Lightning Evens Series With Capitals at 2-2

The Washington Capitals started the NHL Eastern Conference Finals on a terrific note, winning the first two games on the road in Tampa, beating the Lightning 4-2 and 6-2. The series then moved to Washington, where it was reasonable to assume the Capitals would at least split the next two games and be up 3-1 for a return trip to Tampa, or end it with a sweep at home. They wouldn’t lose both, right?

Wrong. The Lightning took both games by identical 4-2 scores, and Tampa Bay goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy had 36 saves in each game. Just like that, the series was even at two games apiece.

This looks like a bad situation for Washington, as the series comes down to best two out of three, with Games 5 and 7, if it goes that far, in Tampa. But the Capitals are just 3-5 at home in the postseason, and 7-1 on the road. Washington dropped its first two games at home against Columbus in the first round, before winning the next four.

Game 5 is May 19th in Tampa.