We stopped thinking about the corsi and played some fun hockey

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Evgeny Kuznetsov took a razor off his head and most of his beard and was an entirely different player in Game 4 of the Capitals’ First Round Series against the New York Islanders on Tuesday.

After falling 2-0 to the Islanders in the first half, Kuzy rallied the team several minutes into the second, skating around the islands defense and beating Semyon Varlamov to the far corner of the net . The goal opened the figurative flood gates for the Capitals as they unleashed a torrent of gunfire. Washington would score twice more – both goals were from captain Alex Ovechkin – and win 3-2. The fifth game will be necessary and played on Thursday.

“Kuzy’s goal was huge for us,” Ovechkin told media afterward.

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After struggling for most of the series five-on-five, the Capitals covered the Islanders in even-matched shooting attempts (48-27) according to Natural Stat Trick.

Kuzy finished the night with a 60.6 five-on-five (20-13) shooting attempt percentage and clocked a Capitals team-high 22:42 for forwards. He had two points (1g, 1a), four shots and two hits. Kuzy was so good he was passed by Capitals head coach Todd Reirden throughout and was even tasked with closing the game in the last minute. He took over.

So what was the difference?

“I think we just stop thinking about the corsi or any other statistic and try to play some fun hockey,” Kuznetsov said, hiding his bald head under a cap. “We’re trying to keep the puck. This is how we always play.

“I think, maybe I don’t understand hockey, but I think that’s how we’re supposed to play,” continued Kuzy. “It’s not about the thousand blows. It is about possession. It is about exhausting them. It’s about enjoying it and having fun. This is how we enjoy the game. If we enjoy the game like this, we are going to be successful. If we don’t enjoy the game, we won’t be successful. “

Kuznetsov’s thinking process seems to be that, since the Capitals kept the puck for a better appearance, it allowed them to increase their possession and be more dangerous overall. And, at least in this game, it allowed them to have more shooting attempts.

“We stopped shooting the puck and started hanging on to the puck,” Kuznetsov said. “We started to enjoy hockey again. This is what gives us success. I think it’s very hard to defend when the guys wear you out for 45 seconds, 50 seconds. Maybe we don’t shoot a lot of pucks, but at the same time we respect our line mates. We share the puck. It might not be typical NHL hockey, but that’s how we’re supposed to play. If we play like that, we’re going to have joy, we’re going to have fun and we’re going to be successful.

Full RMNB coverage of WSH / NYI Game 4

Screenshot courtesy of NBC Sports Washington



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