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Prospects at the 2018 NHL Scouting Combine were faced with a wide variety of questions in their formal team interviews. That last one came from the Washington Capitals, and the number of prospects who got it right hovered between very few to none. The Capitals informed prospects they would learn the correct answer if they were drafted by Washington.

Formal interviews are the toughest and perhaps most important part of the combine. While the fitness testing provides teams with information moving forward - shining a light on areas that need improvement, which teams can then use to create a plan for those players going into camp and beyond - the interviews allow teams to get to know players in a different setting.

Many prospects noted Saturday that they’d spoken to upward of 20 teams, with some interviewing with all but one or two. Serron Noel of the Oshawa Generals had 10 interviews on his first day alone. (Noel also said that he likes being yelled at during the Wingate bike test, which will make some NHL strength and conditioning coach very happy one day.)

In addition to the formal team interviews and grueling physical testing, prospects had to deal with questions from the media. Here’s what we learned about some of the prospects who likely won’t go in the first round this year, but will be assets to whichever team drafts them.

C Blade Jenkins, Saginaw Spirit (OHL)

In May 2017, Jenkins chose to leave the U.S. National Team Development Program, forgoing his scholarship at the University of Michigan and joining the Saginaw Spirit of the Ontario Hockey League.

"I think for me just kinda looking at it and seeing major-junior kinda fit my style of game and style of play a little bit more than others,” Jenkins said of what drove his decision to move to the OHL. "You’re developing and you’re playing against high-end draft picks. You’re playing against first- and second-rounders, and I think that kinda gives you a little bit of a taste of what it’s gonna take to get to the next level."

Jenkins is ranked 26th among North American Skaters by NHL Central Scouting, and is on the younger side of this year’s draft class - he won’t turn 18 until August. He has areas of his game that require improvement moving forward including his skating, a fact of which he is well aware. Jenkins said he plans to develop his speed this summer, working both in the weight room and on the ice.

When asked who he models his game after, if anyone, Jenkins said he tries to play like Dallas Stars captain Jamie Benn.

"He’s a big body and his hockey IQ I think is what sets him apart, and his playmaking ability," Jenkins said. "That’s kinda what I like to bring to the table as well, to make others around me better, whether that’s them putting up a couple goals and me being able to give it to them.”

C Ty Dellandrea, Flint Firebirds (OHL)

Dellandrea’s draft year came with the challenge of balancing a successful personal season with a disappointing team campaign. While Dellandrea finished the year with 59 points in 67 games, the Flint Firebirds finished second-to-last in the league, ahead of only the Sudbury Wolves.

Dellandrea is ranked 25th among North American skaters by Central Scouting, and showed great perspective when asked why he thought that he was on the verge of being considered a first-rounder, but not quite there.

"I think maybe I started taking this game and my career seriously a little bit later than others," Dellandrea said. "Some guys have been doing this for years and years, even from a little kid. I might’ve started hockey a bit later."

He played multiple sports when he was younger including volleyball and lacrosse, which took up some time in summer he might’ve otherwise spent training for hockey.

"I think the past three summers, even two summers I’ve grown a ton in my play and in my size so I think with me I just have a lot of potential," Dellandrea said. “I’m gonna keep growing, whereas some other guys uh, you know maybe have already figured out - figured this out already. I think I got a lot of room to grow and to rise."

While he understands it will take time and training, Dellandrea does see himself as eventually becoming a No. 1 center at the next level. He said he tries to model his game after Jonathan Toews.

"I think my ability to play an all-around game," Dellandrea said when asked about his strengths. "I take pride in playing a strong defensive game as well as offensive so I like to use my shot and my speed to my advantage."

C Jack McBain, Toronto Jr. Canadiens (OJHL)

For McBain, the decision to play another year of Junior A and then head to Boston College this fall, rather than taking the major-junior route, was not one he made lightly.

"I had the opportunity to go watch a Michigan game and I really fell in love with college hockey, kind of everything about it," McBain said. "I think at that time and right now, I think it’s the best thing for my game, I think going there and playing against guys that’s 25 years old, basically men, I mean I think that’ll really benefit me in the future."

When asked what aspects of his game he feels are the strongest, McBain said he’s a strong two-way player with a high hockey IQ, and that he uses his size well. He also said that while he’s a good skater, that’s an area where he can still improve.

"You know, I think when I’m in stride I can skate with anybody," McBain said. "For me though, I’ve been working on my first three strides, and getting quicker and more explosive and agile."

McBain was a member of Canada’s gold-medal winning team at the Ivan Hlinka Memorial Cup in 2017, and also represented Canada at this year’s Under-18 World Championships. What NHL jersey he’ll don in Dallas remains to be seen, but it wouldn’t be surprising to see him off the board by the middle of the second round.

(Photos courtesy: Getty Images)

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ARLINGTON, Va. – In a season of firsts, the Vegas Golden Knights are faced with another heading into Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final.

They’ve lost two games in a row for the first time this postseason and are down 2-1 in their best-of-seven series with the Washington Capitals. It’s just the second time they’ve trailed a playoff series, after losing Game 1 of the Western Conference Final to the Winnipeg Jets.

"It's not something we're not used to," winger David Perron said. "We had a lot of media thinking we'd get run over the entire series against them. We find a way to win four in a row, win in five. We're in a familiar situation with a lot of doubters. It's fine with us. We have to step up and play the right way."

Defenseman Luca Sbisa said the Golden Knights have handled adversity before, and that the self-belief is still there. But after sweeping the Los Angeles Kings, beating the San Jose Sharks in six games, and handling Winnipeg in five, adversity has been scarce for Vegas in its inaugural season.

But the Golden Knights are facing plenty of it now, sitting just two losses away from watching the Capitals win the Stanley Cup - and ending their Cinderella season in the process.

"We've got to step up our game," head coach Gerard Gallant said. "In the three games, we haven't been good enough. And if we don't step up our game, the same result is going to happen (Monday) night. We'll see what we're made of."

Alex Ovechkin set the tone for Game 3 by scoring in his first Stanley Cup Final home game. Evgeny Kuznetsov and Devante Smith-Pelly also scored for the Capitals, who have rolled four lines far more effectively than the Golden Knights. Tomas Nosek, who had the Game 1 winner, scored off a Braden Holtby turnover in Game 3, but Vegas' depth has been otherwise absent.

The Golden Knights have so far been unable to answer Washington’s attack and find a solution to its stifling neutral-zone pressure.

"We’ve just got to get back to our game, getting pucks deep and getting in on the forecheck," veteran defenseman Deryk Engelland said. "It’s been our key all season long, is the five-man forecheck and five-guy pressure all over the ice. We do it for a little bit at a time and then I think we try to be too cute at times and they thrive on the turnovers."

The Knights didn’t practice Sunday ahead of Game 4, but Gallant said he’d consider making some changes to the lineup, which hasn’t changed all that much during the playoffs. He has tweaked his fourth line and pushed the right buttons with Nosek, Ryan Reaves, and Tomas Tatar.

The top line of Jonathan Marchessault, Reilly Smith, and William Karlsson has been a constant but faces plenty of pressure after being silenced in Game 3.

"I think they’re working hard," forward Ryan Carpenter said. "The pucks didn’t go in for them last game but I don’t know, just bounces. We can’t just look to them to lead us. we’ve got to find a way as depth lines to produce and get some offense."

Gallant could make some tweaks, but he's not going to overhaul his philosophy after guiding the Golden Knights this far.

"You have to lose four games before you lose the Stanley Cup and we're far from out of it," he said.

(Photos courtesy: Getty Images)

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James Wisniewski was in the car with PGA Tour pro Bud Cauley when it crashed Friday night in Ohio.

The former NHL defenseman sustained "a couple broken ribs" in the crash and was still in hospital Sunday, Justin Thomas - the world's No. 1 golfer and a good friend of Cauley - said after completing his fourth round at the Memorial Tournament, according to Steve Gorten and Bill Rabinowitz of the Columbus Dispatch.

Cauley was in surgery after suffering a collapsed lung, five broken ribs, and a fractured left leg, as confirmed by his management firm IMG.

The accident was first reported by Golf Channel's Todd Lewis on Saturday night.

Wisniewski owns a home in Dublin, Ohio, where the Memorial Tournament was being held, and Thomas told the Dispatch that Cauley had been staying with the longtime blue-liner this week.

There were two other people in the car at the time of the accident.

Wisniewski played for six teams in 11 NHL seasons, spending parts of four with the Columbus Blue Jackets from 2011-15. He represented the United States at the Olympics in February.

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It doesn't appear a reunion is in the works between Ilya Kovalchuk and the New Jersey Devils.

Kovalchuk, the Russian superstar winger and unrestricted free agent, has expressed interest in coming back to the NHL, but a return to the Devils looks unlikely.

"I've not reached out to Kovalchuk's representatives and I've not heard from them, so there you go," Devils general manager Ray Shero told Mike Morreale of NHL.com.

Kovalchuk has spent the last five seasons in the KHL after retiring from the Devils in 2013, a move that tore up his 15-year contract.

A return to the NHL prior to this offseason would have seen the Devils retain his rights since Kovalchuk played out just three years of that pact before retiring. But now that Kovalchuk is over 35 years old, he's free to sign with any team.

The New York Rangers are among the teams to have reached out to Kovalchuk. Recent reports indicate the prolific goal-scorer is looking for an extended stay in the NHL, likely on a two- or three-year contract.

Kovalchuk picked up 63 points in 53 games with St. Petersburg SKA this season. He's also recorded 417 goals and 399 assists over 816 NHL games.

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Much of the time between Games 2 and 3 of the Stanley Cup Final was filled with speculation about whether Evgeny Kuznetsov would be healthy enough to participate come Saturday night.

The Washington Capitals' top-line pivot bore the brunt of a thunderous hit from Vegas Golden Knights blue-liner Brayden McNabb in Game 2, but looked no worse for wear in Game 3, playing a pivotal role throughout a dominant 3-1 win.

Kuznetsov was buzzing from the start of his first shift. He recorded an assist and scored the game-winning goal, and the Caps generated 51.52 percent of the shot attempts and 59 percent of the scoring chances when he was on the ice at even strength, per Natural Stat Trick.

He's been a force throughout the postseason, leading all players with 27 points in 22 games, but perhaps his signature moment of the playoffs came in the second period, when his perfectly executed rush in transition led to a key insurance goal for the Capitals.

We'll break down what happened below. The entire play can be seen here.

The play started with the Capitals in good defensive-zone position, but they had a mishmash of players on the ice, as Kuznetsov (middle) is on with T.J. Oshie and Jay Beagle.

As part of Shea Theodore's rather rotten night, his stick broke on his shot, leading to an easy block for Oshie.

With two Golden Knights in pursuit, Oshie quickly chipped the puck to Beagle, who was in support. With Kuznetsov ahead of him, Beagle wisely deferred possession to the more skilled playmaker as the Capitals headed up ice with numbers in their favor.

After wading through the neutral zone unscathed, Kuznetsov scanned his options upon crossing the blue line. He's got Beagle charging hard to the net and Orlov under back pressure from David Perron, while Colin Miller monitors the middle of the ice.

With Marc-Andre Fleury now in the frame, Kuznetsov has to make his choice. Orlov is essentially a non-factor unless a rebound pops into the slot, so Kuznetsov can either shoot or attempt to feather a pass through Miller onto Beagle's tape. Note how far away he holds the puck from his body to keep Fleury guessing.

It's a good thing he opted to shoot.

With a quick change of his blade angle, Kuznetsov rifled a picture-perfect shot past Fleury that clanked off the post and in. Though Fleury cut down the angle well, Kuznetsov placed the puck under his blocker and over his pad - virtually the only spot where the acrobatic netminder couldn't reach it.

Kuznetsov's impact on the Capitals' lineup was crystal clear in Game 3, and it's plays like his game-winner that make his case for a potential Conn Smythe Trophy.

(Screenshots courtesy: NHL.com)

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WASHINGTON – Alex Ovechkin and the Capitals have traversed their share of uncharted territory this postseason - none more significant than playing a Stanley Cup Final game in D.C. for the first time in two decades.

It only made sense that Ovechkin, the face of the franchise, would score the opening goal.

“He’s very passionate, as everyone knows,” coach Barry Trotz said following Washington's 3-1 win over the Vegas Golden Knights on Saturday night. “It was the right thing in a playoff game, the first victory in the final, that Alex scores the first goal. Some poetic justice, if you will."

Ovechkin has always played the game with abandon, but since vanquishing the Pittsburgh Penguins in the second round, freed from the failures and expectations of the past, he’s almost looked lighter, unburdened.

He scored 1:10 into the second period of the first June hockey game played in the nation’s capital since 1998, setting the tone for a decisive Game 3 win that gave the Caps a 2-1 series lead. Ovechkin threw the puck past Vegas goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury as he tripped over Brayden McNabb and after Fleury was unable to control John Carlson’s point blast.

“He was possessed out there,” Carlson said. “That’s a good way to put it, I think. He’s playing with passion and energy and joy and he’s a one-man wrecking crew. How committed he is. It’s the best he’s played in my opinion.”

It’s hard to argue with that. Ovechkin’s 14 goals are tied with John Druce for the most in franchise history in a single postseason. By the end of the game, Ovechkin had 13 shot attempts and five shots on goal. When he didn’t have the puck, he was trying to get it back. He was throwing hits and blocking shots. Nothing different, really, from what he’s done throughout the course of the Capitals’ improbable run to the final.

(Photo courtesy: Getty Images)

“I feel like Ovi always has about 10 shots on goal halfway through the game, or he has the attempts at least,” center Lars Eller said. “He was pumped up. Everybody was pumped up today. I’m not surprised he scores a goal. He always wants to score, badly. I haven’t seen a different Ovi today than I have lately. He’s been on. But he always shows a lot of emotion at home, and that’s right.”

When Evgeny Kuznetsov scored 11:40 later on an odd-man rush to put Washington up 2-0, the reaction from the bench was instant. Ovechkin thrusted his hands in the air, threw his head back, and screamed. Eller embraced him.

“It's just automatic,” Ovechkin said. “You just get excited. If Holts makes a huge save you can just see the whole bench jump and get excited. It's huge moments for us. You just want to give emotion to your teammates and to yourself as well.”

Ovechkin’s “hot-stick” celebrations seem like a lifetime ago, but he’s never shied away from expressing his joy, for himself or his teammates, whether on the ice or on the bench. The Ovechkin who's finally getting to play in a Cup final is the same one he’s always been - everyone’s just paying attention now.

“He’s on another level,” Eller said. “Everyone kind of reacts to stuff differently and he’s always been that brash celebrator. It’s great to see and he’s as engaged as anyone could ever be, I think. It shows in his game and it shows in the effect that it has on the rest of us. He always shows his emotions when he scores, but he’ll be just as happy for somebody else scoring. He wants to win as bad as anyone.”

Copyright © 2018 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

WASHINGTON – Alex Ovechkin and the Capitals have traversed their share of uncharted territory this postseason - none more significant than playing a Stanley Cup Final game in D.C. for the first time in two decades.

It only made sense that Ovechkin, the face of the franchise, would score the opening goal.

“He’s very passionate, as everyone knows,” coach Barry Trotz said following Washington's 3-1 win over the Vegas Golden Knights on Saturday night. “It was the right thing in a playoff game, the first victory in the final, that Alex scores the first goal. Some poetic justice, if you will."

Ovechkin has always played the game with abandon, but since vanquishing the Pittsburgh Penguins in the second round, freed from the failures and expectations of the past, he’s almost looked lighter, unburdened.

He scored 1:10 into the second period of the first June hockey game played in the nation’s capital since 1998, setting the tone for a decisive Game 3 win that gave the Caps a 2-1 series lead. Ovechkin threw the puck past Vegas goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury as he tripped over Brayden McNabb and after Fleury was unable to control John Carlson’s point blast.

“He was possessed out there,” Carlson said. “That’s a good way to put it, I think. He’s playing with passion and energy and joy and he’s a one-man wrecking crew. How committed he is. It’s the best he’s played in my opinion.”

It’s hard to argue with that. Ovechkin’s 14 goals are tied with John Druce for the most in franchise history in a single postseason. By the end of the game, Ovechkin had 13 shot attempts and five shots on goal. When he didn’t have the puck, he was trying to get it back. He was throwing hits and blocking shots. Nothing different, really, from what he’s done throughout the course of the Capitals’ improbable run to the final.

(Photo courtesy: Getty Images)

“I feel like Ovi always has about 10 shots on goal halfway through the game, or he has the attempts at least,” center Lars Eller said. “He was pumped up. Everybody was pumped up today. I’m not surprised he scores a goal. He always wants to score, badly. I haven’t seen a different Ovi today than I have lately. He’s been on. But he always shows a lot of emotion at home, and that’s right.”

When Evgeny Kuznetsov scored 11:40 later on an odd-man rush to put Washington up 2-0, the reaction from the bench was instant. Ovechkin thrusted his hands in the air, threw his head back, and screamed. Eller embraced him.

“It's just automatic,” Ovechkin said. “You just get excited. If Holts makes a huge save you can just see the whole bench jump and get excited. It's huge moments for us. You just want to give emotion to your teammates and to yourself as well.”

Ovechkin’s “hot-stick” celebrations seem like a lifetime ago, but he’s never shied away from expressing his joy, for himself or his teammates, whether on the ice or on the bench. The Ovechkin who's finally getting to play in a Cup final is the same one he’s always been - everyone’s just paying attention now.

“He’s on another level,” Eller said. “Everyone kind of reacts to stuff differently and he’s always been that brash celebrator. It’s great to see and he’s as engaged as anyone could ever be, I think. It shows in his game and it shows in the effect that it has on the rest of us. He always shows his emotions when he scores, but he’ll be just as happy for somebody else scoring. He wants to win as bad as anyone.”

Copyright © 2018 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.