WASHINGTON (AP) -Thanks to Matt Bradley – yes, Matt Bradley, not Alex Ovechkin or another of Washington’s stars – the Capitals get to keep playing this season.
Bradley scored his first two playoff goals, Ovechkin added a highlight-reel tally, rookie Simeon Varlamov posted his second shutout of the opening round, and the Capitals beat the New York Rangers 4-0 in Game 5 on Friday night to avoid elimination.
The seventh-seeded Rangers, who benched Sean Avery, lead the best-of-seven series 3-2 heading to Game 6 in New York on Sunday.
Alexander Semin also scored for No. 2 Washington, and the Rangers pulled goalie Henrik Lundqvist after two periods, replacing him with Steve Valiquette.
Perhaps the Rangers missed Avery, their only scratch Friday. His benching came after he was called for two penalties in the final 10 minutes of New York’s 2-1 victory in Game 4 on Wednesday. He also took four minor penalties and a misconduct in Game 3.
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