Caps Fight Back Against Flyers

By Rodger M. WoodThe Caps fought back to a 2-2 draw against the Broad Street Bullies last night at Philadelphia in regulation, but lost 3-2 in overtime.The game started off like, “Oh, here we go again,” when the Caps fell behind 1-0 early on Jeff Carter’s goal at the 1:31 mark of the first period, but the Caps showed more fight this game, starting with Caps DJ King pummeling a 6-3 230 Flyers goon named “Jody Shelley” at center ice a minute later.Caps showed more toughness at the end of the first period when defenseman John Erskine challenged each and any one of the Flyers on the ice to fight or go to the dressing room, and throughout the game with their bone crunching checks.After Claude Giroux scored the Flyers’ second goal at midway point of the second period for a 2-0 lead, the Caps staged a ferocious comeback, fore checking, dumping the puck in the Flyers end, and collapsing in front of the net. The hard work paid off with Mike Knuble’s rebound goal, assisted by Marcus Johansson, at the 7:58 mark of the third period, and Alex O’s 2-2 tie goal a minute later.While the Flyers won 3-2 in overtime on defenseman Andrej Meszaros’ hard wrist shot from the point, Caps goalie Semyon Varlomov kept the Caps in the game with his unbelievable goaltending, after replacing injured Michael Neuvirth in the second period.Atpyically unmarred by penalties in the second and third periods, all the Flyers/Caps goals were scored with no man advantage.While getting only a point for the tie in regulation and falling a point behind the Lightning in the Southeast Division race, the Caps’ comeback showed they can take the ice and beat an Eastern Conference point leading Flyers (65) anytime home or away, and more especially when the puck starts bouncing and the referee start calling a few penalties their way again..The Caps move on to Nassau Memorial Coliseum to face the New York Islanders Thursday night and the Toronto Maple Leafs away on Canada’s Saturday night hockey, which was made famous by HOF broadcaster Foster Hewitt back in the 1950s when I was growing up in Detroit.

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