Game 54 - Panthers 1 Caps 4

Another strong third period game from the Caps put this one away.

A lot of focus on Mike Green as he left the game in the second period with an apparent knee injury after colliding with Kulikov. It did not look good on the replay as the knee seemed to hyper extend backwards and maybe sideways.

Nicklas Backstrom had another outstanding game. That new contract of his is going to be very expensive and will certainly mean the end of Alexander Semin in DC.

Update – The good news is that Green’s knee injury is just a Charley Horse. The bad news is that he was suspended for three games for the elbow he was called on in the first period.

More suspension shenanigans from the NHL. Just a couple of weeks after Green’s head was flat-out drilled into the glass from behind – without a peep to be heard from the league, he gets tossed for three games for an elbow that – to my eye – was less than flagrant and was more of a shoulder than an elbow. What could have caused this change in attitude from the league? It’s almost as if there were a recent high-profile incident that has caused the league to pretend it’s serious about protecting players.