For part of Monday night, the Washington Capitals stunk. For other parts, they tried desperately to remain with the Carolina Hurricanes — and just about did. But think about that for a second. It feels as if the Capitals are merely trying to hold on to this second-round Stanley Cup playoff series with the tips of their fingernails as the Hurricanes rip it away from them.

Taylor Hall and Sean Walker came up with big third-period goals that the Carolina Hurricanes needed to stay in control of their Game 4 playoff win against the Washington Capitals.

The Washington Capitals are far from being in all-out crisis, but hopes for their season definitely don’t look good. After a staggering 4-0 loss in Raleigh on Saturday it’s become apparent that whatever strategy this team brought into the series simply isn’t working.

Hurricanes defenseman Brent Burns, 40, and Capitals forward Alex Ovechkin, 39, are two of the NHL’s oldest players, but remain super intense, especially during the Stanley Cup playoffs.