As intense as the Stanley Cup playoffs are already are, and three-consecutive games with overtime and four total, Thursday’s Game 4 between the Columbus Blue Jackets and Washington Capitals only intensified. Tom Wilson, making noise with hits but also goals early in the series, continued those trends during the first period.
Wilson beat Sergei Bobrovsky for his second goal of the series 6:16 into the opening period. Just prior to the goal, Thomas Vanek made the great effort to keep the puck out of the net behind Bobrovsky on a clear attempt, yet Evgeny Kuznetsov was there to chip the puck to Wilson, firing the shot before Bobrovsky could settle.