from Roman Stubbs of the Washington Post,
The longest postseason game in Columbus Blue Jackets history could not have ended with an uglier goal Tuesday night, with Washington Capitals forward Lars Eller making a weak-side rush 11 minutes into double overtime and hoping for the best. These were the kind of opportunities that eluded the Capitals all night, yet here Eller was, the scored knotted at 2 and his legs burning as the clock approached Wednesday morning.
After Eller reached the crease, the puck shot by teammate Brett Connolly bounced off the leg of Columbus defender Zach Werenski and off the toe of Eller before slowly skidding into the net. Eller froze for a moment, looking almost stunned as his teammates climbed over the boards to celebrate a 3-2 victory in a must-win affair in Game 3 of this first-round Stanley Cup playoff series.
“It was a real ugly OT-winner goal,” Eller said. “I had a feeling it was going be one of those. It doesn’t make the win less sweet.”
Eller could not hear how quiet Nationwide Arena became in that moment because his teammates were drowning out the silence with exhausted screams on the ice, knowing they had somehow climbed back into this series after losing the first two games at home in overtime.
Watch the game highlights below.
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