Brendan Dillon joked after the second period that it took the Washington Capitals 10 periods to find their game. In reality, it took them 19, counting the three round robin games.
After the first period, the Caps looked dead in the water. They didn’t register a five-on-five shot until they were already down two goals. Head coach Todd Reirden fired his last bullet — a timeout — but it seemed to have no effect. The tide was clearly in favor of the team from Long Island. The Islanders at one point had a shot attempt advantage of 16-1, with the lone Capital attempt coming on a shorthanded chance.