SCSU's Dowd Strikes in Playoff Opener for Caps

Nic Dowd (St. Cloud State) made it Washington's night to open the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Dowd tipped home a slapshot by T.J. Oshie (North Dakota) just under five minutes into overtime to lift the Capitals to a 3-2 victory over the visiting Boston Bruins tonight in the opener of their Eastern Conference quarterfinal series. Washington leads the best-of-seven series, one game to none.

Oshie, who tallied an emotional hat trick earlier this month in a 4-2 win over the New York Rangers shortly after the passing of his father, finished the night with two assists. Charlie McAvoy (Boston University) assisted on Boston's tying goal late in the second period, which knotted the game at 2-2.

Dowd, 30, a native of Huntsville, Ala., now has two goals in 16 career Stanley Cup playoff outings, all with Washington. He tallied 52 goals and 121 points in 154 NCAA contests with St. Cloud from 2010 to 2014, and was also a First Team All-America selection as a senior captain for the Huskies.

Game Two will be Monday night in Washington, D.C.

UND Alumni Star in Capitals/Devils Contest

It was a day for North Dakota alumni in Washington, D.C.

T.J. Oshie scored two goals for the host Washington Capitals, and also assisted on the game-winner, in a 4-3 victory over the New Jersey Devils. For the visitors, Aaron Dell made his Devils debut with a 37-save effort in net, while forward Travis Zajac played in his 1,000th NHL contest, all of them with New Jersey.

Oshie, 34, skated for UND from 2005 to 2008, notching 142 points in 129 games while also helping the then-Fighting Sioux to three consecutive NCAA Frozen Fours.

Zajac, 35, played two years at UND (2004-06), including one with Oshie, and helped the Sioux to two Frozen Fours while recording 86 points in 91 appearances.

Dell, 31, who was claimed off waivers from the San Jose Sharks last month, backstopped UND from 2009 to 2012. He compiled a 49-20-5 record with a 2.15 goals-against average and nine shutouts in three years, while also backstopping UND to a berth in the 2011 Frozen Four.

BGSU's Reirden Out as Capitals Head Coach

Todd Reirden (Bowling Green) is looking for a new job. The head coach of the Washington Capitals the last two years, the former NCAA and NHL defenseman was relieved of those duties on Sunday by the Capitals’ organization following another first-round postseason loss.

Reirden, 49, led Washington to an 89-46-16 overall regular-season record and two Metropolitan Division titles over the last two winters. The Capitals, however, were eliminated in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs in each year, including a five-game loss to the New York islanders in Toronto this month, as the league restarted playing operations during the COVID-19 pandemic that had originally suspended the season back in March.

Reirden won the Stanley Cup with the Capitals in 2018, in his second season with the team as associate coach, after two years as an assistant coach, and was named head coach after the Capitals won their first NHL championship. Prior to Washington, he served four seasons as an assistant coach with the Pittsburgh Penguins, after spending one year as an assistant and one-and-a-half-years as head coach with Pittsburgh’s top minor-league affiliate, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (AHL).

Reirden, a 6-foot-5 native of Deerfield, Ill., skated on defense for Bowling Green from 1990 to 1994, after prepping with both Deerfield Academy and Tabor Academy in New England. In four NCAA seasons with the Falcons, he collected 24 goals and 52 assists for 76 points to go with 160 penalty minutes in 140 career contests.

Drafted by the New Jersey Devils in the 12th round of the 1990 NHL Entry Draft, Reirden went on to play professionally from 1994 to 2007. He collected 11-36—47 points and 181 PIM in 188 career NHL outings, including five Stanley Cup playoff games, while manning the blueline for Edmonton, St. Louis, Atlanta and Phoenix. He also played in the ECHL, AHL and IHL, and finished his playing career with one season apiece in Germany and Austria.

Following his retirement as an active player, Reirden joined BGSU as an assistant coach for the 2007-08 campaign before re-joining the professional ranks the following season as an assistant with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.

Former Collegians on the Move in NHL Free Agency

A number of former college players changed NHL teams over the last week, both before and after the league's annual free agent frenzy got underway.

Prior to the beginning of the free agency period on Sunday, the Pittsburgh Penguins dealt forward Connor Sheary (Massachusetts) and Matt Hunwick (Michigan) to the Buffalo Sabres for a conditional 2019 draft choice. Pittsburgh later signed defenseman Jack Johnson (Michigan) of the Columbus Blue Jackets to a five-year contract. Jimmy Hayes (Boston College) and John Muse (Boston College), who both helped BC to its 2010 NCAA title, joined the Penguins from the New Jersey Devils and Reading (ECHL), respectively.

Power forward and 30-goal scorer James van Riemsdyk (New Hampshire) returned to the Philadelphia Flyers after six seasons with the Toronto Maple Leafs, the latter club pulling perhaps the biggest coup in free agency this summer by signing New York Islanders captain and All-Star forward John Tavares.

Paul Stastny (Denver) has jumped from the Winnipeg Jets to the Vegas Golden Knights. Tage Thompson (Connecticut) went from the St. Louis Blues to the Buffalo Sabres as part of a four-player trade, while Tyler Bozak (Denver) has re-upped with the Blues for three years. Jay Beagle (Alaska Anchorage), who helped the Washington Capitals win their first-ever Stanley Cup this spring, has left Washington after decade to join the Vancouver Canucks, while Nic Dowd (St. Cloud State) has signed with the Caps after spending last season with the Canucks.

Brian Gibbons (Boston College), a two-time NCAA champion with the Eagles, parlayed his most successful NHL season to date by leaving New Jersey for the Anaheim Ducks, while Eric Gryba (Boston University) went to the Devils from the Edmonton Oilers. Longtime pro netminder Mike McKenna (St. Lawrence), who backstopped the Dallas Stars' American Hockey League franchise to within one win of the AHL's Calder Cup championship, has signed with the Ottawa Senators, as has former New York Rangers forward Paul Carey (Boston College).

A full list of recent NHL transactions can be found here.

Bowling Green's Reirden Takes Over with NHL's Capitals

Todd Reirden (Bowling Green) is the new head coach of the NHL's Washington Capitals. The Illinois native, who has served four years as an assistant or associate coach with the Capitals, takes over the top job after Barry Trotz resigned earlier this month. Trotz subsequently joined the New York Islanders after leading Washington to the first Stanley Cup title in franchise history this spring.

Reirden began his coaching career at BGSU in 2007-08, before moving on to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League as an assistant the following year. After serving as head coach of the WBS Penguins for the next season-and-a-half, he moved up to the NHL with the Pittsburgh Penguins as an assistant in 2010. He stayed there for four seasons before joining the Caps in 2014 as an assistant, before being promoted to associate head coach in 2016.

A defenseman as a player, Reirden skated four NCAA seasons at BGSU (1990-1994), collecting 25 goals and 51 assists for 76 points to go with 160 penalty minutes for the Falcons. A second-round NHL draft choice of New Jersey in 1990, he turned pro with Tallahassee of the ECHL in 1994-95. He would suit up for two more ECHL teams and three International Hockey League teams before making his NHL debut in 1998-99 with the Edmonton Oilers.

Reirden would go on to skate in 183 career NHL regular season contests for Edmonton, St. Louis, Atlanta and Phoenix, tallying 11-35—46 points and 181 PIM. He also played for five different AHL teams before concluding his career in Austria in 2006-07.

Reirden, 47, becomes the second former Central Collegiate Hockey Association player to become an NHL head coach this off-season. He joins Rod Brind'Amour (Michigan State), who is now head coach of the Carolina Hurricanes.

Capitals Win First-Ever Stanley Cup

The Stanley Cup was awarded in Las Vegas on Thursday night—but not to the host Golden Knights.

That honor instead went to the Washington Capitals, who won the NHL title for the first time in their 44 seasons after a five-game triumph over expansion upstart Vegas, by virtue of a 4-3 victory in Game Five at T-Mobile Arena.

Washington defenseman Brooks Orpik (Boston College) assisted on the tying goal midway through the third period, after Vegas had taken a 3-2 lead after two periods of play. Lars Eller then tallied the game-winning goal with less than eight minutes remaining in regulation, and the Capitals held on for their first Stanley Cup crown since entering the league in 1974, in their second-ever finals appearance. Washington was swept by Detroit in four games in 1998.

Reilly Smith (Miami) notched a goal and an assist in the series finale for Pacific Division and Western Conference champion Vegas, which went 12-3 over the first three rounds of the NHL postseason. The Golden Knights then won Game One of the final, before dropping four straight contests to the Eastern Conference champion Capitals. Alex Tuch (Boston College) assisted on Smith's goal.

Washington team captain Alex Ovechkin, who scored the Caps' second goal on the night and thus established a new franchise record with 15 goals this postseason, won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the NHL's most valuable player in the playoffs. This season marked the first time Washington had advanced past the second round of the playoffs in his 13-year NHL career.

Former NCAA players besides Orpik who lifted the Cup as champions with the Caps this year , Jay Beagle (Alaska Anchorage), Travis Boyd (Minnesota), Alex Chiasson (Boston University), Pheonix Copley (Michigan Tech), Aaron Ness (Minnesota), Matt Niskanen (Minnesota-Duluth) and T.J. Oshie (North Dakota).

Orpik had been the only player on the Caps' roster to have previously won the Stanley Cup (Pittsburgh, 2009). His second career Cup triumph pushed BC's all-time total to 19 Cups, tops among NCAA schools along with Wisconsin.

Washington One Win from Stanley Cup

T.J. Oshie (North Dakota) opened the scoring in a three-goal first period on Monday night, and later added two assists as the Washington Capitals moved to within one victory of their first-ever NHL championship.

The Capitals opened the week with a 6-2 rout of the visiting Vegas Golden Knights at Capital One Arena in Game Four of the 2018 Stanley Cup Final. Washington now leads the best-of-seven series, three games to one, while having won the last three contests, including both played in Washington, D.C.

Reilly Smith (Miami) had one goal for Vegas, which hit several goal posts early on and then trailed, 4-0, after 40 minutes. The expansion Golden Knights, who have lost three straight games in regulation for the first time since Nov. 28-Dec. 1, then pulled within two goals in the final period before Washington tacked on two more scores in the final seven minutes of play.

The Capitals finished 3-for-5 on the power play despite being outshot, 30-23, overall for the evening. Washington also blocked 24 opposing shots in all, and killed off all four Vegas power plays.

The Caps will look to sew up the series—and the Stanley Cup—on Thursday night in Game Five at Vegas (8 p.m. ET; NBC TV, CBC TV).

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.

Orpik Goal Boosts Caps to Game Two Win

A pair of former Boston College Eagles combined on the winning goal in Game Two of the 2018 Stanley Cup Final on Wednesday—even though they play for different teams.

Washington Capitals defenseman Brooks Orpik, who helped BC to the 2001 NCAA title over North Dakota, scored the winning goal in the second period at T-Mobile Arena when his wrist shot from the right side went in off 2016 BC Beanpot Tournament hero Alex Tuch of the Vegas Golden Knights. The score stood up as the game-winner as the Caps defeated host Vegas, 3-2, to tie the best-of-seven NHL championship series at one game apiece. 

For Orpik, it was his first NHL goal since the 2015-16 NHL regular season, and his first Stanley Cup Playoff goal since 2014 with the Pittsburgh Penguins. He was a member of Pittsburgh's 2009 NHL championship team along with Golden Knights goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury, who made 23 saves on Wednesday.

Tuch, who tallied the game-winning goal in overtime in BC's Beanpot championship game triumph two years ago against Boston University, had a chance to tie the game for Vegas on a point-blank shot with two minutes remaining in the third period, but was denied by Washington netminder Braden Holtby. Reilly Smith (Miami), who tallied goal and an assist in Vegas' 6-4 triumph on Monday, had one assist in Game Two.

Wednesday was also the first-ever victory in the Stanley Cup Final for Washington in six games all-time. The Caps were swept by Detroit in four contests in 1998.

Game Three will be held Saturday night in Washington, D.C. (8 p.m. ET; TV: NBCSN, CBC).

At Last it Begins ...

The 2018 Stanley Cup Final begins tonight in Las Vegas, and both the cinderella Vegas Golden Knights and the upstart Washington Capitals feature several former NCAA players on their rosters.

For Vegas, the college roll call includes Ryan Carpenter (Bowling Green), Erik Haula (Minnesota), Jason Garrison (Minnesota-Duluth), Brad Hunt (Bemidji State), John Merrill (Michigan), Brandon Pirri (Rensselaer), Nate Schmidt (Minnesota), Reilly Smith (Miami), Alex Tuch (Boston College) and Zach Whitecloud (Bemidji State), according to hockeydb.com.

For Washington, its NCAA alumni include Jay Beagle (Alaska Anchorage), Travis Boyd (Minnesota), Alex Chiasson (Boston University), Pheonix Copley (Michigan Tech), Aaron Ness (Minnesota) Matt Niskanen (Minnesota-Duluth), Brooks Orpik (Boston College) and T.J. Oshie (North Dakota). 

Game Two of the NHL's championship tilt will be held Wednesday in Nevada, before the best-of-seven series shifts to Washington, D.C. on Saturday.

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.

McPhee Tabbed as Inaugural Las Vegas GM

Former Hobey Baker Memorial Award winner George McPhee (Bowling Green) is the new general manager of the as-yet unnamed Las Vegas expansion team that will start National Hockey League play in 2017-18, according to NHL.com.

McPhee, 58, who played seven seasons as a forward in the NHL with the New York Rangers and New Jersey Devils, appeared in a total of 155 regular-season outings and 29 Stanley Cup playoff contests from 1983 to 1989. He later spent 17 years as GM of the Washington Capitals (1997-2014), guiding the Caps to eight regular seasons of 40 or more wins, and seven Southeast Division crowns, plus the 1998 Stanley Cup Final.

A native of Guelph, Ontario, McPhee won the Hobey Baker Award as a senior at BGSU in 1981-82 when he led the Falcons with 28 goals and 52 assists for 80 points, and also earned All-American and All-CCHA honors, according to BGSU’s athletic website. In four seasons, he racked up 114-153—267 points in 153 NCAA games, including a 40-goal campaign as a freshman in 1978-79 when he played for the late Ron Mason. He also helped the Falcons to two NCAA Tournament berths, two CCHA regular-season titles, and one CCHA playoff championship.

BC's Sanford Signs with Capitals

Make it seven players now lost for Boston College this offseason.

Rising sophomore forward Zach Sanford became the seventh Eagle to leave the Heights with college eligibility remaining, by signing a three entry-level NHL contract with the Washington Capitals, who drafted him 61st overall in 2013, according to the team website. He has attended four summer development camps with the Capitals, who finished as the top team in the NHL during the 2015-16 regular season.

Sanford, 21, a 6-foot-4, 191-pound skater from Auburn, N.H. leaves BC after tallying 20 goals and 43 assists for 63 points in 79 career games. He recorded career highs of 13-26—39 points and 44 penalty minutes to go with with six power-play goals last season as the Eagles shared the Hockey East regular-season title with Providence, and also advanced to the NCAA Frozen Four in Tampa. He joins Ian McCoshen, Steve Santini, Miles Wood, Alex Tuch, Adam Gilmour, and Thatcher Demko in leaving BC early for the pros this year.

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.

Beagle Noses Through for Caps in Win

Jay Beagle (Alaska Anchorage) scored the game's only goal on a wraparound attempt midway through the second period as the Washington Capitals edged the New York Rangers, 1-0, on Monday night in the nation's capital.

"It's not always going to be pretty, especially against a great goalie [Henrik Lundqvist] like that," said Beagle at NHL.com. "My goals are never how you draw them up. It's just a matter of grinding it out and trying to create havoc in front and good things happen."

The Caps now lead the Eastern Conference semifinal series, two games to one, with Game 4 in Washington, D.C. set for Wednesday evening. It was Beagle's first goal of the 2015 Stanley Cup Playoffs, and came after his initial shot was stopped in front.

Beagle, 29, a Calgary native, played for UAA from 2005 to 2007, and tallied 14 goals and 16 assists for 30 points in 67 NCAA games with the Seawolves, including a 20-point sophomore season. He has spent his entire NHL career with Washington, and has 23 goals and 47 points in 254 career regular-season contests with the Caps.

Kreider Does It Again

Chris Kreider is making this look easy.

Three weeks to the day he led Boston College to its fifth-ever NCAA championship in his final game for the Eagles, Kreider struck for his second career game-winning goal in three games in the New York Rangers' 3-1 victory over the Washington Capitals in the opener of their Stanley Cup Eastern Conference semifinal series on Saturday at Madison Square Garden.

Kreider broke a 1-1 tie when he blasted the puck past Capitals netminder and fellow NHL rookie Braden Holtby on a one-man rush exactly seven minutes into the third period. He then worked the side boards deep in the Washington zone a minute-and-a-half later to set up Brad Richards for a point-blank insurance tally through Holtby's pads.

''It's a surreal experience,'' said the 6'3", 225-pound Kreider, who will turn 21 on Monday in time for Game 2 of the series, to the Associated Press. ''I got goose bumps, obviously. I was really tired after the goal, but I didn't feel so tired when they started chanting.''

Kreider, who was drafted 19th overall by New York in 2009, scored his first career NHL goal in a 3-2 win at Ottawa last week to tie that series at three games apiece. He collected 50 goals and 43 assists for 93 points in 114 career games at BC, and won three Hockey East championships, three Beanpot crowns, and two national titles with the Eagles before turning pro in early April.