Jay Beagle was collateral damage.
As Capitals winger Devante Smith-Pelly charged forward at full speed, he unleashed a punishing hit on Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Dan Girardi. Directly behind the two, Beagle — just trying to play the puck behind the net — was sent crashing to the ice, along with Girardi.
“I apologized to him,” Smith-Pelly said. “I didn’t see him until — well, I saw him coming flying out of the other side. … He didn’t seem to care. He’s all good.”
It wasn’t hard to grasp why Beagle understood.