As an entertaining but sloppy game for the Washington Capitals wound down, Evgeny Kuznetsov held the puck on the goal line. Everyone was thinking pass first. Except for the 26-year-old Russian, who fired a nearly zero angle shot past Dallas Stars goalie Ben Bishop’s shoulder. Cue the bird celebration and a lucky point in the standings for the discombobulated Capitals.
“[Kuznetsov] is special player,” Caps head coach Todd Reirden told me after the game. “I think he continues to grow and get better and think his game continues to evolve.