The Washington Capitals were in a heap of trouble.
As they traveled to Ohio for Game 3 of their Eastern Conference Quarterfinal against the Columbus Blue Jackets, they trailed the series 2-zip. To rub salt in the wounds, both those loses came at home in overtime. The margin of error was gone. Another loss would put them on the brink.
Yet, as they took the ice at Nationwide Arena, the Caps looked lose. Braden Holtby replaced Philipp Grubauer in goal. Outside Jakub Vrana filling in for the injured Andre Burakovsky, along with Christian Djoos playing on defense, this was the same main lineup from the opening two games.