The Washington Capitals won 11 games in December, one more than October and November combined (10). The good times were late in DC, and that in turn fueled one of the funniest chants in Capitals history on Friday night.
The Caps defeated the Montreal Canadiens 9-2 as Alex Ovechkin recorded his 30th career hat trick. Ovechkin’s third goal was the Caps’ ninth of the night, and Capitals fans, who have been very spoiled lately, wanted to MOAR.
So a thunderous chant of “We want 10” filled Capital One Arena with 3:25 left in the third period, encouraging their favorite team to try for another goal.
For the Hockey Hall of Famer and second-year head coach of the Habs, Martin St. Louisthis was one of the scariest parts of the evening.
“I don’t know if I can point to (just) one,” St. Louis said. “Obviously giving up nine is pretty humbling and when they’re chanting ‘We want 10’ it’s tough. The most disappointing thing was probably seeing the result.”
The Canadiens actually gave up 10 goals in the game, but Marcus Johansson’s second goal of the night in the third period, originally the Capitals’ eighth goal, was disallowed after a coach’s challenge for being offside.
so close pic.twitter.com/9RQ70ErCvo
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) January 1, 2023
The Capitals responded to the chants and kept pushing, nearly scoring in front of the net with seconds left in the game.
St. Louis admitted after the game that he struggled on the bench if he had to pull starting goaltender Jake Allen.
“It’s hard,” he said. “I could probably help him. Could I have pulled him after six to seven? Probably. Once it got to eight or nine with four minutes to go, I think it was over in that department. I think it’s a learning experience for me as a young coach. Pulling a goalie isn’t easy. I will learn from this.’
The loss was so bad that St. Louis said his team was just looking forward to a change of scenery.
“We’re going to Nashville,” St. Louis said. “Hopefully it will help the boys’ morale. It’s a serious championship. It’s a tough championship. As much as you want to stay on task and grind, sometimes you need to step away from the game for a few days, and that’s what we’re going to do.”
As for Ovechkin’s three-goal night and his pursuit of Wayne Gretzky’s scoring record, St. Louis had this.
“Hats off to him!”
Header photo. @LiserRai/Twitter
