Protas On Success Dressing a bit of a strange lineup, the Washington Capitals took the ice for one last game against the Boston Bruins before the holiday break. And though it started off as a strong low-event game that was 1-1 for quite some time, Boston ended up prevailing with back-to-abck third period goals and quieting the Washington offense as the Capitals fell 4-1. Here are all the takeaways from the loss. CHARLIE LINDGREN, CAPITALS SURRENDER LATE GOALS IN LOSS Coming off one of the best games of his still-young career and a stomach bug, Charlie Lindgren made his return to the pipes in Beantown, where he had another strong showing to start. However, the third period turned sour quick Lindgren came up with quite a few strong stops and the defense did a solid job to start the game, but ultimately, the team struggled to keep up in the third. He finished with 18 saves on 21 shots. Elias Lindholm scored on a fake shot before Charlie Coyle tucked home a rebound to break the 1-1 stalemate in the final minutes of regulation and secure the win for Boston. Brad Marchand ultimately iced the game with an empty-net goal late. CAPITALS CAN'T FIND TWINE AS BRUINS LIMIT OFFENSE The name of the game over the course of the night was patience. Washington was playing with a bit of a strange lineup, dressing 11 forwards and seven defensemen amid an illness going around the locker room. Though there were some looks, both teams had to play a low-event game and wait for its chances with not much going in terms of high-danger chances. The Capitals managed just 11 shots to Boston's 22, and ultimately, couldn't get much going on Jeremy Swayman. Though patience and low-event hockey would pay off, it wouldn't be in D.C.'s favor as the team couldn't get anything going. JAKUB VRANA STAYS HOT, POWER PLAY STRIKES AGAIN BUT CAN’T CONVERT ON FIVE-MINUTE CHANCE In need of a goal, the Capitals got a much-needed power play thanks to Tom Wilson. Ultimately, it was the second unit that delivered once again, thanks to a red-hot Jakub Vrana. Vrana got open toward the end of the power play and sniped a feed from Rasmus Sandin right past Jeremy Swayman to even the score at 1. It marked his seventh goal of the season and his third straight game with a goal. The Czech winger is also riding a three-game point streak as D.C. now has PPGs in back-to-back games after going three games without a goal on the man advantage. However, there are still notable struggles, as the team was unable to take a one-goal lead on a five-minute power play after Martin Fehervary was boarded by Oliver Wahlstrom. TOP SHELF TAKES - With a secondary assist, Pierre-Luc Dubois extended his point streak to four games. He leads D.C. in scoring through the month of December and has points in eight of his last nine games overall. - Ivan Miroshnichenko was benched again in the second period as he continues to learn from his mistakes from coach Spencer Carbery. - This will likely be the last game without captain Alex Ovechkin [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/washington-capitals/news/washington-capitals-alex-ovechkin-upgrade-contact-timetable-update], who is expected to return soon after the break from a broken leg.
