A Game 7 To Savor

Consecutive Aprils have presented HockeyWashington with postseason-opening showdowns with hated foes of yesteryear, consecutive three-to-one deficits battled back from, and consecutive game 7s deciding them. But these two most recent game 7s feel worlds apart, don't they?  There's no such thing as a sure thing in any game 7, but has any engendered as universal a sense of optimism for the home faithful as the one the Caps will skate in tomorrow night?Unlike a year ago, when there really was universal acknowledgment of the Caps and Flyers being very evenly matched, in this April's series, the Caps are demonstrably the better team. The Rangers' own players acknowledge it. The Capitals struggled mightily to even things up with the Flyers in games 5 and 6 a year ago, and that exhaustive exercise may have played a role in their game 7 demise. This April with the Rangers, games 5 and 6 were over after two periods. The Caps have chased one of the planet's best netmi...