"Paid refs and still blew it": NHL fans mock Washington Capitals after 'great choke' in OT loss to Toronto Maple Leafs

The Washington Capitals lost to the Toronto Maple Leafs in overtime on Wednesday night, sparking strong reactions online. With only 47 seconds left in overtime, John Tavares scored to secure a 4-3 win for Toronto. Washington, which had been leading earlier, saw their hopes fade with the final goal. After the game, the Capitals posted a short message on X (formerly Twitter):

“Heartbreaker #CapsLeafs.”

Fans quickly responded to the post, many mocking Washington’s failure to close out the game.

"Paid the refs and you guys still blew it,” one fan said.

“Great choke 👏🏽👏🏽.” another fan said.

"Thompson definitely could have came for that puck," one fan said.

For the Capitals, losing late in the game was disappointing. Toronto fans, on the other hand, were happy to see their team’s comeback and praised Tavares for his clutch performance. They were thrilled to see the Leafs pull off a win on the road.

Here are some more reactions from fans on X:

"Absolutely gutless effort against a team who played last night. Totally unacceptable" a fan said.

"The Capitals stop playing with about 7 minutes left in the game, clear it out of their zone, and Toronto rushes back, dump it out again to protect a 3-1 lead, another leafs rush, disappointing loss, finish the damn game." another fan said.

"Losing this game was bad. Horrible defense and effort in 3rd period." one fan said.

The Capitals will need to shake off this loss and continue to build on their strong start to the 2024-25 season. But as of now, fans aren’t likely to forget this "heartbreaker" anytime soon.

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Washington Capitals failed to win despite early lead

The game started with Taylor Raddysh giving the Washington Capitals a 1-0 lead at 11:12 of the first period. His centering pass deflected off Max Domi and into the net. Toronto quickly responded, tying the game at 1-1. John Tavares made a move around Washington’s defense and passed to Bobby McMann for an easy goal at 12:11.

Dylan Strome put the Washington Capitals ahead 2-1 at 18:33, finishing a pass from Aliaksei Protas. John Carlson appeared to make it 3-1, but a challenge for goaltender interference overturned the goal. Protas made it 3-1 at 17:48, scoring from the right circle. In the third, Nylander cut the lead to 3-2, and Marner tied it at 3-3 with a power-play goal. Tavares scored the game-winner in overtime.