NHL playoff scores 2016: Suspensions, not stars, highlighting Penguins vs. Capitals series

Remember when this Penguins-Capitals series was being billed as a showdown between the league's biggest stars? After three games, it's been more of a suspension show than anything else.

It's no surprise that this series -- featuring division rivals in the second round of the playoffs -- would toe the line. Considering the history these two teams have in the playoffs, with the Penguins knocking out the Capitals in seven games in the 2009 conference semifinals, you'd expect a bit of animosity.

However, twice in two games there have been blatant late, high hits delivered by both sides and those have stolen the story. Brooks Orpik went high on Olli Maatta in Game 2 to earn the Capitals defender a three-game suspension. Then one game later, Penguins defenseman Kris Letang put his shoulder into the face of Marcus Johansson late, which might just earn one of Pittsburgh's best players a suspension.

And well it should. The contact is made after the 0.6-second threshold the NHL allows for lateness of hits, and Letang leaves his skates in the follow-through. It's a textbook definition of the type of plays the NHL wants gone from the league. Yet, the unreliable reputation the Department of Player Safety has with handing down discipline is well-known. Add that to the fact that Letang escaped suspension for chopping Rangers forward Viktor Stalberg in the neck in the first round, and people aren't happy to say the least.

A one-game suspension seems likely for Letang, which would be a blow to the Penguins for Game 4. The defender is the backbone of Pittsburgh's defense with an average of 32 minutes played per game in this series.

It's a loss the Penguins will likely have to take, and it might just come back to haunt them should the Capitals rebound.

Penguins 3, Capitals 2

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1. The big names on each side are still (mostly) silent

We mentioned it before, but through three games, the Penguins' and Capitals' biggest stars are still scoreless, for the most part. Sidney Crosby has yet to register a point. Alex Ovechkin finally broke through with a huge goal that sparked the Capitals' failed comeback, but it's been the secondary players who have made the most noise in this series.

2. Matt Murray has been outplaying Braden Holtby

A big reason why the Penguins are leading their series is due to the goaltending of young Murray, who's stepped into the spotlight thanks to various injuries to Pittsburgh's goaltending core. Holtby has been on the bad end of some pretty awful bounces and dreadful defense from his teammates, but his counterpart across the ice has been garnering the most attention so far through three games, and for good reason.

Murray with the nice save! #StanleyCup pic.twitter.com/yO16iOxrq2

— NHL on NBC (@NHLonNBCSports) May 3, 2016