self now," admitted DeLaet. "These are the best playe

RALEIGH, N.C. -- The Washington Capitals arent used to late-season games like this where the only thing at stake is pride. While they hate being in this position, at least theyre making the best of it. Troy Brouwer scored two goals in the Capitals 5-2 rout of the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday night. All three members of Washingtons third line -- Joel Ward, Jason Chimera and Eric Fehr -- each had a goal and two assists. They helped the Capitals claim an easy win in this Metropolitan Division matchup of teams knocked out of the playoff race. "We went out there and we want to finish the season off right so that we can have some good games," Brouwer said. "Maybe a little consolation smile on your face when you go into the summertime, I guess." Braden Holtby stopped 36 shots for Washington, which won its third straight after losing five in a row. This one came one night after the Capitals learned they would miss the post-season for the first time in seven years. "Thats all we can do right now, is just go out and try to play the system correctly, and try to get good results from it," Fehr said. Jiri Tlusty scored a short-handed goal, Radek Dvorak added a late goal and Anton Khudobin finished with 16 saves for the Hurricanes. Playing their home finale, they lost their third straight -- their seventh losing streak of at least three games this season. "It wasnt good enough. Clearly," Carolina captain Eric Staal said. "We had breakdowns, and they ended up in our net. It just wasnt good enough, and theres not much else to say. We needed to be better than we were tonight. I feel bad for the fans who were here watching and came out to support us." Tlusty briefly made things interesting when he pulled the Hurricanes within a goal at 2-1 by finishing on a short-handed 2-on-1 rush at 17:16 of the second period. It was all Capitals after that. Brouwer restored Washingtons two-goal lead with 35.1 seconds left in the second when he one-timed a cross-ice feed from Marcus Johansson past Khudobin. Fehr made it a three-goal game 2:25 into the third and Brouwer stretched it to 5-1 62 seconds later by slipping the puck between Khudobins legs for his 25th goal of the season. "It was a team that was having fun tonight playing hockey," Brouwer said, "but unfortunately, its not for a whole lot." Both teams were playing their first game since being eliminated from the playoff chase. These meaningless late-season games are new to the Capitals, who until now had made the post-season every year since 2007. The Hurricanes are certainly used to this. Theyre out of the playoffs for the fifth straight year -- the longest active streak in the Eastern Conference -- and the seventh time in eight years since they won the Stanley Cup in 2006. "It hasnt been easy" for the fans, Staal said, "and it hasnt been easy for me the past five years." And with nothing on the line for either team except pride -- and in an arena almost completely devoid of energy -- this game quickly took on a rather loose feel. "It wasnt a good game overall," Carolina coach Kirk Muller said. "To me, it looked like two teams that just pretty much in the last couple days were mathematically out of the playoffs and it just looked like a sloppy game. I dont think it was really a good hockey game by either team. But for our last game at home, we were looking for more." Ward started the scoring with an easy goal 62 seconds in when he sent the puck into an open net. Chimera made it 2-0 at 10:58 of the second when he skated along the end line and slipped the puck under Khudobins right leg. "It was one of those nights where things were going well for us," Fehr said. "We could tell that the guys were feeling good." NOTES: Capitals C Marcus Johansson assisted on both of Brouwers goals. ... Washington has won four straight at PNC Arena and improved to 14-5-3 in the series since 2010-11. ... The Hurricanes season award winners were announced before the game, with the players voting C Manny Malhotra the Steve Chiasson Award winner for determination and dedication, and local writers selecting D Andrej Sekera as the team MVP. Eli Manning Jersey . 8 Sergio Parisse for its penultimate Six Nations match against Ireland at Lansdowne Road. Darius Slayton Giants Jersey . Jamies number grades given are out of five, with five being the best mark. Tuukka Rask, Boston Bruins (5) – He had a brilliant game; it was a huge response for his average games before. http://www.authenticnygiantspro.com/Oshane-ximines-giants-jersey/ . Patty Mills scored 15 points, Tim Duncan had 10 points and 11 rebounds in limited minutes, and San Antonio trailed for only 11 seconds late in the first quarter of a 103-90 victory over Portland on Wednesday night. Odell Beckham Jr Youth Jersey . Moments after scoring and setting off another wild celebration at Minsk arena, Platt leapt into the arms of Belarusian captain Alexei Kalyuzhny. Lawrence Taylor Giants Jersey . Adam Lind provided the power and rookie starter Marcus Stroman had the best start of his young career as the Blue Jays dumped the Yankees 8-3 at Rogers Centre. Stroman, making his fifth start for Toronto, allowed one earned run and three hits over a career-high eight innings.He wasnt able to lead the International team to a victory, but Graham DeLaet leaves his first Presidents Cup having gained a lot of respect and plenty of praise. Thats especially true after winding up his Sunday in dramatic fashion by holing his final shots on 18 in both his matches. Its not as if Canadians werent aware of DeLaets talent; after all, hes been the top Canuck for a few years now. You knew hed become mainstream in his home country when you stopped hearing "De-Lay." Hard-core golf fans elsewhere have also known about his remarkable ball-striking and accuracy off the tee, evident just by looking at his name at the top of so many statistical categories. They also watched as he performed well in the FedEx Cup playoffs, his beard lengthening each week. But its fair to say that this event will be DeLaets coming out party to the rest of the golf world. TV announcers have been singing his praises all week with Golf Channels Brandel Chamblee calling him the best ball-striker in the world right now. Johnny Miller was positively gushing at his talents and even Jack Nicklaus gave a nod to the Canadian. "I thought he played great," said the Golden Bear. "I talked to him on the first tee today and I said to him, Graham, the way youve played this week, I think this will mean an awful lot to your career." Hes also gained the respect of both captains here this week. "Hes fun to watch," said Fred Couples. "He hits it a long way, he putts well. You know, hes just a very good player." "Hes a hell of a player," said Nick Price. "I think Canada has a lot to look forward to the next 10 or 12 years or so, watching him play, because hed definitely major championship material." The enthusiasm he displayed all week was positively effervescent. On Thursday when his partner Jason Day rolled in a winning putt, DeLaet almost took Days arm off with the high five. When his putt dropped on Sunday morning inn the match against Phil Mickelson and Keegan Bradley he reacted as if hed just scored in overtime to win the Stanley Cup.dddddddddddd He managed to do it again in his singles match against Jordan Spieth, this time holing it from the bunker to win his match 1-up. "I executed them both well, but theres some luck involved as well," he admitted. "I mean, its super exciting to finish like that; to win the match here and then to halve the match this morning, it makes it even better." In addition to all the attention, its clear to see DeLaet gained a bushel full of confidence playing this Presidents Cup. Not that he was short on self-belief, but matching games with the best Americans and being one of the top point producers on the International team can only help when he returns to action on the PGA Tour in a few weeks in Las Vegas. "I definitely believe that deep inside, I feel a little more confidence in myself now," admitted DeLaet. "These are the best players in the world and this American team is just loaded with talent. To be able to come in here and play well against them means a lot." While the individual performance was tremendous, DeLaet admitted to disappointment at not being able to help his team break the long drought in the competition. Despite a record of 3-1-1 for the Canadian, once again, the Internationals were humbled by the Yanks, losing 18.5 to 15.5. "Thats the thing. Were here as a team to try and win this thing as a team and its great to play well, but its going to be tough going into that locker room and seeing all those guys," said DeLaet. "I mean, Im sure well have a couple of drinks tonight and just celebrate the friendships and everything that weve made." Its quite clear that when DeLaet leaves that locker room and the Presidents Cup and Muirfield Village, hell do so as a different player. Things wont be the same any more. This is a bona fide star on the rise. ' ' '