

shot

off

the

faceoff,

And

Nicklas

Backstrom

with

a

good

opportunity,

Another

good

stop

there

from

Corey

Crawford.

And

you

talk

about

playing

one-on-ones.

There's

Johnny

Oduya.

Don't

play

the

puck,

play

the

man.

He

deposits

it.

It's

Alexander

Ovechkin

right

down

on

the

ice.

Great

job

by

Oduya.

From

this

face-off,

Fehr

is

able

to

win

it,

He

of

the

two-goal

game

in

Pittsburgh

in

the

rain.

At

the

Winter

Classic,

Trouble

for

the

stop

on

Seabrook,

Darting

right

back

in

is

Fehr!

Shows

the

foot

race

of

the

man

Doc

was

just

talking

about.

Eric

Fehr,

who

scored

two

goals

in

the

outdoor

game

in

Pittsburgh.

He

must

have

been

hearing

you.

Doc.

He

got

this

puck

because

it

was

bouncing

right

past

us.

right

over

the

stick

of

Brent

Seabrook.

The

Capitals

with

a

lead.

Is

Alzner

back

to

play

with

left

before

we

change

ends.

Johansen

with

a

shot,

and

that

was

blocked

up

high.

Whenever

the

NHL

senses

there

is

an

advantage

to

one

team,

either

through

wind

or

vision

or

whatever

reason,

they

will

switch

ends

halfway

through

to

make

it

fair.

We

talked

about

that

bouncing

puck.

There's

Brent

Seabrook

trying

to

keep

it

in,

and

when

he's

standing

still

Fehr

has

a

start

goes

a

little

backhand,

forehand;

great

patience

by

Fehr

and

he

beats

Corey

Crawford.

His

goal

of

the

year,

an

unassisted

goal

elapsed

time.

That

was

one

of

those

plays,

Doc,

and

I

mean

we're

within

about

a

hundred

feet

of

Pierre

in

his

inside-the-glass

position,

but

you

saw

that

puck

bouncing

the

whole

way

and

really

Seabrook

had

no

chance

to

keep

that

in.

Here's

Sharp

with

a

shot.

And

that

one

was

juggled

a

bit,

but

then

held

by

Braden

Holtby.

Well,

The

Chicago

Blackhawks

just

tried

a

little

gamesmanship

there.

Marian

Hossa

came

down

to

my

end

of

the

ice

after

possession

was

won,

Hossa

jumps

on.

You're

going

to

see,

He's

going

to

jump

in

behind

the

Washington

Capitals'

defense

on

a

line

change.

There

he

is.

That

was

like

the

sleeper

playing

football,

Doc

and

Eddie.

Look

at

the

top

of

your

screen,

the

left

part.

There's

Hossa.

And

that's

the

play

that

Pierre

was

talking

about.

Quick

little

change.

A

quality

chance

there

for

Sharp.

Pierre

pointed

out

the

ice

opens

up

with

a

player

from

each

side

in

the

penalty

box.

That

is

where

they

are

for

seven

more

seconds.

Icing

is

called

and

the

faceoff

will

come

back

near

Holtby.

Eddie

and

Doc,

I

got

to

tell

you,

Joel

Quenneville

is

coaching

as

well

as

I've

ever

seen.

This

Chicago

Blackhawks

team,

Eddie,

I

know

you

get

to

see

him

a

lot

live.

They're

as

much

fun

as

any

team

in

the

league

to

watch

right

now,

and

I

think

a

big

reason

why

is

Joel

Quenneville

and

the

way

he's

coaching.

He

is

the

third

winningest

coach

in

the

history

of

the

sport.

This

comes

to

the

back

now

for

a

play

by

Rozsival.

Rattled

around

for

Patrick

Sharp.

Carlson.

Stepped

away.

But

the

puck

was

lost.

Turned

back

on

carefully

by

Orpik.

And

then

spirited

it

ahead.

Kuznetsov

dropped

it

back

in

and

went

right

in

after

it,

almost

stepping

free.

But

then

it

popped

on,

played

back

by

Sharp

and

worked

on

by

Carcillo.

And

then

lofted

back

in

by

Hossa.

One

of

the

strategies

discussed

in

prior

Winter

Classics,

especially

when

the

sun

is

involved,

is

the

notion

of

throwing

a

puck

in

from

a

distance

or

throwing

it

in

high,

causing

the

goaltender

more

trouble.

The

long

shots

or

the

high

dumps.

I

haven't

noticed

much

of

that

happening

here,

as

Versteeg

plays

it

behind.

You're

going

to

need

a

little

bit

of

time

to

be

able

to

try

to

execute

that

type

of

play.

But

sometimes

that

happens,

maybe

with

teams

in

the

middle

of

a

change,

where

you're

able

to

make

one

of

those

types

of

plays.

Seabrook,

Kane,

chipped

it

back,

and

Seabrook

again.

A

minute

into

this

period.

Backstrom

saw

it

chipped

away

by

Versteeg.

Lobbed

out

by

Mike

Green.

After

it

is

Brooks-like,

and

he

is

able

to

move

in.

But

he

was

in

early,

ahead

of

the

puck,

and

so

offside

is

called.

There

was

no

All-Star

game

last

year

because

of

the

Olympics

in

Sochi.

This

year

we'll

be

in

Columbus.

The

home

of

the

Blue

Jackets.

Oshie

tipped

that

one

ahead.

Carlson

can

play

it

there.

On

a

cross

for

the

float

back

by

Jay

Beagle.

Denied

by

Oduya

at

center.

But

persisting

with

Backstrom.

And

so

back

in

it

comes

again.

And

hustling

with

Hjalmarsson

to

play

that

ahead.

Remember,

We're

going

to

have

a

hard

horn

here

at

the

mark

to

switch

in

seconds

from

now.

Angled

on.

They

have

Orpik

at

the

point,

but

don't

send

it

there.

Instead,

it's

a

difficult

angle

shot,

but

right

in

on

goal

where

it

could

be

stopped

by

Crawford.

And

that

came

from

Ovechkin.

Meanwhile,

it

can

be

played

along

now

by

Backstrom,

but

chasing

it

down

is

Brooks

Orpik.

And

that's

just

to

make

sure

that

both

teams

have

the

same

vantage

point

with

the

sunlight

here

early

in

the

game.

Deflected

back

down,

there'll

be

no

icing

here.

And

so

it's

Hjalmarsson

firing

it

around

and

Sharp

waiting

and

then

popping

one

ahead

that

will

skip

back

in

and

become

an

icing.

Chased

down

now

by

Duncan

Keith.

Out

of

Michigan

State.

Threw

it

on

to

Seabrook.

Curling

with

it

is

Kane.

Back

across

now

to

Versteeg.

Rifled

on

across

now

for

the

hold

by

Hossa.

Or,

beg

your

pardon,

by

Richards.

And

that

one

turned

along

and

can

be

played

right

back

out

again.

And

carried

on

by

Johansson.

Got

it

across

because

that's

off.

Back

to

Johansson,

moving

out,

and

then

the

break.

Here's

a

chance.

Initially

a

stop

by

Corey

Crawford

and

then

a

play

in

the

crease,

but

they

could

not

bash

it

home.

Here's

Keith

with

a

shot

across;

that

one

is

rifled

high

and

wide

by

Kane,

and

the

puck

goes

out

of

play.

Three-on-two

for

the

Capitals

coming

from

the

red

line

in.

Brent

Seabrook

with

a

huge

shot

block

at

the

end

of

this

play.

But

it's

an

opportunity

for

the

Capitals.

Johnson's

going

to

get

this

puck.

He

does

a

good

job

of

recovering.

Creating

the

chance.

Seabrook

moves

the

puck

out

of

harm's

way.

And

then

he

ends

up

blocking

the

shot

from

Matt

Niskanen

and

jumping

into

the

play.

That

was

a

great

job

by

the

Washington

Capitals

bench.

Telling

the

players

it

was

a

clean

three-on-two.

They

utilized

their

opportunity

very

well.

Waiting

as

Brooks

Orpik

to

play

it

there.

And

a

shot

was

blocked

away

by

Rundblad

again.

Stepped

into

by

Ward.

Played

on

by

Toews.

Settled

down

by

Baxter.

Brooks

Orpik

able

to

turn

around

behind.

Conditions

a

little

better

than

what

he

discussed

in

Pittsburgh,

where

the

pass

is

rooster-tailed

with

water.

Roosevelt

able

to

play

it

further.

Off

of

Carcillo.

Picked

free

from

Kruger.

In

comes

Beagle.

Knifed

away

by

Rundblad.

Back

to

Beagle.

Wraps

it

around

for

Ovechkin.

Heels

to

the

outside,

and

that

went

off

Kruger.

Driven

back

to

the

point

for

Hillen.

Across

to

Green

with

a

drive,

and

a

save

made

by

Crawford.

Rebound

it!

Jack

Hillen

to

Mike

Green

created

the

whole

play.

The

Capitals

working

down

low;

they

get

the

puck.

He's

going

to

move

from

one

side

of

the

ice

to

the

other.

And

then

Corey

Crawford's

not

able

to

absorb

the

rebound.

And

then

Alexander

Ovechkin.

Who

is

in

the

corner

to

start?

He

gets

to

the

front

of

the

net.

You

like

the

play

from

Hillen

that

you

just

talked

about.

Mike

Milbury

talked

about

Ovechkin's

celebrations

in

big

moments

like

this.

This

is

one

heck

of

a

celebration

from

a

guy

who's

got

so

much

enthusiasm

for

the

game.

Oduya's

pass

is

on

Sharp's

stick.

He

throws

one

in

front.

It's

blocked

away.

By

Braden

Holtby.

Meanwhile,

it's

played

to

the

wall

and

around

the

area

near

Jalmerson.

He

jabbed

it

back

along

the

board.

Trying

to

play

further

is

Sharp.

A

log

jam.

Two

players

aside.

Away

from

Shaw.

It

goes

up

high

and

is

chased

down

by

Oduya.

Harassed

there

by

the

big

Tom

Wilson.

And

it's

given

up;

a

diving

play

is

made

right

in

front

of

us

by

Bickel.

And

Bickel

can

step

ahead.

That

is

off

Shaw.

Rushed

on

by

Chimera.

Turned

back

to

Shaw

for

Chicago.

And

he

sailed

it

back

in.

Braden

Holtby

to

stop

that

one

there.

And

a

flying

hit

by

Bickel.

He

did

not

appear

to

leave

his

feet.

But

he

crunched

his

man

anyway.

This

one

dropped

back

and

is

played

by

Hillen.

On

over

to

Green.

And

then

it's

thrown

by

Keith.

Again,

It

is

a

pass

made

back

to

center

by

Braden

Holtby.

Carried

back

on

now

by

Kuznetsov.

And

it

is

held

by

Crawford.

Their

two

favorite

players

are

out

on

the

ice

right

now:

Backstrom,

and

Ovechkin.

Backstrom.

and

Ovechkin.

Ovechkin

gets

the

second

goal

in

this

game.

There

have

been

of

these

games

since

Sidney

Crosby

scored

in

Buffalo

in

the

snow.

They

have

been

played

all

around

the

world.

Including

Red

Square,

Hershey

Park

Stadium,

Mexico

City,

nine

other

different

countries.

Ice

can

be.

Made

just

about

anywhere.

Last

year,

Dodger

Stadium,

of

course,

where

the

temperature

was

at

the

start.

Ovechkin's

goal

from

Green

and

Hillen

at

I

guess

the

one

at

Red

Square

sort

of

pointed

out

both

aspects

of

Russian

life

in

the

last

hundred

years.

It

went

from

a

department

store

at

one

end

to

Lenin's

tomb

at

the

other.

This

one

rifled

back

in,

and

Johnny

Oduya

can

play

it

there.

But

taking

it

away

on

the

bounce

was

Beagle.

Leads

one

ahead

and

Backstrom

tried

to

play

it,

but

a

penalty

is

coming

up;

the

call

will

be

a

hold.

And

it

is

Ovechkin

who

is

protesting.

Orpik

is

gliding

toward

the

penalty

box;

who

will

take

a

seat?

So

to

the

power

play

go

the

Chicago

Blackhawks.

They're

four

for

their

last

is

pretty

good.

It

is

Keith

and

then

Sharp.

Nicely

able

to

keep

the

bouncing

puck

and

shoots.

They

score!

Patrick

Sharp

from

the

blue

line.

The

lead

is

cut

in

half.

Patrick

Sharp's

seventh

goal

of

the

season.

Sixth

on

the

power

play.

Face-off

win.

Puck

was

rolling.

Duncan

Keith

chose

not

to

shoot

this

puck.

And

he

got

the

puck

back

to

the

point

to

Patrick

Sharp.

Sharp's

able

to

put

the

puck

on

net,

and

I

believe

it

went

right

in

past

Braden

Holtby

with

a

good

screen

in

front

of

the

net

from

Andrew

Shaw.

It

went

straight

in

and

that's

exactly

where

Shaw

has

to

make

his

living

on

a

power

play.

That's

basically

a

five-man

power

play

for

Chicago

in

terms

of

guys

doing

their

assignments

properly.

What

a

shot

by

Patrick

Sharp.

It

is

Roosevelt

for

Chicago.

And

back

in

for

Holtby

from

Washington.

Rushing

along

is

Kruger

trying

to

keep

play

alive.

Got

some

help

from

Rundblad

to

do

that.

Meanwhile,

It's

Niskanen,

but

taken

away

by

Chicago,

and

they

work

it

back

in

deep.

Kruger

trying

to

turn

away

Connolly,

and

a

nice

advance

here

as

it's

played

back

across

for

the

carry-on

by

Johansson.

Marcus

Johansson

flew

on,

that

ricocheted

back

to

center,

and

so

the

Caps

have

to

get

back

to

center.

This

is

Crawford

playing

to

Rundblad.

Rundblad's

pass

is

right

on

the

money

to

Ben

Smith,

Boston

College

product.

Forced

it

back

in

and

threw

it

in

after.

The

test

of

wills

along

the

boards.

You

see

Patrick

Kane,

and

then

Seabrook.

Chopped

back

on

for

Smith,

who's

bear

hugged

by

Allsmith.

And

finally,

it

comes

loose.

The

half

boards

jostled.

A

lot

of

hard

work

here,

and

a

gain

of

a

couple

of

yards.

Marched

to

center

ice,

and

then

finessed

back

in

by

Johansen,

so

Crawford

is

out

to

get

it,

and

hurried

along

in

stride

by

Duncan

Keith.

Icing

play

ahead

now,

Taken

by

Andrew

Shaw.

Battling

continues

near

the

penalty

box

as

it's

centered.

Flown

right

back

in

and

Keith

turns;

right

after

him

is

Joel

Ward.

Keith

nicely

able

to

turn

away

from

him

and

feed

to

Shaw

then

to

Seabrook

and

Seabrook

with

a

long

toss

ahead.

On

the

money

it's

brought

right

back

and

a

quick

shot

is

blocked

and

then

covered

by

Holtby

from

Brian

Bickell.

Alexander

Ovechkin

with

a

goal

that

made

it

Sharp

from

Keith

and

Kane

at

on

the

power

play.

Cut

the

lead

in

half.

Welcome

back

to

D.C.

For

the

Bridgestone

Winter

Classic.

The

Capitals

lead

the

Blackhawks

If

you

see

the

initials

CR

on

both

teams,

helmets

and

on

the

trainers

for

the

Chicago

Blackhawks,

that's

in

honor

of

their

late

assistant

equipment

manager,

Clint

Reif,

years

of

age,

who

passed

away

a

couple

of

days

before

Christmas.

He

was

a

fixture

in

the

Blackhawk

locker

room,

and

as

anybody

would

tell

you,

the

trainer

is

a

lifeline

for

a

hockey

player;

everyone's

life

was

made

better

by

having

Clint

Reif

in

their

locker

room.

It

is

Niskanen

and

then

along

to

Leif.

Now

they

are

operating

in

one

of

the

few

sunny

spots

of

the

rink.

Probably

by

the

start

of

the

second

everything

will

be

in

shape.

Perhaps

they

will

not

need

to

divide

the

next

period

in

half

as

they

had

to

do

on

this

one,

Who

knows.

Meanwhile,

Versteeg

wanted

to

play,

but

had

no

luck.

Meanwhile,

It's

outletted

now

for

the

Caps,

And

Niskanen

brings

it

on;

a

University

of

Minnesota

Duluth

player

dropped

it

back

in,

And

Laich

jostles

There

around

behind

with

Rozsival.

Walking

free

as

Patrick

Kane

connects

to

Brad

Richards.

Nice

move

back,

and

the

pass

was

just

behind

Rundblad,

but

he

recovered

okay.

Now,

Rozsival

again.

To

the

last

four

minutes.

Period

number

one.

Winter

Classic

in

Washington

at

Nationals

Park.

Two

to

one,

the

home

team

ahead.

Poked,

shuffleboard-style,

by

Hjalmarsson.

Carried

back

in

by

Toews.

He

has

Saad

going

wide.

Toews

protects

and

tried

to

center

one

in

front.

Not

much

luck

for

a

combination

there.

Hossa

behind,

Saad

in

front.

Hossa

with

the

puck,

chased

down

by

Orpik.

Worked

along

to

Thames

in

front

for

Saad,

and

he

couldn't

jam

it

home.

I

didn't

know

where

that

puck

was

after

it

came

to

the

front

of

the

net.

He

wasn't

alone.

Carried

back

up

now

by

Ovechkin.

Ovechkin

breezes,

gave

it

across,

and

it

was

off

of

Backstrom.

Backstrom

rattled

it

around

behind.

It

looked

like

Ovechkin

had

a

pretty

good

shooting

lane

there,

or

did

he?

He

sure

did.

Clear

on

a

perfect

vantage

point

for

that.

Orpik

back

to

Carlson,

the

shot,

and

that

one

geared

up

to

the

glass

on

the

reach

of

Backstrom.

Hossa

outlets.

Toews

gives

it

back

to

Saad.

Tries

to

get

by

a

defender.

Jay

Beagle

able

to

poke

it

along,

and

Backstrom

shuffled

it

back

in.

Ovechkin

working

here

with

Seabrook,

and

it's

floated

along

to

Oduya.

Two

on

one,

Doc.

Another

odd

man

situation

for

the

Capitals,

the

fourth

one

of

the

period.

That

line

changed

by

Hjalmarsson,

that's

what

was

going

to

lead

to

that.

Patrick

Sharp

did

some

work.

Burrowing

in

is

Bickell.

Two

aside,

and

now

another

pair

joins

in

Shaw.

It

is

Parleson.

Played

back

in

again

by

Shaw.

Green

got

there,

but

Bickell

did

first

for

possession.

It

was

thrown

off

the

outside

of

the

cage

and

then

poked

away

with

the

help

of

the

defense

and

also

of

Holtby.

A

jam

play

at

the

front

fails

but

a

penalty

is

called

from

center.

The

call

is

a

high

stick

and

who

will

go?

I

think

it's

going

to

be

Bickell.

I

think

you're

right

Eddie.

A

lot

of

jousting

down

low

in

front

of

Braden

Holtby.

The

puck

ended

up

in

the

back

of

the

net

for

the

Blackhawks,

but

the

penalty

was

on

Brian

Bickell.

Battle

in

front

of

the

net

with

Mike

Green.

A

high

stick.

Yes.

Four

strike

back

in

wide

of

the

cage.

You

do

what's

necessary.

That's

right.

And

here

is

Green.

New

Year's

resolution.

Now

we

get

another

jostle

play

where

Brouwer

sent

a

man

down

and

he's

going

to

the

box

for

it.

What's

the

rule,

Eddie,

if

you

see

someone's

numbers

lay

off?

You

got

to

pull

up

there

you're

better

off

to

live

to

fight

another

day;

get

your

stick

down

on

the

ice.

Former

Stanley

Cup

winner

with

the

Chicago

Blackhawks,

Troy

Brouwer,

ends

up

in

the

box

and

negates

the

power

play,

the

man

advantage.

Watch

the

bottom

of

your

screen

there's

Brouwer

right

there;

his

hands

are

up,

elbows

up,

and

he

just

drives

Johnny

Oduya

from

behind.

No

chance

for

him

to

protect

himself.

So

again,

If

Brouwer

gets

his

stick

buried

on

the

ice

there

and

plays

the

puck.

He

won't

get

called

for

a

penalty.

That's

a

good

teaching

point

for

a

lot

of

young

players

that

will

be

watching

this

game.

When

you

see

someone's

numbers,

back

off.

Keep

your

stick

on

the

ice.

Don't

put

it

in

someone's

back.

We

have

Troy

Brouwer,

probably.

Doc,

What

would

you

say?

About

feet

from

us

here

to

our

vantage

point.

Probably

not

the

time

to

do

any

teaching

to

a

young

Troy

Brouwer

right

now.

Meanwhile,

Around

behind,

it's

a

battle,

puck

thrown

on

by

Carlson.

Again,

we

have

four

against

four,

as

we

did

earlier

in

the

period.

Around

now

by

Orpik.

Dropped

it

along

for

Carlson,

returned

it

up

to

Brooks

Orpik.

Hitting,

shot

blocking

defenseman.

Orpik,

long

time

with

Pittsburgh.

This

time

with

Washington.

Swatted

on

by

Seabrook

to

center.

Versteeg

guided

it

off

the

skate

of

Saad.

Turns

it

back

but

ran

into

a

wall

of

Orpik.

Right

back

it

comes

now

to

Brooks

Laich.

Here's

Laich

putting

on

the

brakes

and

gliding

on

further

then.

Around

behind,

He

controls.

Got

it

back

to

Orpik.

Shovel

shot;

that

one

was

grabbed

and

then

sent

aside

by

Crawford,

the

play

made

up

to

Saad

by

Keith.

Saad

wants

to

skate

on

through.

Looking

for

help,

but

he

fired

one

that

ricocheted

up

high

and

out

of

play.

For

the

love

of

hockey

that's

the

end

of

the

sentence

right

there.

Offensive-zone

faceoff.

How

do

you

sense

the

ice

now,

Pierre?

The

ice

has

been

really

solid,

Doc

really,

really

good.

That's

why

I

think

we're

seeing

so

much

skill

here

in

the

first

period.

I

don't

think

the

sun's

been

an

issue

at

all

for

the

players.

Just

hearing

the

communication

on

the

bench,

I

think

the

issue

is

probably

for

the

coaches

standing

much

higher

above

their

players

and

then

looking

out

from

the

bench

onto

the

ice,

looking

right

into

the

sun.

Keith

chopped

it

on

across.

Here's

Roosevelt

firing

and

that

one

blocked

away

by

the

path

of

Holpe.

Onto

the

back

it

comes

to

Roosevelt

again.

Hands

it

on

to

Duncan

Keith.

On

this

opportunity

he

gives

it

across

now

to

Toews.

Quirles

one

on.

Played

further

by

Kane.

Patrick

Kane

floated

it

across

and

here's

Keith

with

it

again.

Keith

fed

one

on

to

Kane.

Kane

at

the

wall.

Got

it

on

back.

Sharper

drive

and

that

one

didn't

work.

Laid

back

ahead

now

by

Chimera

and

sent

back

down

by

Ward.

Two

seconds

and

one.

That's

the

first.

here,

and

many

of

them

stood

to

applaud

their

favorite

team

and

the

spectacle

in

general.

Off

and

on

today

you'll

see

the

Ref

Cam.

There

it

is.

The

puck

has

been

dropped

for

the

second

period

by

the

referee.

Francois

Saint-Laurent.

Played

back

ahead

now

by

Sharp.

A

blast

rattles

around

near

Beagle.

He

pushed

one.

But

it

went

into

Duncan

Keith.

He

got

it

back

across

to

Sharp.

Then

to

Keith

again.

Over

to

Patrick

Kane.

And

Kane

has

a

shot.

And

that

one

wouldn't

get

there.

And

it's

thrown

back

down

the

ice

by

Carlson.

Penalty

time

is

up.

Two

great

opportunities

for

Alexander

Ovechkin.

Now

curling

around

behind.

Here's

Andrew

Shaw.

He

looked

for

help

from

Oduya.

But

he

hasn't

gotten

there

yet.

So

more

work

has

to

be

done

by

Holcomb.

Reaching

in,

Baxter.

Get

a

look

at

some

plane

vision

for

Alexander

Ovechkin,

shorthanded

situation.

Ovechkin,

ever

the

predator,

jumps

right

in,

forces

that

turnover

bad

relay

between

Duncan

Keith

and

one

of

his

teammates.

And

Ovechkin

gets

two

chances.

One

of

them

off

the

post.

Eddie.

Yeah,

Right

off

this

first

chance.

Watch

him.

I

believe

he

knocks

this

right

out

of

midair.

Yeah,

It

goes

over

the

glove

of

Corey

Crawford.

Alexander

Ovechkin

has

four

of

the

Washington

Capitals'

nine

chances

in

this

Winter

Classic.

And

here

he

comes.

Liam,

Keith,

And

Mike

talked

about

it.

Ovechkin's

a

different

player

right

now.

He's

having

a

blast

out

here.

Look

out.

And

here's

another

little

clankfest

for

Alexander

Ovechkin.

He's

going

to

come

down

the

right

wing,

working

on

Johnny

Oduya

and

just

snap

it.

Yeah,

Short

side

on

Corey

Crawford.

And

I'm

sure

that

Barry

Trotz

and

the

Capitals

wish

Ovechkin

would

have

done

that

on

that

two-on-one

in

the

last

half

of

the

first

period.

Buck

is

finding

him.

He

has

five

scoring

chances

now.

The

Blackhawks

have

five.

Maybe

that

will

count

as

a

sixth.

As

the

shot

is

held

by

Holtby.

Let's

go

back

to

and

watch

Alexander

Ovechkin

in

Pittsburgh.

The

celebration,

the

happiness,

pumping

it

up

with

his

teammate,

former

teammate,

Alexander

Semin.

And

here

he

is

today.

This

guy's

into

it.

Lambeau

leaps,

high-fiving,

fist-pumping,

finishing

plays

off.

Alexander

Ovechkin's

got

it

all.

Tough

guy

to

contain

if

he's

got

that

kind

of

enthusiasm.

A

jam

play

at

the

front

Holtby

was

pushed

over,

the

net

was

dislodged

and

play

is

stopped;

the

puck

was

kept

out.

Right

off

the

faceoff,

Andrew

Shaw

goes

forward,

gets

inside

position

on

Mike

Green,

and

he

gets

drilled

from

behind

by

Jack

Hillen.

One

of

those

hit

Braden

Holtby.

Former

Hawks

assistant

Mike

Haviland.

Jack

Hillen

had

that

assist

on

the

goal

back

in

the

first

period.

Offensive-zone

faceoff

for

the

Blackhawks.

Full-strength

action

as

it

comes

back

to

Roosevelt.

Roosevelt

with

a

shot.

Kicked

away.

Played

by

Mike

Green.

Bank

went

off

the

linesman's

gate,

Followed

through

by

Hillen.

And

back

down

for

an

icing.

That's

what

Andrew

Shaw

did.

Though

it

was

blocked.

Thrown

back

on

by

Brower

and

corralled

and

brought

on

by

Baxter.

Pushed

it

right

in

on

goal.

Never

a

bad

play.

That

one

was

stopped

by

Crawford.

Kuznetsov

will

wade

in

on

this

one

with

Marcus

Kruger

of

Chicago.

Forced

to

the

boards,

Taken

on

by

Johansen.

Pushed

further

to

Sharp.

Moves

up

with

Smith.

Has

Kruger

moving

in,

too.

Pushed

it

there.

Kruger

plastered

his

man.

It's

Smith

trying

to

jab

it

away.

Worked

back

up

near

Kuznetsov,

But

kept

by

Keith.

More

hard

work

for

Kruger.

Continues

to

kick

it

along.

It's

helped

back

to

Keith

again.

Keith

saw

a

man

sprawling

across

Kuznetsov,

So

he

played

it

to

the

corner,

And

out

in

front

it

came.

Wound

up

going

off

of

Holtby,

and

still

it's

jammed

along

further.

Keith

hoping

to

keep

it,

and

he

does.

Angles

one

off

for

a

one-timer

by

Sharp

that

is

held

by

Holtby

and

play

is

halted.

Boy

a

little

bit

of

hacking

and

whacking

there

between

Marcus

Kruger

and

Troy

Brouwer.

As

the

puck

was

being

frozen

by

Braden

Holtby,

you

had

Kruger

and

Brouwer

just

pushing

and

slashing.

The

officials

and

the

rest

of

the

players

on

the

ice

ended

up

coming

into

the

fray

near

the

top

of

the

circle

in

the

Capitals'

zone.

Brouwer

is

one

of

those

examples

of

the

great

scouting

job

they

do

in

Chicago.

in

his

draft

year.

Obviously,

there's

the

slash

against

a

former

Hawk.

They

got

a

couple

there.

They

got

a

couple

of

good

ones

there.

I

mean,

Troy

Brouwer

is

just

a

tremendous

player

and

a

solid

two-way

player.

He's

that

type

of

player

that

has

his

nose

over

his

toes

when

he

plays

each

and

every

night.

What?

You

heard

me,

Doc.

Nose

over

toes.

Oduya

sees

this

one

come

out

for

Hossa

and

that

one

wouldn't

go

and

then

it's

clear

that

they're

in

the

midst

of

a

change.

And

Roosevelt

got

on

and

Jalmerson

got

off.

He's

all

in.

Every

shift.

Rattled

on

around

and

reaching

was

fair.

Tipped

on

ahead.

Toews

tried

to

settle

it

down.

Pushed

on

back

further

though.

Joel

Ward

did

that

and

it's

jammed

along

by

Carlson.

But

taken

and

fed

out

in

front

side

of

the

bar.

Saad!

Very

slow-developing

play

for

the

Capitals

below

the

goal

line.

John

Carlson's

going

to

get

this

puck.

He's

going

to

try

to

move

it

to

Brooks

Orpik

and

it

just

hits

a

dead

spot

in

the

boards.

Hossa

to

Toews

to

Brandon

Saad

with

a

wide

open

net.

That's

a

perfect

definition

of

tick-tack-goal.

There's

tick,

here's

tack,

and

there's

goal.

That's

the

slow

pass

from

Carlson.

He

tried

to

move

that

puck

to

his

partner

and

it

never

got

to

him

because

Hossa

was

in

on

a

forecheck

and

then

Holtby

was

coming

out

to

play

that

shot

from

Toews.

And

he

made

the

beautiful

pass

to

the

Pittsburgh

native

Brandon

Saad

for

a

wide

open

run.

Neatly

off

the

boards.

Wilson,

they

rush

ahead,

and

it's

Alzner

in

the

onside

play

toward

Wilson,

but

then

Richards.

Rozsival

connects

ahead;

Patrick

Kane

brings

it

on.

Kane

fed

one

to

Richards,

then

back

to

Kane

again.

Kane

crunched

into

the

boards

there

by

Niskanen.

Yanked

on

now

by

Chimera.

Pumped

away

from

Rozsival

but

back

to

center.

Oh,

and

down

goes

Richards

off

Wilson.

Then

Sharp

later

on

in

the

first

period.

But

now

here

is

Keith

letting

one

go.

Rebound,

and

whacking

away

at

it

was

Jonathan

Toews.

Corralling

this

at

center

is

Keith.

And

if

you're

defending

against

Andrew

Shaw

where

he

stacks

up

in

the

slot,

you

want

to

play

him

as

a

defenseman

or

just

let

him

stand

there?

I

think

you

have

to

let

him

stand

there.

I

mean,

once

that

shot

comes,

That's

when

you

go

ahead

and

tie

it

up.

You

don't

want

to

make

it

a

five-on-four

into

a

four-on-three

if

you

get

in

a

wrestling

match

in

front

of

the

net.

Keith

to

Sharp

on

this

power

play,

Then

back

to

Keith

yet

again.

Patrick

Sharp

faked

the

drive,

Got

it

over

to

Kane.

Kane

with

a

shot!

Shut

off

by

Holtby.

Here's

Sharp

across

now

for

Keith.

And

then

on

across

for

Kane.

Kane

dealt

it

back

in.

Jonathan

Toews

with

it

there.

Back

to

Kane.

Hook

that.

And

then

a

denial

and

a

good

reach

by

the

defense.

Circling

as

Kane

dropped

it

right

back

off.

Can

be

played

back

to

Duncan

Keith

once

more.

Keith

tipped

it

further.

Corralled

there

by

Sharp

and

then

dealt

back

in

deep.

Played

back

on

for

Sharp.

Tricky

hop

though.

And

It's

outleted

by

Brouwer.

Backstrom

tried

to

get

further

and

was

closed

off

by

Toews.

Haves

and

back

in

it

comes.

All

of

this

is

on

a

delayed

offside.

Linesman

Scott

Cherry

is

standing

right

in

front

of

us

here.

This

brought

it

right

back

ahead

and

Hossa

there.

For

a

moment

we

didn't

see

much.

That's

only

an

excuse.

Played

right

back

along,

Richards

watching

at

the

blue

line

as

this

came

back

to

Seabrook

and

then

dealt

back

along

for

Hossa.

Hossa

gives

it

across.

Richards

with

it

there.

Then

on

back

to

Seabrook.

Then

across

to

Hossa.

Very

deliberately.

He

works

it

back

in

deep.

Saad

tried

to

get

to

the

front.

A

jam

play

there.

Saad

reaches.

He

tried

to

finesse

a

pass.

Big

choke

through

as

diving

was

Brooke's

life.

Now

it

is

Seabrook

in

the

last

five

of

the

power

play.

Weaving

his

way

off,

he

hands

it

across

to

Kris

Versteeg.

He

could

not

get

by,

and

that

one

was

swept

away

and

then

cleared.

A

power

play

by

Matt

Niskanen

right

there

in

a

one-on-one.

We

saw

Johnny

Oduya

in

the

first

period

do

that

to

Ovechkin.

This

is

a

tremendous

job

by

the

Washington

Capitals

in

transition

defense.

With

Eddie

the

power

play

for

Chicago

is

getting

some

opportunities.

Brandon

Saad.

Pretty

simple

there.

Just

get

the

puck

to

the

net

to

Marian

Hossa

with

a

quality

chance.

Look

at

the

aggressive

goaltending

of

Braden

Holtby.

Well

out

on

top

of

that

blue

paint.

There's

Shaw.

Just

trying

to

reach

for

that

puck.

The

wide

open

net.

Nudge

to

center.

Big

Joel

Ward

lugs

it

ahead.

Taken

on

by

Roosevelt.

Turned

around

behind

near

Oduya.

Ward

jostles

in.

Right

nearby

as

it

kicked

on

over

to

Rozsival.

Michael

Rozsival

floated

a

bouncer

that

goes

back

out

to

the

left

wing

and

to

the

corner

it

is

Bickell.

Giving

it

back

over

to

Kruger

and

Kruger

lifted

a

backhand

that

Bickell

tries

to

gather.

Again

shifting

to

offense,

the

Capitals

and

Ward

brought

it

ahead.

Furrowing

in

is

Brooks

Laich,

jostled

off

by

Rozsival.

Still

they

battle

and

Roosevelt

wanted

to

slide

it

further.

Kick

back

over

for

the

help

by

Kruger.

but

the

keep

by

Orpik

and

the

block

by

Smith.

So

now

Crawford.

Delayed

offside.

The

Caps

curl

out

and

move

back

in

on

the

Here's

Roosevelt.

Fanned

on

a

pass.

Backstrom

haunting

him,

And

Backstrom

is

able

to

pivot

away.

There

will

be

no

stoppage

at

the

halfway

point

of

this

period.

They

feel

conditions

are

equal.

So

we

will

just

play

as

normal.

straight

minutes

with

no

stop

at

This

one

careened

away

from

Carlson.

Riding

in

is

Hossa

and

a

save

made

by

Holtby.

There's

Marian

Hossa.

Hello

and

goodbye.

He

said

hello

to

Carlson

and

goodbye.

That

puck

really

slowed

up

and

allowed

Hossa

to

skate

into

the

puck.

Second

quality

chance,

A

plus

chance

for

Hossa

in

this

period.

Right

in

the

midsection

of

Holtby.

He

steered

that

one

back

in

and

came

to

the

bench

for

a

change

in

lines.

Twelve

and

a

quarter

minutes

to

go

in

the

second

period

of

the

Winter

Classic

from

Washington.

Tied

at

two.

Oduya

wrestling

along

there

with

Brouwer.

And

it's

helped

on

by

Kane

in

front

to

Oduya.

And

he

plays

ahead

for

Versteeg.

Poked

it

along

the

way

from

Niskanen

and

raced

in

after

it,

getting

there

first

and

lifting

Kuznetsov.

It's

followed

up

by

Brouwer

and

handed

on

across

for

the

carry

by

Niskanen.

Niskanen

has

a

man

breaking

up

the

wing,

Johansson.

It's

Brouwer

across!

And

Johansson

has

to

steer

around

behind.

Back

up

the

boards,

It

comes

for

Alzner.

Carefully

to

Marcus

Johansson.

Looks

over

the

traffic,

Advances

and

hands

off.

Knuts

off

there,

Niskanen

to

Nishan.

Don't

know

how

that

didn't

go;

we

had

a

good

look.

Didn't

matter,

Too

fast.

Versteeg

brings

it

on.

And

Versteeg

steps

ahead.

It

looks

like

the

front

of

the

race.

As

fast

as

these

guys

move

in

front.

Here's

Keith

trying

to

play

one

further.

It

is

Kuznetsov,

able

to

fire

one

that

ricocheted

across

and

can

be

played

further.

Back

up

the

wing,

Dragged

it

in

offside,

Play

is

stopped.

Pretty

close

to

being

a

tie

broken

by

Marian

Hossa,

but

his

hopes

on

that

one

were

shattered

by

the

play

made

by

Braden

Holtby.

The

shots

so

far,

in

favor

of

the

Blackhawks;

scoring

chances

even

at

score

tied

at

two

Patrick

Sharp

seven

shots

and

a

goal,

Alex

Ovechkin

four

shots

and

a

goal,

and

Eric

Fehr

is

the

other

goal

scorer

in

the

game.

I

really

feel

like

this

is

the

best

ice

they've

had

for

a

Winter

Classic.

The

one

thing

that

is

apparent

from

sitting

right

along

the

glass

here,

Doc,

and

when

you

get

this

opportunity

every

night

in

the

normal

setting

of

the

NHL,

it

looks

like

the

ice

has

gotten

a

little

bit

slower.

I

think

we

saw

that

on

that

play

by

Marian

Hossa

on

the

rush

that

created

that

chance

a

little

earlier.

Wilson's

pass

was

blocked

by

Bickell,

brings

it

ahead

with

Sharp,

goes

to

work

on

Green.

Nickel

and

Green

to

the

corner

and

crunch.

So

Wilson

can

start

it

the

other

way.

Pass

ahead,

carried

in

by

Chimera.

The

big

man

backhands

one

across

the

net,

blocked

away,

and

then

Crawford

slightly

upended.

He's

just

getting

back

to

his

feet,

and

there's

going

to

be

a

penalty

coming

up,

and

it's

going

to

be

against

the

Capitals.

Sharp

flipped

it

across,

canceled

out

by

Hillen,

and

the

call

will

be

made.

That's

why

the

net

was

wide

open

right

in

front,

Doc,

from

Jack

Hillen

on

the

back

end.

Tom

Wilson

was

trying

to

make

an

impact

on

this

game

earlier.

We

saw

him

jousting

in

the

game

with

Dan

Carcillo.

You'll

see

a

little

push,

a

little

knockdown.

Jack

Hillen's

going

to

shoot

the

puck,

and

look

at

the

awkward

save

opportunity

for

Corey

Crawford

right

here

as

the

puck

comes

in

from

the

point.

And

Wilson's

defense,

he's

out

looking

to

see

where

the

puck

is

and

Crawford...

Barely

outside

the

blue

paint.

Clearly

nothing

intentional

there

with

Tom

Wilson.

You've

got

to

know

where

you

are

on

the

ice.

Opportunity,

the

man

advantage

for

the

Blackhawks.

That's

one

of

our

cameras

in

use

today.

Hovering

just

above

that

faceoff

that

will

take

place

for

the

Blackhawks.

Wilson

sits.

Power

play

again

for

Chicago.

Able

to

keep

this.

Banked

it

for

Kane.

Got

Carlson.

Thrown

by

Orpik.

Kept

by

Keith.

Turned

on

to

Toews.

And

decided

to

go

deep

with

him.

Pivoting

to

the

outside

was

Kane,

back

to

Keith.

Now

Kane.

Worked

back

in

and

sent

across

the

netmouth.

Moving

back

on

is

Keith

and

a

penalty

is

coming

out.

Another

one.

A

high

stick.

A

five

on

three

is

coming

for

Chicago.

John

Carlson's

making

the...

Long

skate,

a

high-sticking

call

they

also

looked

like

they

were

trying

to

sell

a

call

and

didn't

get

one,

and

it

becomes

a

stick-up

which

is

not

a

good

penalty

at

all;

get

your

stick

buried

on

the

ice,

you're

not

going

to

get

that

penalty,

I

gotta

tell

you

I

agree

but

Andrew

Shaw

is

so

useful

in

the

slot

it

used

to

be

Ryan

Smith,

it

used

to

be

Thomas

Holmstrom,

I

think

now

it's

Andrew

Shaw;

that's

his

domain

and

he's

as

good

as

anybody

in

the

league

at

that

position

in

terms

of

driving

goalies

and

opposing

defenses

nuts.

In

the

Epic

Series,

You

learned,

If

you

watch

that

leading

up

to

this

game,

what

an

ordinary

guy

he

can

be

in

the

locker

room

with

his

teammates.

He

can

talk

the

stamp

off

an

envelope.

I

guess

nowadays,

with

our

generation,

this

generation

now,

you

can

talk

the

cursor

off

the

send

button

that's

probably

the

better

way

to

put

it

nowadays.

Well,

Here's

Keith

dropping

it

back.

Lots

of

room

for

a

man

out

there

right

now

a

five-on-three

for

the

Blackhawks

as

it's

taken

by

Hossa.

Led

back

to

Sharp.

Handed

on

a

cross

and

it's

to

Keith.

Pushed

back

in

deep.

The

return

to

Keith.

Right

back

again

Kane

to

Keith.

Returns

to

Kane

once

more.

Keith

with

a

drive.

He

dumped

the

shot,

blocked

by

Beagle.

They

try

to

clear

and

get

it

as

far

as

center.

And

a

fresh

stick

from

the

Blackhawks

bench

handed

to

Keith.

Kane

just

walks

it

inside

the

line

now

and

can

drift

even

further

with

it,

led

back

to

Duncan

Keith.

Handed

across

to

Patrick

Sharp.

Worked

back

into

Marian

Hossa.

Side-of-the-net

play!

Did

not

work

for

Kane.

It's

chipped

up

and

out

of

play.

Still

left

on

the

five-on-three.

Good

stick

there

from

Matt

Niskanen,

and

as

Hossa

was

trying

to

go

through

the

blue

paint

to

Patrick

Kane

on

his

normal

side,

Niskanen

was

able

to

get

his

stick

in

the

passing

lane

tremendous

defensive

play.

Barry

Trotz

is

really

upset;

he's

giving

it

to

Francois

St.

Laurent

right

now

on

the

Washington

bench

because

he

thought

Jonathan

Toews

interfered

with

Brooks

Orpik,

and

he

just

let

St.

Laurent

have

it

here

for

him

this

is

Washington

where

you

always

think

you're

owed

something

more

for

next

time.

Right?

So

we'll

be

here

in

a

couple

weeks.

We'll

get

right

on

that.

Okay.

Well,

It's

fed

back

across

now

to

Hossa.

He's

got

Keith,

but

he

works

it

in

deep

side-of-the-net

play.

Whacking

at

it

with

Sharp.

Settled

down

by

Thames.

Back

to

Keith.

On

across

to

Hossa.

And

they

return.

And

Hossa

shot

a

screamer

that

got

the

glass.

Keith

turns

off

the

boards

again

and

looks

and

deals

it

back

into

Sharp.

He's

got

Kane

across

the

net

mouth.

Gives

it

to

Keith,

but

it's

off

his

stick.

And

back

to

center.

And

to

go

on

the

first

of

the

two

penalties

under

nine

minutes

to

go

in

the

second

period;

game

tied

at

two.

Paves

tried

to

work

his

way

in,

Keith

got

it

across

as

Hossa

moved

in

and

shoots

one

in

front

battle,

taken

by

Hossa;

Sharp

drove

and

that

one

wouldn't

go.

Handed

across

to

Hossa

yet

again;

Hossa

deals

it

in

for

Patrick

Kane

drifting,

Sharp

hoping

for

a

pass

as

it's

handed

on

to

Keith.

Duncan

Keith

settles

it

down,

He

got

it

on

to

Patrick

Kane.

The

Buffalo

native

handed

it

off.

Hossa

is

up

with

it

there.

Hossa

back

over

to

Kane.

Sent

back

across

to

Hossa

again.

One

man

out.

It

was

Toews.

Buried

a

safety;

standing

ovation

from

the

Capitals

fans

as

they've

killed

it

off.

Furious

action

around

Braden

Holtby,

But

no

puck

went

in.

It

is

still

two

to

two.

You

just

had

an

elongated

five-on-three.

Thank

you.

Sometimes

it's

fun

to

just

look

at

the

angle

of

the

pictures

that

come

next.

Now

back

to

this

face-off,

Settled

down

by

Oduya.

They

fire

there,

But

Hjalmarsson

recovered,

Dropped

it

back

along.

And

so

it's

an

outlet

pass

that

ricocheted

off

the

skate

of

Backstrom

back

down

for

Crawford

to

play.

Pushed

it

to

Oduya,

Looks

ahead

for

Versteeg,

Had

to

sidestep

one

of

the

forechecking

Caps

and

floated

one

that

was

flagged

down

by

Richards

and

carried

nicely

back

on

with

Kane.

Richards

rifled

it

across

hoping

for

Versteeg.

Poked

away

by

Green.

And

can

be

carried

back

ahead

by

the

Caps.

Down

to

the

last

seven

and

three

quarter

minutes

of

the

second

period

in

this

tie

game.

The

first

two

for

the

Capitals

and

the

tying

two

came

from

Chicago.

Here's

Ovechkin

reaching

for

it,

jammed

at

by

Chalmerson.

Floated

on

by

Kane

and

can

be

carried

back

up

by

Versteeg.

Throws

it

in

and

Brouwer's

in

with

Carlson

after.

Rattled

around

behind

and

Alzner

cleared

one,

but

Seabrook

with

a

one-time

shot.

Deflected

in

front

and

saved

by

Holtby.

Trying

to

jam

it

free

was

the

guy

who

tipped

it

for

Steve.

But

play

is

halted.

That

puck

was

rolling

as

it

got

to

Brent

Seabrook.

Capitals

try

to

move

that

puck

around

the

boards;

it

goes

through

a

little

bit

of

a

scrum

and

is

redirected

by

Christopher

Steeg

in

front

of

the

net,

good

eye,

Eddie.

I

was

right

on

the

shooting

line

and

that

thing

was

knuckling

to

the

net,

with

great

eye-hand

coordination

from

Christopher

Steeg.

Well,

Joel

Quenneville

told

you,

Pierre.

Good

looks

on

that

power

play.

More

opportunities

to

shoot

the

puck.

as

he

mentioned

to

me,

after

the

first

intermission.

Never

a

bad

play.

He

said

it

to

me

nicely,

Eddie

and

Doc.

He

wasn't

that

nice

to

his

team,

and

he

was

explaining

it

to

them.

Saad

tried

to

reach.

Pushed

back,

and

it's

Carlson.

Jack

Hillen

played

it

around

behind.

You

don't

last

this

long

in

the

league

if

you

don't

know

how

to

deal

with

people

like

ourselves

here.

Thrown

back

across

now

for

Brouwer.

Right

around

in

front,

and

it

was

trouble.

So

pivoting

with

it,

trying

to

play

further,

Kuznetsov.

Meanwhile,

it's

poked

along

by

Kruger.

Niskanen

wanted

to

reach,

could

not;

it

was

off

Ben

Smith

and

was

reversed

back.

Joel

Ward

tries

to

burrow

in,

canceled

out

good

defensive

work

by

Seabrook.

Up

the

boards

now,

Niskanen.

His

shot

ricocheted

wide.

Played

back

along

by

Ward.

Fiddled

it

along

on

the

backhand

because

the

net's

off;

Shaw

wanted

to

turn

and

did.

Centered

one

that's

blocked

by

Keith.

Another

try;

skip

back

along

near

Sharp.

Sharp

is

able

to

emerge.

His

pass,

though,

went

off

the

skate

of

Saad.

Followed

up

now

by

Andrew

Shaw.

Wants

to

go

by

Niskanen.

No

luck.

To

the

last

six

minutes

of

period

two,

and

it's

Keith.

Run

off

there

by

Fair.

Puck

taken

along

by

Ward.

Dropped

around

behind.

And

Brouwer

prevailed

on

the

line.

Now

it's

Sharp.

Sending

it

ahead

to

Bickell

up

the

wing.

Bickell

with

a

move

there

on

Carlson

through

one.

Bickell

went

wide

of

the

glove

hand

of

Holtby.

In

neutral

ice

they'll

play

it

and

get

set

for

another

rush.

Rundblad

played

it

ahead

and

it

went

in

off

Shaw

who's

buried

there

by

Carlson.

Puck

around

behind

is

lifted

by

Orpik.

Caps

on

the

attack

again.

Orpik

has

to

settle

it

down

though

away

from

Bickell

and

out

to

center

in

the

midst

of

a

lot

of

player

changes.

It

is

Hossa.

Watched

by

Orpik.

Tries

to

go

by

and

does.

Hossa's

shot

it

would

not

go

to

the

back.

Oduya's

shot,

and

that's

blocked

away

by

Backstrom.

Can

be

taken

by

Toews.

Handed

to

Chalmersen.

Rister

kicked

away.

And

then

finessed

back

to

center

on

the

backhand

of

Carlson.

Ovechkin

could

not

work

his

way

by

Johnny

Oduya.

So

it

comes

on

back

for

Carlson

again.

Former

U.S.

Olympian

played

this

one

further,

but

it

got

tangled

up

for

a

moment.

And

then

it's

brought

back

on

and

gently

played

in

by

Orpik.

And

ricocheted

back

where

it

has

to

be

played

again

by

the

defense.

In

on

Corey

Crawford

and

then

to

Oduya.

Fired

on

down

and

an

icing

will

be

called.

Anyway,

Back

at

the

ranch,

We

have

an

offside.

A

stoppage

of

play.

to

go,

Second

period.

And

we

are

still

tied

with

two

goals

apiece.

Here

in

Washington,

the

Washington

Monument,

tallest

structure

in

the

city

at

feet.

Over

a

hundred

years

ago,

a

player

named

Gabby

Street

tried

to

catch

a

ball

drop

from

there,

missed

on

the

first

but

got

the

We're

down

to

the

last

four

minutes

of

the

second

period.

Back

to

Niskanen,

and

a

shot

hit

off

a

stick.

Ovechkin

is

after

Jalmerson,

presses

him

to

the

glass;

the

puck

skitters

on

its

edge

and

can

be

played

further

for

Chris

Versteeg.

So

in

deep

it's

Backstrom

away

from

Versteeg,

taken

on

by

Niskanen.

Kept

alive

by

Johnny

Oduya,

played

and

shifted

across,

handled

there

and

drilled

back

ahead

by

Altman.

Jalmerson

there,

and

then

back

ahead

for

Richards,

who

gives

up

to

Kane.

Patrick

Kane

with

a

shot

turned

aside

by

Holtby.

Oduya

hands

it

across

and

Jalmerson

takes

over

there.

Three

and

a

quarter

minutes

to

go

in

this

period.

The

shots

are

in

favor

of

the

Blackhawks.

Floated

down,

Versteeg

drives

after

it.

But

it

will

be

icing.

So

Oduya.

Versteeg

was

looking.

Kept

by

Green.

Moving

in,

Light.

Taken

by

Jalmerson.

Fed

along

near

Kane.

But

knifed

back

by

Ward.

So

here's

Fair.

He

got

the

first

one,

and

icing

is

called.

Jeff

Carter,

Jerry

Hart,

Bobby

Holik,

Gary

Holt,

Dave

Hunter,

CJ

Young,

Dave

Silk,

Devin

Setoguchi,

Phil

Roberto,

Betsy

Ross,

Paul

Revere,

Merrill

Davis,

the

gold

medal

figure

skater

who

saw

the

Red

Wings

play

the

Capitals,

Sam

Flood

II,

all

having

birthdays

on

New

Year's

Day.

Congratulations

to

all

of

them.

That's

a

big

one

for

Sam

Flood

Jr.,

Huh,

Doc?

Yes.

And

the

operative

word

is

Sam.

This

is

taken

back

ahead

now

for

control

by

Sharp.

Sharp

with

a

shot

that

knuckleballed

off

Green

and

had

to

be

blocked

aside

by

Holtby.

And

then

a

feed

in

front,

Holtby

got

a

piece

of

that

one.

On

to

the

back

now

for

Roosevelt.

Then

on

to

Sharp

and

a

drive.

And

the

stick

failed.

Held

by

Rundblad.

Roosevelt

with

it

there.

And

then

along

now

to

Sharp.

Pushed

around

behind.

Wanting

to

get

there

is

Bickell.

Nudged

it

on

back

for

Rundblad

again.

Toe-dragging,

Then

a

shot,

And

that

one

was

fought

off

and

then

covered

by

Braden

Holtby.

Jim

was

pointing

out

earlier

that

the

fans

in

the

sun

are

probably

enjoying

the

look

back

down.

And

the

sun

glare

is

not

nearly

so

bad,

but

you

do

feel

sorry

for

anyone

playing

left

field

here

because

of

the

sunshine

that

we

noticed

today.

There's

a

different

trajectory,

Of

course,

in

baseball

season

as

Keith

is

playing

this

one

along.

But

you

would

need

the

glasses

for

that.

Karl

Alzner

can

lend

you

some.

Played

back

in

now

for

Orpik.

Orpik

able

to

whip

one

along

that

Carlson

can

knock

down.

Worked

on

now

for

Johansson,

But

that

skittered

on

to

Keaton.

He's

got

an

open

man

Kruger

to

bash

it

back

in.

The

probing

continues,

trying

to

break

this

two-all

tie.

seconds

to

go

in

the

second.

Good

battle

there,

And

wheeling

it

was

Kruger,

but

taking

over

and

playing

it

back

up

the

Capitals.

It's

Johansson

nudging

on,

and

Carlson

brings

it

ahead.

Here's

Carlson,

A

shot,

and

an

answer

there

by

Crawford,

and

it's

a

scramble

in

the

front,

and

then

it

is

carried

back

out

again

by

Ben

Smith.

Nudged

on

to

Carcillo,

jammed

it

on

his

backhand

back

in,

and

went

in

after

it

along

with

Harvey.

Roll

block

on

him

as

it's

played

off

by

Troy

Brouwer.

Stanley

Cup

winner

in

Chicago,

playing

for

Washington.

Troy

Brouwer

got

To

center,

Touched

away

by

Oduya,

Followed

up

by

Brouwer

yet

again,

And

tucked

right

back

along,

Past

Johansson

and

along

to

Hjalmarsson.

Jonathan

Toews

tried

to

finesse

it

through

to

Saad,

who's

rammed

by

Latta,

and

it's

controlled

back

out

by

Hjalmarsson

in

the

final

minute

of

the

second.

Hjalmarsson

across,

Trouble

for

Toews,

but

he's

able

to

rescue

it

behind

the

net

in

the

circle.

Jonathan

Toews,

Captain

of

the

Hawks,

dropped

it

back

for

Hossa

to

take,

left

it

behind,

so

the

Caps

will

take

over.

That

caught

the

skates

of

the

official.

The

Blackhawks

are

in

the

middle

of

a

little

bit

of

a

cycle

offensively.

Fed

onto

the

back

where

it

is

nicely

circled

by

Saad.

A

finesse

pass

across

and

the

shot

ricocheted

wide.

Centering

round

as

they

work

it

for

Hossa.

Hossa

is

nicely

able

to

step

off

the

boards

with

it,

but

then

loses

control

and

it's

Ovechkin

feeding

it

back

up.

Backstrom

has

Ovechkin

driving

to

the

net;

he

puts

on

the

brakes.

Leads

it

to

the

back.

Niskanen

with

a

shot.

Tucking

attempt

in

front

by

Jonathan

Toews

at

the

side

of

the

cage.

Seven

seconds

to

go

in

the

period.

Brooks

Orpik

to

take

over

there

and

is

able

to

dip

behind

the

net,

Chew

up

the

remaining

seconds

of

the

second

period.

Forty

minutes

have

been

played.

shots

taken.

And

only

four

have

gone

in.

A

beautiful

play

by

Nicklas

Backstrom.

He

had

players

going

to

the

net,

and

he

was

looking

for

that

second

and

third

wave.

It

ended

up

being

Matt

Niskanen.

He

had

a

terrific

shot.

Instead

of

shooting

the

puck,

he

actually

tried

to

make

the

pass

to

Alexander

Ovechkin

and

Jay

Beagle,

who

had

gone

to

the

net.

A

nice

play

there

from

Backstrom.

He

has

shot

a

lot

of

them.

Seven

so

far

of

his

team's

total

of

and

one

has

gone.

And

our

memories

continue

to

be

made

here

in

Washington

with

a

after

two

tie.

No

carryover

penalties,

Nor

power-play

time.

going

into

the

third.

I

know

you

had

a

chance

to

talk

to

Barry

Trotz,

The

coach

of

the

Capitals.

Well,

He

was

not

happy.

They

were

losing

some

battles.

His

team,

The

Capitals,

were

losing

battles

along

the

boards.

He

feels

that's

an

area

they

can

use

to

take

this

game

to

another

level.

He

also

liked

how

the

defensemen

were

jumping

into

the

play

and

creating

a

chance.

Just

like

on

that

last

opportunity

for

Matt

Niskanen.

And

don't

turn

down

any

shots

in

this

third

period.

The

same

message

coming

from

both

sides

of

the

ice.

The

ice

conditions?

Excellent.

Best

we've

had.

Couldn't

agree

more

with

what

Keith,

Liam,

and

Mike

were

saying.

This

is

probably

the

best

quality

game

we've

seen.

It

was

ruled

a

deflection.

So

there's

no

delay

of

game

penalty

there.

Nine

seconds

into

the

third.

It

seems

like

a

long

time

ago

when

Saad

broke

the

tie

at

that

same

end

of

the

ice

in

the

second

period.

Backstrom

to

Wade

in

here

with

Jonathan

Toews.

It

popped

up

high

and

out

of

play.

Not

too

many

times

in

this

game

have

Ovechkin

and

Backstrom

been

away

from

Hossa

and

Toews.

It's

been

interesting

in

the

second

period,

two

or

three

times

they

had

free

ice

away

from

Toews;

that

long

change

certainly

helped

that

matchup.

There

was

a

big

five-on-three

penalty

kill

for

the

Capitals

in

that

second

period.

On

the

play

back

in,

offside

is

called

when

one

little

extra

move

put

Jay

Beagle

offside.

Not

to

belabor

the

point,

But

earlier

we

were

talking

about

the

sun.

Now

the

lights

are

on.

Does

that

represent

anything

unusual

to

you?

I

think

just

if

you

get

one

of

those

high

shoot-ins,

High

flippers

by

one

of

the

players.

But

other

than

that,

Right

now,

These

conditions

are

what

you

would

want

for

a

young

hockey

player

playing

outside.

Charging

back

after

this

is

Carlson.

Right

after

him

is

Versteeg.

Carlson

chopped

it

along.

Taken

by

Brooks

Orpik.

Shuffled

on

the

backhand

ahead

and

can

be

played

by

Fehr.

Dropped

out

to

center.

Reaching

for

it

with

Brooks

Laich.

And

it's

jammed

right

back

in.

Hjalmarsson

sees

Laich

take

over

here.

Hjalmarsson

defends

him.

It

came

in

front.

And

Fehr

with

a

shot.

And

that

one

blocked

down,

crumpling

to

the

ice.

But

now

getting

back

to

his

feet

is

Versteeg.

They

got

him

in

the

arm

and

he's

in

big

trouble

right

now

trying

to

get

off.

Taking

his

place

is

Dan

Carcillo.

And

the

puck

hops

to

him.

He

gave

it

back

to

Kane.

Drops

to

Carcillo.

Back

to

Kane.

And

a

shot

is

blocked

by

Holtby.

Rebound

off

the

outside

of

the

cage.

And

he

bangs

into

the

boards

and

is

in

pain.

Just

now

getting

to

his

feet

is

Carcillo.

Looks

like

a

pick.

They

lit

up

Carcillo.

Intercepted

by

Keith.

Played

to

Carcillo.

Carcillo

jammed

it

back

in.

A

nice

stutter-step

move

by

Green

to

take

over

the

puck

and

fire

it.

Keith

to

keep

it

alive.

Kuznetsov

plays

it

there.

He's

got

Johansson

and

plays

it

ahead

to

him.

Moving

back

up

along

with

Brandon

Saad.

There's

a

jam

along,

and

thumping

into

the

boards

was

Johansson.

Seems

to

be

okay.

Versteeg

catches

one

right

in

the

lower-arm

area.

Getting

some

attention

there

from

Mike

Gapske.

He

went

out

to

block

the

shot

of

Eric

Fehr

and

buckled

him;

he

ended

up

losing

a

stick

right

after

that

as

well.

And

Danny

Carcillo

is

no

stranger

to

physical

play.

Brooks

Orpik's

just

going

to

lean

into

him

a

little

bit.

Lifts

him

right

off

his

feet.

Orpik

leads

his

team.

There

goes

Chris

Versteeg.

Seems

to

be

all

right.

Orpik

leads

his

team

in

hits

and

blocks.

It's

not

often

that

a

defenseman

does

both.

It

was

Versteeg

leaving

the

ice

and

not

able

to

return.

He's

getting

some

medical

attention

right

now

as

he

goes

into

the

dugout.

Not

a

lot

of

padding

when

he

got

hit

on;

that's

part

of

the

problem.

And

add

the

temperature

as

well.

Shot

by

Laich

and

a

second

attempt

by

Laich

is

covered

up

by

Crawford.

I

think

Crawford

might

have

taken

a

stick

here

as

Brooks

Laich

was

going

hard

to

the

net;

from

our

vantage

point

it

looked

like

Laich

hit

Crawford

with

his

stick.

Bit

of

a

follow-through

there

from

Brooks

Laich.

Good

quick

developing

play.

Possible

rebound.

And

then

the

stick

hit

him

right

on

the

left

side

of

the

mask.

Big

boys

come

on

for

the

Capitals

now.

Latta

to

take

the

faceoff.

Caps

get

the

last

change

as

the

home

team;

they

brought

in

some

bulk

on

this

faceoff

and

a

Hillen

shot

is

grabbed

and

held

by

Crawford,

then

played

back,

but

the

whistle

had

blown.

Faceoff

win

here.

Clean

win

for

the

Capitals.

The

opportunity

there

for

Jack

Hillen

with

the

quick

shot

from

the

back.

Blue-line

area,

nice

one

phased

off

there

with

a

skate

by

Latta.

It's

Ben

Smith

taking

the

draw,

not

Marcus

Kruger.

Again,

Ben

Smith's

a

guy

who

got

beat

clean

by

Latta

the

last

time.

A

little

surprising.

Yeah,

and

that

side

of

the

ice,

they

like

to

take

that

play

off

there.

The

strong

side

for

Ben

Smith.

there,

one

for

Latta

and

one

for

Smith.

Yep,

good

point.

Shot

blocked

by

Green,

but

it's

followed

up

and

sent

by

Kane.

Collared

by

Chimera,

flipped

ahead

and

can

be

carried

on

by

Wilson.

Nugged

across

for

Latta

and

then

sent

along

by

Smith.

So

it

is

Mike

Green.

Chipped

one

that

went

off

Wilson.

Forced

right

back

in

deep.

And

Roosevelt

patrolling

there.

Dropped

up

a

bit

by

Chimera.

Chimera

tried

to

jam

at

three.

And

it's

Kruger

around

behind.

And

Kruger

emerges

with

it

now;

he

skates

one

to

center.

Bounced

right

on,

played

behind

by

Bickel.

All

of

this

is

on

a

delayed

offside,

which

is

whistled

down.

A

goal,

nine

shots

attempted,

four

on

goal,

a

plus

one

rating.

And

at

the

end

of

two,

I'm

sorry,

at

the

end

of

two

periods,

it

was

two

hits

for

him.

Well,

The

numbers

will

tell

you

that

he's

had

quality

chances.

And

I

think

our

official

account

is

that

he

has

had

two

posts

as

well.

One

crossfire,

one

post.

Well,

The

puck

has

been

finding

the

man

known

as

the

Great

Eight

here

in

D.C.

Two

players

tumble.

Another

emerges

in

Johansson

to

hand

it

across

to

Niskanen.

Niskanen

checked

off

by

Sharp.

They

test

right

in

front

of

the

Blackhawks

bench.

It

comes

back

for

Seabrook.

Floated

ahead

for

Andrew

Shaw.

Taken

along

and

pivoting

back

with

it

now,

Johansson.

They

settle

things

down

with

three

minutes,

seconds

on

here

in

the

third

period

of

play.

Meanwhile,

it

is

battled

for

and

nudged

back.

Beg

your

pardon,

three

minutes

gone

here

in

the

third

period.

Back

across

now,

It's

Alzner.

Alzner

wristed

it

back

in

and

it

rattled

around

for

Duncan

Keith.

Left

behind,

and

it's

nudged

along

further

to

be

dragged

on

by

Johansson.

Defended

there

by

Seabrook.

Four

hands

behind,

hoping

to

get

Brouwer,

and

he

got

him.

Brouwer

able

to

shuttle

it

around

behind.

Let's

go

catches

the

big

chant

from

people

here

today.

It

is

Orpik

with

a

shot,

and

that

one

rattled

off

someone

in

front

and

was

nicely

gathered

by

Beagle,

fresh

from

the

bench.

Turns

around,

Toews,

Johansson

with

a

shot,

paddled

away

by

the

netminder

Crawford.

Away

from

the

reach

of

Beagle.

Circling

now

and

bringing

it

back

as

Toews

laid

it

across

to

Keith;

from

circle

to

circle

there's

a

little

quicksand

here

at

center

ice

in

terms

of

the

Caps'

defensive

structure

they

tried

to

break

it

by

dumping

it

in

but

didn't

get

possession,

players

canceling.

Nudged

off

Smith.

Kane

trying

to

dance

free.

No

puck

there,

and

it's

poked

away

from

Ovechkin.

Constant

changes

in

possession

between

the

blue

lines.

Off

of

Backstrom.

Nicely

shuttles

it

back

and

hands

it

back

over

to

Brooks

Orpik

to

take.

Boston

College

product

takes

a

look

ahead.

Slides

it

on

across

now

for

Green.

Connected

back

along

for

the

play

by

Beagle.

Moving

in

for

this

is

Johnny

Oduya.

And

then

behind

lifted

by

Hjalmarsson.

And

we

get

a

stoppage

of

play.

The

puck

had

been

played

by

a

stick

that

was

high.

Eddie

and

Doc,

as

he

came

off

from

his

last

shift,

he

just

looked

at

everybody

on

the

bench,

Jonathan

Toews.

He

said,

It's

time

for

us

to

get

going

again,

fellas.

You

have

to

wonder,

Eddie,

And

it's

a

question

for

you.

Who

did

they

replace

Christopher

Stieg

with

in

terms

of

flow

on

the

lines?

It's

been

Ben

Smith

the

last

couple

of

shifts,

so...

moving

him

up

from

the

fourth

line,

but

for

Joel

Quenneville,

a

coach

that's

not

afraid

to

change

up

the

lines,

I

thought

maybe

a

guy

like

Patrick

Sharp

will

get

the

opportunity

to

bump

up

with

Richards

and

Kane,

and

probably

won't

be

the

last

line

combination

changed

by

Joel

Quenneville

in

this

third

period.

It

is

Green,

Sharp

in

the

way.

The

battle

on

the

side.

Shaw

gets

up

and

heads

to

the

front,

but

the

puck

is

taken

by

the

Caps,

nudged

on

by

Wilson

to

Chimera,

has

Hillen

up

the

wing,

trying

to

work,

oh,

Touch

right

at

the

lap.

Moment

looked

like

a

great

chance,

but

back

now

comes

Shaw.

Here's

Shaw

trying

to

work

his

way

through;

he

has

to

go

to

the

corner

with

Niskanen,

a

little

lacrosse

check

to

the

back

of

Krueger.

Meanwhile,

up

the

boards

it's

tipped

out

by

Wilson;

Hjalmarsson

finessed

it

to

the

safety

of

center

ice

and

Shaw

can

play

it

back

to

him.

Another

Capitals

defender

jumps

into

the

play.

What

a

beautiful

pass

by

Jason

Chimera

to

create

that

three-on-two

into

a

two-on-one;

Hillen

just

misplays

it.

Here's

Saad

protecting

and

backhanding

one

that's

knocked

down

by

Alzner.

Digging

for

it

was

Kruger,

taking

over.

It's

Brooks

Laich.

Laid

it

on

across

now,

chased

down

by

Ward.

Ward

with

a

shot

that

was

wide

of

the

cage.

Throwing

it

back

along

and

taking

another

shot

was

another

shot

by

Ferris.

Grabbed

by

Crawford.

More

offensive

opportunities

here

in

the

third.

Beautiful

play

by

Jason

Chimera

to

get

this

puck

up.

Tom

Wilson's

going

to

go

harder

on

that

backhand

pass,

and

then

Wilson

holds.

Wilson

holds.

It

just

goes

right

under

the

stick

of

defenseman

Jack

Hillen.

There's

that

other

chance

for

the

Washington

Capitals.

That's

actually

the

Hillen

chance

again.

Here's

the

most

recent

opportunity.

Watch

Corey

Crawford

square

to

the

shooter.

Eric

Fehr,

the

goal

scorer,

is

going

to

get

the

puck

and

Corey

Crawford

just

rips

it

out

of

the

air.

Third-period

chances

are

for

the

Caps.

Joel

Quenneville

was

saying

yesterday

that

Corey

Crawford

has

had

strong

parts

of

the

last

half

of

games

and

has

gotten

stronger

as

games

have

gone

on.

They

rule

a

deflection,

so

there'll

be

no

penalty

on

Jay

Beagle's

stick.

The

fans

here

are

expecting

things

to

even

up

in

terms

of

calls;

so

is

Keith

Jones,

the

former

great

Cap.

That's

what

you

always

think,

but

you

cannot

make

up

a

call.

And

I'm

sure

Keith

is

about

ready

to

argue.

Yes.

You

can.

Carlson

across

to

Orpik.

Rattled

off

the

glass

and

around

it

comes

for

the

jab

by

Oduya.

Chimera

reaching.

They

try

to

center.

No

luck

from

Backstrom.

Played

on

by

Beagle.

Backstrom

there

duels

with

Toews.

Backstrom

turning

and

giving

it

back

to

Carlson.

Then

across

for

Orpik.

but

he

must

play

back

in

the

neutral

zone.

Six

minutes

have

been

played

here

in

the

third.

And

we

are,

as

we

were

since

had

been

played

in

the

second.

Tied

at

two.

Saad

got

that

goal

for

Chicago.

Icing

is

called

here.

From

Weather

Channel,

We're

up

here

at

what

they

call

the

top

shelf

with

mostly

Capitals

stands.

Air

temperature

at

the

start:

They

like

to

keep

it

at

And

as

Pierre

said,

it's

been

really

good.

Here

is

Kane

with

a

shot,

And

that

one

is

blocked

away.

Played

along

by

Carlson,

Knifed

away

from

Kane,

Rescued

by

Beagle.

Beagle

floated

one

that

Keith

will

go

chasing,

And

the

Blackhawks

will

see

the

Capitals

making

a

shift

change.

Perhaps

they'll

answer

with

one

of

their

own;

Dan

Carcillo

is

standing

there,

But

that

was

for

a

stick

exchange.

Meanwhile,

This

goes

rattling

around

in...

Kicked

away

from

Bickel,

Followed

up

by

Niskanen

and

touched

over

by

Troy

Brouwer.

Now

you

have

Bickel,

Richards

and

Kane,

to

Pierre's

question

a

little

bit

earlier

about

him

taking

that

spot

of

Christopher

Stieg,

who

is

getting

some

medical

attention

after

blocking

that

shot.

Kane

could

not

follow

through.

We

do

have

shovelers,

And

if

there's

snow

buildup,

They

get

a

chance

to

come

out

with

the

shovels

and

deal

with

it.

Here's

Kuznetsov

trying

to

finesse

his

way

through.

Meanwhile,

it's

hoisted

out

to

center.

But

we

do

notice

some

snow

buildup

on

the

ice,

but

that's

just

normal.

Played

right

back

ahead

for

a

float

that

will

not

work

for

Kuznetsov.

And

so

they

retreat

to

play

some

more.

Moving

along

with

this

is

Rundblad.

Rundblad

nicely

able

to

escape

center

ice

with

it.

Leads

the

rush

ahead.

Rundblad

to

the

corner

with

it

now.

Tries

the

center

one

in

front.

It

went

off

Hillen.

Touched

by

Fair.

Worked

further

but

then

chopped

away

and

it

bounced

back

for

Carcillo.

The

backhand

one

in

front.

The

puck

was

whacked

at

by

Krueger.

Hopped

wide

for

Green.

Green's

pass.

Just

reached

by

Ward

but

not

controlled.

Nearly

eight

minutes

played.

Is

this

a

time

when

you

have

to

be

any

more

careful

with

passes

than

you

would

earlier

or

is

that

not

a

fact?

I

think

now,

as

both

teams

realize

how

this

ice

is

playing,

everything's

got

to

be

hard,

especially

when

you're

playing

outside.

Here's

Hillen

a

shot

and

a

save

made

by

Crawford

on

him.

Brooks

Laich

is

pressed

there

by

Rozsival.

Ice

conditions

are

not

the

same

as

a

normal

game,

and

there

comes

a

power

play.

So

a

critical

point

in

a

game.

A

man

advantage

For

the

home

team

in

a

moment.

Coyotes

fans

out

in

Arizona

must

be

howling

now.

Shots

on

both

teams.

That's

it.

Power

play

one

for

five.

Blackhawks

for

Capitals.

The

fans

were

leaning

on

that

one

and

now

they

get

two.

The

full

moon

explains

a

lot.

But

perhaps

not

the

penalty

to

Andrew

Shaw,

who

sits.

Power

play

time

for

Chicago.

Just

seconds

for

Washington

today.

Important

penalty

here

for

the

Blackhawks,

who

are

the

best

in

the

league

at

it.

They've

killed

off

all

but

two

of

the

last

That's

terrific.

But

here's

Green,

with

Ovechkin

to

his

left.

Hoping

for

the

one-timer

sometimes.

Delft

back

along

for

a

play

to

be

made

by

Johansson

to

Backstrom

to

Green

to

Ovechkin

for

the

drive.

Oh,

And

a

headhunter

screamed

off

the

glass

past

the

waving

glove

hand

of

the

netminder

Crawford.

On

back

now

to

Green,

it

comes.

Green

working

to

Backstrom.

Then

Delft

toward

the

front.

Rifled

for

Ovechkin,

But

it

ricocheted

off

a

stick

and

can

be

cleared.

Toews

comes

from

the

bench.

He

and

Hossa

are

penalty

killing

with

Oduya

and

Seabrook.

Brought

back

in

by

Johansson.

Left

there.

Hossa

was

reaching.

Oduya

was

reaching

in.

And

Oduya

is

able

to

get

some

help

from

Toews

to

clear

it

back

down.

Outstanding

pressure

there

from

Kane

and

Hossa

on

the

backside.

Oduya

steps

up.

Support

outlet

from

Toews.

Cleared

down

all

the

way.

Ten

and

three-quarter

minutes

to

go.

Third

period.

We

will

not

stop

at

the

ten

minute

mark.

Conditions

are

equal.

Here

is

Backstrom

stepping

along

with

it.

He's

got

Green

nearby.

Hossa

watching

him.

Gives

it

back

for

Green's

drive.

Pag

stopped

proper.

Rebound

cleared

by

Hossa.

Back

down.

Troy

Brouwer

looked

like

he

would

have

had

a

wide-open

net

with

the

quick

stick

of

Johnny

Oduya.

Right

on,

Eddie.

Oduya

just

saved

the

goal.

Two-zone

pass

for

Ovechkin

could

not

be

handled

well,

And

so

they'll

get

it

organized

more

conventionally

here

with

to

go

on

the

power

play.

Kuznetsov

roaring

ahead

for

the

Capitals,

Drifting

now

with

it,

Feeds

it

on

back

to

John

Carlson.

Carlson

to

Ovechkin,

A

shot!

Getting

a

piece

of

it

with

his

stick

was

Crawford.

Sent

on

back

to

Carlson

yet

again.

He's

got

Johansson,

but

fires

one

himself,

and

that

one

is

blocked

in

front.

Another

try,

Ovechkin

won't

go!

A

bouncer

is

kept

alive

by

Carlson.

Down

to

the

last

of

the

power

play.

Carlson

fakes

the

drive,

gets

it

on

a

cross.

Kuznetsov

is

able

to

twirl

there.

Watched

by

Ben

Smith

and

a

shot!

Rattled

off

someone

and

ricocheted

out

of

play.

Well,

The

Capitals

are

really

in

a

shooting

mentality.

Watch

right

in

front

of

the

net.

There's

Troy

Brouwer

right

there;

Oduya

uses

a

quick

stick

to

knock

that

opportunity

away.

And

then

it's

Corey

Crawford

to

the

rescue.

Walker

is

active.

Guys

are

trying

to

help

him

out.

There's

a

little

self-help

from

Brooks.

Corey

Crawford's

had

a

tremendous

game

here

along

with

Braden

Holtby,

By

the

way,

the

goaltending's

been

good

for

both

teams

in

this

game.

Two

shots

on

goal

on

this

power

play

for

the

Capitals;

it

has

four

seconds

left.

And

Oduya

will

take

care

of

that.

Floating

one

that

has

to

be

retrieved

by

Orpik.

And

the

teams

are

back

even.

And

they're

even

on

the

scoreboard.

It's

knifed

away

from

Chimera.

A

good

reach

by

Johnny

Oduya.

Away

from

Shaw.

And

back

down.

Icing

is

waved

off

as

Bickel

got

back

there

quickly.

Thrown

back

along

by

Fehr.

Dragged

on

by

Beagle.

Wanted

Chimera.

But

instead

it's

Sharp.

Ripped

back

off

Bickel.

Fired

back

out

again

by

Niskanen.

Tipped

away

from

Rundblad.

Hustling

back

after

it,

it's

Chimera.

Chimera

turning

now,

throwing

one

out

in

front

that's

guided

away

by

Crawford.

They

burrow

around

behind

and

a

puck

comes

out

in

front.

Bickel

able

to

turn

it

back

up

now

for

Sharp.

And

he's

able

to

race

ahead

with

it.

Patrick

Sharp

drifts.

Drops

back

to

Rundblad.

And

the

shot

was

deflected

up

out

of

play.

Eight.

Fifty-eight

to

go

in

the

third

period.

We

are

still

tied

at

two.

There's

the

team

president

and

CEO,

John

McDonough.

Yes.

Who's

your

favorite

player?

Blackhawks.

Who's

your

favorite

player

in

the

Blackhawks?

Patrick

Kane.

Yeah.

Patrick

Kane.

I

think

that's

Dad's,

too.

Eddie,

Doc,

Back

to

you,

guys.

Back

to

you.

We

get

a

stoppage

of

play.

The

net

may

have

become

dislodged.

But

I

heard

something

hit

the

iron.

It

may

have

been

the

puck

or

a

goalie

stick.

Yeah.

Great

pickup,

Doc.

Very

tough

to

see

from

our

vantage

point.

Players

right

in

the

blue

paint,

and

as

Patrick

Sharp

wraps

this

around

you

see

the

angle

of

the

net

off

the

goal

line;

clearly

the

official

made

the

right

call

as

Matt

Niskanen

and

Brian

Bickell

went

hard

into

the

net,

with

Patrick

Sharp

reacting

thinking

the

puck

had

gone

in.

So

we

remain

at

to

go

in

the

third.

Rolled

around

behind,

where

it

can

be

played

by

Beagle.

Challenged

by

Bickell.

Forced

behind.

Orpik

goes

after

it

with

Sharp.

They

close

off.

Jalmerson

saw

it

tipped

ahead.

Carried

on

by

Backstrom.

Wanted

to

weave

one

through.

Beagle

charged

after

it

and

was

unable

to

generate

anything

right

away.

So

it

is

one-handed

along

by

Oduya.

Finesse

by

Sharp

and

carried

on

by

Bickell

for

the

shot

that

bounces

wide.

Floated

along

to

Bickell.

Nice

kick

to

control.

But

knifed

away

by

the

Capitals.

Carried

by

the

Capitals

and

forced

out

of

play

into

the

bench

area

by

Alexander

Ovechkin.

to

go,

Third

period

of

play.

Doc.

Shots

are

to

Foles

are

to

Hillen

turned,

Got

some

help,

And

it's

thrown

back

out

again

by

Johansen,

followed

up

by

Kuznetsov,

who

gains

the

zone.

Kuznetsov

wedged

off

by

Seabrook

so

that

Keith

can

play

it

back

to

him,

touched

rapidly

up

the

boards

for

Kane,

and

right

back

ahead.

They

try

to

get

there,

and

burrowing

in

is

Saad,

Going

to

work

on

him,

is

Mike

Green.

Forced

on

by

Hillen,

Turnaround

across

the

net

mouth

wide

from

Brad

Richards.

Boy,

he

had

Kane

wide

open.

Carried

back

by

Kuznetsov,

dropped

it

back

over

to

Johansson,

to

Kuznetsov,

A

backhander

wouldn't

go.

remarkable

goalkeeping

in

this

contest

today.

Right

back

with

it

now

comes

Richards.

Richards

holds

it

and

swung

one

that

ricocheted

off

the

outside

of

the

cage,

changing

direction

off

a

Capital's

skate.

So,

It's

Rozsival.

Rundblad

takes

a

look

at

everything

filtering

around

him

now.

Shift

changes

have

been

made.

Jonathan

Toews

has

just

jumped

onto

the

ice

from

the

boards.

It's

Sharp

with

a

shot

that's

carefully

held

by

Braden

Holtby.

And

with

to

go

in

the

third,

we

stop

again.

Boy,

A

couple

of

close

calls

down

here

in

front

of

Braden

Holtby.

That

last

chance

knocked

at

Brad

Richards.

That

puck

took

about

three

or

four

different

bounces.

It

almost

had

that

pinball

effect.

He

was

actually

trying

to

make

a

pass.

Almost

from

second

base

to

right

field.

The

next

thing

you

know,

The

puck

just

took

a

hard

right.

It

went

right

to

the

left

side

of

Braden

Holtby.

Don't

you

think,

Eddie?

Right

now,

Both

teams

just

get

pucks

as

often

as

they

can.

Without

a

doubt.

Whether

you're

playing

outdoors

here

at

Nats

Park

or

somewhere

in

Minnesota.

The

game's

on

the

line.

Now

their

tempo

and

pace

really

go

up.

Rozsival

hands

it

on

across.

Rundblad

is

able

to

play

it

back

around

behind.

Sharp

turning

there.

Duels

with

Orpik.

Puck

kicked

along

now

to

Ward.

Orpik

gives

it

on

now

to

Brooks

Laich.

Laich

carried

off.

Rozsival

duels

with

him.

Fehr

moved

in.

Eric

Fehr

able

to

wheel

it

on

back

to

Orpik.

Orpik

slides

it

across.

Carlson's

shot

is

deflected

up

to

the

glass

by

Crawford.

Sent

off

that

high

glass

and

battled

for

behind;

Ward

couldn't

come

up

with

it

there

and

it's

a

long

one

now

for

the

twisting

move

by

Sharp

that

gets

it

as

far

as

center.

He

will

come

to

the

bench

for

a

change

and

it

looked

like

he

got

hurt

on

the

play.

Meanwhile,

Leica

crossed

for

a

shot

by

Ward

and

eventually

it's

held

by

Crawford,

so

we

had

one

Blackhawk

go

down,

Versteeg,

to

our

knowledge,

Pierre,

has

not

returned,

but

Sharp

was

shaken

up

just

now.

Sharp

is

fine.

He's

just

recovering

on

the

bench

right

now.

But,

no,

Versteeg

has

yet

to

return.

That

didn't

look

good,

by

the

way,

at

Chris

Versteeg

when

he

blocked

that

shot.

But

Sharp's

fine.

Okay.

With

one

less

forward,

a

lot

of

line

changing

going

on

by

Joel

Quenneville.

We

just

saw

Sharp

out

there

with

Toews

and

Hossa.

And

now

you

They

have

Saad,

Who

had

been

with

those

two,

And

Toews

and

Hossa

are

out

here

with

Ben

Smith

and

Kruger.

Hawks

on

the

offensive.

But

decide

to

acquiesce.

And

so

it's

sent

on

a

cross

now

for

Hillen,

by

Green

to

Backstrom

ahead.

Met

at

the

line

by

Jalmerson.

Deep

after

is

Oduya.

Oduya

again,

but

Beagle

is

around

behind.

Beagle

still

working

there.

Able

to

work

to

the

far

side

for

a

shot

by

Ovechkin

that

ricocheted

back.

Green

with

a

shot,

and

that

one

deflected

around

behind.

Taken

along

by

Backstrom.

Has

Ovechkin

nearby

but

preoccupied

with

a

whack

that

came

from

Jalmerson.

The

feed

in

front

and

the

shot

is

kicked

away.

Ovechkin

tries

to

get

free.

Stick

was

held

by

Beagle.

Fans

wanted

a

penalty.

called.

It's

on

back

for

Backstrom.

A

shot

just

beyond

the

glove

hand

of

Crawford.

And

he'll

hold

this

one.

third

period.

Tension

building

in

the

cold

weather

and

the

excitement

of

Washington,

D.C.

In

a

tie

game.

Jammed

around

behind

for

a

play

by

Toews

in

front.

It's

Keith

in

deep.

Forcing

one

around

behind

that

can

be

played

by

Saad.

Touch

to

the

back.

Seabrook

with

a

drive.

And

that

went

off

the

knee

of

Orpik.

Chased

down

by

Brooks

Laich.

Seabrook

is

back.

Laich

moves

on.

Laich

trying

to

work

around

behind

and

goes

to

the

corner

with

Seabrook.

Meeting

him

in

there

is

Marian

Hossa.

Great

recovery

there

from

Seabrook

on

that

one-on-one.

Great

stick.

Sent

behind

by

Joel

Ward,

taken

on

by

Keith,

worked

by

Saad,

carried

by

Toews,

advanced

off

of

Hossa.

If

tied,

there

will

be

an

overtime.

If

still

tied,

a

shootout.

New

Year's

Day,

remember,

Bouncer

whacked

along

by

Hjalmarsson.

Sent

further

by

Johansson.

Carried

back

up

by

Bickell.

Here's

Bickell

motoring

on

with

Sharp.

Got

it

to

him.

Sharp

was

taken

out

of

the

play,

but

angles

it

on

to

Bickell.

Knocked

away

by

Hillen.

Just

away

from

Shaw.

Can

be

played

by

Brouwer.

And

Brouwer's

pass

is

on

the

money

for

Johansson.

Go

connected

back

out

again

for

the

carry

on

by

Sharp.

His

shot

was

blocked

away

by

Holtby.

Oduya

flipped

one

along.

And

a

penalty

is

coming

up,

I

think.

They're

calling

offside

there.

I

think

the

Blackhawks

may

have

gotten

away

with

one.

They

did.

Yes,

Andrew

Shaw

certainly

did.

Right

in

a

high

slot.

This

is

what

Doc

was

alluding

to,

Andrew

Shaw.

Convenient

on

purpose,

Eddie?

Yeah,

That

looked

very

similar

to

the

penalty

a

little

bit

earlier

in

the

game.

Tom

Wilson

took

the

skates

out

from

under

him.

Corey

Crawford.

Back

down

for

an

icing.

Sorry,

Dr.

Patrick.

I

was

just

going

to

mention

Patrick

Sharp

with

shots

in

this

game.

Still

four

minutes

left

to

play

in

regulation.

It's

funny

to

see

Carlson

and

Patrick

Kane

just

chatting

and

sharing

a

chuckle

a

minute

ago.

Opponents,

but

for

three

seconds,

the

guard

dropped

just

a

second.

Now

back

on.

Niskanen

banks

it

ahead.

Down

it

goes

and

Hjalmarsson

after

it.

Wedged

it

up

the

boards,

and

it

can

be

taken

there

by

Kruger.

Carefully

back

to

Hjalmarsson.

to

go

in

the

third.

Alzner

forced

it

away

from

Kruger.

Worked

back

out

where

it

can

be

handled

by

Keith

and

blasted

back

in.

Richards

leads

it

across,

but

Joel

Ward

is

there.

Tipped

it

on

back,

hoping

for

help

from

Niskanen,

but

Shaw

got

there.

Led

it

on

to

Kane.

Clicked

around

now

for

Shaw,

and

we're

going

to

get

a

delayed

penalty

against

Washington.

Here's

Seabrook,

then

on

to

Kane.

Kane,

taking

a

look

drifting

across,

got

it

on

the

short

side

of

the

net;

it

banked

on

for

a

play

to

be

made

behind

by

Seabrook,

but

eventually

it's

held

and

we're

going

to

get

a

boarding

call.

Matt

Niskanen

is

going

to

get

it

for

boarding

on

Andrew

Shaw

Niskanen

comes

in,

Shaw

turned,

and

there

you

see

from

behind

on

the

boards;

that's

what

the

referee

sees

sixth

power

play

for

the

Capitals.

I

checked

that

for

the

Blackhawks,

the

Capitals

have

had

two,

so

power

play

number

six

in

a

tie

with

to

go.

Sharp

able

to

have

this

one,

then

Kane.

Takes

a

look

toward

Keith.

Deals

it

in

to

Toews.

Toews

has

Sharp.

Gives

it

to

him.

Then

Toews.

Then

Sharp.

Then

Toews.

Then

Kane.

Dropped

it

off

to

Toews.

Fed

one

in

front.

Blocked

off

by

Brooks

Orpik.

And

Orpik

is

able

to

clear.

Though

not

out.

Held

by

Sharp.

Given

back

across

now.

Keith

gives

to

Sharp.

Then

on

to

Toews.

Has

Kane

nearby

and

gives

to

him.

Couple

of

head

fakes

and

then

to

the

back.

Sharp

a

drive!

And

that

one

blocked

up

high

off

of

Brouwer.

And

can

be

played

further

by

Keith.

Rattled

around

and

Kane

can

take

it.

to

go

on

the

power

play.

And

they

rule

that

Sharp

did

not

hold.

And

it

looked

like

from

my

vantage

point

that

it

had

just

barely

come

out

over

the

line.

Has

to

come

completely

over

the

line.

It

looked

like

it

just

might

have

been

on

the

edge

of

the

blue

line,

but

it

ended

up

being

official;

the

call

was

made

behind

Patrick

Sharp.

Tim

Nowak

was

on

the

opposite

side.

Scott

Cherry

was

right

in

front.

But

that's

not

his

call.

Off

this

tie,

a

post

deflected

off

the

back,

and

Crawford

will

come

out

to

Two

minutes

and

seconds

to

go

in

the

third

period

of

a

tie.

watching

here

in

Washington

and

all

of

you.

Give

it

across

to

Seabrook

and

drive,

Pat!

Stop,

Rebound.

It's

flipped

along,

not

out.

Shot,

A

deflection

got

the

puck

off

Bickell's

stick.

Hit

the

glass

and

can

be

played

around.

And

once

more.

It

is

Seabrook

to

hold.

Then

along

to

Saad.

Looking

to

the

front

where

Bickell

has

planted

himself.

Seabrook

shoots,

and

that

one

blocked

off;

rebound

turned

to

the

front

and

cleared

back

down

again

by

Beagle.

Half

a

minute

to

go

on

the

power

play.

Two

shots

On

this

power

play

already.

Rifled

back

in

by

Seabrook.

A

round

it

goes

near

Pickle.

Touch

behind.

But

it's

Alzner

to

play

it

there

to

Backstrom.

And

Backstrom

is

able

to

make

them

chase.

Richards

again.

A

dozen

seconds

to

go

on

this

power

play.

To

the

last

minute.

seconds

of

regulation

time.

Alzner

tries

to

deal

with

Toews.

And

there'll

be

a

penalty

coming

up.

And

this

one

is

going

to

be

on

the

Blackhawks.

The

call

is

a

hook.

It

will

be

Toews

to

the

box.

And

up

to

play

for

the

Caps

late.

Four

on

four

for

two

seconds.

We

saw

a

penalty

that

should

have

been

called

on

Andrew

Shaw

before.

Wasn't

called.

He

takes

a

hit

from

behind

on

Matt

Niskanen.

And

then,

Boy.

That

stick

was

not

in

the

midsection

for

very

long

by

Jonathan

Toews.

Real

quick,

and

it

looked

like

it

got

all

stick.

But

right

in

front

of

the

official

again,

calling

it

awfully

snug.

All

of

a

sudden,

late

here

in

period

three

of

the

Winter

Classic.

Everything

runs

through

Nicklas

Backstrom

on

this

Washington

Capitals

power

play,

on

the

road.

Niskanen

is

out

of

the

box,

and

so

the

advantage

begins.

Rifled

by

Jalmerson,

and

backed

up

the

final

minute

of

regulation

time.

If

the

Capitals

make

any

adjustment

on

their

power

play,

everything

fits

to

the

outside.

And

their

power

plays.

Johansson

moving

along

with

it.

Pivots

and

hands

off.

Backstrom

back

to

Niskanen.

And

he

couldn't

handle

it.

So

back

at

center

they

will

drift

with

three-quarters

of

a

minute.

Separating

these

teams

from

overtime.

Rifled

back

in

by

Ovechkin.

Slowed

down

by

Crawford.

Worked

by

Brouwer.

Around

behind

again.

It's

thrown

into

traffic

by

Jalmerson.

And

he

battles

some

more.

Picked

up

by

Keith.

Tries

to

muzzle

it

on;

gets

it

as

far

as

center.

And

so

it's

Niskanen.

Half

a

minute

to

go.

Float

it

back

onto

Ovechkin.

Rattled

back

in

yet

again,

around

it

comes

to

Hossa;

he

drills

it

back,

off

a

Capital,

out

of

play

center-ice

faceoff.

A

minute

nine

of

power-play

time

but

only

seconds

here

in

the

third.

That

power-play

time

would

carry

over.

But

if

the

Capitals

are

going

to

shoot

the

puck

in,

they

have

to

do

a

better

job

of

retrieving

it.

Yeah,

just

shoot

the

puck

in

and

think

it's

going

to

get

back

to

you

and

it's

been

very

easy

to

this

point

for

the

Blackhawks

while

shorthanded.

Green

to

Ovechkin

and

back.

Watched

by

Seabrook,

who

blocked

it.

Ovechkin

tried

to

follow

up.

Loose

puck.

Chuck,

well,

Instead

of

shooting

the

puck

in,

Alexander

Ovechkin

is

able

to

carry

the

puck

in.

The

quick

pass

from

Mike

Green.

Now

watch

what

happens.

Ovechkin

breaks

his

stick.

Right

there.

It

gets

slashed

right

out

of

his

hands

by

Brandon

Saad.

And

from

about

feet

out,

The

former

Blackhawk

Troy

Brouwer

beats

Corey

Crawford.

It

was

just

quick;

that's

more

than

anything

else,

Eddie.

What

a

shot

by

Brouwer.

What

a

great

play.

Literally

a

broken

play.

Ovechkin's

stick.

He's

wondering

why

there

was

no

penalty.

And

then

Brouwer

goes

glove

side.

It

looked

like

from

that

vantage

point

Crawford

was

able

to

see

it.

I

don't

think

there

was

a

screen

at

all.

I

just

think

that

release

was

so

quick.

It

fooled

Crawford

just

a

touch.

He

spun.

Brouwer

did

a

complete

spinorama

there.

He

just

finds

his

puck.

Watch

the

area

of

the

ice.

There's

Brouwer

right

next

to

Ovechkin.

And

maybe

right

there

as

Ovechkin

was

coming

without

a

stick.

Maybe

at

the

last

second

he

moved

out

of

the

way,

and

Brouwer

was

able

to

take

that

shot.

You

see

Crawford

leaning

a

little

bit.

I

think

he's

got

to

stop

that.

Saad

was

guilty

of

a

slash

on

the

play.

The

penalty

stands.

The

Blackhawks

have

guys

out

right

now

because

the

net

is

empty.

And

that's

the

right

call,

no

question.

Penalty

on

Saad

for

breaking

Ovechkin's

stick.

Grabbing

it

is

Holtby,

throwing

it

away

for

Orpik.

Play

goal

at

of

the

game.

The

Capitals

led,

then

it

was

tied

for

a

long

time.

Before

Brouwer

cashed

in.

It's

a

classic

tradition.

And

Troy

Brouwer,

You

notice,

He

got

a

couple

of

extra

handshakes

from

some

of

his

old

teammates.

The

Caps

were

able

to

get

the

puck

into

the

offensive

zone.

Holtby

thinks

about

freezing

it,

He

throws

it

into

a

corner,

It's

kept

in

at

the

point.

Seabrook

with

the

shot

and

this

puck

just

starts

taking

a

crazy

carom

right

off

the

stick

of

John

Carlson

right

to

Patrick

Kane

and

Brayden.

Holtby

really

aggressive

there

with

an

outstanding

stop,

and

you

see

the

reaction

from

Holtby

after

stopping

Kane

with

literally

one

second

remaining

in

the

Winter

Classic.

Joel

Quenneville,

Barry

Trotz,

Coaching

staffs

are

having

a

word

at

center

ice.

All

very

friendly

and

respectful.

Capitals

players

hold

their

sticks

up

to

salute

the

crowd.