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Penguins-Capitals: A one-sided rivalry resumes
- Updated: April 27, 2016
4:30 PM ET
The Pittsburgh Penguins and Washington Capitals have met eight times in the Stanley Cup playoffs (including five times in six seasons in the 1990s), and despite trailing in seven of those series, the Penguins have won all but one (the 1994 Eastern Conference quarterfinals).
So when the Penguins drafted Sidney Crosby with the No. 1 pick in 2005, a year after the Capitals used the No. 1 pick on Alex Ovechkin, the Penguins and Capitals were set to reignite a rivalry that had been dormant since the mid-1990s.
For two decades, the rivalry has been one-sided, but now that the teams have a second-round appointment in the 2016 playoffs, the Capitals have a chance to start a new chapter. Here’s a look at how they got to this point.
Before their time
1992 division semifinals: A year removed from being run off the ice in five games against the Penguins in 1991, the Capitals took a 3-1 series lead. The Penguins stormed back to outscore them 14-7 in the final three games to win in seven.
1995 conference quarterfinals: Three years later, the Capitals again took a 3-1 series lead before the Penguins won Game 5 in overtime. The demoralized Capitals were outscored 10-1 in the final two games of the series.
1996 conference quarterfinals: After the Capitals blew those two 3-1 series leads to the Penguins, this series had all the drama it needed. The Capitals jumped out 2-0 before the Penguins won four straight. The highlight of the series came in Game 4, which ended with Pittsburgh’s Petr Nedved scoring the game-winning goal with less than a minute to go in the fourth overtime.
Welcome to the party
The drafting of Ovechkin (2004) and Crosby (2005), each No. 1 overall in their back-to-back drafts, reignited the Penguins-Capitals rivalry. Due to the lockout, both future MVPs made their NHL debuts on the same night, Oct. 5, 2005. Here are their head-to-head highlights:
The first meeting of these future NHL stars was at the 2005 world junior event. Jeff Vinnick/Getty Images
2005 World Juniors: The first meeting between Crosby and Ovechkin came …
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