There were only two NHL games on Wednesday night as hockey fans zoned in on four particular teams. The two teams that represent country capital cities matched up as the Washington Capitals took on the Ottawa Senators in the first game. In the second game, the Detroit Red Wings took on the Pittsburgh Penguins.
For a long time, the Penguins and Capitals were powerhouses in the Eastern Conference. During the Sidney Crosby and Alexander Ovechkin era, they combined to win four Stanley Cups. There have also been a ton of other playoff experiences as well.
As for the Wings and Sens, they want to start winning again too. They are both rich in history but have both been rebuilding for a while now.
It appears that they are going to take the next step though. They were supposed to make some noise last year but neither made the playoffs. Now, at least one of them would like to.
The Detroit Red Wings and Ottawa Senators are box-office material.
Up in Ottawa, the Senators put on a show against the Washington Capitals. It was an incredible performance by them as they won the game by a final score of 6-1. They had contributions from everyone in the win.
Vladimir Tarasenko’s second goal in a Sens uniform got the scoring started. He ended up with an assist later for a two-point night. Having multi-point nights seemed to be a theme for Ottawa’s top players. Claude Giroux, an elder player like Tarasenko, also had two points with two assists. Outside of them, the young core took over.
Josh Norris made his long-awaited return and he had two goals. Helping him was Tim Stutzle who had three assists while Drake Batherson had two apples.
Freshly extended defenseman Jake Sanderson also was a big factor as he scored and had an assist as well. That’s a lot of scoring from up and down the lineup. This group is very fun to watch.
In net for the Senators was Anton Forsberg who is now off to a truly magnificent start. He didn’t need to be super spectacular but he was there when needed. He made 23 saves on 24 shots.
As for Detroit, they hosted the Penguins who are a very good team still. They ended up winning the game 6-3 thanks to all of their star power.
It is almost impossible to keep the Penguins core of elite players to 0 points in a game but the Wings were able to outdo them in this one. Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Erik Karlsson all found their way on the score sheet but it wasn’t enough.
Alex DeBrincat, the Michigan native, clearly loves playing for his hometown team. He is having an amazing start to the year and he added to it with two goals and an assist. If he can keep leading the way offensively like this, big things will come for the Red Wings.
Andrew Copp also had two goals in the win. Dylan Larkin had three assists too which is nice to see for the captain who finally has some good players around him. Plenty of others also found their way on the score sheet as well.
Both of these Atlantic Division teams are looking like powers right now. After a week of play, they lead the division in standings points as both are 3-1-0 through four games. They also both lost their first game and haven’t lost since.
This sets up a Saturday afternoon showdown between them! That has to be considered one of the most anticipated games of the second week as these two loaded teams will compete against each other. That is going to be a must-see TV. Both of these clubs are on fire right now and we can only hope it continues.