WASHINGTON — Nicklas Backstrom and Alex Ovechkin combined to score three goals on the first eight shots, and the defending Stanley Cup champion Washington Capitals survived a surge from Andrei Svechnikov and the Carolina Hurricanes to win Game 1 of their first-round series 4-2 on Thursday night. It looked like the Capitals would roll toward a statement victory against an opponent lacking playoff experience, but the pesky Hurricanes turned up the heat. Capitals players had plenty of recent lessons to know that a multigoal lead isn’t safe this time of year. The Hurricanes were playing their first playoff game since 2009 after ending the league’s longest drought. UP NEXTThe Capitals host Game 2 Saturday afternoon looking to take a 2-0 lead in a series for just the third time in the past five playoffs.

Source: National Post April 12, 2019 03:03 UTC