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The Washington Capitals achieved a 1-0 victory against the Columbus Blue Jackets and showed their qualities in the right way. Nicklas Backstrom made his debut and couldn't hide his happiness. "It meant the world," Backstrom said, as quoted by nhl.com.
"Obviously, I missed this, and with not knowing what my future was going to hold, just coming back and playing was great." Tom Wilson also made his debut. Capitals coach Peter Laviolette is happy with these two players who are very important to him.
"I thought it was great to have them back out there,"-Peter Laviolette said. "That is a lot, jumping into that game. I thought they did fine. Every day from today as they move forward, they will get more confident and just feel better about it.
I'm sure they are both glad to have it behind them and in the rearview mirror." Darcy Kuemper also excelled with 38 saves and showed his qualities. "Good teams can find a way in a lot of different ways, and tonight was one of them," Kuemper said.
"As the season goes along, things get a little bit tighter, so it's nice to be able to get the ones like tonight."
Andrew Peeke on the game
Columbus defenseman Andrew Peeke is satisfied with the fight of his team and the commitment of all players.
"Back-to-back nights against two really good teams and putting that effort back-to-back nights, the battle level, the compete, and even the execution aspect, it felt like it was all clicking,"-Andrew Peeke said. "It makes the game more fun, and that's how we have to play the rest of the year in order to improve as a hockey team." Merzilikins prevented a tap-in from the opposing player.
"He comes across and makes a split save to keep it at one. I think that settled him down and allowed us to get our feet under us," Blue Jackets coach Brad Larsen said. "[Then] probably one of our best second periods of the year. We didn't give them much in the second and it carried over into the third."