National Hockey League
Washington 2, Boston 1
When: 7:00 PM ET, Tuesday, May 11, 2021
Where: Capital One Arena, Washington, District of Columbia
Referees: Francis Charron, Wes McCauley
Linesmen: Ryan Daisy, James Tobias
Attendance: 2133

Michael Raffl scored with three seconds remaining as the host Washington Capitals defeated the Boston Bruins 2-1 Tuesday night in the regular-season finale for both teams, who will meet in the opening round of the NHL's East Division playoffs.

Carl Hagelin also scored for the Capitals (36-15-5, 77 points), who finished second in the division. Goaltender Vitek Vanecek made 24 saves.

Curtis Lazar scored for third-place Boston (33-16-7, 73 points), and Jeremy Swayman stopped 30 of 32 shots.

The teams, who were already locked into their playoff positions, took much different lineup approaches in the warmup act before Game 1 on Saturday in Washington.

The Capitals played most of their regulars, including forward Alex Ovechkin, who had missed seven of the previous eight games with a lower-body injury.

In contrast, the Bruins employed a lineup that would've been more likely to play at their American Hockey League affiliate in Providence, R.I., this season rather than suit up in the NHL. Eight of Boston's top nine forwards didn't make the trip, nor did its top six defensemen and starting goaltender Tuukka Rask.

On the winning goal, Raffl took a pass from Justin Schultz and drove to the goal line on the left wing before firing a sharp-angle shot that sailed just behind Swayman's head and into the top far corner of the net.

The Bruins broke a scoreless tie at 10:11 of the second period. Defenseman Jarred Tinordi jumped into the rush, took a pass from Jake DeBrusk at the top of the right faceoff circle and drove it nearly to the goal line before shuffling a backhanded pass to the top of the crease. Lazar settled the puck with his left skate and batted it into the net.

The Capitals tied the score at 16:15 of the second. Zdeno Chara's shot from the left point was knocked down before it got to Swayman, prompting a mad scramble in front of the net. Hagelin was able to find the puck and chip it over the goaltender's stick. Garnet Hathaway also received an assist on the play.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
Boston   Washington
Curtis Lazar 1 Points Carl Hagelin 1
Curtis Lazar 1 Goals Carl Hagelin 1
Jake DeBrusk 1 Assists Zdeno Chara 1
N/A Power Play Goals N/A
N/A Short Handed Goals N/A
Jeremy Swayman .938 Save Percentage Vitek Vanecek .960
Jeremy Swayman 30 Saves Vitek Vanecek 24
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
Boston 25 1 0-1 1-1 12 17
Washington 32 2 0-1 1-1 12 28
Upcoming Games
  • Washington will play their next game at home against Boston. The Capitals have a W/L % of .629 after a win and .650 after a loss.
  • Boston will play their next game on the road against Washington. The Bruins have a W/L % of .515 after a win and .682 after a loss.