Morning Playoff Notes (Jun 8)

The 2018 NHL playoffs came to a triumphant end for the Washington Capitals, as they were not going to roll over on the road and wait until they got back home to win the title.  No, they defeated the Vegas Golden Knights in their own building, 4-3, taking the series and the championship in five games.

Game 5 was entertaining, as the speed was up, the goals in the 2nd period were coming fast and furiously and there was a great back and forth all night.  No score after one, but when the buzzer sounded after the middle frame, it was 3-2 for the Golden Knights, looking to stay alive for at least one more game.  But it wasn't to be, as Devante Smith-Pelly tied the game, just before the 10-minute mark of the 3rd period and Lars Eller scooped up a loose puck behind Marc-Andre Fleury to put the Capitals ahead for good.

Alex Ovechkin, getting the monkey off his back, took home the Conn Smythe Trophy, as the playoffs MVP and more importantly, the Capitals finally have their first championship in their franchise history.

The tallies are all into the system, the numbers have been audited and the results are now official.  The lesser of the two evil twins, Tony, comes away with a big win in the playoff hockey pool, finishing with 289 points, only 11 points better than Buddy the Dog.  Tony's team was adequately filled with players through the entire playoff run, getting through the opening round with all 24 of his players and that meant that he would be good for the rest of the playoffs.  Tony comes away with a $230 1st place prize and that will go straight into his weekend fund!

The hockey pool MVP for the playoffs was goaltender Braden Holtby, he finished atop of the scoring standings with his 16 wins, 2 shutouts and 1 assist for 37 points, that last win pulling him ahead of his counterpart on the other side of the rink. 

Well done, Tony... thanks to everyone for playing!  We'll see you this fall at the draft!