Boudreau's Big Evening Ends With Loss for Caps
Maple Leafs 3, Capitals 2
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Thursday, January 24, 2008
TORONTO, Jan. 23 -- Everywhere Bruce Boudreau turned at Air Canada Center on Wednesday, someone was wishing him good luck.
It was a big night for the Washington Capitals' coach, a Toronto native who made his NHL coaching debut in his home town, against the team that drafted him and before dozens of friends and members of his family.
But Mats Sundin and the embattled Maple Leafs made sure there was no storybook ending for Boudreau. Sundin scored with 30 seconds remaining, and goaltender Vesa Toskala made 30 saves to halt the Capitals' winning streak at four games, 3-2.
Sundin fired a rebound past Olie Kolzig, who stopped Alex Steen's initial shot but was unable to reach back and get enough of Sundin's. Kolzig finished with 21 saves.
"Our defensemen's gaps were too big," Boudreau said of the decisive play. "Their guy picked up the puck between the red and the blueline, and our defense was already inside our blueline. Then Sundin beats [winger Alexander Semin] back to the net."
And like that, the Capitals blew a chance to pull within a point of the Carolina Hurricanes for the Southeast Division lead.
"Tonight was a must-win for us because every point counts," said defenseman John Erskine, who leveled several Leafs with crushing body checks. "It's a tough loss, but we'll see them tomorrow."
The teams meet again Thursday night at Verizon Center.
Sundin's goal capped an exciting final few minutes and spoiled what, for a moment, was shaping up to be another scrappy comeback for Washington after Semin tied the score at 2 with 6 minutes 53 seconds to play.
But Semin's sixth goal in as many games, and Alex Ovechkin's league-leading 39th, weren't enough on a night when Toskala was sharp and the Capitals' attack looked disjointed for long stretches. Ovechkin's tally extended his goal-scoring streak to six games, the longest since his rookie season.
"We definitely didn't play our best game," winger Matt Pettinger said. "It was just one of those games where we played in spurts, five minutes here, five minutes there. We didn't put 60 minutes tonight. That was a tough break with 30 seconds to go."
Ovechkin added: "Toskala played today an unbelievable game. He win the game tonight."
