PHILADELPHIA — So much of the joy in sports is based on the expectations that precede a celebration, on the circumstances in which an accomplishment is achieved. So here were the Washington Capitals — not those old Stanley Cup-contending Washington Capitals, but a different version with an altered reality — gathered in a grinning group on the ice at Wells Fargo Center. They vigorously patted each other on the heads, gloves knocking helmets around. And then, with a playoff berth locked up, they bounced as one, a circle of glee following a season of unspeakable grind.
Washington
Perspective | For the Caps, an ‘unreal,’ ‘unbelievable’ triumph keeps a surreal season going
With their bite-the-nails-to-their-nubs 2-1 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers Tuesday night, the Capitals returned to the NHL postseason, nabbing the final wild-card berth in the Eastern Conference, essentially winning Game 7 of Round 0. In doing so, they earned a date with the behemoth New York Rangers. Exhale, because the spot was earned, and the ride was worth it. Now, buckle up again.
But enjoy this much: A team that dealt with underperformance and injury, that banished Stanley Cup hero Evgeny Kuznetsov and got better because of it, that still sold at the trade deadline because the immediate future seemed bleak — that group sneaked in. No, sorry. That group won its last three games in four days to barge in when no other result would have worked.
“Unreal,” said Alex Ovechkin, whose first-period goal was the 31st of his season, the 853rd of his career, and given the way the Caps have been scoring lately, felt something like a miracle.
“We fight through lots of stuff that happen at [the] deadline, injuries, Kuzy,” he continued. “But I think the belief inside the locker room was tremendous. We enjoyed that process. It’s special. That’s why we play hockey.”
And that’s why we watch.
Put the achievement aside for a moment. The wackiness in how it came about can scarcely be overstated. With two points Tuesday — in regulation or overtime — the Capitals would clinch the final spot. But to stay alive, the Flyers needed a regulation win — and help in the form of Montreal beating Detroit.
That meant that a tie late in the game — and the possibility of overtime, in which the Caps would earn their 90th point, eliminating Philadelphia — essentially put the Flyers in a deficit.
So for Philadelphia Coach John Tortorella, pulling goalie Samuel Ersson would come earlier than normal — with more than three minutes remaining, and the score tied. Except at almost that exact same moment nearly 400 miles away, Detroit scored with five seconds left to force overtime in Montreal. The Red Wings had their point. The Flyers were eliminated. Ersson vacated the net anyway — and Caps vet T.J. Oshie, playing with a chronically messed-up back, deposited the game-winner into the empty net.
How fitting — how crazily fitting — for this group.
“Almost every game was Game 7 for us,” Ovechkin said. “Sometimes didn’t get points and we’re still in a battle, and then it was a crazy situation ’til tonight.”
“I got info on the Detroit game right after they scored their empty-netter,” Tortorella said. “I think it happened pretty close together.”
Insanely close together — and for Washington, insanely fortunate. Because this team — which scored two or fewer goals in 42 of 82 games this year, fourth-most in the NHL — didn’t seem capable of forcing another one through if the game stayed five-on-five. That struggle to score contributed to the Caps’ minus-37 goal differential, the worst of any playoff team this century.
They are limited, sure. And yet, there’s so much joy.
“You could see the faces in that room, whether you’re John Carlson or you’re Hendrix Lapierre, Connor McMichael, ‘O,’ they all have different things,” said first-year coach Spencer Carbery, who has been nothing but impressive in methodology and messaging. “They’re all at different stages of their careers and their lives.
“But you could tell no matter what your situation, whether you’re playing in your first year, like a lot of our guys, or you’re playing in your 17th season, this group — you could tell how bad they wanted to find ways to win every night.”
It’s so striking what skin-of-the-teeth qualification means to this roster when cast against how those old juggernaut Capitals teams barreled into the playoffs. In the Cup year of 2018, the most notable aspect of the Caps’ celebration after their first-round victory over Columbus was how subdued it felt. That was a business trip. The second round was expected. What was important was on the horizon, beyond.
These Caps aren’t those Caps. And that’s okay.
“The momentum is on our side,” Oshie said. “I think there’s a lot of players in this room that maybe haven’t been deep in the playoffs or haven’t even played in the playoffs that are starting to learn the dedication and the focus and the intensity and the selflessness that it takes to play playoff hockey.”
Because they have been playing that style for more than a month.
Before the season, the keys to the Capitals being the best version of themselves figured to be a return to form of Kuznetsov, the talented but maddening center who was arguably Washington’s best player during the run to the Cup. They included a return to health of franchise linchpin Nicklas Backstrom, who had to come back from hip resurfacing surgery.
And they probably included a stellar year from goaltender Darcy Kuemper, signed a season earlier to a five-year, $26.25-million contract to bring stability to a position where Washington had enjoyed little.
The results: Kuznetsov was the worst version of himself, dragging the team down, managing just 17 points in 43 games. He was placed on waivers, then traded. Backstrom’s physical limitations quickly became too much. He stepped away from the sport in November with just one point in eight games. And Kuemper was eventually replaced in net by stellar backup Charlie Lindgren, who started 14 of the Caps’ final 15 games and was deemed by Carbery “arguably our MVP.”
So the group that gathered in the fall with hopes of returning to the playoffs isn’t the group that ultimately landed there. The lineup Tuesday night included defenseman Dylan McIlrath, days from his 32nd birthday but playing just his 75th NHL game, the captain of the Caps’ top minor league franchise. Darned if he didn’t assist on Ovechkin’s goal. It included 21-year-old Vincent Iorio, a 2021 draft pick playing his ninth NHL game. This is a hybrid roster for a franchise in transition, the old core winding down and a new core just forming — maybe.
“It’s unbelievable, just because the journey, it hasn’t been easy,” Lindgren said. “ … It’s such a privilege to play for these guys.”
They will be underdogs, and heavy underdogs, against the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Rangers. The kids on this team won’t remember the burden New York has to bear, but maybe some old heads will. The 2010 Capitals won that very same trophy issued to the team with the best record in the NHL. They lost in the first round to eighth-seeded Montreal. The 2016 and ’17 versions of the Caps earned Presidents’ Trophy status and couldn’t make it out of the second round.
The point: Nothing is guaranteed. Washington’s lineup isn’t what it once was or even what it was expected to be this year. But the kids who might well be part of a future core — McMichael, Lapierre, Beck Malenstyn, Aliaksei Protas and others — get this chance following a season in which so much went wrong.
“Just to where we’ve gotten is very, very valuable for development,” Carbery said. “But now, you want to make good on it. Now, we don’t want to just [say], ‘Okay, great.’ We want to play well. …
“And everybody’s going to say, ‘We’ve got no business being here, and the goal differential, blah, blah, blah. That’s going to be the narrative. And that’s fine. It’s warranted. It’s a fact. [But] I know this group isn’t just going to be content showing up in the Stanley Cup playoffs.”
When the horn sounded Tuesday night, Carlson — now with 1,009 NHL games, all in a Caps sweater — pumped his fist and wailed, then headed to Lindgren for an emphatic embrace. The standard isn’t what the standard was. But for these Capitals, this season was a success. Now, the real fun begins.
Mariota, who is dealing with a cut on his throwing hand and a quad injury, was considered doubtful to play in Week 18, Quinn said earlier in the week, and has not practiced since sustaining his injuries. Josh Johnson is set to make his second start to close out the Commanders’ season.
The Dallas Cowboys managed to scrape a win on Christmas Day against the Washington Commanders in a game that got close, closer than what some fans would have preferred. But how did the Cowboys rookie class perform during the divisional victory? Let’s take a look.
(Game stats- Snaps: 92, Pass Blocks: 49, Pressures: 1, Sacks: 2, Penalties: 1)
Booker turned in another heavy-workload performance against Washington on Christmas Day, playing all 92 offensive snaps and earning a 74.6 overall grade, one of the better marks on the Cowboys’ offense in the 30–23 win. Dallas leaned hard on the interior run game, piling up 211 rushing yards and repeatedly gashing the middle of the Commanders’ front. Booker was a big part of those double teams and combo blocks with Cooper Beebe, helping Malik Davis and Javonte Williams stay on schedule and letting Brian Schottenheimer live in fourth-and-short territory.
It wasn’t a clean day in protection for the unit as a whole. Dak Prescott was sacked six times and hit repeatedly, with rookie phenom Jer’Zhan Newton racking up three sacks and five QB hits as Washington generated 19 total pressures. Interior pressure was prominent in postgame breakdowns, so Booker clearly had some rough snaps dealing with Newton’s quickness and power on games and stunts, even if not every sack can be laid at his feet.
One blemish on his night was an early bad penalty flagged on Booker on the opening drive, which, paired with a sack, put the offense behind the chains before they worked their way back into scoring range. To his credit, the moment didn’t snowball. He settled in, and as the game wore on his physicality in the run game helped Dallas salt away clock on multiple long marches in the second half.
(Game stats- Snaps: 39, Total Tackles: 2, Pressures: 3, Sacks: 0, TFL: 0)
Ezeiruaku had one of his quietest games of the season against Washington, more solid in assignment than impactful on the stat sheet. He was on the field for just 26 defensive snaps off the edge and registered only one total tackle with zero sacks, zero tackles for loss, and one total pressure. With the Cowboys generating only two sacks and three quarterback hits as a team and still allowing 8.6 yards per play and 138 rushing yards on just 17 carries, this was clearly not a night where the front consistently lived in the Commanders’ backfield.
Through this week, PFF has Ezeiruaku at a 76.4 overall grade with 35 total pressures on 580 snaps, ranking him among the league’s better rookie edge defenders. Pre-game advanced scouting had highlighted his recent 25% pass-rush win rate and 12% pressure rate over the previous month, even though that stretch produced hits rather than sacks. Against Washington, that underlying disruption never really showed up in the box score. He finished the game in a low-impact role while others, notably Jadeveon Clowney and Quinnen Williams, handled the actual finishing on Josh Johnson.
(Game stats- Snaps: 42, Total Tackles: 6, PBU: 1, INT: 0, TD Allowed: 0, RTG Allowed: 109.7)
Revel’s Christmas Day against Washington was another bumpy outing in what has become a tough rookie year, and it ended in a way that almost certainly pushes his focus to 2026. PFF graded him at 50.1 overall, the third-worst mark on the Cowboys’ defense, with of 43.0 against the run, 33.5 in tackling and 59.4 in coverage. On the coverage side of things, he was targeted six times and allowed four catches for 84 yards, his second straight game giving up 80-plus yards, as Washington repeatedly found space on his side of the field. The tackling issues that have dogged him all season showed up again too, he’s now credited with eight missed tackles (18.6%) on the year, and open-field whiffs in this game turned short gains into bigger plays.
Midway through the second half he took a blow to the head, walked off slowly and did not return. Postgame reports confirmed he’s been placed in the concussion protocol, with the team acknowledging he faces an uphill battle to be cleared for Week 18. With only one game left and nothing to play for in the standings, there’s a good argument for Dallas to shut him down, effectively ending his rookie season so he can recover fully and attack 2026. That might be the wisest move given his backdrop coming off an ACL tear, missing the entire offseason program, camp, preseason and a big chunk of the regular season.
(Game stats- Snaps: 36, Total Tackles: 6 TFL: 0, Sacks: 0)
James finally looked like a real part of the defensive plan against Washington, not just a special-teams body. He played 36 defensive snaps, his heaviest load in weeks, and he responded with six total tackles, tied among Dallas’ leaders on the night. He didn’t register a sack, tackle for loss, or any takeaways, and he stayed out of the penalty column, so his stat line is all about volume rather than splash. The Commanders ran only 41 offensive plays but still churned out 138 rushing yards thanks in large part to Jacory Croskey-Merritt’s 72-yard touchdown. James spent most of the evening in clean-up mode by fitting inside runs, rallying to Johnson’s checkdowns and helping get bodies on the ground after chunk gains rather than creating those big negative plays himself.
It’s fair to be harsh on the linebacker group as a whole, especially Kenneth Murray, and calling the heavy dose of Murray and James ugly against the run is also a fair criticism as Washington found creases between the tackles. On film, it’s a mixed bag for James, he was active and around the ball, but there were snaps where he got caught in traffic or arrived a beat late on cutbacks, contributing to a run defense that gave up far too much on a low play count. At the same time, this game underlined why Dallas has been nudging his role upward as he handled a starter-level snap share without blowing assignments, and his six stops push his season totals into genuine starter territory.
The best way to call James’ game is it was a busy but imperfect outing. James was heavily involved, did enough to look like a viable long-term piece, but he was also part of a front seven that made Washington’s ground game look more efficient than it should have.
(Game stats- Snaps: 18, Total Tackles: 1
*Snap count are all special team snaps*
Clark’s Christmas Day against Washington was another quiet but functional special-teams outing. He didn’t log any defensive snaps, with his entire workload coming in the kicking game as a core coverage and return-unit player. On those snaps he made one tackle and didn’t factor into any of the big swings. For a depth safety in his role, that kind of you didn’t notice him performance is basically neutral. He did his assignment work on special teams, avoided hurting the Cowboys in a game where field position and explosive runs were already a problem, but didn’t provide the kind of momentum-changing play that would jump off the tape going into 2026.
(Game stats- Snaps: 15, Total Tackles: 0)
*Snap count include special team snaps*
Bridges played almost entirely on special teams, with just a tiny glimpse of him on defense. He logged the bulk of his work on the kicking units, running lanes, taking on blocks and doing the dirty work that doesn’t show up much in the box score but matters for field position and consistency. On defense he saw only two snaps, essentially a cameo as an emergency outside corner rather than a true part of the game plan, and he didn’t figure in any major targets or tackles on those plays. Bridges handled his special-teams role and gave Dallas a reliable back-end option without ever having the kind of exposure that would define the game one way or the other.
TACOMA, Wash. (HawaiiNewsNow) – Colleagues and loved ones gathered to honor the life and service of Mililani High School graduate Tara-Marysa Guting, 29, who died in the line of duty as a trooper in Washington State.
Tara-Marysa’s older sister, Shannen Tanaka, spoke at the funeral.
“Tara, although our heart aches with your absence, we know you did not leave us behind. You remain bound to us by love that does not end. You remain just beyond our sight until the day we are able to be together again. We love you,” Tanaka said.
She delivered an emotional eulogy as she stood at the podium with siblings Troy and Ariana Hirata at Saturday’s memorial service.
“I don’t know how familiar you all are with the movie Lilo and Stitch, but there’s a quote that says Ohana means family, family means nobody gets left behind. It was a sentiment that Tara lived by,” her sister said. “Ohana, in its deepest sense, is unconditional love, support and inclusion. It reaches beyond blood.”
The Washington State Patrol Trooper was struck and killed while responding to a crash in Tacoma.
The 2014 Mililani graduate leaves behind her husband Tim, who serves as a Deputy State Fire Marshal at the Washington State Patrol Fire Training Academy.
Together they had four pets.
Tara-Marysa was one of many first responders in her family, including her brother-in-law Devin Tanaka.
DEVIN TANAKA, TARA’S BROTHER IN LAW>
“Tara’s passing is a devastating loss to a family who knows all too well both the rewards and risk of public service,” Devin Tanaka said. “We will never forget Tara, nor the 33 heroes that died members serving the State of Washington State Patrol.”
Friends and coworkers say Tara-Marysa left an impact on everyone she met.
“Tara you were my safe place, you made the world feel softer, more funny and exceedingly more manageable just by being in it, and even though I don’t know how to exist in a world where I can’t sit next to you on that couch again, I do know this, your love did not leave with you,” said Lily Guerrero, Tara-Marysa’s best friend.
One of her co-workers said, “It felt like every other day she was bringing some sort of gift or Hawaiian snack to literally every person in the building where we worked just to spread a little bit of joy.”
The funeral ended with a solemn salute for Guting.
She was the 34th person to die in the line of duty in the 105-year history of the Washington State Patrol.
Copyright 2025 Hawaii News Now. All rights reserved.
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