Stanley Cup Playoffs: Are Contributions from Captains an Underrated Factor?

May 20th, 2013 by Al Daniel Leave a reply »
When Ottawa Senators captain Daniel Alfredsson deflected a last-minute equalizer en route to a dramatic 2-1 overtime win Sunday night, he capped a Stanley Cup playoff weekend dense with unexpected achievements.

The opposing Pittsburgh Penguins were not necessarily supposed to sweep the Sens, but they were in a prime position to put Ottawa on the precipice. They were clinging to a 1-0 advantage in a classic goaltenders’ duel with a chance to impose a 3-0 series stranglehold.

The 40-year-old Alfredsson nullified all of that by breaking Tomas Vokoun’s shutout and his teammates followed up by slapping Vokoun with his first loss out of five outings in the 2013 NHL postseason.

In turn, the Senators have usurped a hefty share of breathing room from the top-dog Penguins, cutting the second-round series deficit to 2-1.

All of that unfolded at the Scotiabank Place within hours of the injury-riddled Boston Bruins augmenting their series lead over the New York Rangers to 2-0. That was barely 24 hours after the Detroit Red Wings, Ottawa’s seventh-seeded counterpart out west, drew a 1-1 knot with Chicago in convincing fashion.

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