Caps Take 2-1 Cup Final Lead

Jay Beagle (Alaska Anchorage) assisted on two of his team's three goals Saturday night as the Washington Capitals took the lead in the 2018 Stanley Cup Final with a 3-1 victory over the visiting Vegas Golden Knights at Capital One Arena.

Washington now leads the best-of-seven NHL title series, two games to one. It was the first-ever home victory for the Caps in the Stanley Cup Final in franchise history.

T.J. Oshie (North Dakota) combined with Beagle on Washington's second goal, by Evgeny Kuznetsov, to make it 2-0 in the second period. After Vegas pulled within one early in the third period, Beagle fed Devante Smith-Pelly in front of the Golden Knights net with just over six minutes remaining in regulation for a score that regained Washington's two-goal advantage.

Game Four is Monday night (8 p.m. ET, NBC TV, CBC TV) in Washington, D.C.

Oshie, Capitals Force Game Seven Versus Lightning

T.J. Oshie (North Dakota) scored two goals, including the game-winner, on Monday night to keep the Washington Capitals season alive.

Two days after the Caps were pushed to the brink of Stanley Cup Playoff elimination, Washington responded with a 3-0 victory over the visiting Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Final. The deciding seventh game will be played Wednesday night in Florida, where the Caps have already won two of three games in this series.

Oshie opened the scoring on Monday with a power-play goal late in the second period, the Caps' only power play of the game. After Washington made it 2-0 midway through the third stanza, with Jay Beagle (Alaska Anchorage) drawing an assist, Oshie closed out matters with an empty-net goal with 50 seconds remaining in regulation. Washington outshot Tampa Bay on the evening, 34-24.

Wednesday's winner will face the Western Conference champion Vegas Golden Knights in the 2018 Stanley Cup Final. The expansion Golden Knights advanced to the NHL championship with a 2-1 win at Winnipeg on Sunday that wrapped up that series in five games.

Penguins Eliminate Capitals in Game 6

Jay Beagle (Alaska Anchorage) made the save of the game. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough to stop the Washington Capitals’ 2015-16 NHL campaign from ending.

Nick Bonino (Boston University) backhanded home the rebound of a shot by Carl Hagelin (Michigan) 6:32 into overtime Tuesday night to lift the host Pittsburgh Penguins to a 4-3 victory over the Caps in Game 6 of an Eastern Conference semifinal series at Consol Energy Center in Pennsylvania. The goal came several minutes after Beagle had slid through the Washington crease to stick away an opposing shot.

Phil Kessel (Minnesota) also assisted on Bonino’s goal, and scored two goals of his own while Hagelin added another as the Pens won the series in six games. Pittsburgh, which has now won eight of nine Stanley Cup playoff series all-time against Washington, will face Tampa Bay, a six-game winner over the New York Islanders, for the Eastern Conference crown, which was won last season by the Lightning.

The Capitals, who finished with the best regular-season record in the NHL this season, battled back from a 3-1 deficit after 40 minutes with two goals in the third period Tuesday thanks to three consecutive Pittsburgh delay-of-game penalties. Washington, however couldn't complete the comeback and force Game 7, and again couldn’t advance to the Eastern Conference final for the first time since 1998.

Two Clubs Back in Contention, One Set to Sweep

Jonathan Quick (Massachusetts) made 28 saves on Monday night as the Los Angeles Kings climbed back into their Western Conference quarterfinal series of the 2016 Stanley Cup Playoffs with a 2-1 overtime win at San Jose. The Sharks, who had won the first two games in Los Angeles, now lead the best-of-seven series, two games to one. Game 4 is Wednesday in San Jose.

In Minnesota, the host Wild stormed back from a 2-0 first-period deficit to register a 5-3 victory over the Dallas Stars yesterday. Erik Haula (Minnesota) had a goal and assist to lead the Wild, while Charlie Coyle (Boston University) picked up an assist. Patrick Sharp (Vermont) scored twice for Dallas, which leads the series, two games to one, and will again try to extend its lead in Game 4 on Wednesday in St. Paul.

Lastly, the Washington Capitals, the NHL's top team during the regular season, tallied five power-play goals to move to the brink of a first-round sweep of the Philadelphia Flyers with a 6-1 triumph in Pennsylvania. Jay Beagle (Alaska Anchorage) scored the final goal for the Caps, who now lead the Eastern Conference quarterfinal series, three games to none, and will look to close it out on Wednesday.