Here's what the Capitals had to say following the 3-0 loss to the Islanders.
WASHINGTON — The Washington Capitals agreed that it was a strange night, one where they controlled the ice for the majority of the game but ultimately, fell 3-0 while also still processing Nicklas Backstrom's sudden departure.
T.J. Oshie and Washington said that his absence was certainly felt at Capital One Arena, in a game that's frustrating because it should have been a win considering everything else but the final score.
"That's still a pretty emotional subject not having 19 in the rink, it's gonna be felt for a long time. We have to still find ways to move on and play and get wins but you're just not gonna fill the hole that 19 leaves and those emotions aren't gonna go away in 24 hours," Oshie acknowledged. "So I still think we had a chance to win the game tonight but there's not a night that we're not gonna miss him out there."
Still, it wasn't all somber in the dressing room, with the players agreeing that there were a lot of positives to take away despite the result. Still, there's a need to execute, especially with goals not coming easy.
"Yeah. I think we can still generate more offense. I think there's still just a lot of pucks that are rolling and saucer passes that are bouncing off the ice... gotta clean up, focus a little bit more, take a little extra second to gather the puck, things like that," Oshie said. "We did a lot of good things, so you can't be mad at our full 60 tonight. We gotta find a way to keep those first couple out of the net and find a way to sneak a couple behind the opposing goaltenders."
Here's what Oshie, Evgeny Kuznetsov and Nick Jensen all had to say after the defeat: