Game 40 - Caps 2 Sharks 5

Well, to paraphrase Tarik El-Bashir (actually, a direct quote); the Caps got run out of the building last night.

Although not horrible in the first period, they were completely blanketed by the Sharks. They only occasionally gained their own blueline with possession and rarely managed to carry the puck through center ice. The result was only three shots and fewer opportunities - one of which resulted in a goal the other way when Mike Green got caught deep.

I wouldn't exactly characterize the Sharks forechecking as relentless but the Caps D seemed overwhelmed nonetheless. I guess you could blame it on the new line combinations (or the loss of Milan Jurcina - ha), but the team was not in sync moving the puck out of the zone.

Speaking of penalty shots, glad to see Mike Green is reading the blog ('Canes Recap). When he got on the wrong side of a second period breakaway he tried a dive and sweep to actually break up a scoring opportunity as opposed to waving his stick and taking the hooking call. Of course the puck ended up in the net on the ensuing penalty shot - but since he can't seem to keep his stick on the ice in those situations (he sees a lot of them) at least he managed to disrupt an opportunity.

The power play continued on its extended slide including a lengthy 5 on 3 early in the second when the game was still in reach. No movement, no shooting, no bodies.

Haven't seen the third period yet so no comment on the Caps goals or the SECOND penalty shot (Tarik labeled it a soft call).

As well as they played team defense in two big wins a week ago, this game and, of course, the last one are a good illustration of why they need a premium shut down stud on defense.

Game 39 - Hurricanes 6 Caps 3

So I guess I'm not yet convinced these guys are for real.

You could see this Charlie Foxtrot of a game coming from a mile away and one assumes that the emotional uncertainty of having their captain traded hours before the game only contributed to the cause.

There was plenty of blame to go around on this one but let's set the scene. Two days after completing a two game sweep against two of the better teams and goaltenders in the league (Sabres and Devils; Miller and Brodeur) the Caps got to host the worst road team in the league (one win) with the most anemic offense in the league (dead last) and, by a substantial 10 point margin, the worst team in the league.  Smells like a letdown to me.

The Caps defense treated their own crease like a nuclear hot zone and all night long Eric Staal got more time and space than a swine flu carrier at hypochondriac convention.

On a better day, the goaltender might have pulled a few big saves out of his butt and paved the way to a comeback - but this was a moody Jose ("Three-or-more") Theodore playing somewhere between bad and average and didn't make a big save all night. With the support he got from his teammates on his first start in two weeks - a game where he should have been anxious to prove that he's at least a capable backup for the remainder of his contract - well, he probably wished he was included in the trade to Columbus.

But since it’s a favorite topic of mine let me point out the Mike Green penalty. He's taken this particular penalty so many times now I just refer to it as "the Mike Green penalty".  It’s the one where he's been caught behind the play (I know, what are the odds?) and does the one thing ABSOLUTELY GUARANTEED to draw a penalty every single time; the one thing that has VIRTUALLY NO CHANCE of producing a positive result - he put his stick in mid-section of a skater on a breakaway. While they were killing off a four minute penalty.

Now, I know the call was a weak one; that he barely made contact with guy; that he had no effect on the goal scoring opportunity; but all of that only proves the point. If you even think about touching a breakaway skater above the knees they'll call it EVERY SINGLE TIME. Put your stick on the ice and move your feet. If you must do something dive at the guy and sweep at the puck with the stick. You'll probably still get a penalty but at least you might actually prevent a goal.

The whole point here is that this mess occurred in the first six minutes of the game, the Canes converted the 5 on 3 and it was all downhill from there.

The worst game of the year to this point.

The Trade

Reading the various blogs and message boards about this makes me think that there's a lot of over-analyzing going on out there - a lot of it based on the fact that Chris Clark was the captain and management is trying to "send a message".  While the Caps can be frustratingly inconsistent - and I have been critical of that fact (just wait for my next post) the Caps ARE the best team in the league right now and not in need of shaking up. 

This trade was simply a combination of opportunity and salary management.

Once you take the emotion out of it - Chris Clark was underperforming. A lot. $2.5 M is way too much to pay a player with four goals and a minus rating at the season midpoint. Before his injury-plagued seasons of late, Clark was good for 20-25 goals a season but is now unable to crack the first two lines and is not particularly effective as a third line player.

A combination of age and injuries reduces the effectiveness of a moderately expensive player at a position where the Caps are deep. Captain or not - if the opportunity arises you have to make that trade.

At $1.3 M, Milan Jurcina is already overpaid and he becomes a UFA at the end of the season. Despite his size Jurcina never developed into the type of D the Caps needed. His puck moving abilities were challenged under Boudreau's stretch offense and he never used his ample size to control the crease or deal punishment to unwanted interlopers.

Someone out there with cap room will be enticed by his size and would have made an offer at the end of the season. Its unlikely the Caps would have been motivated enough to match an offer.

Jurcina was no more than a third line defenseman - with no particular skill set to offer - on a club carrying NINE of them. He was the million dollar 'bag of pucks' in this transaction.

Jason Chimera carries a $1.9 M price tag.  He is a largish gritty winger who has 8 goals and 9 assists to this point in the season - in fact, he looks very much like a more in-your-face version of Chris Clark with double the production and the added bonus of being a natural left winger, where the Caps are thin once you get past the world's best player.

For the Blue Jackets - I assume they had some salary room to spend, needed a defenseman, and were looking to add leadership and shake up a team that is on a 1-7-2 stretch and in danger of missing the playoffs.

So the net effect of this trade is that the Caps cleared out $2M of cap space and pruned the defensive group - which is still bloated at 8 players. It was not a blockbuster deal and did not resolve their most pressing need - a shut-down stud defenseman, although it did better position them to make such a deal.

The only question is: What do you do with the $2M plus the $2-3M cleared up by resolution of l'affair de Nylander?

That's easy - some combination of the following:

• Bank it for the upcoming Backstrom deal.
• Use it for a trade deadline rental.
• Make another deal for that shut-down stud.

The good news is that the Caps now have a lot of flexibility to pursue any number of opportunities - which is a 180 turnaround from just a month ago when they couldn't even afford to bring up their rookie prospect Karl Alzner for some much needed NHL seasoning.

I would think they'll be adding a player at some point before the season ends although - given McPhee's conservative approach - not necessarily a blockbuster transaction.

Alexander Semin

The big Holiday news is Alexander Semin's one year $6 Million contract extension.

At first blush the short term of this extension may appear somewhat curious but it makes a lot of sense. According to GM George McPhee (GMGM), the one year deal was requested by Semin and agreed to by the Caps because it works for both sides.

Its worth noting that few members of the Red Army create as much discussion and divided opinion as Alex Semin. While his production is undeniable there is a strong feeling that he is inconsistent, frequently unmotivated, and has a penchant for bad penalties.

For Semin - at the end of this season he is a Restricted Free Agent so his ability to negotiate in the open market will be hampered by the draft choices an acquiring team would have to surrender. At the end of next season, he'll be an Unrestricted Free Agent and the sky will be the limit. If he continues to produce over the next season and a half at the same pace he has so far he will be in some seriously elite company:

"Semin, Washington's first-round choice (No. 13) in the 2002 NHL Entry Draft, has 226 points in 231 games during the last four seasons, among the top 20 point-per-game scorers in the NHL in that time (0.98). He is tied for 14th in goals in that span with 112, and is one of only 20 players League-wide to score more than 25 goals in each of the last three seasons. He is on pace to hit that mark again in 2009-10.

"Semin established a career-high with 79 points (34 goals, 45 assists) in 62 games last season. He finished fourth in the NHL in points per game (1.274), trailing only teammate Alex Ovechkin and Pittsburgh’s Evgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby. His career-high of 38 goals came in 2006-07."

The thinking here - based on this deal and other comments form his agent - is that he's going to be looking for $8-10 M and that he doesn't particularly care where he plays.

From the Caps perspective this works out because they're getting Semin through next season for a fair price and without committing to long range salary cap liabilities. I don't see the Caps spending $8M or more on Semin if that is his asking price. The fact is, it will be very difficult to keep Semin, Ovechkin, Green and Backstrom together for any length of time under the limitations of a salary cap.  The one year deal ensures that the core group will be together for one more season and two legitimate Stanley Cup runs.

GMGM mentioned that this deal gives the Caps more "flexibility". Flexibility in this case means the more room to negotiate a deal with Backstrom who is (arguably - but not by me) the more important long term contract to nail down.

There has been a lot of discussion among Caps Nation denizens about what to do with Semin and how the Caps might handle the contracts coming up for re-negotiation over the next couple of seasons (Morrison, Poti, Backstrom, Knuble,  Steckel and, down the road, Varly and Neuvirth) while keeping under the cap. But I think if you read between the lines on this one, the answer is that Semin is gone after next season and the Caps can spend money on beefing up the second tier of the team (the defense in particular). Losing Semin will hurt but the Caps have shown that they have a strong talent stream to develop. It was noted on the Caps web site over the weekend that all three teams in the organization - the Caps, the AHL Bears, and ECHL Stingrays - are at the top of their LEAGUE in points.

So onward and upward.

Game 38 - Devils 1 Caps 4

Coming off a long and largely successful road trip there was concern in Caps Nation about a home letdown as the Caps had to host a pretty good Sabres team - with the hottest goaltender in hockey - and a very good Devils club (9 wins in their last 10) - with the best goalie in the history of the game in a four day stretch. That last point may be arguable - but just barely.

The team delivered a statement - scoring 9 goals and playing three-zone defense that limited the opposition to just 3. The road to the Stanley cup is going to go through Pittsburgh or Jersey so this was a big win.

 
Alex Ovechkin opened the scoring for the ninth time this season and had his third straight three point game. Despite missing 20% of the season to date, OV is leading the league at plus-21; is one goal behind Gaborik for the league lead; and is tied with Joe Thornton for the league lead in points. 

Backstrom also had a goal and two helpers extending his red-hot December.

Nice play by Chris Clark to sweep away the puck on a Devils breakaway without drawing a penalty - actually thrust his stick between the guy's legs as he dove and swept. A lesson to be learned there - if he had so much as touches the skater above the knees with the blade of his stick he goes off. I you're going to risk a penalty - do it in a manner that has some chance of succeeding.

Neuvirth has looked better each game in collecting his third straight win and is putting up some impressive numbers. Theo is understandably unhappy about playing time but as I said at the beginning of the season - this is a transition year for the Caps goaltending corps and Theo's role is primarily an insurance policy against rookie breakdowns.  He should not be starting any more than 30 games unless the rookies demonstrate that they are unable to win games. Both rookies should be starting at least 15 games to properly evaluate the future and Varly has obviously taken the #1 spot so he should get 35-40 starts as seasoning for the playoffs.  The Five Million should help to soothe any hurt feelings.

It was really good to see back-to-back three period efforts (in the spirit of the holidays I won't criticize the 20 shot second period they gave to the Sabres). If they can resist the temptation to play down to Carolina's level at home on Monday I may be convinced that the team is going places.

Game 37 - Sabres 2 Caps 5

The Sabres played a little flat footed at the opening of this game and the Caps made them pay. The first line in particular was flying all night long and opened the scoring early with a sweet setup from Ovie to Backs who now has 10 goals in 11 game after netting a pair. Green added one to provide the 2-0 lead after one.

Predictably enough, the Sabres found their legs the second period, kept the Caps from getting the puck deep, and picked up a pair of goals. Brendan Morrison's highlight stick between the legs goal kept the Caps one up going into the third.

Coach BB switched up the top line in the third swapping Knuble and Semin - a strategy that paid off as they pressured the Sabres into two penalties and converted both ends of a 5-3 to close out the game.

Five goals on the probable Vezina trophy winning Ryan Miller just days after he shut them out in Buffalo.

A goal and two assists for Ovie who's been dishing off to Backstrom quite a bit lately.

A big game from Erskin who I still think is no better than a 7th D.

Neuvirth got his second straight start and had a good game although a bit of a softie on the first Sabres goal.

The PP is back from the dead after going 0-8 in the last two games

Game 36 - Caps 4 Oilers 2

You had the feeling the Caps were going to mail it in for the third period of this game after putting out a decent first period and finding themselves down by two after a lackluster second.

Alex Ovechkin had other ideas and unleashed his own brand of fury on a period long relentless attack - two goals and a dozen shots later the Caps were going home with nice victory instead of a pair of losses to close out the road trip.

OV set the tone seconds into the period scoring on a dogged wraparound sequence stuffing his second or third poke at the puck.

His second goal of the period was pure OV and a goal scorer's goal - skating to some open ice near the blue line he took an outlet pass, barreled down the off wing and blistered a slap shot from the top of the right faceoff circle and one-timed his own rebound from a sharp angle.

Easily his best period of hockey since his injury/suspension time off.

Game 35 - Caps 2 Canucks 3

A typical Capitals loss - a late penalty and a power play closed the deal on this fairly average effort. Getting blanked on four PP chances didn't help.

The second Canucks goal was also one we're seeing quite a bit of as Mike Green rushed the net and hung his partner out to dry.

We should have gotten some points out of this one.

Game 34 Caps 6 Avalanche 1

That's as good a road game as you're gonna see. Lots-o' secondary scoring and energy the first two periods against a good club that's been playing well lately. I just hope I don't wake up to some bad news tomorrow.

I can hear Boudreau in the room now: "Sixty minutes boys!"
____________

No bad surprises, the 5-0 lead turned into a 6-1 route.


A nice debut from Hershey callup Kyle Wilson - two assists including one on his first NHL shift and a nice play on the second one where he anticipated a clearing pass and one-timed a perfect deflection setup for Flash. Also, got stuffed on a breakaway.



Speaking of Flash, another mutli-goal game.



The blue-liners looked much more competent than what we saw in Toronto.

Most of Caps Nation will be keeping an eye out for a league announcement concerning David Koci and his mugging of Mike Green. If you give out two games to the best player on the planet for an arguably inadvertant knee on knee check - what do you hand out to a known thug who delivers a blatant head shot from behind into the glass?



Although goaltender Anderson may not have had his best game, this was not some Southeast weak sister, or a reeling Flyers club with a new coach that the Caps routed. The Avs are a good, speedy club at or near the top of the Western conference and, I thought, showed up to play.

Posted w/o comment

"We don't have the absolute skill that Washington has so our attention to detail has to be so much stronger than what Washington would be paying attention to. I'm talking about having our sticks positioned, knowing where they are at all times. I don't think they're worried about, at any point in the game, about defending – they're thinking about scoring the next goal. And we have to kind of do a bit of both."

— Leafs coach Ron Wilson on the Capitals

Game 33 - Caps 3 Maple Leafs 6

OMFG what is it with these guys and two goal first period leads? This game should have been over fifteen minutes in.

The fact is - this team only skates when it thinks it has to. The only thing worse than these guys scoring an early goal is scoring two early goals. From that point on they're clearly only thinking about the next one. They stop playing team defense and then hang their inadequate (yeah, I said it) defensive corps out to dry. Then when the other team gets a goal and some energy the Caps can't re-ignite the spark.

Since they are giving up very nearly three goals a game they should understand that a two goal lead means they are still underwater and they need to play like its 0-0.

If the last two game are any indication of what's in store when Varly doesn't play…. Well, lets hope his fragile "lower body injury" (pulled groin for those of you playing along at home) holds up come playoff time.

And a note to Vladislav Tretiak - don't do us any favors by selecting the Future to suit up for Team Russia in the Olympics. He's gonna need the rest.

Game 32 - Hurricane 3 Caps 4 (OT)

Glad to see things are back to normal - eking out an OT win against an inferior team with a 40 minute effort.

Watching Mike Green play defense is like watching Phil Mickelson play golf - you're not always sure what the result will be but its gonna be a wild ride.

If it was Alex Ovechkin throwing the stick and gloves to the face like the Carolina D did to Mike Green in the early going (and springing a two on one), how many penalty minutes does he get?

This tidbit from Capitals Insider:    The in-game entertainment staff didn't get an assist, but Boudreau thinks they deserved one.  "Whoever is doing the videoboard did the 'Unleash the Fury' video in the second period and it got the crowd into it, which was a tremendous thing," Boudreau said. "We were dead emotionally. And that's what happens when you play a lot of games."

Jose Theodore - meh.

Game 31 - Caps 0 Sabres 4

You'll have games like this one. The last game of a 4 game road trip against a pretty good team and a hot goaltender spelled trouble from the get-go. One might have hoped that the team's rare perch looking down on the entire rest of the league might be enough to get them motivated expand the lead, but no.

It didn't help that they were missing some of their energy players - Bradley home delivering a baby, and the always ebullient Perreault out sick. Plus Knuble. The result was a fairly relaxed effort for the first two periods with few attempts to go to the net or get the puck deep. Despite the slow start there were some opportunities early that could have changed the direction of the game but shanked shots (OV on a wide open net) and big saves (Morrison on an equally empty net) kept them off the board.

Once the Caps brought some heat in the third period it was all Ryan Miller who truly made some big stops - I mean gaze-at-the-rafters-in-frustration-bring-the-home-crowd-to-its-feet kind of stops.

The shutout loss ended one of the more remarkable streaks you'll see - 30 straight games where they had the lead at some point in the game.

The diving call on Alex Ovetchkin - in addition to being absurd on its merits - helps to confirm a nagging suspicion of mine: he's being targeted by refs for extra attention. He's had a series of very marginal calls go against him over the last half-dozen games and I'm not expecting that trend to end any time soon.

Game 30 - Caps 3 Lightning 0

This is just how you wanted a game like this to go.

The Bolts have been playing pretty good hockey lately and had a bee in their bonnet about the eleven straight losses thing so there was an expectation that they would show up to play on home ice. And they pretty much did, but couldn't overcome a solid lunchpail effort by the Caps.

The first period was a bit of a chess match as Tampa clamped down defensively and the Caps were not particularly inclined to get the puck either on, or behind, the net.  Something about having OV back in the lineup makes these guys go to their finesse game and it was not a productive effort for the first 20.

All the goal scoring happened in the second period and all were a result of guys going to the net. Even the first goal (the only one close to a finesse move) came off a Semin pick-off just outside the blue line and a dash-and-dish to OV flying up the middle towards the net. At that point I was almost surprised OV didn't pull up and look for trailer to dish to.

Eric Fehr is continued his hot streak later on with an Eric Fehr goal - lingering about the crease, he waited for a Fleischmann shot/pass to tumble his way and calmly collected the puck and stuffed it by Smith. The one area the Caps have absolutely improved in this year is this is the ability to collect garbage around the net. One might have expected that with the addition of Knuble but Fehr and Laich have elevated that portion of their games and, come playoff time, they'll have three guys who will have scored 50-60 goals of the type that win playoff games.

Even OV got in on the act late in the second period - tapping in some loose change that goaltender Smith lost track of. That play showed Alex Semin at this best. A little frustrated that they had lost zone possession on the PP, Semin relentlessly backchecked Jeff Halpren who was doing everything short of a flat out dive to draw a penalty as he lagged the puck into the Caps zone. Unlike the Semin of a month ago, this version stayed strong on the body, kept his stick on the ice, skated a 360 around Halpren and stole the puck clean before turning it up ice - all at the end of a shift. Pass to Flash, shot on goal, OV cleaned up.

Unlike in many prior games, the Caps kept the pressure on throughout the full sixty minutes and even killed a good number of penalties and probably should have had a shorties or two but couldn't resist the opportunity to overpass the puck on a number of occasions, including twice on the same PK.

As good as Theo is playing I don't think there's any doubt that Vary is now the starting goaltender - hopefully he plays another thirty games before the season ends.

Oh yeah, welcome back Alex.

Game 29 - Caps 8 Flyers 2

Wow. Its hard to know where to start with this one.

First off, there's the Flyers turmoil. Unable to win (below .500 and out of a playoff position) or score (back to back shutouts, 4 goals in 4 games) they fired coach John Stevens 30 hours before the game. With jobs on the line you can reasonably expect a spirited effort for a new coach's first game, although perhaps a disorganized approach as the coach tries to implement his style without creating complete turmoil.

The Flyers did come out with some energy even though they gave up a goal in the first minute. As noted in a prior post, I'm no fan of the early goal - they're just as likely to create complacency as spur a scoring outbreak - but in this case neither team seemed to miss a beat and the Flyers had it tied up by the twelve minute mark. It was shaping up to be a typical Caps-Flyers game.

Then Daniel Carcillo struck. In a stunning example of a brain spasm he sucker punched Matt Bradley four feet away from a referee who was already calling him for cross-checking Bradley as he tried to get up on his skates after throwing the check that got Carcillo piqued to begin with. It was a cheap shot from a known thug which is exactly how the refs saw it as he was banished for the crosscheck, an instigator and a fighting penalty (plus the obligatory 10 minute and game misconducts) creating a nine minute power play for the Caps.

If Carcillo was trying to impress the new coach Laviolette he took the wrong approach - not only is the new guy a relative pacifist by Broad Street Bully standards but the Caps blew the game wide open on the extended powerplay and turned Laviolette's debut into an embarrassing route that had the home fans in an ugly mood, both goaltenders humiliated and an already reeling team in further disarray. Its quite possible Carcillo has played his last game in Philly.

That Bradley was sucker punched has not been subject to much dispute or debate. As mentioned, he was trying to get up off the ice as he was repeatedly cross-checked in the back and neck and as soon as he realized Carcillo was ready to fight he started to drop his gloves - problem was, the first punch was already on the way and it dropped him to the ice bloody and semi-concious. As compared to the transgressions that earned Alex Ovechkin a two game vacation, it was a deliberate, goonish, and frightening action. The league apparently agrees and levied a four game suspension - not enough given the deliberate nature of the attack, Carcillo's history, and the league's noted attempts to eliminate exactly this kind of thuggery. Regrettably, the suspension just has the effect of making the Flyers a better team.

Back to the game. By the time the teams got back to 5 on 5 hockey, Fleischmann, Green and Laich had scored to make it 4-1 early in the second period. Still, only three goals down with nearly two-thirds of the game to go and a certain recent history concerning the Caps and mid-game lead and the Flyers may have had some hope of making a game of it - especially when they went on the PP for an Alzner penalty. Well, not really. The PP was awful and seconds after it was over Chris Clark scored on weak chip shot goal that chased Ray Emery, who looked pretty shaky in general and hasn't had a good game in some time. More good news for Laviolette.

Boucher didn't fare much better as Backstrom and Green added two more to make it 7-1 heading into the third period.

The third period highlight was Steckel finally potting his first goal of the season - on the PP no less.

Theo had another solid game as their goaltending has been excellent throughout the current winning streak. I've maintained from the start that goaltending is not this club's primary problem and anyone looking that direction as a limiting factor for Stanley Cup run is not paying attention - although there were some admittedly rough spots earlier in the season.

Almost lost in all of the excitement was the missing Alex Ovechkin. Playing without the game's most prolific goal scorer for two game the Caps merely averaged 7 goals and a five goal margin of victory and picked up enough PP goals to make them the league leader.

So yeah, a good night.

Game 28 - Panthers 2 Caps 6

This is the blowout we've been waiting for.  The Caps came up big for game one of OV's suspension. Although Florida was a tired team - 2 games in 2 nights, 3 in 4, arrived at 3 am - they put on an early flurry and once Semin scored and Flash barely a minute later (first in a while) they cruised for the remainder of the first period.

The second period started out roughly with Florida out working the Caps for the full first minute and forcing them into a penalty - the game might have taken a very different course but Bradley's short handed goal (first of the season!!) took all of the wind out of the Panther sails and it was easy going from there.

The other "highlight" of the game was some idiot named Duroc mugging Giroux in "retaliation" for a perfectly clean and less than violent check behind the net. After jumping him from behind and throwing a handful of punches as they slid across the ice he was assessed a minor, a major and a pair of misconducts for a 7 minute power play.  Since this was his second game up from the minors I'm guessing he'll also have a ticket back to Rochester real soon as the Caps converted two goals on the ensuing PP.

Dave Stecke seemed really agitated for most of the second half of the game.  There was an extended period where he was being restrained in the offensive zone and he subsequently rubbed out someone along the boards and could be seen jawing with the Florida bench.  It seemed he didn't get many shifts the rest of the night so maybe some frustration from his lack of goals.

A good effort from Varly who made some early saves to steady the ship before the Caps could start their scoring. He lost the shutout late when Weiss came across the blueline surrounded by four Caps and took the long shot - Varly gave up an atypically deep rebound right back to Weiss - still surrounded - who buried it.  So, yeah, someone should have tied  him up and it was a bad rebound.

As mentioned - this was a tired Florida team and there were some soft goals out there but a solid win where they closed deal  and all without the big man in the lineup.

Game 27 - Caps 3 Hurricanes 2 (EN)

The obvious starting point is Alex Ovechkin. Two games back when he took the five-and-game boarding call (which I thought was a little soft) I suggested that the league was beginning to take notice and his name was probably coming up in pre-game zebra discussions. While that may have had a ring of fanboy paranoia to it, there's no longer any doubt that he will be subject to an unpleasant degree of scrutiny for the rest of this season at least.

Obviously, OV did not engage Gleason with an intent to make knee to knee contact. Nor did he 'throw his out' in Gleason's path in an attempt to make some contact. Alex did what Alex does - he lined up a puck carrier in open ice and went straight at him. Gleason heard the freight train coming and did what you would expect him to do - get out of the way. (Although the Carolina coach called it a "good move" - trying to spin it like Gleason made a world-class deke and OV tried recover by throwing the knee.)

And there's the problem.

If a player reacting in a predictable manner to an attempted check is going to expose both of you to serious injury then you shouldn't be doing it. Alex has to find a way to make those open ice hits without that wide stance that leaves him exposed. I don't know how the league is going to frame up that discussion with him (I expect the word 'reckless' will come up) but there will be a conversation and I'm expecting a one or two game suspension.

Which may be a moot point - Alex went down like a bag of rocks and had the look of a man who knew he was in trouble. Capital Nation will hold its collective breath for the next 5 or 6 hours waiting to hear the results of a (presumed) MRI.

On Frozen Blog has his usual erudite discussion of the matter.

As an aside - Gleason acted pretty much like a dick the rest of the game and the Carolina defense took a lot of high cheap shots - especially along the boards - that went uncalled.

Fehr and Backstrom dominated this game up front - Fehr obviously can't get enough ice time with quality skaters and his emergence can only be a good thing for a team still somewhat lacking in grit and very much lacking in bodies. Backstrom is clearly out of his slump - welcome back.

Fleischmann, on the other hand, is now officially ice cold. The magic hands of November have turned to stone as he failed to convert at least three good scoring opportunities.

Lost, for the most part, in the OV story was a fabulous effort by Theo in goal. Anything short of the near perfect effort he produced and there's no way the Caps win the game as they were substantially outshot for the game and the first period in particular (by the worst offense in the league).

The special teams are collectively near dreadful. The always marginal penalty kill gave one up to the worst PP in the league and seems to have given up at least one a game (Sabres shutout notwithstanding) for some time now. The power play has gone cold over the last 5-6 games - partly due to limited opportunities.

As a final note - the Caps once again were unable to close out a two goal lead failing to score any third period goals and giving up a late one (0:15) with the goalie pulled.

Game 26 - Caps 4 Canadians 3 (SO)

Just three days after playing one of their few complete games of the season the Red Army reverted back to the 40 minute plan in front of a Hockey Night in Canada audience in Montreal.

Grabbing a 2-0 first period lead can only mean one thing for this crew - time for a shootout! So another win from the most exciting team in hockey (and not always in a good way) as they score a tying PP goal with 11 seconds and Nick Backstrom buries the only goal of the shootout.

Judging by Ted's blog entry (http://www.tedstake.com/2009/11/29/ok-ok-we-get-it/) the natives are beginning to get a bit restless over these late breakdowns and lost leads. There is in fact a lot to be positive about. As Ted notes the Caps, at 15-5-6, have the fewest regulation losses in the league.  But here's the flip side of that coin.

The six overtime losses are among the league's highest - (Hey! Six free points).
By my count, they have two 2 overtime and 2 shootout wins.

This amounts to (at least) 15 blown leads in 26 games by a team that has had the lead at some portion of every game this season and has scored the first goal in 21 of those games. And most, if not all, of those leads have been held through some portion of the second period.

Draw your own conclusions.
_________________

Other good news:
Varlamov has settled and improved to the point where he seems to have taken the starting role.  As noted in my pre-season review, the road to a cup includes Varlamov playing well enough to step up and take the starting job and getting the bulk of the playing minutes during the season.

Management has always represented Eric Fehr as tough-nosed winger with the ability to score when presented with an opportunity. His current hot streak 5 goals and 3 assists in ten games shows that may be the case. Those goals are all coming from close range.

More bad news:
The Caps have the second worst penalty kill in the league at 70.4%.  I don't see how they can compete for a cup unless their PK tightens up a lot more than that.

Game 25 - Sabres 0 Caps 2

This team appears to have taken a good long look in the mirror after suffering three straight losses including a morbid breakdown against Ottawa in their last outing which came on the heels of several lackluster performances.

Everyone was moving their feet and playing disciplined hockey resulting in frequent (and occasionally extended)  offensive zone time and, although the Sabres had their share of scoring opportunities, it was generally 'one and done' as backchecking forwards picked up loose pucks and bodies. Varly got a good look at everything that came his way and the crease was kept clear to eliminate the deflection opportunities that have plagued the defense for the last couple of games. Varlamov has looked every bit The Future recently and I'm thinking the starting job is now his to lose.

For the first time since his return from injury we saw the real Alex Ovechkin - flying around the ice and delivering punishment every chance he got.  His game opening goal was pure OV - ripping a thirty foot wrist shot back against the grain while moving West to East across the top of the circles. I'm sure there are dissenting opinions to be found, but  the 5/10/game penalty he received was an almost laughably bad call. Fortunately, the league agrees that the incident requires no further attention but it does have the effect of putting OV on double secret probation for most of the remainder of the season and he will get an automatic one game suspension for another similar infraction. After two questionable calls along the boards on him in two games, the thinking here is that his name is showing up on referee pre-game reports and its even money he ends up serving that suspension at some point. Excuse me while I go find a tin foil hat and my copy of the Warren Report.

On the positive side you could really see the team (and hear the building) rally around OV after the call.  The Sabres picked up their own (even-up?) penalty in the middle of the five minute major and couldn't muster a shot for the duration. Speaking of, Green's decision making and positioning were once again suspect during the four-on-four play.

Where have you gone Ed Van Impe? - You couldn't help but notice the hip check of crunchy goodness as Bryan Pothier went old school on the Sabres Macarthur.

Eric Fehr is riding a hot streak - his insurance goal off a sweet setup by Morrison was a huge late game boost for a team that has… um 'struggled' in late game situations lately - and by 'lately' I mean all season.

Flash's hot scoring streak has cooled off a bit and its no wonder - for the second time in a couple of games he made one too many passes at the end of a passing sequence that should have been a goal. He's proven that he can find the net and much like OV - his mindset should always be to shoot first. He's a legitimate thirty goal scorer if he'll take the shots.

Backstrom was back in the middle the action after going MIA for a couple of games.

Ryan Miller kept the Sabres in this one - Varly had some big saves too, but the Caps were otherwise three or four goals better.

Game 24 - Caps 3 Senators 4 (OT)

Go Caps!

No, seriously, just go.

A solid goaltending effort and Jay Beagle's first NHL goal were both tarnished by (yet another) ugly & nasty third period breakdown from the best forty minute team in hockey. And I don't wanna hear from injuries, scheduling, or any other lame excuse.

They had a two goal lead entering the third period and just had to be one goal better than a lesser team for twenty minutes. Here it is in the coach's words:

"This was a collapse by 20 guys," Washington coach Bruce Boudreau said. "There's no other way to sugarcoat it. "We had complete control of the game. Someone lit a fire under them and we couldn't match it."

This team will not get better until they address the defensive problem - the current personnel cannot get the job done and there will be no opportunity to upgrade so long as the club is wallowing under the specter of the Michael Nylander contract.

Game 23 - Caps 1 Maple Leafs 2 (SO)

Chalk this one up a tired, injury riddled team playing their second game in two cities in two nights. Even though they took a first period the on an Ovechkin goal that finished off a nice passing combination, the Caps never looked to be in this game.

On top of that it, Was Hockey Night in Canada and the GM apparently made it clear that jobs were on the line for this game. Starting, no doubt, with Ron Wilson's. So there was plenty of motivation from the boys in blue.

But still, Toronto. Just sayin'.

Game 22 - Caps 2 Montreal 3

Well undermanned because of injuries, the Caps did not play with much energy in this game. Montreal has turned into a solid positionally defensive team that had the Caps boxed out at every turn. Unable to gain speed in the neutral zone or fight their way to the crease there was no opportunity for odd man breaks or rebounds all night.

Fehr scored off a perfect setup from Perreault who frequently seemed to be the only player skating with energy. Morrison added one late in the game when the team finally showed some fight culminating in a frantic 45 seconds of play that ended with a Mike Green shot bouncing off the post and underneath goaltender Price with 17 seconds remaining.  Some argued that Green had one of his best games of the season with a handful of good opportunities.  From my perspective it was another game where the defense let one get away.

Given the depleted roster and defensive attitude of the Canadians you'd like to think the D could take charge and shut things down - but the failure to control the slot (Poti) and clear the puck off a clean win on the (inevitable third period) penalty kill (Green) resulted in goals that let this one get away.

The game featured the NHL debut of John Carlson who played solid physical D (five hits) and rang the post with a second period shot. Its always great to see the family in the stands for a rookie's debut game and his mom looked ready to bust open from emotion.

Game 21 - Caps 4 (EN) Rangers 2

A good road win. They weathered (sort of) an amped up Ranger attack for the first five minutes then buckled down and ground out the win.

The big story coming in, of course, was the return of Ovechkin after a six game absence. One shot one goal (PP) and seven hits. Two shifts were memorable. His first shift of the second period he was a one man wrecking crew - he got in deep on the forecheck and tagged at least three different blue jerseys. In the third period he got on for the second half of a four on four, had two good opportunities and dominated the play.

The story going out was the gritty play of Matt Bradley. A fight with Aaron Voros left him bloodied but helped shift the momentum in first period and he looked like a natural goal-scorer when he gave the Caps the lead with 4 and a half minutes in the game - protecting the puck on a semi-breakaway and roofing the puck on Lundqvist.

For only the fifth time this year the Caps did not score first - what was not mentioned is that they are now 4-0-1 in those games.

I was surprised how the Rangers stopped playing after the first five minutes.  Up to that point they did a clinic on how to exploit the Capitals weaknesses. The defensemen were not strong on the puck, couldn't make outlet passes, and were manhandled in general. Erskine and Pothier were just plain ineffective. Get the puck deep and pressure the corners. Duh.

Mike Green is just not playing the type of defense I would like to see from the top unit.

Although they've done a good job of reducing penalties over the last couple of games the Pothier high-sticking call came at a really bad time and nearly cost them.

I wasn't real thrilled about Pothier's empty net goal either. I'll give him the benefit of the doubt and assume he mis-executed on an intended soft dump to center; but if that puck missed the net, the Caps would have had to kill off the final 17 seconds of the game with a unit that was clearly out of gas against six fresh attackers.

The good:
Two power play goals has them back near the top of the league in PP percentage.

The bad:
How in the name of all that is holy do you leave Marion Gaborik unattended in your crease two minutes into a hockey game? OV should be so lucky to benefit from that kind of neglect.

The ugly:
Quintin Laing taking a puck to the jaw off a slap shot. Add that to the ruptured spleen last season and the swine flu this season.

Game 20 - Caps 2 Devils 5

It's not surprising that the Caps, playing without Ovechkin and Knuble, lost this game on the road to a streaking Devils squad. The regrettable part is that they played a pretty decent first period before mailing it in in the second period after the Devils tied it up.

That goal came off of a devastating (offensive) blue line turnover by Semin. With the head coach providing quotes like this in response to a question about the turnover, one has to doubt Bongo's future in the organization:

"I don't know, but it's not the way we play. You can only tell certain people so many times." ouch.

The good: Flash and Perreault continued their respective hot streaks. Everything Fleischmann touches ends up in the net - he's near the top of the league in shooting percentage. Perreault will be the third line center before the season is over.

The bad: The first line went AWOL, Theo did not come up with any big stops, and they were defensively sloppy in the critical second period.

The ugly: Boyd Gordon lasted only half the game in his return from a back injury.

Once again - got snookered on this telecast in favor of the freakin' Wizards - finally saw a re-broadcast two days after the game. The least Verizon could here do is re-broadcast the CSN+ games Northern Marylanders don't get to see in the middle of the night following the game so it could be DVR'ed and watched on a timely basis.

Bastards.

Game 19 - Wild 1 Caps 3 (EN)

This game was not this close. The Caps brought the kitchen sink for the last two periods and could easily have scored six goals but for the heroics of the Josh Harding, Minnesota backup goaltender playing, I believe, his third game of the year.

Granted, the Caps gave up their share of opportunities but that *is* Caps hockey under Boudreau. As long as they're getting more opportunities and aren't being stupid or undisciplined you take the bad with the good.

The bad news is Knuble's broken finger - 3-4 weeks.

Two goals by the defense - Green with his first on the PP, and Pothier from a Perreault setup. With Knuble's extended absence and Gordon's early exit - presumably due to ongoing back issues - Perreault should get an extended look-see. To my way of thinking - if he can consistently display the same level of effort over the next three weeks that he has so far - he deserves a spot on the team. He has elevated the level of play on every line he's played with - Chris Clark in particular.

In summary - a solid win, very few penalties, no collapses. Varly let in a softie but was otherwise solid and made some big stops.

On a side note - I had to watch this on the internet since us Howard and Anne Arundel county residents with Verizon FIOS service don't get access to CSN+ when there's a conflict with the Terps, Wizards, pro lacrosse, demolition derby or what have you. I'm not exactly sure why this is but since it seems to mostly affect the northern part of the region I'm guessing that it has something to do with that ass-wipe Peter Angelos.

Game 18 - Islanders 4 Capitals 5 (OT)

This game marked the return of Alex Semin who picked up his first goal(s) in six games - two goals and a shootout goal - despite some lingering injuries, most notably to his wrist. I had noticed that he's been taking more slapshots than usual lately - probably easier on the wrist than the um... wrist shot. He could have had four or five.

We all know that Bongo is capable of winning a game pretty much all by himself on a given night - although he has to take his share of the blame on the Islanders second goal. You have to have enough situational awareness to not dipsy-doodle along the blue line when there's not a defenseman in sight (Green?.....Green?.....Green?). A bad team goal all around. Which gets me to my second point - not that I've identified a first.

I hate scoring a goal in the first minute of a game. It rarely works out to be beneficial. There's always a letdown and that is a bad, bad thing against an overachieving group like the Islanders who show up to play every night. Sure enough, the Isles poked in three before Theo worked up a sweat - not that he had to worry about that the rest of the night from his perch at the end of the bench. For the second straight game, he seemed to be having rebound trouble.

Unfortunately it was another typical game from the best 40 minute team in hockey as they put in a solid two-plus periods converting a 3-1 deficit into a 4-3 lead. Once again, however, they were unable to close out a game failing to net an insurance goal and then taking the inevitable late game penalty - two of them in this case for good measure. Welcome to overtime. I would like to work up some outrage about this fact but the truth is they're just wearing me out. The team is what it is. They'll change or they won't. If they don't, it will absolutely be a short playoff run. Meanwhile, just buckle up and enjoy the ride - and the 11 round shootout wins against teams with half the talent of the Caps.

Varly was awesome in relief but I have to wonder if Boudreau thought the PP goal (a wicked slapshot over the catching glove) was a softie. It didn't appear much different to me than a goal he allowed in his last start that BB called soft.

Boyd Gordon is set to return any day now and Boudreau is going to have to make a tough decision. I don't know how you can send Perreault back down after another solid game. He is playing with total energy and enthusiasm and was rewarded with an opportunity in the extended shootout. (Eleven rounds before Clark closed it out.)

Fleischmann scored another goal. If he keeps up the pace its going to be really exciting when OV returns to the lineup.

Eric Fehr was back in the lineup and picked up a goal.

I think it was the TV crew that mentioned that the Caps lead the league in restraining penalties. I wonder if they track restraining penalties in the offensive zone as a category?

Game 17 - Panthers 4 Caps 7

This was the kind of game you want to see from the team in the absence of their leading offensive players OV and Alex Semin. (What's that? Alex Semin was playing? Oh right, that was him taking an insanely stupid penalty to erase the Caps first power play fifteen seconds in. Hardly heard his name after that.) They played a disciplined and energetic game scoring a bunch of grinding goals around the net - and in the case of Flash, from inside the crease where roofed a shot eighteen inches from the goal line. Hopefully this game showed the guys what kind of hockey they can and should be playing in support of, and in complement to, Ovechkin's overpowering athleticism.

I give a lot of credit for this effort to Matthieu Perreault who's third period goal (and NHL first) spurred the comeback after the Caps struggled a bit in the second and surrendered the lead under some relentless Panther forechecking. (By the way, is there any sight in sport cooler than the trainer wrap a piece of tape around a puck to Sharpie in the number of the kid that's just scored his first big league goal?) Perreault just it wants it more than most of the guys out there right now and he's going to leave Boudreau with some difficult decisions in the near future.

The return of Tomas Fleischmann has been the other big story line of late. Since coming back he has been consistently creating and capitalizing on opportunities and is adding a lot of depth to the picture. If the forewards all get healthy at the same time in the near future the Caps will have nine pretty decent forewards and a fourth line that frequently outplays the third.

I don't want this to turn into a Semin bashing exercise (there's plenty of that going on elsewhere in the blogoshpere) but he is in one of his extended funks where he just looks lost out there and is not mentally engaged and - to quote a commenter from Capitals Insider - is sucking the life out of whichever line he plays on. I'm fairly certain the only reason he hasn't been scratched at least once is that BB knows it would put him into a season long sulk.

I was surprised to see Theo go two games in two nights and two cities. Not his best game but, except for the obvious rebound control issues, I thought he looked okay. Does BB doubt Varly's ability to deliver a win?

When I see the Caps put together five or six games like this one - including some against playoff quality teams - I'll re-consider my position on their chances of landing the Cup.

I think the defense missed Schultz more than they did Green. While Sarge is not the physical presence I would like to see - he has become a fairly steady performer on D with an impressive pus/minus.

Update: For a defense of Alex Semin see Japers Rink.

Game 16 - Caps 4 (EN) Panthers 1

OK - missed this one in its entirety. More later.

Game 15 - Caps 2 Devils 3

Who knew doing a blog would be so easy?

This is just becoming an extended cut and paste exercise. Just take a handful of key phrases, e.g., "stupid penalties", "late collapse", "crappy penalty killing", "Alexander Semin is a colossal idiot", "defensive breakdowns" - throw them into a bowl and grab three or four at random and write paragraph. Pretty hard to go wrong.

The best 40 minute team in hockey actually played a solid 50 minutes tonight. It wasn't enough. I don't know how many [insert adjective here - I'm tired of thinking them up] penalties 200 feet from their own net these guys can continue to take, but if they don't stop soon Boudreau is seriously going to stroke out right on the bench.

Anyone who thinks this team is destined for a cup needs to have their medication adjusted. Issue one for 50 some games now has been bad penalties. If they haven't gotten the message yet there's no reason to think they'll figure it out by April. And Boudreau has to take his share of the blame. After tonights performance there is no earthly reason for not scratching Semin the next game - with or without Ovechkin in the lineup.

Tonights game went just as you would expect a game against the Devils - missing a couple of star players of their own - while your goal a game guys is not dressed. It was shut down hockey across the board - not exciting but it was interesting watching the Caps execute a game plan that's not exactly in their strategic wheelhouse.

Game 14 - Blue Jackets 5 Caps 4 (OT)

It looked for a few minutes like it was all coming together, down a goal against a talented Columbus team with a goaltender who has owned them, and the Great8 sidelined with an injury, the team grinders appeared ready to step up and exert some leadership.

Spurred on by a great penalty killing sequence by Mike Knuble and dirty goals around the net by Laich (2) and Laing the Caps were poised to close out a third period rally, overcome some fluky goals, and reverse their ongoing trend of late collapses.

One stupid penalty is all it took. If by 'stupid' one means 'horrific'.

On his way to the bench after applying some fore-checking pressure Knuble couldn't resist one last swipe of the stick at the puck carrier passing by at center ice. With 3:30 left. With a one goal lead. This is the way the game used to be played - especially in Philly - and Knuble is a veteran who played most of his career under the pre-lockout 'no harm no foul' rules. So I guess he just couldn't help himself. But in today's NHL an open ice slash to the hands of a puck carrier is an easy call to make - especially when the stick catches the player on the unprotected wrist causing him to double over in pain.

You just gotta wonder what he was thinking. We see too many of these penalties from the Caps. Penalties they would never take (one hopes) if they would just ask themselves "What is this action going to accomplish?"

It went quickly downhill from there, the Caps couldn't kill the penalty and the overtime was a joke with goals stuffed in from the doorstep.

The local blogosphere is full of people content to look at the Caps record and the standings and ask "why worry?". Well now there's something to worry about. This is an angry and frustrated team with a proven inability to play 60 minutes and close games. Let's see if they can rally to fill the missing void of Alex Ovechkin (as they did in this game) and turn the corner. Without OV in the lineup 'good enough' is not likely to it done.

Game 13 - Islanders 4 Caps 3

We all saw this one coming. Outworked by an energized team and Theo wasn't there to save their bacon.

Game 12 - Caps 4 (EN) Thrashers 3 (PG)

Welcome to the best 40 minute team in hockey.

Under most conditions a team would be very pleased to be 8-2-2 at this point in the season. But this team, this year, is not "most conditions". This team has designs on a Stanley Cup and just maybe has the talent to get there - but not if they continue to serve up turkeys like this game.

You make it to the post season by winning games and collecting points and the Caps have done plenty of both. But you win championships by relentlessly pursuing perfection all the time - every game, every period, every shift, every practice session. Nothing about this team suggests that they are willing to make that commitment.

The glass half-full types say "its only October" but I'll defer to Coach BB's favorite analogy: It ain't a faucet - you can't turn it on and off. They will make the playoffs - maybe even win the Conference - but when you're deep into the post-season playing your 102nd game of an absurdly long season it isn't all those wins that get you through the next period, game, or series - it’s the habits you developed and perfected over those 102 games.

The 8-2-2 Caps just wasted an entire month playing 40 minute hockey which will do nothing for their post-season aspirations except help collect enough points to make the playoffs.

______________________

I know Mike Green is on a bit of a point scoring streak but he's been on the wrong end of way too many break-aways lately including one that led to a penalty shot last game and one that brought Atlanta to within a goal with just three minutes left in this game.

Surprisingly enough, goaltending has emerged as the team's strong suit. Varly was fabulous last night as was Theo last game.  The goalies have made a habit of bailing out the rest of the team for the 20 minutes that they don't play each night.

Up to last night the Thrashers had not managed more than 28 shots for any one game - playing without their top man, Kolvachuk, for the first time since he injured the peppered the 40 minute Caps with more than 40.

Eight of the Caps twelve games have been decided by one goal (when adjusted for empty nets).

OV has 6 multi-goal games in the first month of the season - so far.

Game 11 - Flyers 2 Caps 4 (EN)

What is it about playing the Flyers that generally results in a good game?

A huge night for Theo who is putting a lot of distance between himself and Varlamov. The unquestioned first star kept them in the game during the inevitable down stretches - I'm mostly thinking early second period here - and at the end when the Flyers brought the kitchen sink.

A good gut check game as the Caps provided the Flyers with a two goal cushion - the second one coming via the power play on the heels of a failed 5 on 3 for a minute-forty(+/-) - before mounting a second half counter-attack.

The reunited big line of the Backstrom and the Alexes provided all of the scoring with a the usual result of no secondary production.  Semin's nasty third period wrist shot was the difference - a little redemption after ringing the post with a vicious second period slap shot that Emery had zero chance of stopping.

I guess its optimistic at this point to expect to have the twelve top forwards healthy, under the cap, and in the lineup at once but I think there is a combination of bodies that can unite the top line and still provide some secondary production. Three related notes:

• Caps Insider is reporting that Flash is done his conditioning stint in Hershey but that "there will have to be a roster move to bring him on board". Could be the end of the road for somebody.
• Apparently Nylander picked up a boatload of assists during his conditioning stint - if there is an interested party out there they may be closer to opening some cap room.
• Quintin Laing has swine flu - it seems unlikely that it will be contained to one player.

The power play these days seems to score (when it does) in spite of itself - too static and the passes are not sharp. The PK sucks.

Although the overall result was positive - the Flyers won more battles along the boards and spent way too much time in the Theo's kitchen.

I know it’s a long season but I don't think its asking too much for a team to compete for 60 minutes 3 or 4 out of 5 nights.

Did Chris Clark even play last night? I only heard his name called once.

I'm not sure why there was a penalty shot called - not to be contrarian, but the diving Capital player (sorry - don't remember who but since Mike Green was spotted twenty feet behind the puck on replay I'll assume it was Morrisonn) clearly swept the puck away with his stick as he took out Powe's skates. Maybe the rules require the puck to be played *before* the trip occurs but on the replay I saw, it was no worse than simultaneous.

I really liked the empty net goal. I saw a comment elsewhere (Capitals Insider) about stat padding but that play was textbook and professional - two headman passes under pressure to gain the redline before taking the shot on the empty net. You can accuse me of being a fanboy but when he's on the ice the last thing I think OV cares about is padding his stats with empty-netters. The important thing is to get the puck on the net with the lowest risk shot available.  That's what they did last night and in the past we've seen OV give up marginal empty net opportunities in favor of the easy pass to an uncovered player. Empty net goals win games and that play has to be executed just like any other.

I'll have to look it up somewhere but the Caps seem to have played a startling number of one goal games this year.

Game 10 - Caps 3 Islanders 2 (OT)

A hectic schedule left me short on time do an update for game 10 so I'll let Japers Rink and Capitals insider do the heavy lifting. 

Based on what I saw of this game (most of the first and third periods) it was more of the inconsistent and uninspired play we've been seeing over most of the last seven games.  I don't see any sense of urgency from these guys and if they play like that against the Flyers they'll be down by three before they know what hit them.

The only bright spot of late has been the consistent and, at times, outstanding goaltending from Theo and a consistent level of energy from Bradley.

http://www.japersrink.com/2009/10/24/1099462/recap-capitals-3-islanders-2-ot

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/capitalsinsider/caps-3-islanders-2.html#more

Philly Trip

Spent part of the weekend in Pennsylvania watching the NCAA D-3 defending champion Neumann U squad take two games from Geneseo out of NY.  This was Neumann's season opening weekend and I'm sure they were a little nervous about the number of players lost to graduation but they played a pair of solid games featuring a puck pressure style that was entertaining to watch.

So, the visit was extended by several hours when a Flyers ticket was waved under my nose. I hadn't yet been to the Wachovia Center so I jumped on the opportunity to watch the Flyers play the visiting Panthers. If you pay any attention to pro hockey, you've seen the replays of the Mike Richards hit on Florida's David Booth that took place in that game which, for me, led to an interesting technology moment.

Since I was at the Flyers game I was not watching the Capitals play the Islanders, relying instead on the out of town scores at the Wachovia. Looking for an explanation as to why the Caps were losing and scoreless after two periods against the woeful Islanders, I fired up the iPhone early in the third to see if any of the usual suspects was live-blogging the game.

When I got to Japers Rink - the first entry was a link to the Richards hit on Booth.  Although I'd seen the aftermath of the incident (including a fairly up close look as they wheeled him off the ice right below me), I was not well-positioned to see the actual check (which was a little away from the play) and - needless to say, I guess - they weren't showing the replay in the building - choosing instead to run a series of ads on their 9 bajillion dollar high-def screen in lieu of supplying any kind of actual customer value.

The link at Japers was a YouTube clip taken by someone in the building lucky enough to be recording the action on their phone when the hit occurred and then uploaded it to YouTube so that I, in turn, could view the action the Flyers management wouldn't let me see from my rather expensive seat. It reminded me of long-ago days in the Spectrum when the upper tier seats in the next section were converted to a temporary press box during the playoffs and you got a big thrill by peeking over the shoulder of the reporters to see instant replay of the big plays.

Game 9 - Caps 5 Thrashers 4

OK - raise your hand if, after the end of two, you just KNEW that this would end up being a close game. This is not a team that knows how to close and I really doubt that's going to change anytime soon. It's become so formulaic its almost laughable.

Take a significant late game lead; add some penalties to shut down any momentum you might have; let in a bad goal  to energize the opponent (a shortie to make it even more interesting); start panicking and take more penalties disguised as hustle and aggressiveness; give up a PP goal or two; and there you have it - a game that should have ended 6-2 becomes a cliffhanger win - or a shootout loss.

Well it was good to get secondary scoring (it doesn't get any more secondary than Jeff Schultz) on a night when Atlanta had the big guns solved and Semin was absent. It was nice to see Schultz have a good game - his pass to Fehr was the Caps best goal of the  night.

I SO want to see Bradley-Steckel-Laich on a line together. How happy was Clarke to score? I'm just about to write him off as irrelevant.

The Fog let in his nightly softie. 

Where are you Mike Green?

Well its late and I have a road trip tomorrow for some college hockey in PA.

really? yeah really

The Washington Capitals have assigned center Michael Nylander to Grand Rapids of the AHL for a conditioning stint, giving the expensive bench-sitting veteran a chance to get back on the ice.

Nylander hasn't played all season, having fallen out of favor with the coaching staff and front office. The Capitals have found it difficult to trade the 37-year-old forward because of his $5.5 million salary and the no-movement clause in his contract.

______________________________

Best chance now is that some grade-A team that his highness will agree to play for has 2 or 3 centers blow out a knee.

Even then, I don't know that Nyls will OK a move - it literally may have gotten to the point where the only thing he cares about is delivering a giant FU to the Caps and the best way to do that is to continue doing what he's doing. Skating practice 5-6 days a week while soaking up $5M of salary cap space and, quite probably, taking the team out of a legitimate Stanley Cup run for this season and next.

Shameless self-promotion

Of the non-hockey variety:

http://intlrhinofoundation.wordpress.com/

Game 8 - Predators 2 Caps 3 (SO)

It's hard to be excited about a win like this one. It wasn't a terrible game but the inability to close out a team like the Predators once they were staked with a two goal lead is the continuation of a disturbing theme in the early going.

For 35 minutes (except as noted below) the Caps controlled the game and had a two goal lead that should have been three or four. At least this time they got the breakdown out of the way before the third period - giving up two goals, one on a well executed odd-man rush and the other on a Varlamov brain spasm, within minutes of each other.

Despite OV's first period goal, the power play still looks uncertain and tepid - to wit, the two(!!!) short handed breakaways they gave up on the first PP opportunity. The Caps have never (under BB) had a dump and chase PP style but now they are pressing to gain the blue line with control and are making ill-advised passes too frequently. Once they get set up, the open lanes and crisp passing of last year don't seem to be there. Everyone knows what they have to do - keep it simple and get the puck on the net.

The defense looked pretty solid - although I thought Sloan backed in too far on the odd-man break that led to the first Preds goal. I didn't notice it so much, but Schultz got grief for giving up the puck that led to the second Predator goal - guess I was just mesmerized by the sight of a goal from 35 feet away that began its journey on the goal line.

Once again Mike Green took a Mike Green penalty - waving his stick (from behind, naturally) at the arm of puck carrier literally as he was skating through the crease - as if it were even remotely possible that the action would have any kind of positive outcome. As my brother would say - "You can educate them, but you can't make 'em think." Otherwise they did a good job of staying out of penalty trouble.

So let's talk about the fun stuff. Did I mention yet that OV handled all of the Capitals scoring including the only goal of the shootout?

The first was a textbook PP one-timer from his favorite perch at the top of the left wing circle. I never get tired of seeing that goal. I wish someone would put together a reel of all of the one-timers he's scored from that spot. It would be lengthy.

We've seen the second goal before as well. The play is drawn up in the Capitals Playbook under the title "Get Alex the Puck". Brendan Morrison lobbed the puck from the mid defensive zone to the offensive blue line boards with Alex racing underneath the flight to the touchdown spot like a wide receiver on corner route. I pity the poor defenseman who moved forward to corral that puck - he probably would have known better than that if he played more games against the great one. Alex was the beneficiary of a bit of a lucky bounce as the puck squirted off the boards right past the aforementioned D-man - who, if he had any sense (or experience) would have turned tail and hauled ass towards his own zone the second he saw that puck go airborn. In any event, the puck was collected, shake and bake, five-hole, blah, blah, blah.

We all know that OV is a marginal shootout scorer - but how do you not put him out there? Persistence pays off - his double deke and lay-up into an empty net couldn't have looked any easier and was the game winner. Although I understand the enthusiasm - I can't say I endorse the idea of celebrating the "hat trick" with the customary haberdasherial (?) response. The last thing Varlamov (formerly "The Future" - now, "The Fog") needed at that juncture was three extra minutes to think about saving the game while headgear was raked off the ice like so many autumn leaves.

The Ugly:
It's becoming rapidly apparent that the Capitals have no credible third line threat. I'll address this topic more when we do some summary posts - maybe at the ten game point. But if it was up to me the third line would be Streckel, Bradley and Laich. That combo will have to wait until some injured players get back in the mix but at this point its fair to ask whether the Caps have the needed depth at forward.

Game 7 - Sharks 1 Caps 4

What was so hard about that?

A rhetorical question I've been know to utter after striping a driver down the middle of the fairway for the full 220 yds - typically on the heels of screaming disaster of a shot deep into the heart of whatever local contrivance was put there to frustrate and irritate a mid to high handicap golfer.

All eighteen skaters were on their game last night. A solid - if somewhat underperforming - Shark pod looking to kick off an extended road trip on a positive note was contained and neutralized.

Varly got a big confidence booster - pitching a shutout in two periods of relief for Theo who was suffering back spasms.

As mentioned in the prior post I've been anxious to see Ovechkin and Knuble team up - my expectation all summer was that they would be flanking Backstrom - I think that's an unstoppable combination - one we're not likely to see anytime soon as Semin seems to need Backstrom's support on the second line.  No matter, BMo is a quality veteran center who knows how to leverage that kid of talent on his wings.

For a fun change of pace it was the opposition in deep penalty trouble as the Sharks took four in rapid succession in the first period leading to a 5 on 3 opportunity and the first goal.

Question: Its not clear to me why most teams on the two man advantage collapse down to the net.  I get that you'd rather shoot from 16 feet instead of 45 but when the points are standing 25 feet out and just 20 feet from each other it leaves a much smaller area for three men to defend. It took a perfectly saucered pass through a minor thicket of sticks to score last nights goal.

Doesn't it make more sense to have two forwards jamming the net leaving a 3 on 2 out high with more passing lanes to set up a clean 30 foot shot with screen and rebound opportunities? But that's just me.

The only down side to my eye was that the PP unit still seems to be off their game - they just can't seem to find that open shot or make the perfect stick side pass.

Sharks Preview

The Sharks come to town to open up a 13 day road trip. In some respects they are in the same place as the Capitals:

• They've picked up seven points in six game compared to the Capitals six in six - probably not where either team thought they'd be at this point.
• Virtually all of their scoring is coming from the first two lines. BTW, they're first line was a collective minus six for the season before lighting up LA for six goals a couple of days ago.
• They're still searching for the right combination for the top line.
• Defense seems to be a concern.

Probable first two lines for the Sharks:
Heatley-Thornton-Setoguchi
Clowe-Marleau-Ferriero
Tonight's game closes out one of the Capital's toughest stretches of games for the whole season - every game to date has been against quality teams from tough divisions.  Only Toronto was a relatively softie.  The rest of month features Atlanta twice, the Islanders twice, Nashville, and a home game against the Flyers just to keep it interesting.  It would be a big boost to start that stretch with a win at home tonight.

Hard to say what the lines will be - although we're not likely to see Laich-Morrison-Semin unit again anytime soon.  OV-Morrison-Knuble  Laich-Backstrom-Semin saw time at practice this week. The challenge here is to distribute the scoring in a manner that assures effectiveness from Semin. (Read between the lines.) I would like to see Knuble get a handful of games playing with OV - I think you could put a pylon out there as the center and still come away with goals.

I'm looking for Theo to start again - with only two wins for the season and Theo playing hot, I don't think BB has much of a choice.

That is all.

Game 6 - Devils 3 Caps 2 (SO)

Its hard to know whether come Spring we'll look back on these difficult times as an early season anomaly or an early harbinger of a troubled season.  We'll let at least ten games go by before extrapolating out trends but one things is for sure - it is not fun watching these guys with the expectation of a collapse each night.

So - as they say, lets roll the tape.

Mike Green finally showed up and looked like the Mike Green of last year.  Moving the puck with confidence and getting shots on net. Although he still has to take his share of the blame for a dry spell in PP production.

I like the new line combinations -swapping Semin and Knuble on the first two lines.  This obviously provides a lot more balance - bookending the center on each line with finesse and grit. It really made no sense putting two grinders on either side of BMo. Maybe if Flash comes back in good form to provide some, … um, flash... you can reunite the Alexes on the first line and still have a balanced and dangerous second line.

Question: Will Semin (a borderline head case in my book) view the swap as a demotion and go into a sulk?

The Caps did not seem to spend much time deep in the Devils zone - little to no cycling and no pressure behind the goal. While their own defense had the usual difficulties moving the puck consistently. Speaking of, Schultz found himself scratched again. I'm not optimistic about his long term prospects.

I'm fairly certain Boyd Gordon spent the longest two minutes of his life in the penalty box last night. If the opposition scores a late decisive goal on his penalty for the third time in four games I wonder if he even leaves the box. They ought to install a phone in that box so the next guy that blows a game late with a bad penalty can call a cab to Hershey.

Its no fun harping on the subject of penalties day after day - but once more - after playing smart for two periods they took a handful in the late going. Spending four of the last ten minutes (including OT) short handed with the best player in the world on the bench is no way to finish a game.

Theo was outstanding at times - his second straight solid game. The late penalty takers owe him a dinner for getting the game to the shootout. He should be indicted for the way he robbed Parise in OT.

It doesn't get any easier Thursday when the Sharks (and player of the weak Dany Heatly) come to town.

That is all.

Game 5 - Caps 2 Red Wings 3

Another steaming pile of crap.

Question of the day - How many bad penalties does Mike Green have to take before BB sits him down for a game? The one that hurt them tonight was far from an isolated incident. We've seen Green take this same penalty more than a dozen times over the last season - three times this season alone. Out of position, out of the play, outmuscled - whatever - he comes scampering back into the action and - with no hope of having an actual impact on the play - puts his stick where it doesn't belong - a move GUARANTEED TO DRAW A PENALTY CALL. But we've all looked the other way because, you know, its Mike Green, he of the 32 goals, the faux-hawk, the Lamgorghini, MTV Cribs. He's just young and flashy - what's the odd penalty among buds when we're cruising into the payoffs?

Don't even get me started on Alex Semin and his pair of penalteis. Dumber than a box of hammers.

Well - these two geniuses - blessed with all of the talent in the world - take four penalties between them, resulting in two PP goals and a lost game. If I was an overachieving fourth line grinder fighting for a job (not to put any ideas in your head Quintin Laing) I'd take a shit in Greens equipment bag for costing the team a game like that.

Deep breath.

It didn't start that way. The rest of the Caps team played most of a pretty good game.

Detroit took a bucketful of off-sides and icings in the first period - we'll be generous here and assume it was because of some stand up D by the Caps.

They got some secondary scoring from Bradley (I think Ozzie wants that one back) and Morrison (PP) on a curious play where the caps net was at least halfway off its moorings. Question: when a forechecker comes barreling in on the penalty kill and, untouched, sidesteps the goalie and slams into the net; why isn't that a delay game of call? I give credit to the ref for not blowing the play dead to replace the net but an out of control player slamming into a goaltender is rightly called as an interference (often times even when he's been 'helped' a bit). So why not the delay of game when its the net instead of the goalie, Just askin'.

For the second straight game OV appeared handcuffed and confused on the power play.

There was also that surreal PP sequence in the third period (that began off an OV mistake) where not only could the Caps not get the puck out of their own end - but Detroit actually set up own power play formation, WITH FOUR MEN - for a good 20 seconds. I'd like to be a fly on the wall for that tape breakdown. I do remember that there was some odd combination of players out there at the time. If that was an experiment - the results may be deemed conclusive.

The first Detroit goal proved that the Caps have no physical presence around the net. Memo to Greenie: Since you seem hell-bent on spending personal quiet time in the penalty box - why not earn it by clocking some mouth-breathing troglodyte upside the head while he's standing in your crease dissin' your main man?

Theo Played a pretty good game - nice bounce back from Thurs.



Looking ahead the Devils and the Sharks are on the horizon. They may well be 2-4-0-1 by Friday.

The Aftermath

I wouldn't say that they're panicking down at Kettler but at least they get that last night's clusterflock amounted to an unacceptable meltdown in execution, discipline and effort.

I'm thinking that there were many uncomfortable moments watching the game film today. Tomorrow's game won't be any easier as Detroit, at 1-2 and the bottom of their division, will be in no mood to take a loss on home ice.

Boudreau's response.

Game 4 - Rangers 4 Caps 3

It would be tough to describe that game without using the word 'cluster'.

A perfect illustration of why I predicted the Caps to fall short of a cup this year.

Their performance was so far removed from what they showed on opening night against the Bruins one could be excused from wondering if it was the same team.

And it was pretty much a team loss. Here's the laundry list of bad news.

• Defensemen were constantly out of position. (When the home team announcer is giving the defense a 'D+' grade you know you've got issues - and that was before the third period Charlie Foxtrot.)
• They took fewer penalties - but still bad ones. Boyd Gordon, of all people, taking a third period offensive zone penalty that lead to a goal for the second straight game! Mike Green (by my count) took his third bad penalty in four games.
• No production past the first line.
• Weak goaltending when it counted.
• The PP wilted under an aggressive Rangers PK.
• A blown third period lead.

This is not a disciplined team. When they encounter success - particularly goal-scoring success - they begin to deconstruct into little individual units. One might argue that its silly to start panicking four games into the season - but what gives concern is that these are the same issues that dogged the team last year and - after playing most of the first two games like they had committed to smarter hockey - they've reverted to the type of play that saw them get pushed to seven games by the Rangers last Spring and give up a 2-0 advantage to the Pens.

One could argue all day whether the defensive problems are the result of the coaching and his system, the quality of the players, or both. I've always been of the opinion that defense can be coached, but at some point you have to ask if the system in place is appropriate for the personnel that you have.