After the early goals by Sean Bergenheim and Alexander Semin, an apparent goal with 5:54 left in the first period by Brooks Laich was disallowed as replay showed an apparent kicking motion to tip the puck past the sprawled Dwayne Roloson. The Lightning weathered a storm of eleven straight shots as they were unable to string together a coherent offensive attack during a powerplay.

In contrast, the Capitals have shown the benefit of having a few days to rest and plan. They outshot the Lightning 14-9 and outhit the Lightning 11-4. Laich parked himself in front of Roloson for the balance of the period, but Roloson has survived the barrage of shots raining down upon him.

The Capitals failed to seize upon back-to-back powerplays as Brett Clarke was sent to the penalty box for delay of game just as Steve Downie's penalty for elbowing expired.