After weeks of going through the motions, the fear for the Washington Capitals was a lethargic start to the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Through one game, that angst has seemingly seeped over to the opposing bench.
With a solid Game 1 win in their back pocket, the top-seeded Capitals can take control of their Eastern Conference series Saturday night with another home win over the Philadelphia Flyers, who will be without a key contributor the rest of the way.
Washington cruised to the Presidents' Trophy in the regular season, leaving the club with several weeks of meaningless games ahead of the playoffs.