It was not unlike the lead-up to his first regular-season game helming the Washington Capitals, when Coach Barry Trotz compared his demeanor to an apparently calm duck paddling away under the surface. “I think you get a little excitement about it,” Trotz said around 5:30 p.m. Monday evening, roughly two hours before the puck dropped on Game 7 of these Eastern Conference quarterfinals. “I get them during the regular season and postseason, so that’s good. Still alive, still ticking.”
He was still here, they all were, at least for one more night. Beating the New York Islanders would vault the Capitals into the next round, beginning Thursday against the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden, one step closer to the Stanley Cup.