Mark's Musings

What If? ... EVERY NHL Game Was a 3 Point Game

noreply@blogger.com (Usually Frustrated Caps Fan) — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 19:47:00 +0000

For some time readers here have heard me muse that I don't like the "extra point." Lots of folks call it the loser's extra point but I have and continue to maintain the team getting the extra point is the team that wins either the OT period or the gimmick. I make this assertion since "back in the day" when a game could end in a tie after regulation, the two teams split the points each getting one.

For lots of reasons, the biggest being one I can't fathom but apparently some folks do indeed feel as Mr. Butt oops I mean Bettmann does and like the current OT/Shoot Out format, I've given up hoping the "gimmick" will go away. However I continue to hope things get changed so teams winning in regulation get more points than teams who don't.

From my perspective, the solution is quite simple make every game worth 3 points - a win in regulation and the winner gets all three points; a win in OT or the SO and you split the points, 2 to the winner and one to the "looser". A loss in regulation and you have the current status quo, "a no point night." Don't you think that would make more sense? Especially with the growing parity in the league due to the salary cap and the increased number of games going beyond regulation. As of the end of last night's games there have already been 85 games this season where an "extra point" has been awarded, and the extra point is figuring in the standings in interesting ways. For example, in the Eastern Conference as of this morning, the Washington Capitals are in first place by one point, interestingly that one point, the Boston Bruins are in Eighth place by one point, and because of the parity I'm talking about just two points separate the 5th place Philadelphia Flyers and the 12th place New York Islanders. In the West, just three points separate the 6th place Columbus Blue Jackets and the 11th place Vancouver Canaucks. Clearly having some games where an extra point is issued and others where it is not, regardless of who you feel is getting the "extra point" does now have a significant impact in the standings. Those 85 games with "extra points" are just shy of 26% of all games played to date.

To give you an idea of how different the Conference standings would look if every game to date were "a three point game" like I propose I put the standings together based on such a change and here's how things look in each Conference:

Eastern Conference:

Western Conference:

See anything different from the current official standings?

First off, if you look at what happens with the teams with the largest amount of Wins in regulation vs. the teams with the largest amount of "Overtime Wins" in their Conferences, you get a slightly different picture then the current standings and seeding if the playoffs were to start tomorrow. Of course that's not a real definite thing to do, but here's my first supposition looking at these modified standings, this system would mean that both the "bubble teams" as well as those fighting for their divisional leads would play harder for the regulation win, in every game down the stretch, not just the ones against division rivals.

The differences by Conference as of today are as follow.

Eastern Conference:

The Capitals would still be in first one point ahead of the team immediately behind them but that team would be New Jersey and not Pittsburgh. Buffalo would still be in third as the Northeast Division Leaders. Pittsburgh (basically exchanging positions with NJ and given that NJ has two games in hand that still might be how things play out) would be in fourth and Philadelphia would also be where they today 5th. Below that things change markedly though. If we were on an every game is three points plan the 6th, 7, 8 & 9 teams would be: 6) New York Rangers, 7) Ottawa Senators, 8) Atlanta Thrashers, and 9) Boston Bruins instead of where they are now: 6) Ottawa, 7) Tampa Bay, 8) Boston and 9 Atlanta. Also instead of being one point out of 8th, the Thrashers would be 2 points in front of 9th and Tampa Bay would be in 11th.

In the Western Conference, the top 5 teams and positions would remain as they are. However the 6 & 7th places would be reversed with 6th being Phoenix and 7th being Columbus one point behind the 'Yotes, 8th place Detroit would be one point ahead of both 9th place Vancouver and 10th place Dallas and Nashville would be in 11th place 2 points behind Detroit instead on in 9th one point back. While this might not matter to many, it will clearly matter to the "bubble teams" and their fans and I simply ask - if you don't do something like this what does a regulation game of Ice Hockey mean?

Another interesting thing to look at is what does this mean at the very bottom of the standings where the bottom 5 teams finishes impact their chance of getting the first round draft choice next summer? Well again it would matter. Today the way the standings are 26th place goes to St. Louis, 27) Minnesota, 28) Anaheim, 29) Carolina, and 30) Toronto. If they all were three point games the bottom 5 places in the league standings would look like this: 26) Montreal, 27) Minnesota, 28) Anaheim, 29) Toronto, 30) Carolina. In a game where parity is truly making every little delta matter, these things will start to add up and should be addressed sooner rather then later.

I'll say it again, if a regulation game of three 20 minute periods is to mean anything, winning in regulation should count more over the course of a season then wining in Overtime or via the shootout, just as finishing a game in regulation tied should be worth than loosing outright. The changes to the finishing placings impact home ice advantage throughout the playoffs and that shouldn't be underestimated, The changes in who gets what draft choice the following summer and that can mean the difference between having a shot at a Crosby, Malkin, Oveckin, or Tavares or not. It all does add up, and when a team is fighting for inches like Al says, shouldn't we reward the ones who win those battles more then the ones who don't? The simple, easy way to do that is to just make EVERY game worth a total of three points. If a silly guy like me can see that why can't the NHL Board of Governors?

Next up for the Washington Capitals, Ottawa tonight in Ottawa.

LETS GO CAPS!!!

A Couple More Thoughts On Last Night's Loss To Toronto

noreply@blogger.com (Usually Frustrated Caps Fan) — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 19:17:00 +0000

This could be titled "Another Reason To 'Love' Alexander Ovechkin As A Hockey Player."

Following last night's game in Toronto Alexander Ovechkin, the lone goal scorer on the Capitals team was reportedly interviewed and quoted as saying: "We didn't move our legs [including] me," he said. "I'm not happy how I play today. I'm not happy how my line play today. We score one goal, but we have to score more. We have more ice time than everybody, so we have to use it. We had a couple of chances on the power play, we don't score." It's nice to see a team's star taking responsibility for a loss, especially when it's clear he's still on the mend and he didn't have a bad night though he clearly could have had a better one. "The Great Eight's" stat line for last night was: 1 goal, +1, total ice time 26:38, average shift 01:09, 6 shots on goal, 4 attempts blocked, 2 missed, 1 hit, 1 giveaway, 1 takeaway, 1 shot blocked. Comparatively relative to the rest of his teammates he looked pretty good. However, as he's clearly willing to admit he's not comparing himself to most other players in the NHL and he and his top line teammates are getting more ice time and chances to do more and it's okay for all of us including himself to expect more. That's why he is no doubt one of the best, if not, THE best hockey player in the world today. You just gotta love it though that a highly paid athlete isn't looking for any excuses, he's just looking inward and at his teammates and saying hey guys, it's "showtime", it's "Take No Prisoners Time." That's the way he plays the game and that's why no matter whether you think he's merely one of the best or THE best, he'll always be great to watch.

On a separate note, another person noted that the Caps record with Semin out hasn't been too hot - by my count it's 1-1-1 and if you add New Jersey, a game when Semin was clearly playing hurt it's 1-2-1. Just a thought but maybe someone besides me ought to realize that despite his frequently pointed out "streakiness, etc., the other Alex takes pressure off of "The Great Eight" even when he's not on the ice that gives Ovechkin some time and space. Of course you could also look at the Caps record over the same time frame and say the missing key ingredient was Mike Knuble as well. I'd say you're right on both counts. With Knuble and Semin in the lineup - Ovechkin, Backstrom, and Laich are given more space. With them in the lineup a team's better shutdown guy can't spend ALL night focusing on Ovechkin.

One thing folks can't point to as an issue these past four games has been goaltending - that was again true last night, Varlamov, like Neuvirth on Friday night, deserved better. Even though you might point to the 5-2 loss to New Jersey and say they might have gotten a better game there out of Jose Theodore, I still don't think the real issue there was goaltending, there were other missing key ingredients and missteps that were more likely the root causes that resulted in that loss.

Here's hoping the Caps use today and tomorrow morning's skate to get things like lines and defensive pairings sorted out. A few of the combinations last night just didn't work too well as the team and coaching stuff sorted them out during the game.

Next up the Ottawa Senators in Ottawa, Monday at 7:30PM EST.

LETS GO CAPS!!!

Toronto A One Point Night for the Caps on HNIC

noreply@blogger.com (Usually Frustrated Caps Fan) — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 02:59:00 +0000

Well another not so fun night for Caps fans. The Caps didn't play horribly but they didn't play great either. In the end, Vesla Toskla had a solid game and a "flukey" goal got by Semyon Varlamov so the game ended regulation tied 1-1. In overtime the goaltenders continued to be tough and that too ended with the score knotted at 1 all. Then it was time for the gimmick and well the Leafs won with 2 goals in 3 attempts (Phil Kessel and Nicklas Hagman) while the Caps didn't score at all - Eric Fehr broke a stick and Alexander Ovechkin missed the net.

The goal scorers in regulation - for the Caps it was Alexander Ovechkin #16 on the season off a really awesome setup pass from Mike Green. For the Leafs the goal was credited to Nicklas Hagman as it bounced off his arm last.

In my pregamer I missed the fact that Mike Knuble is still out as well as everyone else I had on the list. Man will I be glad when some of the guys start coming back and the roster starts to stabilize again...

Next up Ottawa at ScotiaBank Place on Monday night.

LETS GO CAPS!!!

Looking To Tonight's Game In Toronto...

noreply@blogger.com (Usually Frustrated Caps Fan) — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 21:44:00 +0000

Well last night wasn't a fun game to watch. It was a "no point" night for the Caps at Verizon Center - of late an infrequent occurrence. However give the Canadeans their due, they played well and they played hard. The Caps really didn't seem to get going until well ... until it was too late and then with too little. Say what you want and everyone will to me the difference maker in last night's game was Carey Price and his 32 saves. In the end the Habs bested the Caps 3-2, no joy in "Muddville" last night.

Last night's loss was followed by a quick flight to Toronto and tonight on Hockey Night In Canada (HNIC) the Caps will face off at Air Canada Center against the Maple Leafs, a storied NHL franchise that is struggling. Now that could be a recipe for joy ... or more heartache. The Caps will again be fielding an injury depleted roster, all be it a talented group it won't be their usual group, or perhaps more accurately the group that was the Caps roster when the season opened. Missing from tonight's lineup for the Caps will be: Alexander Semin, Boyd Gordon, Shoane Morrisonn, Tom Poti, Milan Jurcina, and Quintin Laing. Michael Neuvirth was sent back down to Hershey to make room for the call-up of Andrew Gordon. It appears the starting goaltender will be Semyon Varlamov and Jose Theodore will be on the bench if necessary. There are some interesting gaps in the lineup. On defense, despite starting the season with 8 defensemen on the roster it appears the Caps defensive pairings will consist of a mix of: Mike Green, Brian Pothier, John Erskine, Jeff Schultz, Tyler Sloan and John Carlson. The Caps roster page now shows nine defensemen, and for some reason it appears the gene pools of Calgary and Massachusetts are the overwhelming sources of Capitals blueline talent. On the front lines tonight we'll have: Alexander Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom, Mike Knuble, Brendan Morrison, Brooks Laich, Thomas Fleischmann, Eric Fehr, Chris Clark, David Steckel, Matt Bradley, Mathieu Perreault, Andrew Gordon, and Jay Beagle. Missing from tonight's lineup will be over $17M of salary cap - Semin: $4.6M, Nylander: $4.875, Poti: $3.5, Sha-Mo:$1.975, Jurcina:$1.375, Boyd Gordon: $761K, and Laing: $500K - those 7 players are the equivalent of about a third of an NHL team at this season's Salary Cap $56.8M. Perhaps given the injuries, etc. it's time to start thinking about giving Michael Nylander a sweater and getting something for his salary hit? I really don't understand how the cap works to that degree but doesn't his salary cap hit start counting again soon?

In any case tonight's game will give the Caps a chance to begin anew following the loss to Montreal, they should be able to win, even with the injuries and juggled line-up. They'll need to raise their game across the board, actually they'll need to raise the energy level from what they had last night. As this game is on HNIC, the Leafs will be up for it however, I like others, think they'll have a harder time bottling up the Caps then the Canadeans did last night.

Prediction: Caps 5 - Leafs 3 - I expect solid, excellent games from Backstrom, Ovechkin, Green and Laich on the Caps side of the Red Line - big games elicit big efforts from big players. For Toronto I also expect the usual suspects to have solid nights Kessel, Kabrele and the "Monster" will have good nights but I expect the Caps to have 40+ SOG.

Oh and I'm counting on Don Cherry to look and act like the unmitigated a$$ he is at the intermission, what kind of asinine comment will you make about Ovechkin tonight, Don? Please enlighten us all with your open minded, forward thinking, knowledge, please, please, please...

LETS GO CAPS!!!

Look Towards Tonight's Game At Verizon Center Against Le Canadeans...

noreply@blogger.com (Usually Frustrated Caps Fan) — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 19:14:00 +0000

Tonight at Verizon Center the Caps host the Montreal Canadeans. The Caps come into the game 5-2-1 for the month of November, 6-2-2 in their last ten games and 1st in the Eastern Conference with 30 points in 21 games and a 13-4-4 record on the season. The Canadeans come into the game in 12th place in the Eastern Conference, a full five games behind the Capitals with 20 points in 21 games and a 4-6-0 record in their last ten games with a 10-11-0 record on the season to date. Other relevant record information - on the season to date the Caps are 7-1-3 at Verizon Center and the Canadeans are 4-6-0 on the road.

As for goal differential to date the Caps have 79 GF and 64 GA (+15) and the Canadeans have 52 GF and 61 GA (-9). Overall this game should be C.A.P.S - Caps, Caps, Caps! However, the Caps are wrestling with a few injuries of late and have some shuffling going on in the roster because of that. Sharpshooter Alexander Semin in on Injured Reserved nursing a wrist injury. Shoane Morrison is recuperating from a sorta concussion and will not play tonight. Milan Jurcina is likely still a scratch tonight as he recovers from a muscle pull in his leg. Boyd Gordon continues to be out with a back injury as well and goaltender Jose Theodore is expected to be a healthy scratch tonight as well. Counting Michael Nylander as being out that means the Caps have over $15M of their normal salary cap space either injured or otherwise not playing tonight. I'm not talking about it for a "capoloogist" perspective what I'm saying is that based on the salary cap and roster at the start of the regular season the Caps have players and cap space that totals over 25% of their season start salary cap unavailable for tonight's game. So even though the Canadeans haven't been lighting the world on fire of late, they will have the talent on the ice tonight needed to potentially win tonight's match ups no problem. One of the bright spots of course is that Alexander Ovechkin is firmly back in the lineup and he has always gotten "up" to play against the Habs. Additionally, some of the call ups, in particular Matthieu Perraeult has been playing quite well and it's not unusual for young French-Canadian players to "get up" for games against the Canadeans.

My classmate and ticket partner Tom has the seats for tonight's match up so I'll be rockin' the red here in Bristow - still lovin' the new TV...and really happy about it on nights like tonight.

LETS GO CAPS!!!

A Two Point Night In The Big Apple For Washington..

noreply@blogger.com (Usually Frustrated Caps Fan) — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 03:28:00 +0000

So I watched tonight's game on Versus HD on the new 52" LCD Sharp Aquos that Mrs Mark gave me as an early Christmas gift - SWEET! The game I watched was pretty cool too. If you read this blog you probably watched the game as well but hey I gotta be me so my recap follows.

Ranger sharpshooter Marian Gaboriak put his team up 1 - 0 at the 1:16 mark. It was one of those where Semyon Varlamov would like to have the shot taken by Dan Giradi back so he wouldn't have to put the rebound right on to Gaboriak's stick at point blank range and a nice space between he and the post available to him so he could net his 14th goal of the season. In any case, as a sign to the continuing maturation of Varlamov, he shook that goal off and played solid very solidly the rest of the game. At the 13:17 mark Mike Green drew a tripping penalty on Ranger's "bad boy" Sean Avery that oput the Caps on their second powerplay of the evening. The Caps got things going for the night with a well played, smart power play goal by their young guns. Alex Ovechkin was on the point first he put the puck in to Tomas Fleischmann in the left side face off circle as both Brooks Laich and Flash were in front of the net. Backstrom didn't have a shooting lan so he put the puck back to Ovie, no shooting lane. Ovie dishes to Mike Green; Green moves in but has no lane, he makes like he is going to shoot pulling Henrick Ludqvist just a little to the right. Green instead of shooting put the puck back to Ovechkin in the perfect positoin for a one-timer. Ovechkin buries it in the basket just therough the small amount of space the lanky Ranger netminder gives him. Welcome back to the lineup Ovie, goal #15 on the season ties it up 1-1. From what I saw the Caps were playing their game and outplayed the Rangers the first period out shooting them 15-5 and if not for the Rangers super goaltender Henrick Lundqvist would likely have been up by at least a goal against a lot of other teams in the league. But as it was the team went into intermission looking ahead to a 40 minute game after they would come back onto the ice.

Hey wait a minute - what about the fight? What fight? The one between Matt Bradley and Aaron Voros. Oh yeah that fight well at the 10:35 mark of the period Brads and Voros dropped em. It looked for a while that Brads was going to win his first hockey fight of the season but then Voros came back and caught Brads with a right that cut him above Brads' left eye and I'd think youy'd have to say that despite probably winning the fight if this were real boxing based on points scored, since Bradley had to go to the dressing room and get cleaned up, you'd have to score this one for Voros. It did accent the grittiness of the game and help establish that the Caps weren't going to be pushed around tonight though, so once again you have to really like that both Bradley and Erskine were in the lineup tonight and they came to play.

The second perid, the Rangers took things up a notch but the Caps responded as well. During the second period the Caps out hit the Rangers 9-3 and the teams each notched 6 shots on goal. The difference for the period was penalties and penalty killing. The Rangers gave the Caps two power plays in the second period and the Caps only gave the Rangers one, better yet, assuming you are a Caps fan, the Caps capitalized on the second power play chance they were given during the period. Through the first two periods the Caps successfully held the Rangers power play scoreless on all three power plays they had to face. In fact the Capitals PK tonight was quite impressive. The one goal of the period by the Caps came at the 15:44 mark with the Caps on the power play. At 14:11 the Energizer Bunny Mathieu Perrault drew a hooking penalty on Ales Kotalik. After Boyle cleared the puck into the Capitals end, Mike Green brought the puck up ice and into the zone. As he entered the zone he ran into heavy traffic and passed the puck off to Alexader Ovechkin who threaded the needle over to Chris Clark in the right side circle. Clark then dished the puck back to Green who was driving the net. Green didn't have an opening as he skated past Lunqvist so he put the puck back to Brooks Laich who was trailing him to the net as well. Lundqvist stopped the pass to Laich but couldn't control the puck as Laich buried it into the net through his five hole for his 9th goal of the season. That goal put the Caps up 2-1 which is how the period ended.

During the third period the Caps and Rangers each got 3 chances to score with a man up on the power play. Unfortunately, during the Rangers second power play chance of the evening their Magician, Marian Gaboriak scored on a shot that I venture to guess only one other player on the ice could have taken and scored on with any regularity. It was one of those shots where goaltender Semyon Valamov had to make the percentage choice, he chose correctly but the sniper got it by him anyway - that type of goal that was discussed ad nuseum and intelligently just this afternoon over at Japer's Rink - how's that for irony. In any case it was a beuty, one of those goals where no matter how many times I watch the replay and shake my head and say how did he do that. It was a goal worthy of Ovechkin or Semin; it was a goal the likes of which are why the Rangers went and got Gaboriak from the available free agents this summer. The goal was Gaboiraik's 15th of the season, it tied the game at 2-2 and tied the Ranger Ace with OV for the league lead in goals. It was a tough tightly played period and the Caps hung in and played hard even though they were outshot for the period ( ) the Caps once again outhit the Rangers 14-8. Their determination was no better displayed then at the 15:09 mark Matt Bradley took the puck away from Wade Redden, got a step on him, then used his body to protect the puck and skate in on Henrick Lundvist. Lundqvist dropped his shoulder slight to square up on Brads and the gritty 31 year old winger from Stittsville, Ontario fired his 4th goal of the season into the top shelf of the net like a 50 goal scoring sniper. Brads finished the evening an assist shot of a Gordie Howe hat trick. The Rangers continued to challenge the Caps and tried to tie the game, pulling Lundqvist for the extra skater at the 18:53 mark. They pressed and had the Caps penned into their zone pretty well util the 19:43 mark when Brian Pothier lobbed the puck up to get some fresh bodies on to the ice and ended up getting his third goal unassisted by netting what is listed in the stat sheets as a 165 foot backhand for a goal. The game ended Caps 4 - Rangers 2.

The NY Media voted the three stars of the game as:

1) Alexander Ovechkin

2) Marian Gaboriak

3) Matt Bradley.

All in all not a bad set of Stars of the Game. With a stat line of 1 SOG, 1 Goal Scored, 2 attempts blocked, 4 misses, 7 hits, and 1 takeaway; Ovechkin certainly made his presence in the game felt during the 22 shifts where he logged 19:23 in his return to the lineup after a 6 game hiatus. As the only Ranger to find the back of the net there's no argument with Marian Gaboriak who 24:03 TOI during 27 shifts and led everyone except Mike Green on both teams in ice time tonight. Matt Bradley had 2/3RDs of a "Gordie Howe" including the game winner and also finished the game +1 and had 3 hits as well during his 13:23 TOI, that has to be looked at as a very good game for the 4th liner, I'd bet he got the hard hat tonight but several other guys also put in good nights. After starting out by yielding a goal, Semyon Varlamov out played Lundqvist turing in a save percentage of 0.900 stopping 18 of 20 tonight including a couple of tough saves to keep the Caps in the lead. Brian Pothier had 3 block shots in addition to his empty net goal and played well except for taking a High Sticking minor in the third period. Mike Green's 2 assists, +1, 5 shots on goal and 2 blocked shots in 24: 55 TOI was a solid night "for sure." David Steckel was once again a beast in the faceoff circle (winning 8 of 11); "Stecks" also had 3 shots on goal, 1 attempt blocked and 1 miss - including 2 that were close, it's only a matter of time before the pucks start finding the back of the net for Steckel. Mathieu Perreault won 5 of 7 draws and drew a penalty that resulted in a power play goal for the Caps in just 8:57 TOI.

On the negative side of things per Tariq's blog: "Coach Bruce Boudreau said he thinks Quintin Laing suffered a broken jaw when he was struck in the face by a Michal Rozsival shot in the third period. The team has not provided an official diagnosis yet, but Boudreau said Laing will remain in New York overnight for observation." Here's hoping all is okay with "Q."

Next up Montreal at Verizon Center on Friday evening. Tom has the tickets for that game so I'll be watching once again on the new TV here in Bristow.

LETS GO CAPS!!!!

Ugh - A Nooo Point Night In NJ...

noreply@blogger.com (Usually Frustrated Caps Fan) — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 03:06:00 +0000

Well what can you say. It was the second night of a back to back and the Caps joust couldn't make it happen. They went out to a 2-0 lead on two goals you don't often see Marty Brodeaur give up and then after that is was pretty much all Devils. You could pick one thing or the other but that probably wouldn't be fair, it was a game where the Devils just played their game all sixty minutes and the Capitals pretty much, I can't say let them, no I think saying just couldn't stop them would be a better characterization. I really don't think tonight was anybody in a Capitals uniform played their wost game ever, and I don't think it was anybody's best game ever either.

Personally I'm not going to dwell on things good or bad tonight. So far for the season the Capitals are second in the Eastern Conference tied at 28 points with the same NJ Devils who beat them handily tonight 5-2. The Caps are 12-4-4 (0.778) while the Devils are 14-4-0. So far this month the Caps are 4-2-1 (0.643) and have gone 4-2-0 while Alexander Ovechkin has been out. Next up the NY Rangers at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday Evening.

LETS GO CAPS!!!!

Caps 3 - Wild 1 Another 2 Point Night At Verizon Center

noreply@blogger.com (Usually Frustrated Caps Fan) — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 22:22:00 +0000

Last night's game was another keeper if you're a Capitals fan. The Caps came out pretty slowly (being out shot 7 - 1 during the first 9:40 of the first period.) However, from the 10:00 minute mark of the first period on, if not for Wild goal tender Josh Harding, the Capitals would have raced out to a lead. As it was the game ended in regulation with the Capitals taking a 2 point victory from the Wild in what was a one goal tight game until Brooks Laich put the Capitals two goals ahead with an insurance empty net tally at the 19:23 mark of the final stanza.

Also despite outplaying the Wild from the 10:00 mark of the first period, the Caps gave up the first goal to the Wild's Cal Clutterbuck at 1:31 of the second period and trailed until at 5:35 of that stanza Mike Green got his third goal of the season when he poked a nice feed from Tomas Fleischmann through Harding's Five Hole on the power play. The second period ended with the score knotted at 1-1 despite the Capitals out shooting the Wild 31-16 up to that point of the game. However, when the third period opened, the Caps came out determined to press their advantage and take the lead. That occurred at the 2:00 mark when Brian Pothier joined the rush, as he had several times earlier during the night. Pothier got a pass from Mathieu Perreault (as one of my neighbors in 103 calls him - "The Energizer Bunny") and put a nice wrister past Harding's stick side low for his second goal of the season to put the Capitals up 2-1. The Caps continued to play clean, driven hockey for the remainder of the period staying out of the "Sin Bin" for the entirety of the third period and keeping the Wild off the board. There were a couple of Wild scoring chances during the third period where Caps goalie Semyon Varlamov earned his pay for the night, in fact Varly ended the evening with a solid "W" having stopped 29 of 30 and a SV% of 0.967. However Varly's excellent performance was apparently eclipsed in the eyes of the Mainstream Media present who voted Wild Goaltender Josh Harding the evening's first star. To be sure Harding deserved one of the night's stars having stopped 38 of the 40 shots he faced (a SV% of 0.950 for the night) and was the best Wild player on the ice last night but the first star? to an opposing goalie who let up two goals in a loosing effort? and statistically wasn't the best goaltender on the ice for the game?

To follow up again to the Semin haters out there - last night the "other Alex" again had a solid night. Despite being kept off the scoreboard for the night, because he spent the night with virtually always one, usually two, and at times as many as three Wild players draped on his back, he finished his night +1, got four good shots, drew a penalty when Nick Schultz felt forced to trip him during the first period to keep him away from the play, and he stayed out of the box. Semin also played 1:27 on the PK unit and as I've mentioned before i always feel having him out there a couple of times a game helps keep him more mindful of his defensive responsibilities for the rest of the game. Last night he played really smart hockey and made a few sick moves. On all four of his shots on goal, Harding had to earn his pay. I'm certainly happier having Semin on our roster for $4M then I would have been having Martin Havlat for $5M. Havlat despite getting 8 of the Wild's 30 shots on goal just didn't seem to be all that noticable or a threat often last night; to be sure the Caps kept aware of where he was but they sure didn't seem to feel the need to hang all over him like the Wild did Semin.

Other Capitals notables last night: Brian Pothier of course the second star of the game, Potsy had a goal, 2 hits and 3 blocked shots in 19:24 TOI. Tomas Fleischmann had an assist, and was even on the night in 18:35 TOI. John Erskine was +1, and had 3 hits and 2 shots on goal in 18:10 TOI. Brooks Laich had an empty net goal, was 60% (3 of 5) in the faceoff circle, and had 5 shots on goal in 20:23 TOI. David Steckel was a beast in the face off circle taking 15 of 18 (83%) of his draws and had 4 SOG, 1 A/B, 2 hits and 1 takeaway in 13:15 TOI. Quintin Laing had a great night finishing +1, 1 SOG, 1 A/B, 2 missed attempts, 1 hit and 2 blocked shots in 13:08 TOI. Mike Green who scored his 3rd goal of the year in 20:21 TOI had a solid outing as well. Overall it was a well played game all around and good prep for tonight's game against the Devils in New Jersey.

Looking towards tonight, back to backs are always tough and back to backs against two solid defensive teams are even tougher. OV had been listed as a game time decision, but just a short time ago Tarik indicated that he would miss his sixth game tonight but will likely return for Tuesdays game against the Rangers; and after last night's game the Caps announced Mike Knuble will be out 4 weeks or more with a broken finger. Tonight's game in Newark will be a real test for the Caps but they have to feel driven given the last time the two teams met in NJ, the Devils handed the Caps a no point night.

LETS GO CAPS!!!

Vindicated - - - - Haters; Caps 5 - Islanders 4 (SO), Semin Has Excellent Night...

noreply@blogger.com (Usually Frustrated Caps Fan) — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 19:36:00 +0000

Sorry for the delay in getting this posted and the relatively abrupt ending to this post...I've been interuppted in pulling it together about 20 times since Wed Night when I got hme from the game...

So first off, Wed night was a two point night for the Washington Capitals at the Verizon Center in another three point night kind of way. I haven't read the other blogs, or Tarik or Corey's blogs or articles, I haven't looked over the Caps press releases, etc. on the game, even now (Friday morning). I was there and have my own, likely slightly contrary views to some about the night. After all, I've never been in the closet about my support and opinions for the play and potential of Alexander Semin, or for that matter Jose Theodore and what I write here about both will be my own views, the views of a person wholly unqualified to make judgements, assessments or pronouncements. At least no more qualified than anybody else with the price of admission to a game and who prefers to spend a disproportionate amount of his disposable income/recreation budget on "those things hockey". Here's the game I was at.

Eight seconds in just finished putting my jacket on the back of my seat in Section 103 and BAM! Brendan Morrison takes the opening faceoff puts the puck onto the stick of Alexander Semin "the other Alex --- really "The Unfairly Maligned Alex" --- he shoots and HE SCCOOOOOORRREEES! Caps up 1-0. The look on Semin's face - relief; the look on Semin's mother's face in the row behind me as we all do high fives, joy.

Unfortunately a little less than a minute later, Islander Left Wing and leading goal scorer Matt Moulsen returned the favor scoring for the Islanders. Game tied 1 - 1 at the 1:02 mark of the period's after goal number 1 that Caps goaltender Jose Theodore would like back but that frankly he didn't get a lot of help on. Then at the 5:10 mark of the period, Islanders' defenseman Mark Streit helps press the attack and is rewarded with his third goal of the season on the the fourth shot of the game for the Islanders. Wow these guys are real sharpshooters; of course it would help if the Caps, including Jose Theodore weren't all collapsing back and giving them room to roam. Then at the 6:54 mark, Mike Green in one of those "high risk/high reward" things ends up on the "high risk" side of things and yields a 1-0 breakaway to Islander Left Wing Sean Bergenheim who skates in on a less than then fully confident Jose Theodore. Theodore backed into the net quickly instead of aggressively challenging the 25 year old Finn who fired his second goal of the season past the Caps goalie to put his team up 3-1 at that time. Bergenheim's goal ended Jose Theodore's evening as he was pulled in favor of rookie Semyon Varlamov having yielded 3 goals on 5 Islander shots at that point.

Coach Boudreau's decision at that time to change goaltenders seemed to have the desired effect, a frustrated netminder was replaced with a young, determined one and the team also seemed to tighten things up a little. Also Varlamov made some solid stops over the next 8 - 10 minutes and the Caps blue line corps let the Islanders know they weren't going to tolerate them running into the Caps' goalies all night. Things went back and forth while the Caps edged their shots on goal total up slowly until the Caps had a good shift penning the Isles into their end and drawing a holding penalty from J. Sim at 12:14. On the ensuing power play Tomas Fleischman once again showed us all he definately has a nose for the net and Nicklas Backstrom showed us he may well be the consumate playmaker in the NHL today with a solid primary assist on "Flash's" 6th goal of the season at the 13:42 mark of the period, narrowing the Islanders lead to one goal. From about the 10:00 mark on the Caps took it the Islanders and Isles goalie Dwayne Roloson kept the Isles in the hunt; while Varlamov kept the Isles stuck on "3"...

The second period started with Tim Jackman taking an interference penalty to give the Caps their second power play of the night. The Isles kille that Penalty off and things see-sawed with the Caps having the "control" edge throughout the first period but once again the Islaes gave the Caps a power play when Josh Bailey got called for interferance. This one provided Mike Green a stage on which to work and setup Alexander Semin who scored his second of the night and 9th of the season at the 5:35 mark of the period to knot the score at 3-3. After this goal, there was actually a lot more joy vs. relief on Semin's face. It bears mentioning as well that the setup by Mike Green was patented Green and was a display of superior skating ability by him all the way into the zone and around the net while Semin went to the nt and got open for the setup. And in case you were pondering the question the tally did mean the caps went 66.6667% on the power play for the game. After tying the game the Caps kept the pressure on but Roloson hung tough until the 16:46 mark of the second period when Eric Fehr notched his second goal of the season assisted by Captain Chris Clark and Mike Green (that was Green's 13th assist of the season). The second period ended with the Caps up 4-3.

For the entire third period the Caps played hard and seemed determined to make sure the game ended in regulation with a 5 or more goal victory (can you say Wings!?!) by Dwayne Roloson had other ideas and wwas unfathomable at times. The Caps also took three penalties in the third period. I presonally didn't really think the infractions were something that should necessarily have been called but when I think in this day's NHL when you are up you need to play unquestionably clean hockey else everything seems to go against you.

For all intents and purpooses from the 15:10 mark when Dave Steckel was called for holding until the 17:52 mark when T. Hunter put a laser just past Varly's glove the Caps were skating one man down and looked like they were going to hold off the Islanders and end this game in regulation. Alas that wasn't to be, Hunter's shot was a rocket, I'm not sure Varly saw it so much as was playing the angle properly and that's why he might possibly have stopped it if his hand wes 3 inches high. However th reulst was the third period ended with the score tied 4-4. Was that such a surprise? It was a Caps - Islanders game after all.

Overtime, once again if not for Roloson and a few fortunate bounces. During OT the Caps got off 4 shots 3 of which I'd call scoring chances. The Islanders had one (1) SOG. Victory wasn't to come for the Caps yet, on to the Gimmick, urrh I mean shootout.

For the Caps Backstrom shot wide;

For the Isles Tambellini nic move scored;

For the Caps Semin, sick move puts a backhander into the roof of the net on Roloson's blocker side and scores;

Isles' Tavares, wide of the net (was he trying to do "anything you can do I can do better with Backstrom perhaps?" My perdication - these two guys will be the acknowledged best centers in the league along with that Crosby kid, before long.)

Caps' Bredan Morrison wrister saved by Roloson;

Isles' Schremp backhand stopped by Varly - never a doubt...

Next fourteen more shooters (7 from each team) are basically denied by good goaltending, the only close one was Mike Gren hitting the TOP of the crossbar duirng round 7 of the shhotout.

Then the 21st shooter, Captain Chris Clark, having watched 9 of his teammates fail, came in and as soon as Dwayne Roloson gave him an opening, sent a nice, quick release snapshot past him to put the Caps ahead and the next Islander shooter on the hot seat. The final attempt of the shootout was made by Islanders defenseman Mark Streit and Semyon Varlamov was "having none of it" he snuffed out Streit's wrister with determination and celebrated by banging his stick on both posts. If he was Johnny Drama we no doubt would have heard him shout "VICTORY!!!" all the way down at our end of the VC in section 103.

It was a sweet game for me in many ways. I attended with a good freind from college and we had a pleaseant dinner catching up before getting to VC and we had a great time at the game. I shouted myself hoarse and I';m ready to do it again tonight. One of my three favorite Capitals - Alexander Semin - was vindicated (take that you haters -yeah!). It was a two point night, I'm still perplexed as to how the press decided to make Mark Streit and not Dwayne Roloson the third star of the game, I know Streit had a goal and an assist and was +2 on the night but Roloson stopped 37 of 41 shots (0.902) to give the Islanders a chance at two points, some of his saves were pretty incredible. For the Caps I think they got the right two guys listed as stars Varlamov and Semin and I really don't care which was listed as 1st and who was 2nd. Do I think Semin's 2 goals in regulation and shootout goal along with 11 SOG, 3 A/B and 1 missed attempt while staying well away from the sin bin will get people firmly off his case and behind him? No not really but I'm sure he feels at least a little vinidicated. Heck I would.

Now it's time to start thinking about tonight's game against the Wild - hey you dudes from Minnesota - we'll be there, we'll be there 18,277 strong Rocking the Red and cheering for our guys? You where will you be? In front of your TV's out in the cold land of 10,000 lakes eh? FYI it won't be much different here than there - projected temp and conditions in St. Paul, MN at 8PM CST is 49F and raining - but oh yeah, we'll be watching our guys in person. All joking aside the Caps will need to play disciplined hockey and I don't expect the over and under to be greater than 6 goals tonight if Caps are to win.

LETS GO CAPS!!!!

Review of Last Night's Caps 7-4 Win Over The Panthers and A Few Musings...

noreply@blogger.com (Usually Frustrated Caps Fan) — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 01:41:00 +0000

Last night was a 2 point night, unfortunately I missed the entire game as we took our son back to college on Long Island and between a later than planned start in the morning and "mis-underestimating" the duration of the trip back, we walked back into the house probably about 20 minutes or so after the buzzer sounded ending the third period with the Capitals up 7-4. Another two point night and this one with Alexander Ovechkin, Mike Green and Jeff Schultz all in the press box. So I've spent part of today, after playing what was my first and probably will be my last round of golf for 2009, reviewing the game recaps and buzz around the Caps "blogsphere".

So how did I do on my predictions, I wondered... my predictions were:

1) Final score Caps 4 - Panthers 2; - wrong 7-4 wasn't even close...

2) Semin has at least a two point night; - wrong Semin didn't score but did has 2 of the Caps 3 minor penalties, played 19:10

3) Backstrom has at least a two point night; - correct, Backy had two assists, he also had another monster night in the faceoff circle, as did David Steckel.

4) Knuble scores a goal; - I'm taking this one as correct since he had two goals, and two assists - MONSTER night for Knuble..

5) Somebody we don't expect, probably Erskine scores a goal;and - I'm taking this one as correct since Quintin Laing scored his second, I'd love for things to change and me and the rest of us Caps fans to be able to expect Laing to score but right now, it's an unexpected thing we all love to see.

6) Shoane Morrisonn is indeed, wrongly, suspended for two games... wrong on that one, thankfully, oh and Shaone Morrisonn had a good game for the stats sheet perspective at least.

So how did the Caps score 7 goals with two of the four "young guns" in the press box? Well it was a team effort, 13 different Capitals had at least one point. To review: Mike Knuble had a monster night with two goals and two assists. Tomas Fleischmann also had a big night scoring a pair of goals. Brooks Laich, Quintin Laing and Mathieu Perreault (scoring his first career NHL goal) also added markers for the Capitals. In fact everyone in the lineup except Milan Jurcina, John Erskine, Alexander Semin, Tyler Sloan and Dave Steckel. How Steckel didn't end up with at least a point in a game where he won 11 of 18 faceoffs is a question I'll not understand having not seen the game but whatever. In any case I'll continue to predict for Alexander Semin to have a good night, and safely assume that Steckel will win faceoffs until the stars align and it happens on the same night.

In any case next up or the Capitals will be the Islanders at Verizon Center on Wednesday evening so there's plenty of time to muse about a lot of things. My first muse is to point out that the Caps have started November the way they ended October, playing 0.600+ hockey. In other words the Capitals continue on pace for another 100+ point season. Further, the past two games have helped address the whole secondary scoring discussion. Through 17 games the Caps now have 7 players on track for 20+ goal seasons: 1) Alexander Ovechkin; 2) Brooks Laich; 3) Alexander Semin; 4) Brendan Morrison; 5) Mike Knuble; 6) Tomas Fleischmann; and 7) Nicklas Backstrom. Others who are on track for career years as far as NHL regular season goal production include: Matt Bradley who is on pace for 14+ goals this season; Quintin Laing who is on pace for 10 goals; and Tyler Sloan who is also on pace for 10 goals. Add to that a hopefully rejuvenated Mike Green who finds his scoring touch and strengthens the power play when he returns to the line up and you'll have a team with 10 guys you really have to worry about lighting the lamp when they are on the ice for the Capitals.

Across the board, the Capitals are looking pretty solid. Ovechkin is on pace for a 110+ point season and even with a a multi-week healing period this month is still likely to once again be in the running for the scoring titles. Alexander Semin, maligned of late is on track for 33 goals and 38 assists - 70+ points. Brooks Laich is on track for a career year - 33 goals and 53 assists - 80+ points. Nicklas Backstrom is on track for 19 or 20 goals, and 82 assists - a 100 point season, it's worthwhile to note that Backstrom's assists totals continue to grow seemingly regardless of who he skates with. Tomas Fleischman appears well on his way to a 20+ goal/30+ point season... and the list goes on. The other good news seems to be that you can't ignore that both Mike Knuble and Brendan Morrison are at least as good or better than the guys they replaced in the line-up, Kozlov and Federov, in regards to production.

Offensive production doesn't appear to be much of an issue for the Caps, thanks to last night's 7-4 win over the panthers, the Capitals lead the league in goals scored with 65 goals for. Another interesting point to note is only 3 teams have a better GF-GA differential then the Capitals have to date (the Caps are +13): San Jose: + 19; the New York Rangers: + 15; Colorado: +15. Interestingly right now with 24 points in 17 games the Caps are fourth in the league's overall standings and second in the Eastern Conference. In the Southeast Division the Caps are 7 points in front of the second place Tampa Bay Lightning however the Lightning have two games in hand on the Caps so if we were tracking this "baseball style" the Caps would only be 2 1/2 games up on the boys from Tampa.

Another look in baseball "lingo" at what the Caps have been doing so far this season, overall for the season the Caps are playing 0.706 hockey on the year. If you project that to season's end the Caps are on track for a 115+ point season. Let that sink in - if you don't understand why you go to Verizon Center and come away roundly disappointed if the Caps don't win, you need only realize the Caps are currently playing 0.722 hockey at home. That's a long way from the early years of the "rebuild" for those of us who lived through those recent "slow years."

To be sure the Capitals are now dealing with a spate of injuries and the season and playoffs assuming they make them will go much more smoothly when they get healthy but this team is really cooking with gas and finding ways to win on most nights. The other positive trend of late has been the Capitals are playing more disciplined hockey and taking fewer penalties in games, at least the last two, and last night they didn't take any penalties during the Third Period. That has to continue if the Caps are to keep up their current winning trend.

Wednesday should be a good game, the Islanders and the Caps have already had two close games and the Islanders came away with an OT win when the teams last met on October 30th at Verizon Center. The Caps and we Caps fans will be looking for a 2 point, regulation win night...

LETS GO CAPS!!!

Caps 4 - Panthers 1; A Two Point Night But Who's On The Roster Tonight?

noreply@blogger.com (Usually Frustrated Caps Fan) — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 12:41:00 +0000

Last night the Capitals met the Florida Panthers in Sunrise, Florida and came away with a convincing 2 point win against a Southeast Division foe. Congratulations, boys, job well done. Of course you all just need to turn around and do the same thing tonight back here in DC. Will tonight's game be deja vu all over again? Well, probably night but before we get to that and why let's celebrate the good and recap last night's two point win.

What went right, well a lot of things the two biggest wre and are obvious: 1) Jose Theodore had a great night and was on his game, he also got help from his defense the couple of times he needed it; 2) the Caps as a whole figured out Tomas Vokoun and the Floridsa netminder didn't get that much help, if any, from his blue liners when he needed it. The game summary report makes this pretty clear. Key statistics: Goalie matchup results: Theodore's SV% on the night: 0.966 (28 of 29), Vokoun's SV% 0.840 (21 of 25). Capitals shooting percentage on the night: 16.0% (4 of 25): goal scorers: Brendan Morrison (2 goals, 1 of which was an empty netter); Brian Pothier (1); and Tyler Sloan (1). The Caps figured out the key to beating Vokoun is an interesting mix of combining their speed with some patience - patience to take the space the Panthers gave them while still shooting quickly and making the Florida netminder, who IMO is one of the league's best, move. I've been down on Capital's Captain Chirs Clark alot this year, but his primary assist on Tyler Sloan's goal, the first of the evening and Sloan's second of the season, was truly a thing of beauty. I could watch that play at least 50 or 100 times before I got tired of it - it truly looks like Clark is running a clinic as he turns and makes the perfect pass right on to the tape of Sloan's stick. Brendan Morrison's first goal of the night was another good one, scored because of a great combinations: work, grit, and skill. Pothier's goal was a one-timer that you could also watch repeatedly, both the set-up passes from Fleischmann to Backstrom, and even more so from Backstrom to Pothier. The shot by Brian Pothier for his first goal of the season was "Ovechkin-esque" in that he got everything on it. The fact it came on a power play while both Ovie and Mike Green were out made it even sweeter. The not so great were the fact the Capitals three (actually two and a misconduct) came in the third period, fortunately during the five minute boarding major to Shoane (vice the NHLN mispronunciation "Shane") Morrisonn, the Caps responded and limited the Panthers to just one shot on goal. Why Florida waited until after that penalty was over to pull Vokoun at the 18:47 mark of the period, I'll probably wonder for sometime, but I'd rather be lucky than good most of the time. In any case the game was then iced when Brendan Morrison got his sixth (6) goal of the season on an empty netter that he had to work for. One other item of note is the statistics sheet will show that Alexander Semin had a relatively uneventful nigh 19:14 TOI, 1 SOG, 2 A/B, 2 MS and 1 TK. What it doesn't show is he spent most of those 19:14 with multiple Panthers on him whenever he was near the play, never got frustrated and tried to find both solid passing lanes and shooting lanes that's why he had no giveaways, 0 PIM, and only 5 shot attempts. In other words he played very solid and smart hockey. I'm predicting that tonight he does the same but watches some tape today and figures out how to put the biscuit in the basket at least once if not twice tonight.

Predictions are hard because we don't really know who will man the blueline tonight, I'll write more about what I thought and think of the Shoane Morrisonn penalty call and alleged possible suspension after I see if he is indeed suspended as Coach Boudreau mentioned was a possibility. In any case just because something is hard doesn't mean I won't do it - my predictions for today/tonight:

1) Final score Caps 4 - Panthers 2;
2) Semin has at least a two point night;
3) Backstrom has at least a two point night;
4) Knuble scores a goal;
5) Somebody we don't expect, probably Erskine scores a goal;
and 6) Shoane Morrisonn is indeed, wrongly, suspended for two games... more on that later...

I'll be watching from the comfort of my den here in Bristow -

LETS GO CAPS!!!

My Plans for the Evening - Dashed In An Instant - Drats! Blue Jackets 5 - Caps 4 (OT)

noreply@blogger.com (Usually Frustrated Caps Fan) — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 01:05:00 +0000

I had it all planned watch the Caps take on and "no doubt" return to their winning ways against the Blue Jackets at home and then come and write my blog about what a great October it was for the Caps and how despite having some things to work on they were starting November off right. Well, that was the plan so I wouldn't need to get all upset and worked up watching "my Phillies" take on the Yankees so I wouldn't get to sleep until late and then have to go pick up "Wingman" when his red-eye from Long Beach lands at 05:15 tomorrow morning. Well it's clear to me right now at 8:11PM that plan just really had no hope from the "get go" as they say. Starting with the obvious, the Caps didn't win, next of course the Caps at least as of right now have to be wondering what the status is of Alexander Ovechkin who didn't play the last ~33:30 of the game, and besides being worked up about that I'm having horrible thoughts about Referee Mike Leggo; as well as recurring bad "waking dreams" (kind of like Paul Atredes in Dune) where I keep seeing Tom Poti's two misplays that led first to the 4-4 tie goal and then his entire misplay of R.J. Umberger that led to the OT winner by Columbus.

Why Mike Leggo? you might ask. Well basically if you go back to about 15 - 30 seconds before the Raffi Torres' tying goal you'll see a bit of "tuss up" in the corner that should have, no I'll say it would have led to at least a clear of the puck, if not a break out and empty net goal, but alas Mike Leggo was in the way. Bottom line is that Jeff Schultz should have ignored Leggo's presence and driven Jakub Vorecek into both Leggo and the boards but that's probably too much to ask, even with the improved, more pohysical of late Schultz. Actually I hope when he watches the tape of that encounter that is indeed the lesson that Schultz, who I am actually starting to like (a lot more than I like Tom Poti tonight) takes away from the encounter. Leggo of course with one to two small steps in either direct could have easily stayed out of the play and still be in the right position to make whatever call was necessary. Further, I'm probably being unfair to Mike Leggo, I should be frustrated with the entire lot of NHL officials since it seems to me they all now do this. This being stay in the corner too long after it's obvious that they probably don't need to be there to call the goal line. Further, since whenever there's a close call on that they go to the replay in Toronto why be there at all? I know this rant will illicit a lot of discussion about the reasons to be there if you are an official, I've been thinking about and decided I probably don't agree, I think the referees and linesmen need to do a better job of staying out of the play. I mean tonight they blew at least 4 or 5 calls (not in a one sided manner) anyway and the game now moves so fast such results and statistics are more the norm then the exception anyway.

Now the other big reason my plan is totally flawed and was doomed is there's really nothing to write about tonight other than the thing to worry about/think about is what does it mean when you say Alex Ovechkin is "day to day" with an upper body injury? It means to me at best he has some really bruised ribs and at worst you're looking at something like what happened to Sidney Crosby early last season. So the good news he skated off the ice under his own power, there's enough time left and the Caps have enough other talent up front that he doesn't need to rush back, he should let the injury heal. The bad news is that's really not his style, but I hope he does take the time to let what it is heal.

So now even though my original plan is basically now probably pointless and "flumoxxed," I'm going to return to it. If nothing else it should be therapy for me. Also if you read this blog, you probably read other hockey and Caps blogs and they will have more then enough discussion, etc. on a) Ovie's injury (which until a couple days go by will be some semblance of the prior paragraph with a lot more angst and words, IMO); and b) "oh my what should Boudreau do without Ovechkin, is the season lost? I mean they ended October on a low note and now this!" (Pardon me for my sarcastic drama, it's just that since moving to the DC area in 1996 I've found the local sports fans and press quite melodramatic and reactionary - unlike, calm cool collected 'moi.)

So for the month of October, let's review the Capital's record: 8-2-3, 19 points. That's 0.731 hockey; it also means that 84.6% of the time they played the Capitals came away with at least 1 point. It's one of the best starts in franchise history, the Caps are also drawing fans like never before and they will continue to do so., as they are a lot of fun to watch. Folks will point to the way they are winning as unsatisfying and also point to the fact that 9 of their 13 games in October were one goal games and the Caps should be winning by more and putting more teams away and keeping them there through all three periods. That's hard to argue with, of course as a fan, coach or player that's what you'd like to see. However some of the other discussions about how for example they played two games against the "lowly" Islanders and only came away 1-0-1 I can and will argue with. First and foremost those "lowly" Islanders really aren't that lowly, in my opinion. The Islanders have played in 8 one goal games out of the 13 they've played. They also finished the second half of October 4-3-2 including three straight wins over the Rangers (3-1), the Caps (4-3 in OT), and the Sabres (5-0). Of course there was that worrisome game against the Thrashers who the Capitals beat by only one goal (4-3) in Atlanta last Thursday. Those same Thrashers who with Ilya Kovalchuk still out downed the Ottawa Senators last night 3-1 in a game that wasn't really as close as the score might lead some to believe. Of course no one seemed to have a problem with the 4-2 win over the Flyers so we need not talk about that, though to be fair the Flyers only have 13 points (the same number as the Islanders and just two more than the Thrashers). My bottom line is similar to the central theme from "Any Given Sunday" - in today's NHL thanks to the parity the salary cap encourages, on any given night, any of the thirty teams can beat any of the others.

Sure, some NHL Teams have more talent and the advantage, but you need to fight for every standings point, there really are no "gimmes" in today's NHL. So yes there's plenty to work on and the Capitals now have to make up for either a star who is out or somewhat slowed for at least a few games but wouldn't you rather have those now counting tonight's OT loss to Columbus 8 one point games that resulted in 1 or 2 standings points then the alternative? I know my answer. I also know this team is good and can still win, even with AO out for a game or even five or six to properly heal Tonight with Ovechkin not even on the bench they scored three goals on Steve Mason and the Blue Jackets - a team and a goaltender that it's not that easy to solve. Sure we all want Ovie back as soon as it makes sense but I've been saying for some time the Caps have the players on the team who can and will score if Ovie isn't there. Tonight Brooks Laich potted two and the energy line in the form of Quintin Laing got one. Assuming Alexander Semin, Nicklas Backstrom, Brendan Morrisson, Mike Green and Mike Knuble also rise to the occasion, even though the Caps have three games each this week and the next three, they'll survive and may even keep up this amazing start. Look at tonight, if not for two "flukey" goals the Caps would have won in regulation. You had to feel for Jose Theodore on those two goals they were "real buzzkillers" eh? Also, for what it's worth when was the last time you saw two of those in a single game? Ugh.

In conclusion I still keep having this waking dream/vision of Tom Poti on the OT goal though. So here's my thought, why did he go down to the ice so fast in the first place? Second, when that didn't work why didn't he get back up quicker and get into position? Finally, why is he finding himself on the inside of shooters so many times this year? Watch the replay of the OT goal, remember it's a 4-3, first Poti tries to move Umberger from the front of the net, how? by cross checking him four times in rapid succession, risking another penalty. Then he tries to draw him out by going outside of him, where he should have been in the first place "in the new NHL". When he does that Umberger takes even more separation and while Poti is moving he leave a passing lane, that's why he went down to the ice - I don't have the talent to play at the NHL level but at $3.5M/season, the reason Poti gets that kind of coin to play hockey is he has the talent and the reach to use his stick to cut off that pass and shot while he is getting back into position. Why he didn't do it tonight, that's the source of this bad "waking dream." I'm also betting from his "post-goal reaction that when he watches the film/tape on the last 30 seconds or so of the game that my reaction and Tom Poti and Bob Woods reaction are about the same. With 26:33 of ice time an assist, a blocked shot and one takeaway, it's tough for me to be too down on Tom Poti but I am a little bit because of those last two goals he was on the ice for, given he's a professional athlete I'll figure he's more down on himself and move on fo now.

Well hey, it was a one point night, that's one point of the 20 the Caps have as they start the month of November as the #4 team in the league and the #2 team in the Eastern Conference. Next up the New Jersey Devils at "the Rock" in Newark on Wednesday evening. Here's hoping for continued good fortunes and great play from Tomas Fleischmann and Brooks Laich, as well as great games from all the other Caps in the lineup this month. Also here's to continue 0.600+ hockey...

LETS GO CAPS!!!

Caps 4 - Thrashers 3 (corrected), a Two Point Night...

noreply@blogger.com (Usually Frustrated Caps Fan) — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 01:31:00 +0000

The Capitals won 4 -3 tonight over the Atlanta Thrashers keeping their winning streak alive at 6. The first period and a half the Capitals dominated. Then for the last half of the game the Thrashers showed resilience and outworked the Caps; however Semyon Varlamov had a good night and kept Atlanta out of the net most of the rest of the way. To put things in context about how hard the Thrashers worked the second half of the night, their third goal, Zach Bogisian's second of the evening came at the 19:59 mark of the third period .....

I'll post more about the Caps game later but now it's over to the World Series Game - Lets' Go Phillies...

A Look Ahead To Tonight's Game vs. Atlanta & What About That Secondary Scoring Stuff?

noreply@blogger.com (Usually Frustrated Caps Fan) — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 12:52:00 +0000

Tonight the Capitals travel to Atlanta to take on the Atlanta Thrashers at Phillips Arena. They'll be facing a team that they needed to hold off from a come back to win 5-4 last week. However, this will be Atlanta's first game without star, leading scorer and Captain Ilya Kovalchuk who broke his foot since the last game with the Capitals. The Thrashers will likely come out flying and "loaded for bear" since they'll want to prove they aren't a "one trick pony". While the Thrashers are no longer a "one trick pony" in the end if the Capitals play their game plan and play like they did the first two periods of last week's game and stay focused, they'll win their sixth game in a row before returning to DC to take on the Islanders tomorrow night at the Phone Booth. However, the Capitals have been juggling their own line-up to accommodate the ever changing "sick & injured" reports so it won't be a cake walk. The Caps will need to ensure that neither Nik Antropov, Bryan Little, or Slava Kozlov are allowed to make up for the lost production Kovalchuk's absence from the Atlanta lineup creates.

Prediction: Caps 4 - Thrashers 2.

There has been an increasing buzz here in the Caps blogsphere about a lack of secondary scoring, as well as the definition of it. I figured I'd take a look around the league and compare the other teams and their secondary scoring vs. the Capitals. After Tuesday night's game against the Flyers only 10 of their 41 goals (24.3%) have come from someone who is not a forward on the top two lines, if you take Mike Green's 2 tallies out of that mix it's 8 of the 41 (19.5%). So I figured I'd look at the other teams in the top of the league both in points and goals scored and compare their sources of production compared to the Capitals. Aside from the Capitals I figured I'd look at the other leading teams in the Eastern Conference, as well as the Western Conference teams with 40 or more goals scored to date for comparisons.

First let's characterize the Capitals offensive production not counting the top six forwards - 10 goals from seven (7) different players including 3 from Matt Bradley and 2 from Mike Green. Only one Capital other than "the big six" has a Game Winning Goal (GWG) thus far. However, the Capitals total offensive production of 41 goals in 11 games; 24.3% from "secondary scoring" - goals from sources other than their top two lines.

Other Eastern Conference teams who are currently in the top eight in the standings:

1) Pittsburgh Penguins - 20 points in 12 games; 43 goals scored. Of their 43 goals, 23 (53.4%) have come off of sticks that belong to players not part of their top two forward lines; 2 players other then their top 6 forwards (Sergei Gonchar and Tyler Kennedy) have scored 4 game winning goals.

2) New York Rangers - 17 points in 13 games; 47 goals scored. Of their 47 goals, 22 (46.8%) have come from secondary scoring including 11 off the sticks of their blue line corps. Of those 22 goals from secondary scorers, 5 have been game winners.

3) Philadelphia Flyers - 11 points in 1o games; 33 goals scored. Of their 33 goals, 11 (33.3%) have come from secondary scoring, however no one other than their top six have scored a game winning goal to date.

4) Buffalo Sabres - 15 points in 9 games, 30 goals scored. Of their 30 goals, 10 (33%) have come from secondary scoring, including 3 from veteran off season pick-up Mike Grier. Secondary scorers have scored 4 of their 6 game winners to date.

5) Ottawa Senators - 14 points in 10 games; 34 goals scored. Of their 34 goals scored, 16 (67.6%) have come from secondary scoring (good thing too since Jonathan Cheechoo and Jason Spezza are both yet to score their first goal of the season.) However only one (1) of their six (6) GWG's to date have come off the stick of a secondary scorer.

6) Montreal Canadeans - 12 points in 12 games; 31 goals scored. Twelve (12) of their 31 goals(38.7%) scored to date including 3 of 5 GWG have come off the sticks of secondary scorers.

7) New Jersey Devils - 12 points in 10 games; 27 goals scored. Eight (8) of their 27 goals (29.6%) have been scored by other then their top five scorers, their top "stud", Patrik Elias, has yet to play this season as he is on IR. However 3 of the 4 GWG recorded to date have been by secondary scorers.

Western Conference Teams with 40 or more goals scored to date:

1) Colorado Avalanche - 22 points in 13 games; 44 goals scored. Seventeen (17) of their goals to date (40.9%) have come from secondary scoring including 5 of their 9 GWG.

2) Los Angeles Kings - 16 points in 12 games; 44 goals scored (doesn't include goals or points from last night's late game against the San Jose Sharks). Twelve (12) of their 44 goals (27.3%) of their total production has come from secondary scoring including 4 of 8 GWG.

3) Dallas Stars - 16 points in 12 games; 41 goals scored. Fourteen (14) of their 41 goals (34.1%) have been the result of secondary scoring including three (3) of their six (6) GWG.

4) Calgary Flames - 15 points in 11 games; 43 goals scored. The Flames may be the poster children of secondary scoring this season. Twenty Two (22) of their 43 goals (51.2%), a total of seventeen (17) different Flames have scored goals so far this season. Leading the secondary scoring parade is defenseman Dion Phaneuf with five goals so far this season. Five (5) of Calgary's six (6) GWG to date have come from other than top six forwards as well.

5) San Jose Sharks - 15 points in 12 games; 42 goals scored (doesn't include numbers from last night's late game with the Kings). Fourteen (14) of their 42 goals (33.33%) scored so far this season have been the result of secondary scoring. Two (2) of seven (7) GWG have been from secondary scorers.

So while I've been asking how many other leading teams have at least 10 goals from secondary scoring so far this season, the answer is - 10 of them. That said the Caps 10 goals from secondary scoring while fewer than any of those other 11 teams except the New Jersey Devils, it is basically a respectable absolute number since the range is 8 (the Devils) to 23 (Pittsburgh). However only five teams have 15 or more goals as a result of secondary scoring: Pittsburgh, Calgary, the Rangers, Colorado, and Ottawa. Some of the reason for the Caps being somewhat off the pace (24% vs 33%) on secondary scoring so far this season may well be the fact they really haven't had a big need for it so far this season, though it would be nice to know if they needed it, it was there. There's really no reason it should be off since the current Caps lineup has more then enough firepower both on the third and fourth lines as well as on the blueline, this season.

Now on to Atlanta ...

LETS GO CAPS!!!

I Believed You Jose

noreply@blogger.com (Usually Frustrated Caps Fan) — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 17:19:00 +0000

The quote of the night last night after the Caps 4 - 2 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers came from Jose Theodore who stopped 41 of 43 shots on goal, including all 20 he faced in the third period. Theodore told the media:

"I said during training camp that this is the best I've felt since the lockout, and sooner or later people are going to realize that I wasn't just saying that for fun."

As regular readers of this blog will attest I've always been happy that the Capitals choose to sign Theodore as a Free Agent in 2008 and I've always been rooting for him. As I watched last night's game from my seat in Section 103 I couldn't help but think how underrated and over-critiqued I feel both Theodore and Flyers goaltender Ray Emery are at this juncture of their careers. Both had early successes and then a series of let downs. Yet this season both seem to be on track and recovering their flair and getting solid results from their intensity. Last night to be sure Jose Theodore out dueled Ray Emery, hands down. However, Emery isn't the reason the Flyers lost, in fact the Flyers did not loose the game. Flyers fans and bloggers in fact have been quoted as saying they feel their team won 55 of the 60 minutes. To be sure it didn't look that way from my seat. The first period ended in a tie game 0-0; I didn't feel either team overwhelmed or won that period by any significan margin. The second period - the Flyers won the first 15 minutes of it 2-0 then the Caps won the last 5 minutes 2-0 as well causing the game to be knotted 2-2 at the end of two. So using Buffalo scoring at the end of two period the game is still tied after two periods.

The third period the Caps scored two goals, the Flyers 0, the Caps sure weren't outplayed by much in that period, yes they were outshot 20 - 10, but given the Caps went up by a score 3-2 at the 5:24 mark of the period, and the Caps took two penalties to the Flyers 0 in the period, is that all too surprising? No doubt about it, Jose Theodore was "lights out" all night long so if you want to conclude that Theo stole a game from the Flyers I'd be hard pressed to argu. However, the Caps also had 36 SOG for the night, so it's not like the Flyers shut the Capitals offense down all night, or even 55 minutes of it, IMO.

This was a well played game by both teams. On the defensive side of the ice Theodore had a 0.953 SV% while the Capitals had 20 blocked shots, 7 takeaways and 24 hits. Emery posted a 0.914 SV% while the Flyers had 13 blocked shots, 4 takeaways and 19 hits. In the Faceoff Circle, the Caps won 59% of the 69 draws. So even discounting the Capitals stats by some percentage for some sort of home team bias, the Capitals sure seem to have played a lot more of last night's game to better than a draw for more than 5 minutes of it. However, if you are predisposed to decide that Jose Theodore stole the game from the Flyers for the Capitals, as I said I'm more than fine with that, he deserved the game's first star of the night, and I actually like the idea of knowing he still has the ability to do that (steal a game). I've been intimating it for some time now, and I definitely felt that last night I got to see the guy who won the Hart, Vezina, and Crozier Trophies in 2001 - 2002 play at his highest level. Like I said last night Theodore was "lights out'. Yes I know the Flyers hit the post three times, but good goaltenders have a way of making good forwards do that, the fact that the Flyers had 43 SOG, 20 attempts blocked and 19 misses while Theodore allowed only 2 goals against ought to tell you just how good he was last night. From 2000 through 2004 Theodore averaged 62+ games played per season and had a combined SV% of 0.924 for those 4 seasons - my point - when he's in the zone, fit and healthy, he's capable of being a real workhorse AND he's scary good! A few more games like last night and I'm thinking I won't be the only guy in the "blogsphere" who is a big fan of his and a believer.

LETS GO CAPS!!!!!

Sometimes, Though Not Always Patience Is Rewarded: Caps 4 - Flyers 2

noreply@blogger.com (Usually Frustrated Caps Fan) — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 05:16:00 +0000

The answer is in - the Caps can raise their level of play as much to meet the level of an opposing team as they can lower it. Tonight at Verizon Center an excellent game of ice hockey was played by both the Philadelphia Flyers and the Washington Capitals. At the end of the game the scoreboard read Capitals 4 - Flyers 2 - in short a two point night for the boys in red and a no point night for their opponents.

However, some folks are this joint are still not happy common complaints include:

a) no secondary scoring;

b) allowed the Flyers too many shots on goal;

c) didn't smile when they pirouetted during the swimsuit portion of the competition;

d) didn't score on the 5 on 3 even though Flyers Goaltender Ray Emery clearly was rooting for them [NOT];

e) and the list could go on.

To all those concerns I say - nothing wrong with Coach Boudreau and these highly paid professional athletes striving for perfection but we fans should step back and enjoy the game and the victory just a tad don't you think?

The following Washinton Capitals had really good nights:

1) Jose Theodore - stopped 41 of 43 Flyers Shots on Goal including 20 in the third period.

2) the SOB (Semin-Ovechkin-Backstrom) line was super with a combined 4 goals and 9 points.

3) Mike Gren and Shoane Morrison had good nights as well.

4) Tom Poti has had bettter games but his 5 blocked shots tied Mike Green for tonight's team lead.

The three stars of the game were: 1) Jose Theodore; 2) Nicklas Backstom (goal, 3 assists, and a + 3 on the night); 3) Alexander Ovechkin (2 goals, + 3 on the night) - Honorable Mention: Alexander Semin (1 goal, 2 assists, +3 on the night).

Next up - the Thrashers in Atlanta on Thursday evening.

The Waiting ...That's...the Hardest Part....

noreply@blogger.com (Usually Frustrated Caps Fan) — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 20:38:00 +0000

The following quote is attributed to former Philadelphia Flyers Coaching legend Fred Shero:

"We know that hockey is where we live, where we can best meet and overcome pain and wrong and death. Life is just a place where we spend time between games."

Tonight after waiting a couple of days we, Caps fans, get to see if our favorite hockey team is as capable of "playing up" to the level of their opponents as some folks have recently accused them of playing down to other opponent's levels. Tonight, the Caps faceoff against the Philadelphia Flyers at Verizon Center for the second of four 2009-2010 regular season contests. The first meeting was a high flying affair (no pun intended - well maybe a small pun but that's a horse of a different color.) Back just three weeks ago the Flyers handed the Caps an overtime loss that started a 4 game loosing streak, now the Caps meet again and they are going for their fifth win in a row and on the longest current winning streak in the league (not that that is all that special right now given it's only four games).

However, right now when the two teams meet the Caps have two things they need to fix to ensure they win number five tonight at Verizon - a) the Power Play - the Caps need to get their power play unit on track, on track means from this point forward scoring around 25% of the time they are on the man advantage; the other thing the Caps need to do is b) shut down and frustrate the Flyers offense, draw not take penalties. Of course all the other stuff that is currently working right for the Capitals needs to continue to do so.

Anyway two more hours till the focus of life, per Fred Shero, resumes at Verizon Center - I'll be Rockin' the Red over in Section 103 ... how about y'all?

LETS GO CAPS!!!!!

Wow - Caps Are One of 5 Teams Off To a 0.700 or Better Start ...

noreply@blogger.com (Usually Frustrated Caps Fan) — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 02:00:00 +0000

Wow - The Caps Are One of Only 5 Teams Off To a 0.700 or Better Start ...
Why Don't Things Feel Better?

As of the completion of tonight's games there are only 5 teams in the league playing 0.700 hockey or better - the Washington Capitals with 14 points in 10 games just clear that bar. The other teams who are 0.700 or better are: the Pittsburgh Penguins and Colorado Avalanche each of whom have 18 points in 11 games (0.818); the Buffalo Sabres with 13 points in 8 games (0.813); and the Calgary Flames with 15 points in 10 games (0.750).

The Capitals current winning streak at four (4) games is also the longest in process streak in the league today. So why don't all of us fans feel more relaxed and confident? Well ... because. Because the team hasn't been winning the way we all thought they'd be winning. The last two wins weren't pretty wins. Of course maybe we're all starting to expect too much. Look at the October schedule...thirteen (13) games, seven home games, six away games, one night of back to backs; eight of thirteen games against 2009 playoff teams. So lets look at things in perspective. To get to 100 points in a season a team has to play 0.609 hockey, the Capitals have been playing 9.1% better than that so far this season and they've done it while playing seven (7) of their ten (10) games thus far against playoff teams. Their record against playoff teams so far this season is 3-2-2 (0.572); against the three non-playoff teams they've faced so far this season and from a record perspective the Caps are a perfect 3-0-0. As far as being competitive against playoff teams, 0.572 isn't too shabby, play that way against those foes come April 2010 and you'll win your fair share seven game of playoff series.

So while it's true that the Caps haven't really blown out the lesser opponents they've faced so far they have won two of those three games in regulation, and in two of the three games, the Caps went out fast and held on. Against the ever pesky (at least for the Capitals) Islanders, the Caps came back from two goals down and pulled out an OT win. Losses against last season playoff teams were generally tight games as well. The Caps lost in OT against the Flyers in Philly - a game where the Caps took 9 minor penalties to the Flyers 6 - including six penalties to the Flyers one during the second period. The Capitals lost to Henrik Lundqvist and the New York Rangers 4-3 (a one goal game) at Verizon Center on 10/8, then traveled to Detroit and lost 3-2 to the Red Wings at the Joe on 10/10. The Caps returned home and battled the Martin Brodeur and the New Jersey Devils to a 3-2 shoot out loss at Verizon Center on 10/12. Since then the Caps have had some less then "beautiful" wins but they've been a perfect 4-0-0 including taking down the San Jose Sharks 4-1.

So yes it's a long season, but so far, after sputtering a little out of the gate during the second week of this month, the Caps have gotten things back on track. The Caps host the Flyers on Tuesday night, the Flyers lost tonight to the Sharks 4-1 in Philly. Yes, those same San Jose Sharks who lost to the Caps 4-1 on the first game of a two week East Coast road trip, beat the Flyers 4-1 on the last game of that same road trip. Now the Flyers are 5-3-1 and off to a reasonably good start to the season themselves, though they are just 2-3-1 since they beat the Caps in OT at home two weeks ago. With a little luck Alexander Semin will be healthy and back in the lineup so there's even more firepower in the lineup and to spark the power play unit. Also with a little "luck," if the Caps are in need of some grit, they'll find it in abundance in the lineup starting with summer free agent pickup Mike Knuble looking to make his mark on his former team. One thing for sure, as always it'll be a good game. And, with a little luck the Caps will win it in regulation and everyone else will come to the realization I'm coming to, which is this team isn't going to win every game they win to what will likely be their highest point total ever, with pretty wins. They'll capture a few more two point nights with ugly wins to, but shortly thereafter, when you look at the standings they'll still be in the W column and good for two points.

LETS GO CAPS!!!!

Another Not Very Pretty Two Point Night for The Capitals ...

noreply@blogger.com (Usually Frustrated Caps Fan) — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 02:58:00 +0000

The Capitals escaped from the Nassau County Veterans Coliseum tonight with two points. To be fair it wasn't too ugly a game but it wasn't pretty either - kinda like the picture i posted in it's honor. There were only three things that made the game a little ugly for the Capitals:

1) Faceoffs - the Capitals only won 30% of the faceoffs and there were a lot of them - 66 to be exact with the Capitals winning 20 and loosing 46 for the evening.

2) The powerplay was again toothless going 0-4 and once again gave up a short handed goal, a goal which for a long portion of the evening looked like it would be enough to get the Islanders their first regulation win of the season.

3) The Capitals were out played a lot of the time during the game, thankfully Jose Theodore, was solid in his return to the lineup.

During the first period the Caps were out shot by the Islanders 10 - 5; though the Caps did out shoot the Isles 10-4 in the second period, it sure didn't feel that way and at the second intermission the Islanders were still leading 1-0 on Radek Marinek's first period shorthanded tally. The the Islanders went up 2-0 on a nice tip-in by Jeff Tambellini at 3:44 of the third period, after the Islanders started the third period with an energy level that seemed to be directed at dispelling their own third period let down demons this season.

The reason I say the game wasn't very pretty vice being an "ugly" win is that the Caps, though clearly oft frustrated by the defensive style of play the Islanders played tonight, played their own disciplined game and stuck to the game plan. Ultimately things started to come into focus for the Capitals. First at the 6:02 mark Mike Green scored his second goal of the season - it was a nice slap shot and a goal scorer's goal. Then at the 13:08 mark an unlikely line combo and trio combined to tie the game at 2-2 when Kieth Aucoin scored his first goal of the season on a wrap around off an Islanders' skate assisted by Alexander Ovechkin and Jeff Schultz. The game picked up considerably and both teams had a couple more chances however the goaltenders - Jose Theodre and Dwayne Roloson rose to the occassion to ensure that each team came away from the game with at least a point. Then in overtime Brooks Laich got a tip in goal off a beautiful setup from Mike Green and Shoane Morrisonn. So lots to work on given the Islanders are currently 27th in the league overall standings. But, hey what's new - the Caps go to Uniondale and need Overtime to get two points, that was the story last year as well.

Also not sure if it's just my mood tonight or what but am I the only guy around who hates listening to Locker and Kokin call a game - like tonight when they talked about everything but the game which was in play for long periods of time during the second period....Oh and big news from HNIC (Hockey Night In Canada) surprisingly Don Cherry once again called out Alexander Ovechkin - since I haven't said it lately - I think Cherry is a joke and schmuck.

Next up the Flyers, Tuesday evening at Verizon Center. To be sure the Capitals will have to raise their level of play from where it's been the past couple of games. However, the Caps are now 6-2-2 since the season opener and have won their last 4 games. That's 0.700 hockey to start the season, and with a little luck Tuesday evening will see Alexander Semin's return to the lineup, and it seems that Mike Green is finding his game, and we're starting to see at least a little secondary scoring. Now if they can just settle down in the faceoff circle and get their power play at least halfway back on track, we'll be ready for the Flyers. The Flyers beat the Panthers 5-1 in Philly tonight and there will be some controversy surrounding the Mike Richards hit on David Booth from that game; they also face the San Jose Sharks tomorrow evening at home before having a day off between that game and coming to DC to take the Caps on at Verizon Center.

One last thing to note since I recently mused on the Jose Theodore vs. Christobel Huet discussion that dates back to the summer of 2008 - Huet blanked the Nashville Predators tonight at Chicago's United Center for his first shutout of the season. Chicago fans got their first real display of why Caps fans fell in love with him and why the Blackhawks are paying him $5.625M this year. He was pretty spectacular a couple of times during the third period which I watched on NHL Center Ice.

Well until the next time I get the urge to muse...

LETS GO CAPS!!!

Update Decision 2008 Results Tracking: Theodore vs. Huet 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Usually Frustrated Caps Fan) — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 16:33:00 +0000

I've admitted it before I'm a guy who won't let some things go ... But like I've said, when I as part of a fan base, indeed a city's metropolitan area embrace a guy and he spurns us when our team, yes I'm a little bitter. I understand that in the end Christobel Huet ended up with basically $11 million reasons to make the decision he did, so I don't really have any bitterness towards him on a personal level. I mean it's not the Jaromir Jagr thing where the Caps had to pay him to play for the Blueshirts. No at this juncture, I really bring this subject up regularly because there seem to be people here in the DC fan base who still haven't "cottoned" to Theo. I on the other hand have liked and been rooting for him since he arrived. For two reasons I think he's a good player and I think the deal made for him was the absolute right one given the decision confronting Dick Patrick, GMGM, BB and the rest of the Capitals Hockey Operations staff at the time. So I track the results and play of both players since the deal. I've been thinking of adding tracking of Nickolai Khabibulin's performance this season to this whole set of data but since I'm trying to not make this a personal thing, I decided that would just be rubbing it in to Chicago fans. [Khabibulin is in the first year of a 4 year $3.75M/year deal at Edmonton after being basically let go by the Blackhawks in favor of Huet who is now in year 2 of a 4 year $5.625M/year deal in Chicago, last off season.] In any case since some of the Caps fan base continues to wonder if we made the right choice; I continue feel a need to present the facts at hand, and ensure the record on the matter is straight.

Through the first 9 games of the season:

Capitals & Theodore:
Team Record: 5-2-2; GF: 34; GA: 28 (+6)
Jose Theodore's Numbers: GP:6, Record: 1-2-2, 13 GA; GAA: 2.67, SV% 0.910
Salary & Cap Hit 2009-2010:
Next Season: UFA
Theo's Career NHL Regular Season Numbers: 507 GP; GAA: 2.67, SV% 0.908

Blackhawks & Huet:
Team Record: 5-3-1; GF: 31; GA: 26 (+7)
Christobel Huet's Numbers: GP: 6, Record: 2-2-1, 17 GA; GAA: 3.25, SV% 0.844
Salary & Cap Hit 2009-2010: $5.625M
Next Season: $5.625M 2010-2011; $5.625M 2011-2012
Huet's Career NHL Regular Season Numbers: 230 GP; GAA: 2.47, SV% 0.914.

So as relatively quiet as Theo's season start has been the numbers still point to the fact the Caps made the right choice summer before last. Theo, though out for a couple of games with injury and a solid but unspectacular record to date this season, is playing on par with his career numbers and on par or better then the numbers he put up the season before the Caps signed him to his $4.5M/year deal as a free agent. My feeling is the basis for deciding a player was worth the salary you offered them in free agency being three things: 1) their career historical performance; 2) their performance the prior season or two, and 3) the size of the available free agent pool at their position that particular off-season and the comparative numbers of the others in the pool. So I feel that when you look at Theo's or Huet's current performance vs. Salary and Cap hit it's fair to look at those things. Comparatively, Huet at $5.65M per year through 2011-2012 is looking like a worse and worse deal for the Blackhawks. so far this season Huet is playing significantly below his career GAA and SV% numbers, as well as his numbers during 2006-2007 in Montreal and 2007-2008 in Montreal and Washington. Apparently lots of folks around the Blackhawks agree as there is a growing "goalie controversy" there while there seems to be a subsiding one here in DC.

Just my thoughts on the subject - apparently we'll have an additional data point of sort on both these guys after tonight's games though.

I'm not rooting for or against Christobel Huet, unless he's facing off against the Capitals or a couple other teams from around the league I adopt now and then; I am rooting for Jose Theodore to be sure, though...

THE - O! ... THE - O!! ... THE - O!!! [Just Rockin' Some More Red]

LETS GO CAPS!!

A Quick Look At The Caps Scoring Machine As We All Get Ready For the Islanders Tonight...

noreply@blogger.com (Usually Frustrated Caps Fan) — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 13:03:00 +0000

Tonight the Caps take on the NY Islanders in Uniondale, NY. The Caps can't take things likely and it would really be "good" if they play all sixty (60) minutes tonight. True, on Thursday night the Caps left Atlanta with two points and gave the Thrashers none, and a win is a win... However, there were several areas where I'd bet everyone would like to see the Caps improve on things tonight. I suspect Jose Theodore will get the nod in goal for his first game back after being out injured. Whether Alexander Semin and/or Boyd Gordon return to the line-up remains to be seen as well. It's also unlikely the Isles will shut down either the Caps first line, Alexander Ovechkin, or the Caps power play unit if they give the Caps seven chances. However, the Caps will need to stay on their toes when they are on the man-advantage as the Isles have been known to score a "shorty" every now and then. To be sure, I don't think the Isles are as weak a team as their current record would otherwise suggest. Also, in today's NHL, even the worst team having a very good night can beat the best team having an off night. It probably would have been worth a ride up to NY to catch the game as looking at the attendance figures for the Isles first four home games so far this season, it looks like what the Caps used to get 4 years ago and good seats are probably still available and it's only a five hour drive. A solid contingent of loud Caps fans at the game might help keep the team focused and in the game all three periods - something that seemed to be an issue during the third period in Atlanta.

In light of Thursday's game in Atlanta, a lot of discussion about secondary scoring is being had by Caps fans and around the Caps "blogsphere". Secondary scoring has many definitions and the general consensus focus in the blogsphere is scoring by other than a team's top six forwards. I look at things a little differently - first I look at goals, not points; second I look at overall offensive strength - does a team have enough weapons so if an opponent focuses on shutting down a star or two a team still has enough weapons to really hurt them and still win. On both counts I respectfully submit, the Caps have not had a problem or issue at all this season. Thursday's game just proved that beyond a doubt.

Looking at the Capitals' "goal scoring machine" this is what you see:
1) Alexander Ovechkin on pace for an 82 goal season
2) Alexander Semin on pace for a 54 goal season
3) Brooks Laich on pace for 27 goals
4) Brendan Morrison on pace for 27 goals
5) Matt Bradley on pace for 27 goals
6) Mike Knuble on pace for 18+ goals but likely to get 20+
7) Nicklas Backstrom also 18+ goals but likely to get 20+

Five other players have also scored including Mike Green somewhat off his pace from last season but looking more and more ready to break out, as is Eric Fehr who after getting a late start to this season has looked great the past two games. The fact is that when teams other than the absolute elite like Pittsburgh or Detroit focus too much energy at shutting down the Caps first line, there are lots of guys on the roster capable of putting the "biscuit in the basket" with a goal scorers touch and with Knuble, Laich, Fehr and team Captain Chris Clark all exuberantly crashing the net there are at least four guys who don't mind putting up numbers by "taking out the garbage." Also we still haven't seen if this will be the year that Tomas Fleischmann breaks the 20 goal mark after he returns to the line-up, but he sure got close last season. Assuming Green also flirts with at least 20 goals that means the Capitals could easily have 8 - 10 guys with 20 plus goals this season. They were also on that same sort of pace on Thursday morning - scoring, especially the "lack of secondary scoring" isn't any sort of Achilles' Heel for the Caps. The thing that gets me excited is when they play as well as they can, they shut down opponents, to me the Achilles' Heel is they don't do that consistently.

Well I won't be driving up to Long Island later this morning - tempting as it may be. I'll be watching from my perch in the den here in scenic Bristow, VA...

LETS GO CAPS!!!

Wow Pittsburgh, Colorado, the Rangers, and Phoenix ...

noreply@blogger.com (Usually Frustrated Caps Fan) — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 04:56:00 +0000

Pittsburgh, Colorado, the Rangers, Phoenix and Edmonton - those are the teams that are playing 0.700 or better hockey at the start of this new season. Those will be the teams the Caps will join company with should they stay focused and leave Nassau Coliseum with two points...

Pittsburgh is playing 0.900 hockey after coming back and getting a SO victory over the Panthers last night.

The Avalanche held on for a 5-4 win over Carolina and took their record to 7-1-2.

The Rangers and Coyotes were idle tonight. The Rangers are 7-3-0 while Phoenix has come out of nowhere to start the season 6-2-0. Edmonton is 6-2-1.

To be sure it's early and the season is just barely 10% complete, however Pittsburgh already has a 4 point lead in their division race over the otherwise top-tier NY Rangers. While out west the Conference leading Avalanche are three points ahead of the division rival Oilers, though Edmonton has a game in hand. In the Southeast division the Capitals have three points on the second place Atlanta Thrashers though the Thrashers have two games in hand. The division standings and races in the Northeast, Central, and Pacific division are all tight. In the Pacific the Los Angeles Kings are tied with the Coyotes with 12 points, though Phoenix has two games in hand. In the Central Division the Columbus Blue Jackets are just one point "in back of" the Chicago Blackhawks, though Columbus has a game in hand. In the Northeast Division Ottawa is tied with Buffalo - each have 11 points, though Buffalo has a game in hand.

Yes to be sure we are only just barely in to the first Chapter of this season, but already some interesting stories are developing. Who of the surprises are in the playoffs and who of the unexpected under-performers are not still on the ice playing in late April clearly remains to be seen. But if things keep going the way they have been, every one of us Hockey fans will be on a pretty wild ride until then.

Now about those Islanders -

LETS GO CAPS!!!!

How Can You Help But Root For Things To Work Out For This Guy?

noreply@blogger.com (Usually Frustrated Caps Fan) — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 17:43:00 +0000

The latest main stream media news re: Michael Nylander from the Grand Rapids Press is found at this link. Hey, I'm a Caps fan and one of the first guys to point out that he doesn't fit in the Caps System these days. I'll also point out that if GMGM offered him the contract he has now tomorrow I'd be really, really disappointed. But I've always pointed out that I think at the time Michael Nylander was brought to DC, I don't think either of those things were even close to true.

Finally, even though I have mentioned this before, I can't help but do it again. If you check out the article and his quotes, you absolutely have to be impressed with the guy's class and demeanor. A total pro, and a nice guy, you have to be rooting for things to work out for him. This is an awkward situation for sure but so far both sides have been pretty classy and things haven't gotten unprofessional or snarky as oft seems to happen.

Hopefully, there is light at the end of this tunnel and it works out for all concerned.

Caps 5 - Thrashers 4 Despite Sub-optimal Special Teams Play

noreply@blogger.com (Usually Frustrated Caps Fan) — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 01:52:00 +0000

A two point night, and the Caps remain firmly in first place in the Southeast Division.

The Good:

1) Two Points & Three Points Up On the Thrashers

2) Secondary Scoring All Around By The Caps

3) Jeff Schultz 3 points - 1 goal, 2 assists, +3 and 2 hits - who is this guy?

4) Shoane Morrison a game time decision - +1, 2 takeaways, 16:00 TOI

5) Apparently No One Got Hurt

The Bad:

1) Seven power play chances = zero goals scored, one goal yielded.

2) Took eight (8) minor penalties and yielded two (2) power play goals.

3) Yielded a couple of softies.

4) Barely out shot the Thrashers.

The Weirdest:

*** Jeff Schultz' goal, nice assist, Varly***

The Best:

****Survived, Got Two Points**** Bringing overall record to equal to playing 0.667 hockey...

Next up: The New York Islanders at Nassau County Veterans Coliseum in Uniondale, NY on Saturday Evening.

LETS GO CAPS!!!!

How, After A Four Day Layoff, and Only the 9th Game Are The Caps the Walking Wounded?

noreply@blogger.com (Usually Frustrated Caps Fan) — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 02:21:00 +0000

How, After A Four Day Layoff, and Only the 9th Game Are The Caps the Walking Wounded?

As we look ahead to tomorrow night's game that has to be the question. Also before anyone dismisses the Thrashers look closer at the second place team in the Southeast Division - they are playing 0.750 hockey through their first 6 games this season, are just one point back of the Caps and will take a one point lead in the division if they manage to get a victory in regulation over the visiting Capitals. The Atlanta team web site bills Thursday's game as "Kovalchuk vs. Ovechkin" but the game is of course a bigger contest than the match up between the two team's scoring aces. The Thrashers have started hot, and now have 21 goals for and just 15 against in 6 games; that's an average of 3.5 GF and 2.5 GA a differential of +1.00; the Caps have 29 GF and 24 GA in 8 games - 3.625 GF and 3.0 GA and a differential of 0.625. Of the Thrashers first six games though only one has been against a 2009 playoff team; while seven of the Capitals first eight contests have been against 2009 playoff teams so what happens in this first contest between these two division rivals remains to be seen. This is not however the same Atlanta team that took to the ice last season and if the Thrashers goaltending holds up, they will continue to do well.

I've pointed this out before and I'll say it again, last season the Caps ran hot or cold against the Thrashers going 4-2-0, but the two losses were pretty embarrassing outings and occurred when the Caps traveled to Atlanta. Atlanta is 2-1-0 so far this season. The key for the Caps will be to play solid, smart hockey and throw rubber at the Thrashers netminder, on target, get shots through, and not let the Thrashers guns loose or make it easy for them to break out of their zone. If they do that this will be a two point night for the Caps. Eleven (11) of the Thrashers twenty-one goals have come off the sticks of Ilya Kovalchuk (7) and Rich Peverly (4) - that's 52.4% of their overall production. While the Caps are similarly lopsided in their production with 15 of their 29 goals (51.7%) of their offense coming off the sticks of two players Ovechkin and Semin, and Semin is a doubtful for tonight's game, the presence on five other multi-goal scorers for the Caps versus one (Evander Kane) for Atlanta gives an edge to the Capitals for roster depth. it also means that the Washington game plan can be relatively straight-forward in spite of the fact that Atlanta coach John Anderson has the last change, it shouldn't be too hard for Caps coach Bruce Boudreau to get the matchups he wants as well as keep some separation between the tow teams aces if that's what he wants to do. However, the Thrashers are hot and that's also why as they say, they play the game on the ice - you just never know. The other thing the Caps need to do is "come out swinging" so to speak - playing aggressive, heads up hockey, drawing penalties not taking them, etc.

Predictions and prognostications politely refused today because of the injury report. However I will say this - I want our guys to have a two point night and:

LETS GO CAPS!!!!