Firsts Against the Fins: Rasmus Sandin, Craig Smith, Matt Irwin, & Gabriel Carlsson Record Personal Firsts in Second Period Against Sharks

Kavin Mistry/NHLI via Getty Images

The Washington Capitals’ sweeping moves before the trade deadline and subsequent events have led to a number of new faces in the lineup for Head Coach Peter Laviolette. In Saturday’s tilt against the San Jose Sharks, three of those new faces picked up their first points as members of the club.

As part of the return in the Caps’ deal that sent Dmitry Orlov and Garnet Hathaway to the Boston Bruins, veteran forward Craig Smith was sent to Washington. In an offensive outburst in the second period, Smith picked up two goals, recording his first goals as a member of the Capitals.

First Goal:

Second Goal:

Marquee trade acquisition defenseman Rasmus Sandin picked up his first point as a member of Washington’s defensive corps in his first game played since being acquired with an assist on Smith’s second goal.

Matt Irwin, who appeared in 153 games for San Jose from 2012-2015, scored the Caps’ third goal of the second period, marking the first time he has lit the lamp against his former ‘mates.

Irwin’s fellow blueliner, Gabriel Carlsson, was recalled from the AHL’s Hershey Bears yesterday along with Vincent Iorio, and picked up the primary helper on Irwin’s tally.

Carlsson previously played parts of six seasons with the Columbus Blue Jackets.

The Caps headed into the second intermission with a 4-2 lead over the Sharks.

By Michael Fleetwood

 

About Michael Fleetwood

Michael Fleetwood was born into a family of diehard Capitals fans and has been watching games as long as he can remember. He was born the year the Capitals went to their first Stanley Cup Final, and is a diehard Caps fan, the owner of the very FIRST Joe Beninati jersey and since then, has met Joe himself. Michael joined the NoVa Caps team in 2015, and is most proud of the growth of the NoVa Caps community in that time. An avid photographer, Michael resides in VA.
This entry was posted in Games, News, Players, Washington Capitals and tagged , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Leave a Reply