Down 2, Capitals rally to sting Penguins

Associated Press

WASHINGTON

With almost a quarter of the regular season left to play, the Washington Capitals are cruising toward the playoffs and trying to find different ways to stay focused on the present.

So coach Barry Trotz took time at his team’s morning meeting Tuesday to point out that the Pittsburgh Penguins could be Washington’s first-round opponent. The Capitals responded to that challenge by coming back from a two-goal deficit to beat their biggest rivals 3-2 in what very well could be a playoff preview.

IAfter spotting the Penguins a 2-0 lead on goals by Evgeni Malkin and Patric Hornqvist, Washington turned up its game and stormed back. The Caps allowed the first goal for the 15th time in the past 18 games, but then they tied it with second-period goals from Mike Richards and Evgeny Kuznetsov.

Defenseman Matt Niskanen scored the winner on the power play with 6:22 left.

“We knew they were going to push back — they’re a good team,” Pittsburgh coach Mike Sullivan said. “I think the power play wins a lot of games for them.”

Goaltending isn’t bad either. Braden Holtby stopped 28 of the 30 shots he faced, none bigger than Carl Hagelin’s attempt with 32.8 seconds left. The Penguins didn’t have another quality chance.