UNIONDALE, N.Y. – Have you rewatched the winner? No, even before Nicklas Backstrom clobbered the puck into the New York Islanders’ net, silenced Nassau Coliseum and touched off a 20-man group hug. Did you see what happened? No, even before John Tavares lost his stick, gifting Backstrom the sliver of space needed to curl around high, pivot toward goaltender Jaroslav Halak and send the Washington Capitals to a sorely needed 2-1 overtime win in Game 3.
So go back. Look again. You can almost hear the words in Backstrom’s head.
Come on, John. Do it.