WASHINGTON — Evgeny Kuznetsov flapped his wings, Alex Ovechkin stood on the bench and roared with both arms up as Lars Eller happily rubbed his stomach and Capital One Arena answered his cheer with a louder one. The Stanley Cup finals had arrived in Washington, and the Capitals rose to the moment.

Washington won Game 3 of the best-of-seven series, 3-1, for a two-games-to-one lead over the Vegas Golden Knights. The Capitals’ stars carried them, from Ovechkin scoring the first goal of the game to Kuznetsov building on the lead to goaltender Braden Holtby pitching a shutout through 40 minutes and turning away 21 of 22 shots. Washington played its game perfectly, suffocating Vegas as the Golden Knights managed just 13 shots through two periods.

The organization’s first home Stanley Cup finals win was sealed when Jay Beagle set up Devante Smith-Pelly, who beat Vegas goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury from point-blank range. A wave of red leaped to its feet in celebration, “Let’s Go Caps” chants following shortly after. Washington’s two-goal lead was restored, and the Golden Knights’ push fell short.

“It’s nuts right now and it’s great to see,” defenseman John Carlson said. “They deserve us to get there, and we’ve got a long ways to go, but you always have to take it in and have fun with it.”

It’s been 20 years since Washington hosted a Stanley Cup finals game, and the lower bowl of Capital One Arena was largely full as warm-ups began. More than 14,000 fans had shown up to watch Games 1 and 2 here, even as the Capitals were playing in Las Vegas. Sting and Shaggy performed a concert on the National Portrait Gallery steps before the game, and “Wheel of Fortune” host Pat Sajak announced the starting lineups for both teams. After a drawn-out pregame buildup, Styrofoam red glowing sticks waved wildly in anticipation of puck drop.

“I’ve never seen the fans like this,” forward T.J. Oshie said before the game. “They’re always good, but I’ve never seen them like this.”

Home ice had been bittersweet for Washington this postseason. The Capitals entered Saturday night with a 4-5 record in Chinatown during these playoffs, but their last game here had been positive: a Game 6 shutout against the Tampa Bay Lightning in the Eastern Conference finals. It offered Washington a formula for success against the Golden Knights, who had lost just two games on the road this postseason.

“The further the playoff has gone, we are playing smarter, not taking too many risks,” center Nicklas Backstrom said. “I feel like that's the way you have to play. You have to play good defensively and that's what we're doing right now."

The Capitals got good news before the game even started with Kuznetsov back in the lineup after a scare in Game 2. He sustained an undisclosed “upper-body” injury on Wednesday night when Vegas defenseman Brayden McNabb crunched Kuznetsov against the glass in the first period, forcing Washington’s top center and leading scorer to miss the rest of the game. He looked good on his first shift of the game, when on a two-on-one, Kuznetsov’s saucer pass skipped over McNabb and right to Ovechkin’s stick. Fleury made the highlight-reel save on the first shot of the game. Ovechkin had eight shot attempts in the first period.

“I feel like Ovi always has about 10 shots on goal halfway through the game, or he has the attempts at least,” Eller said. “He was pumped up. Everybody was pumped up today.”

The Capitals had another close call when forward Chandler Stephenson seemingly scored on Fleury, sniping a puck past him. But the tally was immediately waved off by the official, as Smith-Pelly had made contact with Fleury in the crease, his backside catching the goaltender to the head. In a significant swing, Smith-Pelly went to the box for interference and the Golden Knights got a power play.

But the Capitals withstood that push, neither team breaking through in the first period. isabelle.khurshudyan@washpost.com

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STANLEY CUP

(Best-of-7; x-if necessary)

Washington 2, Vegas 1

Monday, May 28: Vegas 6, Washington 4

Wednesday, May 30: Washington 3, Vegas 2

Saturday, June 2: Washington 3, Vegas 1

Monday, June 4: Vegas at Washington, 8 p.m.

Thursday, June 7: Washington at Vegas, 8 p.m.

x-Sunday, June 10: Vegas at Washington, 8 p.m.

x-Wednesday, June 13: Washington at Vegas, 8 p.m.