TAMPA — Alex Ovechkin lifted his arms in celebration before the rest of the arena could fully digest what had happened. The Capitals star rifled home a one-timer past LIghtning goaltender Andrei Vasilevski — seconds after Tampa Bay had its own goal erased for having too many men on the ice.
It was the type of break that the Capitals — playoff baggage and all — would normally be on the other side of.
But this is the Eastern Conference Finals, and Ovechkin and the Capitals are determined to write a new postseason ending this time.