3 least impressive Washington Capitals players from 2-1 Game 1 OT loss to Carolina Hurricanes feat. Jakob Chychrun

The Washington Capitals dropped Game 1 of their Round 2 series with the Carolina Hurricanes in the 2025 Stanley Cup playoffs on Tuesday night at the Capital One Arena.

Jaccob Slavin scored at the 3:06 mark of the extra frame to lift the Hurricanes to a 1-0 series lead.

Aliaksei Protas opened the scoring at the 3:53 mark of the second period for the Washington Capitals. Meanwhile, Logan Stankoven got his third of the postseason, tying the game at the 9:42 mark of the third period.

So, let’s take a closer look at the three least impressive Washington Capitals players from the OT loss to the Carolina Hurricanes in Game 1 of the Round 2 series.

3 least impressive Washington Capitals players from OT loss to Carolina Hurricanes in Game 1

#3 Alexander Alexeyev

The Washington Capitals deployed Alexander Alexeyev for less than 10 minutes in Game 1. Unfortunately for the Caps, he got burned in the limited ice time he saw.

Alexeyev committed a crucial miscue midway through the third period when Logan Stankoven took advantage of a turnover to get the equalizer and send the game to overtime.

Here’s a look at the play:

The replay showed how the Hurricanes had gained the Washington zone. The Caps were poised to clear the puck out, but Jesperi Kotkaniemi stripped Alexeyev of the puck, dishing it to Stankoven for the game-tying marker.

Trevor van Riemsdyk also gets a dishonorable mention here as he was unable to react in time to prevent Stankoven’s shot from hitting the net.

#2 Pierre-Luc Dubois

Pierre-Luc Dubois was nearly invisible for the Washington Capitals in Game 1. He hit the ice for 16:19 across 24 shifts but failed to generate much offensively. He ended the night without a shot on goal.

On the plus side, he registered three hits and three blocks, but struggled in the face-off circle, winning just 46% of the draws he took.

#1 Jakob Chychrun

Jakob Chychurn has been a solid top-pairing defenseman for the Capitals all season long. But in Game 1 against the Hurricanes, he was the unfortunate recipient of a lesson from the Hurricanes.

Chychrun got burned by the Canes in overtime, as Jaccob Slavin’s shot found its way through traffic, ending the game.

Let’s look at the goal:

The puck got through traffic and past Logan Thompson, with Chychrun being the main screen in front of his goalie.

The replay showed Chychrun coming around from behind the net and parking in front of his teammate Matt Roy. Roy pushed Chychurn to get some separation, but Chychrun did not budge or clear the front of the net.

In the end, the puck got through and the game was over.

The Capitals will be looking to even the series on Thursday night as the two clubs meet once again for Game 2.