We never get to see the best of Alex Ovechkin in the playoffs because we rarely get to see the Capitals beyond a perfunctory first-round appearance. Typically, just as the cherry trees are shaking down their blossoms in D.C., the Capitals are raking up the detritus of another one-and-done shakedown in the Stanley Cup playoffs.

But after falling into an 0-2 deficit to Columbus in the first round, the Capitals ran the table to reach Round 2, with the Great Ovie, still this era’s No. 1 showman, finishing an impressive 5-3—8 in the six games (substantially ahead of his career playoff rate of 0.93 points per game).

“One day it has to happen,’’ said an optimistic Ovechkin, prior to the Capitals opening Round 2 Thursday night against the mighty Penguins.

Maybe, but in his 13 seasons in D.C., the Capitals never have advanced to the conference finals. They’re not favored to do it this time around, even though the Penguins were without star forward Evgeni Malkin and penalty killing specialist Carl Hagelin to start the series, opening the door just a smidge for the frustrated sons and stick carriers of Abe Pollin.

Alas, even with the Penguins minus those two key contributors, the Capitals still found a way to bollix a 2-0 lead in the third period Thursday and turn it into a 3-2 loss — with Sidney Crosby scoring the equalizer and assisting on Jake Guentzel’s winner. For the record, Ovechkin’s name was on both Washington goals, including his own that provided the brief two-goal lead in the third. Another great Ovie night lost to time.

It feels like Lost Tales from the NHL Crypt nowadays, but Ovechkin-Malkin were the 1-2 picks, respectively, in the 2004 draft.

Ovechkin has delivered as one of the greatest goal scorers (607 and counting) in history, while the more slippery, somewhat less-prodigious Malkin (930 points to Ovechkin’s 1,122) has his name on the Cup three times, and looks like he just might be collecting his fourth championship in about six weeks.

Malkin waited two years to come to North America, while Ovechkin remained only one season in Russia with Dynamo before dropping in here in October 2005 and firing up his 50-goal star-maker machinery from Day One. He has reached that plateau seven times, and only missed it by one goal this season (49-38—87).

Now 32, Ovechkin isn’t the wonder who drilled home career highs of 65 goals and 112 points 10 years ago. Either Connor McDavid or Patrik Laine, or both, soon will surpass him as the game’s No. 1 scoring threat.

But with all due respect to the more refined and impactful Crosby, Ovechkin remains the most magnificent one-man show of his era — big (6 feet 3 inches, 235 pounds), fast, and strong, the personification of the power forward position that didn’t become part of the game’s lexicon until Cam Neely.

By the time Ovechkin is wrapped up (three more years at $9.5 million per, by the way), he’ll have 700-plus goals and, given the current state of the game, he’ll be the last ever to reach that plateau. He’s hardly been under anyone’s radar, but had the Capitals been able to build more around him these last 10-12 years, Ovechkin could have been to the NHL what Michael Jordan was to the NBA back when it was MJ and all his, you know, faceless associates wearing those Bulls unis.

When Round 2 began, Malkin had played in 51 more postseason games than Ovechkin, in no small part due to the fact Crosby stepped into the Penguins’ lineup the October before Malkin arrived.

Had the Capitals opted for Malkin instead — not a consideration at the time — Ovechkin and Crosby would have begun their careers together, side by each. If so, would the Penguins have those three Cups? Would they have more? Less?

Entering next season, Ovechkin and Malkin, with a combined 2,052 points, will stand as the fourth-most prolific duo selected in the 1-2 spots.

How they stack up against the other all-time 1-2 selections:

1971 — 1. Guy Lafleur, Montreal, 1,353 points; 2. Marcel Dionne, Detroit, 1,771 points. Total: 3,124.

1987 — 1. Pierre Turgeon, Buffalo, 1,327 points; 2. Brendan Shanahan, New Jersey, 1,354 points. Total: 2,681.

1988 — 1. Mike Modano, Minnesota, 1,374 points; 2. Trevor Linden, Vancouver, 867 points. Total: 2,241.

2004 — 1. Ovechkin, Washington, 1,122 points; 2. Malkin, Pittsburgh, 930 points. Total: 2,052.

1973 — 1. Denis Potvin, NY Islanders, 1,052 points; 2. Tom Lysiak, Atlanta, 843 points. Total: 1,895.

NOT MUCH CAN BE DONE

Wild handcuffed by big signings

Yet another disappointing ending for the Wild, dismissed in five games by the powerful Jets, which ended up costing Chuck Fletcher his general manager post after nine years in the corner office..

“The last couple of years,’’ owner Craig Leipold said Monday, upon announcing Fletcher’s contract would not be extended, “we just have not been good enough.’’

Doubtful that the Wild, even if fully healthy, would have shimmied their way by the Jets, who easily could end up Cup finalists. But both of the Wild’s franchise cornerstones, Zach Parise and Ryan Suter, were injured and out of the mix, rendering the Wild easy pickin’s. They were held scoreless in each of their last two games and dented the net only nine times in the series, while allowing the Jets only 14 goals. Sounds close, but it wasn’t, because the Jets really are that good.

Parise and Suter were brought aboard the same day, July 4, 2012, early in Fletcher’s tenure, the two homeboys signing identical 13-year, $98 million deals, not long before the next collective bargaining agreements imposed seven- or eight-year max term on all deals.

Parise and Suter, each now 33, have performed well, but not well enough to justify the overreach Fletcher made. Which isn’t to say he packed bags Monday because of those signings, but the Wild bowed out too easily and too often these past six seasons for those deals to stand the test of time.

Now the new GM (candidates still being vetted) has to find a way to build a new, successful model, while saddled with the combined $15 million cap hit of two high-profile players entering their middle 30s with a combined 1,863 games. No easy task, though the new guy at least is not walking into a minefield of high-profile UFAs who must be signed or lost to the open market.

But with both Parise and Suter protected by no-movement clauses, along with captain Mikko Koivu, 35, it looks as though a roster overhaul will take years rather than months. If asked, one or more could be willing to pack up, and Parise and Suter no doubt would have suitors, provided Minnesota were to make sizable accommodations (draft picks, salary share) to soften the seven more seasons (each) at $7.5 million remaining on those deals.

“We shot for the moon,’’ Fletcher said when the franchise landed Parise and Suter. Six years later, with virtually no postseason success to show for it, those signings in large part jettisoned Fletcher.

Had current CBA limitations been in place then, he would not have been able to offer either more than seven years. In theory, they’d both be entering the final years of their deals and Fletcher might be able to sell Leipold the vision on a reset. Now that’s the domain of all the candidates lining up to be Fletcher’s successor.

Among the lead candidates: ex-Boston University forward Paul Fenton, proud son of Springfield, who rolled up 411 NHL games for seven teams before crafting a successful career in the front office in Nashville (once under the ownership of, yep, Leipold).

ETC.

Flames pounced on coach Peters

The Flames acted quickly, as expected, and scooped up Bill Peters as their new coach, some 48 hours after he executed his out clause from behind the Hurricanes’ bench. A bit curious in that Peters spent four seasons in Raleigh, where he never coaxed the Former Forever .500s beyond 36 wins or steered them to a playoff berth.

If you’re keeping score at home, the Hurricanes have gone nine straight seasons without making the playoffs.

Let’s not forget, the Flames sent Glen Gulutzan packing after two seasons, the first of which he made the playoffs and the second of which the Flames went 37-35-10, missing the No. 8 seed in the West by 11 points.

So why the hire? Comfort level, said Flames GM Brad Treliving, though he noted during Monday’s news conference that he didn’t know Peters well, while at the same time crediting him as a student of the modern game.

Treliving figures Peters can revivify a roster that, by any account, should have performed better. Any coach would be happy to inherit a talent corps that includes Johnny Gaudreau, Sean Monahan, and Matthew Tkachuk up front, along with Dougie Hamilton and Mark Giordano on the backline. Netminding may be the biggest question. Mike Smith is 36 and is a lifetime 220-220-66. A workhorse most of his career, but has rarely been in the playoffs. His last postseason action, in fact, was in 2012.

Peters spent three seasons as one of Mike Babcock’s assistants in Detroit, the pedigree that helped win him the job in Carolina. The Hurricanes, despite their postseason DNQs, most nights looked organized and on an upward trajectory, even if they never broke through during his tenure.

Peters wasn’t in Calgary long before he headed overseas. He will coach Team Canada in the World Championship (May 4-20) in Copenhagen.

Meanwhile, the Hurricanes now have to find both a new GM and new coach, provided owner Tom Dundon doesn’t want to handle both himself. The Rangers and Stars also have yet to name coaching successors to Alain Vigneault and Ken Hitchcock, respectively.

One possible landing spot for Gulutzan could be Edmonton, where coach Todd McLellan, a fellow favorite son of Saskatchewan, could be well served to have him as a sounding board, perhaps in an associate coach’s role.

The Oilers flopped badly in 2017-18 after showing so much promise (103 points) the prior season. Last spring, of those who responded to an Edmonton Journal poll, 98 percent were in favor of Peter Chiarelli returning to the GM job for 2017-18. This spring, only 36 percent wanted Peter the Patient back making the calls for the Oil. Such is the reality in a wins-losses business when your team goes 36-40-6.

Loose pucks

Patrick Maroon, on the Bruins’ radar in the days prior to the Feb. 26 trade deadline, hits the UFA market on July 1. Shipped to the Devils for Boston College forward J.D. Dudek and a third-round pick, the 6-foot-3-inch left wing tallied an impressive 3-10—13 in 17 games with the Devils prior to notching but one goal in the five postseason games vs. Tampa Bay . . . NBCSN logged a 1.12 overnight rating, its highest ever in a first round, for its coverage of Bruins-Maple Leafs Game 7 Wednesday night. It no doubt would have been higher had NESN also not carried it as its final game of the season. The league’s standard practice is that all local carriers bow out after Round 1. Hard on true hockey fans, who prefer to drink what’s served at the local lemonade stand . . . Ex-Bruins defenseman Joe Morrow could find himself in the Cup Final now that he’s a regular in the Winnipeg six-pack. Morrow, signed last summer by the Canadiens, was dished to the Jets in February for a fourth-round pick. He averaged 16:34 of ice time across the Jets’ five-game dismissal of the Wild in Round 1. “I thought I would have been the last person shipped out of there,’’ Morrow told the Winnipeg Free Press upon leaving Montreal. “It’s more an honor than anything to be brought into a situation like this. I’m going to play my heart out for this team.’’ . . . No surprise that Alex Ovechkin led all players in Round 1 with 33 shots on goal. Tops for the Bruins: David Pastrnak (27), followed by Torey Krug (26) and Rick Nash (24) . . . Also no surprise: Patrice Bergeron led the all 16 teams in Round 1 with 89 faceoff wins. Sidney Crosby (66) slotted in at No. 2. Numbers are slightly skewed, of course, because only the Bruins and Leafs went to a Game 7, and some clubs (Vegas, Los Angeles, San Jose, and Anaheim) were finished in the minimum four . . . Six weeks after suffering a nasty hit vs. Dallas, Habs winger Andrew Shaw underwent knee surgery last week and will need into October to heal fully. Part of the delay and in cleaning up the knee was that Shaw also was concussed on the play and doctors wanted the symptoms to clear before fixing his wheels . . . Former BC winger Alex Tuch, originally a Wild draft pick, made his Vegas debut when the Bruins were there in October. He finished with a 15-22—37 line — his game similar to that of Boston rookie Danton Heinen, and then chipped in with 1-1-2 in the Knights’ sweep of the Kings. He added another goal in the 7-0 shellacking of the Sharks in their Round 2 opener . . . Auston Matthews (1-1—2) wasn’t much of a factor for the Leafs in their series with the Bruins. Mitch Marner (2-7—9) was far more playoff-ready, and ditto for Nazem Kadri, despite exiting for three games for his dunderheaded smack on Tommy Wingels in Game 1. That’s back-to-back first-round clunkers for Matthews. But keep in mind, he won’t turn 21 until the start of September training camp, when most kids his age really should be back at school. He has the skills to dominate in the playoffs, and no doubt will, once the Leafs fill out a roster in need most of a franchise defenseman . . . Some sight in the Game 6 closer between the Penguins and Flyers on Sunday with ex-Bruin Phil Kessel cheesed off over the heavy smack Claude Giroux put on Carl Hagelin midway through the second period. Legal hit, but nasty, with a dazed Hagelin left bleeding from the mouth. Kessel responded with a shove on Giroux, assessed as a roughing minor. But the Penguins’ bench undeniably got a lift from Kessel’s rare physical response. Exhibit A in how the regular-season norms vanish in the playoffs . . . Only seven pages into his tome, “A Higher Loyalty,’’ James Comey, musing over the Mafia’s methods, not only referenced hockey, but fighting in hockey. To wit: “As my fellow prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald explained it, they were like the rules against fighting in hockey — on the books as a no-no, but still a regular feature of the game.’’ . . . The type of headline you never saw in the Original Six: “The NHL Reportedly Asked the Bruins to Tell Marchand to Quit Licking People.’’

Kevin Paul Dupont can be reached at dupont@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeKPD. Material from interviews, wire services, other beat writers, and league and team sources was used in this report.