Recap: Offense Stays Hot, Canes Dominate Caps, 6-1

WASHINGTON, D.C. -For a second consecutive game the Carolina Hurricanes' offense had no problems finding the back of the net, skating to a 6-1 victory over the Washington Capitals Monday.

The Rundown:
Just like Saturday in St. Louis a key to the Canes' success was an early goal, this time coming from their fourth line. Derek Stepan put the finishing touch on a connection with Jesperi Kotkaniemi and Max Domi, who earned his first point with his new team to give them a 1-0 lead just 2:41 in.
From there it took just five minutes for Carolina to double its lead, this time as Martin Necas got his first of two goals on the night. After Washington failed to clear it out of its own end, a rebound from an Andrei Svechnikov shot was quickly shuffled from Vincent Trocheck in the slot to #88 at the blocker-side post.

The early 2-0 advantage had set the tone for what would continue to be a dominating performance over the remaining two periods.
Washington's only goal of the night would come in the opening stages of the middle frame, but that was as close as they would come to getting back in the game all night.
The Canes had not one, not two, but three responses in the middle frame, starting with a shorthanded tally from Sebastian Aho. Carolina's second goal in as many games while a man down, Aho's team-leading 29th was dubbed "the big goal of the game" by Rod Brind'Amour.

For the second straight game Brett Pesce chimed in on the goal scoring to make it 4-1 and then Necas put home another Domi feed to extend his team's lead to four at the end of 40 minutes.
The third period was unfortunately overshadowed by the physicality between the two sides, with Washington flexing some muscle as they were on the wrong side of the 5-1 score. After Brendan Smith initially declined to fight Tom Wilson, the two eventually did, with the Capitals forward getting the best of the long bout. Then with just 1.6 seconds to go in the game Lars Eller lined up Jesperi Kotkaniemi, leaving the newly extended forward struggling to leave the ice.
Despite a Brady Skjei tally to cap off a 6-1 thrashing, there was concern for Carolina's #82 at the final horn.
They Said It:
Rod Brind'Amourpost-game when addressing the Eller hit on Kotkaniemi:
"I don't like it, but what are you going to do about it? I've talked to him. He's not doing great. I don't know the extent of it, but it's not good."
Brind'Amourcontinuing on the game as a whole:
"We were fine. We got pucks to go in. A lot of our losses, pucks just haven't gone in. We played solid. Got good goaltending when we needed it and we capitalized on our chances tonight."
Frederik Andersenon if tonight held extra importance having fallen to Washington three times already this season:
"Yeah, of course. I don't know if the last couple games against them here had been so great, but we played a good team effort today. We played a lot closer to the way that we like to play."
Max Domitouching on being a part of an offensive that has now produced 13 goals in the last two games:
"These guys are such a deep team. They come at you in waves and you just stick with it. They have so much talent and I just want to be a part of that. Every night it's a new line that's going and some nights we have all four lines going. Eventually we just have to trust that the puck is going to go in. The last couple of games that's obviously been the story, so we'll just keep riding it and get ready for the next one."
What's Next?:
The Canes fly to Tampa immediately post-game. They are not expected to skate tomorrow morning before taking on the Lightning at 7 p.m. Tuesday.
Bonus Notes:
Worth A Click:
Mailbag #21: After The Deadline
Burnside: Examining The Lead-Up To The Deadline For The Canes
Kotkaniemi Elated To Be A Cane For The Long Haul
Hurricanes March Schedule
NHL Standings