For the third time in the last five games, the Washington Capitals on Sunday collapsed in the second period.
In a matinee against the visiting Vancouver Canucks, the Capitals took an early lead, only to see it become irrelevant by allowing three consecutive second-period goals en route to a 4-2 loss.
The defeat was similar to recent ones against Boston and St. Louis, in which the Capitals were also outscored by three goals in the middle 20 minutes. The difference Sunday compared to the drubbings versus the Bruins (7-3) and Blues (5-1) was the Capitals played well in the other two periods — making the poor second period even more costly.