WASHINGTON -- "Look," Matt Cullen spoke with a sigh. "This wasn't our best game."
That's the cold truth, man. It really wasn't.
Heck, to fully appreciate the accuracy of that assessment, one wouldn't need to rewind but a few seconds back in the Penguins' 4-3 overtime loss to the Capitals in Game 1 of their Stanley Cup playoff series Thursday night at Verizon Center.
Let's go back to this seemingly innocuous sequence nine minutes into the extra period:
Look familiar at all?
No?
Well, that's because how plays truly begin seldom makes it onto hockey highlights, even for the biggest goals. There might be a pass, possibly two if they're quick, but it's generally bang-bang. Not so with this one.
That's Evgeni Malkin up there, of course. He wriggles loose a puck along the left boards near the end of his shift. Both of his linemates already have been replaced with Sidney Crosby's linemates, Conor Sheary and Patric Hornqvist. The only one still waiting at the bench is the captain himself, though he's standing and ready to jump the boards.
Malkin needs to do two things here:
1. Dump the puck deep, or ensure that the Penguins otherwise keep possession.
2. Get to the bench on the far side of the rink as if this were, you know, overtime of a playoff game or something.
He instead makes the absolute worst choice in both facets:
1. He softly flings the puck into the air, not down his same boards but right to the middle of the rink, not to a safe spot but right to John Carlson, the Capitals' No. 1 defenseman.
2. He coasts so slowly to the bench that he's actually completely upright for the final 25-30 feet. And because Carlson sends the puck quickly up that side of the ice, by the benches, Crosby can't risk jumping on early for fear of a too-many-men minor.
And just like that, the game is in the process of being lost.
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