The Washington Capitals slayed a huge giant on Monday night, beating the rival Pittsburgh Penguins 2-1 to win their Eastern Conference semifinals series in six games. The Caps had lost seven straight playoff series to the Penguins and always seemed to come up short in the postseason after great regular seasons, but there is a feeling now that things may have finally changed.
Washington is back in the conference finals for the first time since 1998. There was a huge feeling of catharsis for Caps fans after the breakthrough series win. Here’s a look at some of the reactions on Twitter:
Washington, D.C., 10:01 p.m. EDT, May 7, 2018: #Capitals #Finally pic.twitter.com/f84E6zoU0C
— David Aldridge (@daldridgetnt) May 8, 2018
That is a big cojones win for WASH
— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) May 8, 2018
Holy cow the Capitals beat the Penguins. Never thought I’d see the day https://t.co/ro8RqHb1IP
— Ben Volin (@BenVolin) May 8, 2018
This IS a different Caps team.
— Eric Bickel (@EBJunkies) May 8, 2018
For all my DC friends: FINALLY!
— Ben Goessling (@GoesslingStrib) May 8, 2018
The @Capitals have ended 20 years of frustration for D.C. sports fans. pic.twitter.com/ul3YMBCpMB
— NBC Sports (@NBCSports) May 8, 2018
OMG OMG!!! We did it!! @Capitals are in the Conference Finals!!! OMG!!
— Doug Kammerer (@dougkammerer) May 8, 2018
I liked it better when the Penguins won all the Stanley Cups.
— DJ Gallo (@DJGalloEtc) May 8, 2018
The last time a Washington team made the conference finals:
-Peter Bondra was the Capitals leading scorer
-Chris Webber was a Wizard
-Trent Green was the Redskins quarterback
-The Nationals were still the Expos pic.twitter.com/LIRtr6LlMN— Post Sports (@PostSports) May 8, 2018
The Caps will face the Tampa Bay Lightning in the conference finals. They might not be completely done with Penguins (or ex-Penguins), as there is a good chance Marc-Andre Fleury and the Golden Knights could reach the Stanley Cup Finals.
