New York Islanders captain Anders Lee knocked Washington Capitals forward Nicklas Backstrom out of Wednesday night's first-round series opener, setting the tone with a big hit that Washington coach Todd Reirden called "late" and "predatory."
Reirden didn't have an update afterward on Backstrom, who appeared to be looking the other way and didn't have the puck when he was leveled by a shoulder-to-shoulder hit from Lee just 2½ minutes into the first period.
"I tried to throw the brakes on a little bit there, but I caught him," said Lee, who was penalized for interference.