Event of the Day: Columbus Blue Jackets versus Washington Capitals

Our event of the day comes from the NHL playoffs as the Columbus Blue Jackets host the Washington Capitals at the Nationwide Arena in Columbus. Washington have now got it all to do if they are to progress through this series after losing both of the opening fixtures in overtime. Matt Calvert scored the overtime winner for Columbus after the teams were tied at four apiece at the end of regular time. The game had an additional feel of frustration for the Capitals after they let a two-goal lead slip not once but twice in the game, having also let a two-goal lead slip in Game One. Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin was the standout for his team, but couldn’t prevent them from losing despite scoring two power-play goals. He and his team will be hoping for a return to the form they showed in the regular season to prevent another seemingly annual playoff defeat.

The Blue Jackets, contrastingly, couldn’t be better placed. Heading home to Ohio with a two-game lead under their belt is a dream start for any team without home-ice advantage. In part, the Blue Jackets have goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky to thank, after he made 54 saves in the last game, including 20 in the third period when the Capitals had somewhat of the ascendancy in the game. The state of this playoff series has painful reminders for Washington fans who saw their team lose the first two against Pittsburgh in last years playoffs but still managed to force it to Game Seven before eventually losing. The odds are certainly in the Blue Jackets favour, only 19 of 89 times in NHL history has a team lost the first two games of a playoff series at home and gone on to win the series.

Honourable mentions around the globe go to the NBA where the Toronto Raptors host the Washington Wizards in their playoff series at the Air Canada Center. Toronto holds a one game lead going into this after winning the first match by 114-106. Elsewhere in the NBA playoffs, the Boston Celtics play the Milwaukee Bucks and the Portland Trail Blazers continue their series with the New Orleans Pelicans. In the NHL, other playoff matchups see the Minnesota Wild hosting the Winnipeg Jets and the Los Angeles Kings playing the Vegas Golden Knights. In the Premier League, Tottenham Hotspur travel down to play Brighton and Hove Albion. In Serie A, Inter Milan play Cagliari whilst in La Liga, Barcelona visit Celta Vigo. In the Dutch Eredivisie, FC Twente play PEC Zwolle and there is an international friendly too as Trinidad and Tobago face Panama. In cricket’s IPL, the Mumbai Indians are up against the Royal Challengers Bangalore whilst in tennis, it’s the third day of the Monte-Carlo Masters.

Whatever you’re watching, enjoy!

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Photos by NHL

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