For the first time since 1992, a D.C. sports team is in their league finals. On Saturday night, the Washington Capitals triumphed over the Las Vegas Golden Knights 3-1, to take a 2-1 series lead in the Stanley Cup Finals.
This year’s Stanley Cup Finals is one of the most storied of all time. To start, the Golden Knights are an expansion team, meaning that this is their first season in the NHL. The last expansion team to make the Stanley Cup was the St. Louis Blues in 1968. When you think about it, that is one of the most incredible sports stories of recent years. The Knights’ owners built their team from the ground up and immediately made them one of the NHL’s top contenders.
But enough talk about the Golden Knights, let’s talk about D.C.’s newest pride, the Caps. After years of suffering, Washington sports fans can finally see a bit of hope. Throughout the years, the Capitals have consistently been a very disappointing team. Not that they have been bad, as a matter of fact, they’ve been quite good. The Caps consistently blew past teams in the regular season, making D.C. fans always utter these four words: “This is the year”. But, for Caps fans, it seemed like the year would never come. The Caps would always have early playoff exits, usually at the hands of the Pittsburgh Penguins and star Sidney Crosby.
Yet, 2018 has been a magical year for the Capitals. They handily beat the Columbus Blue Jackets in the first round of the playoffs. Then, the Caps had to face their biggest nightmare, Crosby and the Penguins. The pessimism that has built up in the heads of Caps fans took over, as every diehard fan thought, “here we go again”. Nonetheless, the fans showed up loud and rowdy to cheer on their hometown squad throughout the series, and after years of tears and anger, the Caps got past the Penguins in Game 6 in a thrilling overtime road win.
The Caps finally beating the Penguins gave players and fans a huge boost of confidence heading into the Conference Finals against the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Conference Finals were the most difficult series for the Caps. They took an early 2-0 lead in the series but proceeded to lose both Games 4 and 5, both times 4-2. Then, they lost Game 5, giving Tampa Bay a 3-2 lead. The Capitals’ three straight losses made it seem like this series was going to be another classic Caps narrative: a playoff exit in the most heartbreaking way possible. But, for Games 6 and 7, Caps goalie Braden Holtby decided to step up. Holtby didn’t let in a single goal in those two games, and he had a total of 54 saves. The Capitals’ offense also rose to the occasion as they scored four goals in Game 6 and three in Game 7.
In the Stanley Cup Finals, Caps fans have shown the most support we’ve ever seen. Fans came together in large crowds around Capital One Arena during Game 3 just to watch the game from outside the arena. After the win, Caps chants echoed throughout downtown D.C. and some fans even climbed lamp posts. Even though the Capitals have a history of playoff chokes, their fans have faith in them.
Despite the outcome of the Stanley Cup Finals, the Caps have proved to D.C. sports fans that after all, D.C. may not be cursed. But, a Stanley Cup victory by the Caps would bring the happiness and excitement that all D.C. fans have been waiting for.
By Saul Pink
