Carolina survives low shots, high stress, and DC traffic to take the early series lead.
Game 1 between the Hurricanes and Capitals felt less like a playoff showdown and more like a family dinner where everyone’s being polite until suddenly… someone throws mashed potatoes.
The Hurricanes outshot the Capitals 33–14, which is basically hockey for “we did all the homework and they showed up with a crayon.” And yet, Washington somehow led 1–0 heading into the third, thanks to a sneaky strike from Aliaksei Protas that even the replay cameras had to squint at.
But cue the Logan Stankoven Era. The Canes rookie pounced on a sloppy Capitals turnover like it owed him money and tied it 1–1 with a backhand that screamed, “I’ve done this in my sleep… literally.”
Then came overtime. Stress levels? High. Blood pressure? Sponsored by Red Bull. But Jaccob Slavin said “Nope, we’re not doing this all night,” and fired a laser from the point that sliced through traffic and found the net like it had GPS.
Frederik Andersen made 13 saves, which feels like a light workout for a playoff goalie, but hey — quality over quantity. Meanwhile, the Capitals were last seen asking Siri how to generate shots on goal.
The series now shifts to Game 2, where Washington will try to remember how to shoot a hockey puck, and Carolina will try not to trip over its own momentum.
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