sportsjabber.net

The Washington Capitals entered Wednesday night’s Game 4 in desperation mode.  By the time the third period had rolled around, they were in the midst of self-destructing.

The Capitals have been considered a Stanley Cup contender for the last three or four seasons depending on whom you ask.  But what remains indisputable is the fact that they’ve only won two playoff series since 1998.

Last season, the top-seeded Caps lost a gut-wrenching quarterfinal series against the Montreal Canadiens in Game 7 on home ice.

Afterwards, the team vowed it would learn from their mistakes, and even issued training camp T-shirts with the slogan “stay angry” on the back.

Coach Bruce Boudreau installed a defense-first system that was supposed to better prepare the team for the postseason—even if it forced the Caps’ offensive stars to sacrifice their individual point totals for the greater good of the team.

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