WASHINGTON _ At first glance, it doesn't seem like Patrick Maroon would fit on a team like the Devils. A team built on speed and skill, Maroon isn't exactly fleet of foot. He's big winger who can throw down a bone-cracking hit and set a screen.
But look closer and you'll see how valuable that role can be for a speed team like the Devils. When Maroon set up below the goal line, he can make things happen. Dating back to Thursday night, things have happened the last four times Maroon has set up behind the opponents' net.
Maroon had a goal and two assists in the Devils' 5-3 loss to the Washington Capitals on Saturday night at Capital One Arena and has five points in the last two games.
There's little to glean from the game in terms of a big-picture scenario since Taylor Hall, Kyle Palmieri, Travis Zajac and Sami Vatanen were healthy scratches, given the night off to rest before the postseason begins. But the one thing you absolutely should take from this game is the play of Maroon.
Maroon, the slowest guy on a speed team, is playing a role that no one else can. He brings the hits, he gets to the net and he makes things happen in the dirty areas.
Maroon tied the game at 3-3 just over two minutes into the third period when he finished off a feed from Pavel Zacha on the rush, but the game didn't remain tied for long.
Alexander Ovechkin, who was going for his eighth 50-goal season, intercepted an errant clearing attempt in the Devils' zone and beat Cory Schneider high for his 49th of the season as the crowd chanted "We want 50."
The one place you should never let Ovechkin get to is the circle, and that's exactly where he ended up 2:21 into the first period to open the scoring. He broke free from his defenders and Evgeny Kuznetsov sent him a cross-ice feed for a one-timer he rocketed past Schneider.
Nico Hischier tied it up at 8:10 in the first with his 20th of the season. Maroon fed him from behind the net and he scored from the low slot to make it 1-1.
But with 28 seconds left in the period, Niklas Backstrom made a swift move in the low slot to deke Schneider and beat him top-shelf and take back a lead.
Michael Kempny opened the second period with a slapshot from the point that gave the Caps a 3-1 lead at 3:44. Miles Wood scored off yet another backboard feed from Maroon to make it 3-2.
In his first start since March 20, Schneider made 21 saves. It wasn't exactly a standout performance. And if this was an audition for the playoffs, as he had hoped it would be, it's likely he won the role of the understudy.
Schneider did have make a few nice saves on Ovechkin to deny him the hat trick and the 50th goal that came along with it, stopping two one-timers from the circle late in the third period with the Devils forced to kill off a minor penalty by Hischier.
