Caps vs. Ning 1-31-2010 Post-Mortem

How's it going to end???  Onto the Battle Damage Assessment...

THE GOOD:

• While the game winning goal came from distance, the first two Caps goals tonight were a result of crashing the crease.  No longer can you say that the Caps aren't willing to pay the price.
• Want a contrast in team Captains?  Captain A.O. kept at it today despite having 11 of his 19 shot attempts blocked.  His persistence paid off as he netted the Game Winning Goal to keep the team's winning streak going.  Ning Captain Vincent Lecavalier on the other hand was -1, registered no points, and had a temper tantrum with just under 3 seconds left that cost his team any chance to eke out a point.
• Tyler Sloan got his first action in ten days and from where we sat, he didn't waste the opportunity and registered a +1.  He's a marginal NHL player but somebody who is capable of filling from time-to-time and did great job of doing just that tonight.

THE BAD:

• For good stretches of the second period, the Caps had Ning goaltender Mike Smith spinning like a top in his crease.  However this high-octane Caps offense could only get two goals.  Is the finishing touch starting to go?
• John "Coach's Pet" Erskine Bowles and Tom Poti were both on the ice for both goals scored by the Ning.  The Coach's Pet was a -1, Poti however was on the ice for the Game-Winning-Goal which made him even.
• One last thought on the Coach's Pet, he had five shots on goal and four attempts blocked, the second highest total in both categories behind Captain A.O.  That's straight out of the Whiskey Tango Foxtrot File.

THE UGLY:

• Bruce Boudreau may think the world of one Tomas Fleischmann but Boudreau is no fool.  Fleischmann didn't tie up his man in the slot and Martin St. Louis got the Ning on the scoreboard in the third period.  Then wile killing a penalty soon after that, Fleischmann had a prime chance to get a needed clear but dawdled with the puck.  His dawdling caused him to turn it over to Lecavalier and Fleischmann compounded the turnover by taking a hooking penalty.  It was on his penalty that the Ning scored to tie the game up at 2 in the third period.  We mention Boudreau not being a fool because Fleischmann took only two more shifts after his penalty and was benched for the final five minutes of the game.  Fleischmann's penalty BTW is the John "Coach's Pet" Erskine Bowles Bonehead Play of the Game.
• Oh yeah, blowing a 2-0 lead at home in the third period is not how you go about extending a winning streak.
• And do we want to know how or why Slapshot now has a son???

After the Ning tied up the game with just over 12 minutes to go, we sensed a bit of panic in the crowd.   Luckily there was no panic amongst the Caps.  They simply continued to work which is why they won.  No, it wasn't pretty and yes the Caps got away with some things tonight that usually burn teams.  But that's what happens when you're on a streak like this.  As long as the Caps continue to work throughout the game, they'll continue to pile up many more wins than losses.

It has been... A TWO POINT DAY!!!

Caps vs. Ning 1-31-2010 Preview

Washington Capitals (36-18; 78 points; 1st Southeast Division, 1st Eastern Conference, 3rd Overall) vs. Tampa Bay Lightning (22-31; 58 points; 4th Southeast Division, 12th Eastern Conference, 25th Overall):
Caps Game #55, Home Game #27, NHL Game #818

Caps "Magic Numbers" (Caps Points Earned+Lost by team named) to clinch:
Playoff Spot: 34 Atlanta
Southeast Division Championship: 35 Tampa Bay
Eastern Conference #1 Seed: 52 New Jersey
President's Trophy: 57 San Jose

Verizon Center, Washington, D.C., 3:07 pm. Washington TV: Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic. Radio: WFED 1500-AM. Tampa TV: Sunshine Network. Radio: WDAE 620-AM.  NHL Center Ice: Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic feed.

Today the Caps look to make it a perfect 10 when they face the last team to beat them before this nine game winning streak started, the Tampa Bay Lightning.  This is only the third of six meetings between the two teams this year and the first of three in D.C.  The Ning are coming off Friday night's 2-1 gimmick loss at home to the Anaheim Ducks.  The gimmick loss snapped a three game winning streak for the Ning.  However the Ning have lost four of their last six games on the road.

What The Natives Are Saying:

(Com)Post.  Caps.com.

Neutral Views:

NHL.com.  AP Wire.

Open Source Intelligence:

St. Petersburg Times: goalie shuffle, sale closing, notes, preview.  Tampa Tribune: ready to rumble, trade barrier.  Ning.com.


What Do We Expect Today?:

The first time these two teams met, Semyon "The Saviour" Varlamov" pitched a shutout on December 7th and hasn't been seen since.  The last time the Caps played the Ning it was the last time the Caps lost a game.  So what will the Caps leave behind after today's game?  But the more serious question is how will the Caps Power Play do without it's quarterback in Mike "BEAM ME UP" Green?  Tyler Sloan is expected to return to the lineup but won't be skating on the Power Play.  Bruce Boudreau has used Brendan Morrrissonn on the point before but that will give us five forwards on the ice which is a dangerous situation against a team that has attacked on the Penalty Kill in the past.  However the Ning have just one shorthanded goal this season and their road penalty killing is almost as bad as the Caps is.  Finally, in the 7-4 loss 19 days ago, the Caps allowed four Power Play goals.  If the Caps want to come away with a win today, they'll have to keep that from happening again.

Caps Nut Official Prediction:

Caps 4
Ning 3
Winner by Captain A.O.
(27-27 on the season with one perfect game) 

The Joke That Is The NHL

The NHL has made many different attempts to crackdown on various things.  First there was players in the goal crease.  The most famous one has been the obstruction fouls.  Currently the NHL is on a head hunting crusade, going after players who deliver blows to the head of their opponents.

So when Mike "BEAM ME UP" Green was clobbered from behind by David Koci , 43 fighting majors in his career, in Colorado back in December we had sufficient reason to believe that a suspension would be handed down.  After all, Green has only one fight in his NHL career and that came in the playoffs two years ago.  Koci is a known thug and was hit with a 5 minute major for boarding and ejected from the game for his hit.  Green left the game after the hit (after missing 11 of the previous 12 games with a shoulder injuries) and did not return.

However, the ejection in the second period and a fine was deemed all that was necessary by the NHL for David Koci.

Now last night Green was once again, and as has been the case for most of the season, getting run at by various members of the Florida Panthers.  Green in an attempt to stand up for himself stepped up on Michael Frolik at the Caps blueline with his elbow and is hit with a three game suspension.  Green was penalized on the play.  He received a two minute minor for elbowing and Frolik didn't miss a shift of require medical attention.  Green later tried to jump out of the way of a hit from Dmitry Kulikov and ended up leaving last night's game with a charley horse.  Kulikov, unlike some other NHL players who ended up injuring players who tried to jump out of the way of their hits, is not expected to have his hit reviewed.

Pardon us if we find this both baffling and infuriating.  There's simply no rhyme or reason for this disparity.  Last year in the playoffs Donald Brashear got hit with a six game suspension, five of them for a clean hit that did not draw a penalty during the run of play.  But Scott Walker of the Carolina Hurricanes flat out sucker punched Aaron Ward, then of the Boston Bruins, and no "supplemental discipline" was found necessary by the NHL.  Furthermore in the above-the-boards Stanley Cup Finals, Evgeni Malkin-Lindros starts a fight with noted Detroit Red Wings thug, Henrik Zetterberg, with 19 seconds left in Game 2, but the NHL announced the rescission of the automatic suspension due Malkin-Lindros before the incident was even one hour old.

We could go on and on and on citing examples of clearly and barely dirty play that received little or no attention from the NHL.  But it is becoming more and more clear to us that the message the NHL is trying to send is that it is open season on the Washington Capitals because what else could it be?  Captain A.O.'s and now Mike Green's suspensions tell us that according to the NHL Front Office that teams can do whatever they want to the Caps.  Dan Carcillo got four games back in December for his nonsense with Matt "Omar" Bradley, but that was Carcillo's second suspension this season.  However Sean Avery threw a sucker punch at Semyon "The Saviour" Varlamov at the end of Game 3 last year and the NHL looked the other way despite proudly proclaiming a crackdown on "message sending" at the end of playoff games.

But as for the Caps, remember, a team that by design has no clear-cut enforcer or regular heavyweight fighter types on the roster and who is tied for the fewest fighting majors in the NHL this season (but four instigator penalties, the last two of them coming when the Caps had a sizable lead late in the game) has one of the dirtiest, most suspension worthy teams in the NHL.

Caps vs. Panthers 1-29-2010 Wrap Up

Caps "Magic Numbers" (Caps Points Earned+Lost by team named) to clinch:
Playoff Spot: 35 Tampa Bay
Southeast Division Championship: 36 Atlanta
Eastern Conference #1 Seed: 52 New Jersey
President's Trophy: 57 San Jose 

The Local Yokels:

(Com)Post.  Examiner.  Caps.com.


The Neutral Observers:

NHL.com.  AP Wire.

The Other Side:

Miami Herald.

Final Thoughts:

54 down, 28 to go.

Caps vs. Panthers 1-29-2010 Post-Mortem

How's it going to end???  Onto the Battle Damage Assessment...

THE GOOD:

• The stellar penalty killing continues with the Caps going 5 for 5 tonight.
• And getting lost in the goal scoring barrage is the sound defense and goaltending.  Tonight the Caps allowed just one goal and have allowed more than two goals only twice in the last 11 home games.  Who says our defense and goaltending are suspect?
• Jeff "Sergeant" Schultz joined the goal scoring binge by netting his second goal of the season and his first in 42 games (October 22nd in Atlanta).  He was also a +1 on the night and should have been given one of the three stars.
• Mike Knuble with two knoals, including the game winner, and an assist.  He's going to be huge as the playoffs come around and has fit in rather nicely.
• Nicklas Backstrom with a goal and two assists tonight.  His steady improvement continues to amaze.

THE BAD:

• No free wings tonight.  The guys are slacking off...

THE UGLY:

• The runs taken at Mike "BEAM ME UP" Green all night.  However, according to TSN, Green could be suspended for his elbowing of Michael Frolik.  Yep, you read that right.  The guy having all kinds of runs taken at him and who got chased out of the game due to a knee on knee hit could be sat down by the league.  And to add insult to injury, the TSN guys don't think that Dmitry Kulikov will face disciplinary action because Kulikov had a knee injury himself earlier this season.  Does anybody still want to maintain that the NHL operates on the level?

Back when we previewed the season we felt that the biggest issue regarding the Caps was maturity.  About a quarter of the way through the season, we felt those questions were still unanswered.  However after watching the Caps on this nine game winning streak, where the Caps haven't always played their best hockey, we're starting to think that those questions about maturity have been answered.  Maybe it really was as simple as putting the "C" on Captain A.O.'s chest.  But good teams find ways to win when things aren't going their best and that's exactly what the Caps are doing right now.  Furthermore, the Caps are showing a killer instinct they've lacked for a number of years.  They aren't just looking to beat teams, they're looking to bury them.  While there's still a lot of hockey left to be played between now and the awarding of the Stanley Cup in June, we're just now starting to see the things we need to see to really believe that the Cup is in our future.

It has been... A TWO POINT NIGHT!!!

Caps vs. Panthers 1-29-2010 Preview

Washington Capitals (35-18; 76 points; 1st Southeast Division, 1st Eastern Conference, 3rd Overall) vs. Florida Panthers (23-30; 55 points; 3rd Southeast Division, 10th Eastern Conference, 23rd Overall):
Caps Game #54, Home Game #26, NHL Game #802

Caps "Magic Numbers" (Caps Points Earned+Lost by team named) to clinch:
Playoff Spot: 38 Atlanta and Tampa Bay
Southeast Division Championship: 38 Atlanta and Tampa Bay
Eastern Conference #1 Seed: 54 New Jersey
President's Trophy: 59 San Jose

Verizon Center, Washington, D.C., 7:07 pm. Washington TV: Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic. Radio: WFED 1500-AM. Florida TV: Fox Sportsnet Florida. Radio: WAXY 790-AM.  NHL Center Ice: Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic and Fox Sportsnet Florida feeds.

Tonight the Caps look for their ninth win in a row when they host the Florida Panthers for the third and final time this season.  This will be the fifth of six games between the two teams this season and the Caps have won all four of the previous meetings including the one 16 days ago in Sunrise in a gimmick to start this nine game winning streak.  The Panthers have clawed themselves into the Eastern Conference playoff picture and are currently in a three-way tie with the Rangers and Canadiens for 8th place.  Florida has won five of their last seven games including two in a row.  In their last outing on Tuesday night, they defeated the Montreal Canadiens 2-1 on home ice.

What The Natives Are Saying:

(Com)Post.  Examiner.  Caps.com.

Neutral Views:

NHL.com.  AP Wire.

Open Source Intelligence:

Miami Herald.

What Do We Expect Tonight?:

Tonight the Caps play the first of three straight games at home and three of their next five games against Southeast Division teams.  Divisional opponents that the Caps currently have an average lead over of only 32 points with the closest one, Atlanta, a meager 20 points back.  So hopefully there won't be any talk from the likes of Tom Poti this time around about "burying" the rest of the division, mostly because it has already been done.  We have a sneaking suspicion that for the Caps to extend their winning streak tonight they're going to continue to need the solid goaltending that they've been receiving so far.  We don't necessarily care who gets the start in goal tonight but the Caps don't want to have to depend upon the offense to bail them out even though the Caps have scored 21 goals against the Panthers in regulation play so far this season.  Because when the offense cools off from it's 5+ goals a game pace is when the streak is going to end.

Caps Nut Official Prediction:

Caps 5
Panthers 2
Winner Knuble
(26-27 on the season with one perfect game)

Caps vs. Ducks 1-27-2010 Wrap Up

The Local Yokels:

(Com)Post.  Examiner.  Caps.com.

The Neutral Observers:

NHL.com.  AP Wire.

The Other Side:

Los Angeles Times.  Orange County Register: shelled, dreams dashed.

Final Thoughts:

The tagline for the 1998 movie The Truman Show was "How is it going to end?"  And that's what we're thinking about the Caps eight game winning streak.  How is it going to end?  We don't want to be a nattering nabob of negativism here but we don't think the Caps are going to put together a 53 game winning streak to finish off the season and playoffs.  Our real concern though is are the Caps peaking too soon?  When the Caps used to get on these kinds of streaks in the 1980's, they needed them to get into playoff contention after a slow start to the season.  That's not the case now as the Caps are making a serious run at the President's Trophy, something never won by this franchise.  We were a little concerned about taking 13 shots on goal before the game was 8 minutes old, 19 in the first period, 35 through two periods, and yet having only one goal to show for it.  Alexander "Slappy" Semin was pulling his old Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde act during the game last night.  Yes he came away with another two goals but there were multiple shifts and instances where he was just a spectator barely gliding around on the ice.  Captain A.O. completely undressed Scott Niedermayer to set up Mike Knuble.  Captain A.O. only needs to average 2 points over the last 29 games to catch Mike Ridley for 6th on the Caps All-Time Scoring list.  Seven more points and he hits 500 for his career.  How does Tom Poti get a four minute minor for roughing?  So much for his Lady Byng candidacy... 

53 down, 29 to go.

Bypassing this one too

As we noted last night, today was a long day at work.  Thoughts tomorrow morning.

Caps @ Islanders 1-26-2010 Wrap Up/ Caps vs. Ducks 1-27-2010 Preview

The Local Yokels:

(Com)Post.  Caps.com.

The Neutral Observers:

NHL.com.  AP Wire.


The Other Side:

New York Daily News.  New York Post.  New York Times.  Newsday (you know you want to be the 36th person to purchase a subscription):  ugly rout, unstoppable.  Islanders.com.

Final Thoughts:

While it won't be stated enough that the Caps ran up these gaudy numbers last night despite the fact that Captain A.O. didn't register a single point, please remember that Alexander "Slappy" Semin is a pretty good player in his own right.  Any talk of the Caps being a one man-show should be dying out just about now.  Finally, how did Boyd Gordon end up a -1 on a night like that?

52 down, 30 to go.


Washington Capitals (34-18; 74 points; 1st Southeast Division, 1st Eastern Conference, 3rd Overall) vs. Anaheim Ducks (24-29; 55 points; 5th Pacific Division, 10th Western Conference, 18th Overall):
Caps Game #53, Home Game #25, NHL Game #788

Caps "Magic Numbers" (Caps Points Earned+Lost by team named) to clinch:
Playoff Spot: 40 Atlanta and Tampa Bay
Southeast Division Championship: 40 Atlanta and Tampa Bay
Eastern Conference #1 Seed: 57 New Jersey
President's Trophy: 62 San Jose

Verizon Center, Washington, D.C., 7:07 pm. Washington TV: Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic. Radio: WFED 1500-AM. Anaheim TV: Fox Sportsnet West. Radio: KLAA 830-AM.  U.S. National TV: NHL Network (Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic feed) NHL Center Ice: None.

Tonight, the Caps look to run their current winning streak to eight games as they host the Anaheim Ducks to start a three game homestand.  This is the first and only meeting between the two teams this year as last year the Caps took a punishing 6-4 win in Anaheim during the only matchup between the teams last year.  The Caps are looking for their first victory over the Ducks at home since November 17th, 2001.  The Ducks themselves are once again lurking around the bottom of the Western Conference Playoffs and seem to be waiting for the hot streak to start to propel them back into them.  However a 2-1 loss last night in Atlanta to start a four game road trip through the Southeast Division does not help that cause.  It was Anaheim's second loss in their last three games with the lone win coming in a gimmick.


What The Natives Are Saying:

Caps.com.

Neutral Views:

NHL.com.  AP Wire.

Open Source Intelligence:

Los Angeles Times: overpowered, up next.  Orange County Register: not quite there, big problem.

What Do We Expect Tonight?:

And you thought last night was ugly?  In spite of the Caps drilling seven goals on the Islanders last night and Anaheim only allowing two to the Thrashers, the Islanders still have given up fewer goals this season than Anaheim.  Ok, so it may not be another route of heinous proportions but we have two teams tonight who both played the night before.  The Caps got a little lazy last night against the Islanders and now have goaltending issues that they didn't have 24 hours ago.  The Ducks were in a close game that was a few fractions of a inch from heading into overtime.  Having the shorter travel distance and the ability to sleep in their own beds should give the Caps an edge tonight and allow them to slowly grind down the Ducks.  But you never know.  Anaheim's Power Play, which has been slipping recently, is the worst in the league on the road and the Caps Penalty Killers for some reason thrive on home ice, ranked 5th overall 87% .  Our biggest concern tonight (besides finding parking with the State of the Union Address scheduled for later tonight) is can the Caps snap back into playing the kind of hockey they need to play?  They were clearly enjoying skating all through an Islanders team that failed to show up but have gotten themselves into trouble when they don't get away from that against teams who are ready to play.

Caps Nut Official Prediction:

Caps 6
Ducks 4
Winner by Semin
(25-27 on the season with one perfect game)

No Need For OT Tonight...

We've got a long day at the office ahead of us tomorrow so we're going to skip the Post-Mortem tonight.

We do want to say that it looked to us that Jose "Alvin, Simon," Theodore came up gingerly after making a save in the first period.  We hope he's not injured because that would certainly ruin a number of plans.  Wrap Up and Anaheim Preview tomorrow morning.

Caps @ Islanders 1-26-2010 Preview

Washington Capitals (33-18; 72 points; 1st Southeast Division, 1st Eastern Conference, 3rd Overall) @ New York Islanders (23-29; 54 points; 5th Atlantic Division, 10th Eastern Conference, 23rd Overall):
Caps Game #52, Road Game #27, NHL Game #779

Caps "Magic Numbers" (Caps Points Earned+Lost by team named) to clinch:
Playoff Spot: 42 Atlanta, Tampa Bay, and New York Islanders
Southeast Division Championship: 42 Atlanta and Tampa Bay
Eastern Conference #1 Seed: 61 New Jersey
President's Trophy: 64 San Jose

Nassau County Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Uniondale, NY, 7:07 pm. Washington TV: Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic Plus. Radio: WFED 1500-AM. New York TV: MSG Plus. Radio: WMCJ 94.3-FM.  NHL Center Ice: MSG Plus and Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic Plus feeds.

Tonight, the Caps start a three games in four night and four games in six days run when they visit the New York Islanders for the final time this season.  The Caps played the Islanders three times in the span of 19 days back in late October-early November with all three games being decided beyond regulation with the Caps running up a 2-1 record.  The Islanders are hanging around the last of the Eastern Conference playoff spots and are currently just one point shy of the New York Rangers and Montreal Canadiens who are tied for 7th place.  The Islanders however have a game in hand on both teams.  New York had a four game winning streak snapped by the Penguin Scum last week and needed the gimmick to get past Florida on Thursday night before falling 4-2 at home to New Jersey on Saturday night in their last game.

What The Natives Are Saying:

(Com)Post.  Examiner.  Caps.com.

Neutral Views:

NHL.com.  AP Wire.

Open Source Intelligence:

New York Post.  Newsday (if you're willing to pay for it).

What Do We Expect Tonight?:

In case you haven't noticed already, we've reached the part of the season where the teams on the edges of the playoff race start picking up their games in order to get into or improve their playoff positioning.  Only two teams so far are out of it in the both the Eastern and Western Conferences.  However teams like the Capitals are still on cruise control for the time being.  The Caps have had problems in the past in taking the teams well below them in the standings too lightly, especially the Islanders.  All three games so far this season have gone beyond regulation time and the last four games the Caps have played on Long Island have been decided overtime.  We happen to think that the Islanders have a very good chance of making it into the playoffs this season.  Islanders goaltender Rick DiPietro is back in the lineup and has already posted a shutout in just four starts so far this season.  That's bad news for the Caps because DiPietro is 9-4 in his career against the Caps and 8-2 since the lockout.  Last week against Detroit, the Red Wings came out guns blazing and the Caps, ok Jose "Alvin, Simon," Theodore, were able to hold them off.  While that win showed that the Caps don't necessarily have to match their opponent's intensity level at this point in the season to earn a win, they would be well served not to let the Islanders get a lead tonight because DiPietro isn't Osgood.  The good news for the Caps is that Islanders special teams aren't very good.  The Caps have been improving on the Penalty Kill but kill just under 74% of the Power Plays on the road, which is the key for the Caps victory tonight, win the special teams battles like they did on Saturday night against Phoenix and they can come away with two points.

Caps Nut Official Prediction:

Caps 3
Islanders 2
Winner by Captain A.O.
(24-27 on the season with one perfect game)

Caps vs. Coyotes 1-23-2010 Wrap Up

The Local Yokels:

(Com)Post.  Examiner.  Caps.com.

The Neutral Observers:

NHL.com AP Wire.

The Other Side:

Coyotes.com.

Final Thoughts:

51 down, 31 to go.

Caps vs. Coyotes 1-23-2010 Post-Mortem

And the trudge continues...  Onto the Battle Damage Assessment...

THE GOOD:

• Michal "Bebe" Neuvrith had a good bounce-back performance in net tonight making his first start in 10 days.
• We just realized that the Caps are now 5th in the NHL in home ice Penalty Killing.  That helps explain the 5 for 5 performance tonight including killing off a 17 second 5 on 3, though some of that credit belongs to the Whats?.
• The Power Play is #1 overall and went 2 for 6 tonight which ended up being the difference in the game as both Power Play goals were scored from in close.
• Alexander "Slappy" Semin had a hand in all four goals tonight scoring one himself and earning the primary assist on the other three.  Let's hope he stays this motivated and healthy.

THE BAD:

• The third line tonight of Brendan Morrrissonn, Eric Fehr, and Jason Chimera were each -2 tonight along with Jeff "Sergeant" Schultz.  They were the ones who forced Mike "BEAM ME UP" Green into some of his ugliest turnovers tonight as they of all lines blew the offensive zone early leaving Green to fend for himself against Phoenix's forecheck.  And when you consider that the third line is usually your checking line, their performance tonight is unacceptable.
• While the Power Play was working at a 33% clip tonight, it gave up 6 shots on goal against.

THE UGLY:

• We mentioned Sarge's -2 earlier but what we left out was how he accomplished it.  He partially blocked a James Vandermeer shot with the emphasis on "partial."  That kicked the rebound to Lauri Korpikoski  for his second goal of the night.  Because he wasn't battling with anybody and had a good chance to make the stop himself it was a lazy play by Sarge which is why it is the John "Coach's Pet" Erskine Bowles Bonehead Play of the Game.  It cut the deficit to 1 and gave the Coyotes a rush of energy.
  
• We knew after the Caps had been awarded their own 5 on 3 that Bill McCreary would call a penalty on the Caps down the stretch and true to form, that's exactly what he did.  Furthermore, what in the world did Sarge do to draw a roughing penalty other than absorb a blow from Shane Doan?  McCreary's retirement can't come soon enough.

Well folks, we have to say, we think there was a let down tonight which was to be expected.  Luckily however the Coyotes didn't have much jump either.  This game tonight was a rather blah affair by both teams and even the "Unleash The Fury" was a little off tonight  We're now 3 weeks and 11 games away from the Olympic Break after which business will start picking back up as teams start making their runs for playoffs.  But for now, we'll have to get through most of these next 11 games without getting bored silly.

It has been... A TWO POINT NIGHT!!!

Caps vs. Coyotes 1-23-2010 Preview

Washington Capitals (32-18; 70 points; 1st Southeast Division, 1st Eastern Conference, 3rd Overall) vs. Phoenix Coyotes (29-22; 63 points; 2nd Pacific Division, 4th Western Conference, 7th Overall):
Caps Game #51, Home Game #24, NHL Game #764

Caps "Magic Numbers" (Caps Points Earned+Lost by team named) to clinch:
Playoff Spot: 45 Atlanta
Southeast Division Championship: 45 Atlanta
Eastern Conference #1 Seed: 63 New Jersey and Buffaslugs
President's Trophy: 66 Chicago and San Jose

Verizon Center, Washington, D.C., 7:07 pm. Washington TV: Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic. Radio: WFED 1500-AM. Phoenix TV: None. Radio: KGME 910-AM.  NHL Center Ice: Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic feed.

Tonight, the Caps are back at home and look to extend their winning streak to six games when they face the Phoenix Coyotes for the first and only time this season.  Last season, the Coyotes won 2-1 in the desert in the only contest between the two teams.  After their former owner tried to move them to Hamilton in the off-season, there were many questions surrounding the Phoenix franchise a training camp started this season which is why the Coyotes can easily be classified as the NHL's biggest surprise.  New Head Coach Dave Tippet has the Coyotes well placed within the Western Conference Playoff picture looking to get Phoenix into the Playoffs for the first time since 2002.  Phoenix tonight starts a quick two game road trip after finishing up a six game homestand.  Phoenix went 3-3 on that homestand but finished up strong with a 4-2 win over the Nashville Predators on Thursday night.

What The Natives Are Saying:

(Com)Post: on the comeback trail, getting a swagger.  Caps.com.

Neutral Views:

NHL.com, AP Wire.

Open Source Intelligence:

Arizona Republic: energy guy, big challenge.  Coyotes.com.

What Do We Expect Tonight?:

So the gauntlet that was this week's schedule ends tonight, the Caps have already ripped off three wins in a week of games that were described as a measuring stick.  So in comes now the Coyotes who have nine toes out the door in Phoenix and weren't expected to put up much of a fight this season with all the turmoil surrounding the franchise.  The problem tonight for the Caps is, all three wins so far this week have been big wins and Thursday night's over the Penguin Scum was probably the most emotional of the bunch; so can we say "letdown"?  Upon a closer examination of the Coyotes in recent games, it would seem that the rest of the NHL is finally catching up to Phoenix.  Early on in the season there was no reason to take them seriously and most teams and fans didn't.  Now as the Coyotes have hung around the top half of the Western Conference Playoff standings all season, teams are catching on that they have to come prepared to play.  This however is a one shot deal for the Caps.  This is the only meeting of the season so the Caps get only one chance to get it right.  Furthermore, not since St. Calle Johansson scored his famous buzzer beater goal in overtime on January 28th, 2000 have the Caps beaten the Coyotes in the Phone Booth.  In his total repudiation of the coaching job that Wayne Gretzky did in Phoenix, Dave Tippet has tightened up the Coyotes' defensive zone play which is the biggest reason for the Coyotes success this season.  Goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov has already matched his career high for wins in a season.  So like Tuesday night against the Red Wings, this should be another grind-it-out game but will the Caps be up for it?  We've been letdown too many times to think otherwise.

Caps Nut Official Prediction:

Caps 2
Coyotes 3
Winner by Upshall
(24-26 on the season with one perfect game)

Caps @ Penguin Scum 1-21-2010 Wap Up

The Local Yokels:

(Com)Post: late surge, bad start.  Caps.com.

The Neutral Observers:

NHL.com.  AP Wire.  ESPN.

The Other Side:

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: come from ahead loss, fingered out, contract envy.  Pittsburgh Tribune-Review:  classic beating, positive outlook.  Penguin Scum.com.

Final Thoughts:

Well kids, we know you like to call us crazy but it seems to us as if the Penguin Scum got a message last night despite it being a regular season game.

50 down, 32 to go.

Caps @ Penguin Scum 1-21-2010 Post-Mortem

Forgot to sweep the leg Johnny... Onto the Battle Damage Assessment...

THE GOOD:

• The second worst Penalty Killing unit on the road went 4 for 4 tonight while allowing six shots on goal.  That Ladies and Gentlemen was the difference in tonight's game.
• And after finally drawing a penalty for the first time in 116 minutes and 48 seconds (yes, we were counting) against the Penguin Scum, the Caps scored on the Power Play in just 46 seconds.  And in a twist not seen in the second round hose job, the Caps got another Power Play after scoring with the man advantage and scored on that one too.  The Power Play was 2 for 2 tonight on just two shots on goal.  Now you know why the refs don't want to give us Power Plays against the Penguin Scum.
• John Carlson picked up his first NHL point tonight, was a +2, and caused a Canadian Diving Team Captain, Lowblow Secondary Assist Cindy Crosby temper tantrum in just his third NHL game.  If he keeps this up, Bruce Boudreau won't be able to send him back down.
• Captain A.O. with two goals (his 250h and one from waaaaaaay downtown), an assist, and the cherry-picking-defensive zone slouch added to his league leading +/- with a +2 tonight.  Lowblow Cindy?  -1 despite a goal and her running mate Evgeni Malkin-Lindros was even despite 3 assists.

THE BAD:

• The shots against parade continued, the Caps allowed 38 shots on goal tonight.
• After jumping out to a 2 goal lead in the second period, the Caps sat back and allowed the Penguin Scum to take the game to the Caps.  We would have much preferred the Caps to continue to attack the Penguin Scum instead of trying to clog things up.

THE UGLY:

• Bad bounces are going to happen and in a dump like Mellon Arena, bad bounces are the norm coming off of those boards.  Yet that's no excuse for Jose "Alvin, Simon," Theodore giving up on the puck the way he did on Lowblow Cindy's goal tonight.  Karl "Malden" Alzner didn't give up on the play and as a result he came up with an amazing stop on Ruslan Fedotenko.  But because Theodore gave up on the play, Lowblow Cindy was able to swoop in and tap the puck in.  That our folks is one of the John "Coach's Pet" Erskine Bowles Bonehead Plays of the Game.
• And yes, because this is a special game, we have another John "Coach's Pet" Erskine Bowles Bonehead Play of the Game.  The second one goes out to Tyler Sloan who on a shift after Eric Fehr scored to stake the Caps to a 2-1 lead was spectating around his own net and left Nick Johnson (Why does he play a sport like hockey?  He gets hurt running the bases...) wide open in front of the net.  On a night when the Caps did a great job of taking out Penguin Scum in front of their net, the one time they didn't they got burned.

We admit it folks, we were beginning to wonder if the Caps would ever get another Power Play against the Penguin Scum.  There was 116 minutes and 48 seconds of penalty free hockey for Pittsburgh.  You want to tell us again that the Penguin Scum weren't getting away with bloody murder once again?  There were times tonight when we thought that Theodore had left the Caps for the Penguin Scum like Brent Johnson did because he so often had a black jersey all over him.  Yet a check of the scoresheet and no goaltender interference penalties on Pittsburgh.  But the takeaway from tonight's game is that after being maligned last year for not going to and clearing out the net, the Caps showed that they are capable and willing to do both this year.  Yeah, yeah, we know the playoffs are a different animal and wins like tonight don't mean anything come Spring but this is not the same Caps team that took the ice in the playoffs last year.  They'll have to cook up some other excuse this Spring.

It has been... A TWO POINT NIGHT!!!

Caps @ Penguin Scum 1-21-2010 Preview

Washington Capitals (31-18; 68 points; 1st Southeast Division, 1st Eastern Conference, 3rd Overall) @ Pittsburgh Penguin Scum (31-20; 63 points; 2nd Atlantic Division, 4th Eastern Conference, 6th Overall):
Caps Game #50, Road Game #27, NHL Game #750

Caps "Magic Numbers" (Caps Points Earned+Lost by team named) to clinch:
Playoff Spot: 49 Atlanta
Southeast Division Championship: 49 Atlanta
Eastern Conference #1 Seed: 67 New Jersey
President's Trophy: 68 Chicago and San Jose

Mellon Arena, Pittsburgh, PA, 7:37 pm. Washington TV: Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic. Radio: WFED 1500-AM. Pittsburgh TV: Fox Sportsnet Pittsburgh. Radio: WXDX 105.9-FM.  U.S. National TV: NHL Network (Fox Sportsnet Pittsburgh feed)  NHL Center Ice: None.

Tonight, for the first time since the hose got turned on them in the second round last spring, the Caps face the Penguin Scum in Pittsburgh.  Last year, the Caps actually won the season series, 3-1, against the Penguin Scum with Pittsburgh's lone win coming in a gimmick.  However when these two teams met in the playoffs, the hose was turned on and it took the NHL seven games to get rid of the Caps.  This year the Penguin Scum are once again muddling around in the middle of the Eastern Conference with a hammer lock on fourth place.  The Penguin Scum have been all over the map recently, they have five wins in their last ten games with three wins in their last four.  After getting smoked 6-2 in Vancouver on Saturday night, they came home on Tuesday night and posted a 6-4 win over the New York Islanders in their last game.

What The Natives Are Saying:


(Com)Post.  Examiner.  Caps.com.

Neutral Views:

NHL.com.  AP Wire.

Open Source Intelligence:

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: irregularity, he's a hockey player, we hope there weren't too many, trade them, the consequences.  Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: not concerned, might play, scouting report.  Penguin Scum.com.

What Do We Expect Tonight?:

Earlier this week Bruce Boudreau said that when these two teams meet, you toss the book away.  And he's right, as a matter of fact, whenever the Penguin Scum take the ice, this is the first book that you toss into the trash.  So how much of a chance do the Caps have putting six players on the ice versus the nine the Penguin Scum are allowed?  Well, it might be better than you think.  First of all, as mentioned in some of the Pittsburgh article, the Penguin Scum aren't too concerned about this game.  They see it as just another regular season contest.  Ok, but even if you believe that, there's the injuries, Marc-Andre Fleury is out with a broken finger so our old friend Brent Johnson gets the start in goal tonight for the Penguin Scum.  We admit, we chuckled when we saw that he has a 4-0 record with a 1.15 GAA against the Caps because that was achieved before the Caps got the likes of Captain A.O. and company.  While Johnson could get the win tonight, we have serious doubts that he'll do it by giving up less than two goals, especially since he's coming off of a leg injury and making his first back-to-back start this season.  The biggest cause for our concern tonight is the Caps Penalty Killing on the road which in a word, stinks.  Only Toronto has a harder time killing penalties on enemy ice than the Caps do.  So if the Zebras have as active of a role tonight as they did last May, it will come down to whoever scores last and the referees can have something to say about that with when, where, and why they blow the whistle.  Finally, as the most respected blogger on the Pittsburgh Penguin Scum Message Boards, we want everybody who is laughing at the KoOkY KoNSpIrAcY ThEoRiSt right now to explain the 21 seconds for us.  If you don't know what we're talking about, then shame on you.

Caps Nut Official Prediction:

Caps 4
Penguin Scum 6
Winner by Canadian Diving Team Captain, Lowblow Secondary Assist Cindy Crosby
(24-25 on the season with one perfect game)

Caps vs. Red Wings 1-19-2010 Wrap Up

The Local Yokels:

(Com)Post: saved, GMGM's move.  Examiner.  Caps.com.

The Neutral Observers:

NHL.com, AP Wire.

The Other Side:

Detroit Free Press: slipped away, long layoff, notes.

Final Thoughts:

49 down, 33 to go.

Caps vs. Red Wings 1-19-2010 Post-Mortem

Had 'em right where we wanted 'em...  Onto the Battle Damage Assessment...

THE GOOD:

• Matt "Omar" Bradley got things going tonight with just his eighth goal of the season and second on Chris Osgood.
• Niklas Backstrom, like most of the top line, was being doubled and tripled team all night and when he finally drew single coverage, he undressed his defender to score the game tying goal on the Power Play.
• Ok, who still wants to run Jose "Alvin, Simon," Theodore out of town?  Jose comes up with probably the best performance by a Caps goaltender this season.  44 saves and an assist on the game tying goal.

THE BAD:

• Bruce Boudreau went to the whip to start the third period and it initially backfired as Alexander "Slappy" Semin had an ugly turnover at the Caps blueline which led to Detroit's second goal.
• How's that Tomas Fleischmann at center working out?  2-7 for 22% on faceoffs tonight.  It was very telling that Boudreau sent David "Bolt Cutter" Steckel out with the second line late in the third period to take a defensive zone draw.  Steckel was 10-8 tonight in the faceoff circle, the best of the regular centers tonight.
• Mike Knuble took two penalties tonight both in the offensive zone and one late in the game.

THE UGLY:

• It is one thing to get outshot in a game or a period.  But to take over 14 minutes to get your first shot on goal for the game is, well, a problem.  Not the kind of start that the Caps needed.
• We'd like to know what Henrik Zetterberg was complaining about at the end of the game tonight because from where we sat, the Red Wings got away with a lot more than the Caps did tonight from Dean Morton and Dan O'Rourke.  Detroit had no reason to gripe.
  

Ok, so the Caps gave up a ton of shots tonight.  Thankfully, Theodore was on tonight but the Caps defense wasn't all that bad tonight.  The Caps did an excellent job of keeping Detroit on the perimeter at times tonight.  However, the Caps weren't going to keep the Wings out there all night because the Wings are just too good even with the injuries that they've suffered and that's where Theodore's big game came in.  The problem for the Caps tonight was getting the puck out of their own and establishing possession in the offensive zone which is more on the forwards than it is on the defensemen.  It wasn't until the third period that the Caps were able to maintain puck possession long enough to take care of these problems.  It also helped that the Caps came out of their shell more and were trying to make things happen but there were still instances where the Caps just looked slow compared to Detroit.  We happen to think that some of it has to do with the fact that Detroit needs every single point they can get in order to make the playoffs while the Caps are on a bit of a cruise control right now.  But we think it is fair assessment to say that the Caps let the Wings wear themselves down and took advantage in the third period.  Is this a recipe for success over the long term?  Certainly not.  But the Caps are now halfway through their tough week and have a 2-0 record to show for it.

It has been... A TWO POINT NIGHT!!!

Caps vs. Red Wings 1-19-2010 Preview

Washington Capitals (30-18; 66 points; 1st Southeast Division, 1st Eastern Conference, 3rd Overall) vs. Detroit Red Wings (24-24; 56 points; 3rd Central Division, 9th Western Conference, 13th Overall):
Caps Game #49, Home Game #23, NHL Game #735

Caps "Magic Numbers" (Caps Points Earned+Lost by team named) to clinch:
Playoff Spot: 51 Atlanta
Southeast Division Championship: 51 Atlanta
Eastern Conference #1 Seed: 70 Buffalsugs
President's Trophy: 72 Chicago

Verizon Center, Washington, D.C., 3:07 pm. Washington TV: Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic. Radio: WFED 1500-AM. Detroit TV: Fox Sportsnet Detroit. Radio: WXYT 97.1-FM.  NHL Center Ice: Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic and Fox Sportsnet Detroit feeds.

Tonight, the Caps face the Detroit Red Wings for the second and final time this season to close out a three game homestand.  Detroit won the first matchup this season in Detroit back in October by a score of 3-2 before the barrage of injuries really started to take their toll.  The Red Wings are in a dog fight just to make the playoffs this year and are in dire need of every point they can get.  The Red Wings have lost three of their last four games and two in a row in gimmicks including Sunday's game against the Chicago Blackhawks 4-3 in Detroit.

What The Natives Are Saying:

(Com)Post.  Examiner.  Caps.com.

Neutral Views:

NHL.com.  AP Wire.

Open Source Intelligence:

Detroit Free Press: tough task, shared housing, new owners needed.


What Do We Expect Tonight?:

Well folks, as has been mentioned ad nauseum, it's another measuring stick game for the Caps tonight.  Which is a little interesting to us considering that the Caps have been in the Top 5 of the NHL for most of the season.  Yet if the Caps were to win tonight's game, we're sure somebody somewhere is going to point out how badly injured the Red Wings are and have been all season to discount the achievement.  But no matter, the Red Wings remain a formidable opponent and a team that isn't taken lightly no matter where they are in the standings.   They've found some solace recently in the play of 25 year old goaltender Jimmy Howard who has taken over the #1 position from Chris Osgood.  While Osgood has always found a way to bounce back, he's now 37 and the likelihood of him reclaiming the #1 spot for an extended period of time is rather small.  The challenge that the Red Wings present is that they enter this game tonight as the best team defensively that the Caps will face this week.  The Caps have been scoring at a high rate recently and will need to show tonight that they can grind one out.  They got three of their five goals on Sunday by getting to the front of the net and two of them came off of rebounds.  They'll need to do that tonight in order to win.  But just because Detroit isn't as notoriously physical as the Flyers doesn't mean that it will be any easier for the Caps to get to the front of the net.  And while they're not scoring much in the way of goals this season, the Red Wings will also put the Caps defensive coverage to the test for an all around workout tonight. 

Caps Nut Official Prediction:

Caps 2
Red Wings 3
Winner by Datsyuk
(24-24 on the season with one perfect game)

Caps vs. Flyers 1-17-2010 Wrap Up

The Local Yokels:

(Com)Post: juggernaut, slump buster.  Examiner.  Caps.com.

The Neutral Observers:

NHL.com, AP Wire.

The Other Side:

Philadelphia Daily News: feasted upon, blowback.  Philadelphia Inquirer: loss in return, mad at the media.

Final Thoughts:

The high offensive production rate will continue as long as the Caps are willing to drive to the net.  And with Brooks "and Dunn" Laich and Mike Knuble doing exactly that, we will be a tough team to beat.

48 down, 34 to go.

Caps vs. Flyers 1-17-2010 Post-Mortem

Just your usual Lazy Sunday Afternoon Matinee... Onto the Battle Damage Assessment....

THE GOOD:

• We have a Brooks "and Dunn" Laich sighting!  Two goals and an assist today to earn the #1 Star.  He's definitely a guy we need to get going.  We don't think the lone assist was an intentional pass but it sure looked sweet.
  
• Mike Knuble gets a knoal as well from about where you would expect him to bang one in.
• Captain A.O. with one goal, one assist, three hits, and three takeaways.  The goal was his 30th this season and 249th of his career.  We hope that Ray Emery picked his jock strap back up after that Penalty Shot.

THE BAD:

• Jose "Alvin, Simon," Theodore got the win, made 30 saves, but looked very shaky in the first period when he gave up two goals.  That isn't what he should be doing if he wants to continue to get the starts.
• It can be a misleading stat but for the Caps to get outshot 33 to 22 is a problem.  Yes the Caps scored five goals on those 22 shots but the first three came from going to the net.  The Caps wanted to play fancy for too much of the game today.
• It's been awhile since we've seen the Caps get hemmed into their zone skating five-on-five but they couldn't handle the Philadelphia forechecking pressure for much of the first period.

THE UGLY:

• We admit, we like Matt "Omar" Bradley but boy did he look bad on his turnover in the first period that led to the second Flyers goal.  From where we were sitting it looked as Omar decided to give Arron Asham the puck so that Asham wouldn't hit him.  That is not the Omar we know and it is also the John "Coach's Pet" Erskine Bowles Bonehead Play of the Game.
• Maybe the NHL sent out a directive to their officials that the Flyers are not to be blown out of games anymore???  That's about the only logical reason that we can come up with as to why the Caps were allowed only one stinkin' Power Play today.  And because Alexander "Slappy" Semin scored, the Caps had just eight seconds of Power Play time.  Because once again, playing a team known to favor the physical play, the Caps are whistled for way more penalties than the opposition, especially after taking a sizable lead.  On Friday night, the Caps had twice as many penalty minutes as the Thug Leafs (24 to 48).  Today, the Caps, who led the game from the 7:05 mark of the second period had three times as many penalty minutes as the Flyers did (4 to 12).  While the calls on the Caps were ligit in some fashion, there were numerous similar calls against the Flyers that were passed up.

Well folks, too bad we don't play the Flyers anymore in the regular season.  It really seems as though he Flyers just can't get out of their own way when they play us.  We also have to thank Flyers Head Coach Peter Laviolette for going with Ray Emery in goal over Michael Leighton today.  Emery made things easy for the Caps because he was having trouble keeping control of the puck and his crease area all game long.   We do however want to say that even though we'd rather not face the Flyers in the first round of the playoffs; we know that our playoff style of game is up to par with Philadelphia.  Yeah, we could use a little better defense and a simpler offensive attack, but the Caps weren't afraid to roam around in front of the Flyers' net and dig away at rebounds.  This could be a very long and fun run in the playoffs this year.

It has been... A TWO POINT NIGHT!!!

Caps vs. Flyers 1-17-2010 Preview

Washington Capitals (29-18; 64 points; 1st Southeast Division, 2nd Eastern Conference, 4th Overall) vs. Philadelphia Flyers (23-23; 49 points; 5th Atlantic Division, 10th Eastern Conference, 21st Overall):
Caps Game #48, Home Game #22, NHL Game #719

Caps "Magic Numbers" (Caps Points Earned+Lost by team named) to clinch:
Playoff Spot: 54 Ottawa
Southeast Division Championship: 55 Atlanta
Eastern Conference #1 Seed: 73 New Jersey
President's Trophy: 74 Chicago

Verizon Center, Washington, D.C., 3:07 pm. Washington TV: Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic. Radio: WFED 1500-AM. Philadelphia TV: Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia. Radio: WWIP 610-AM.  NHL Center Ice: Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic feed.

Today the Caps finish off the season series with the Philadelphia Flyers in a game that NBC deemed not interesting enough.  After losing a wild west shootout in Philadelphia, back in October, the Caps have won the last two games against the Flyers by a combined score of 12-4.  The Flyers have improved a little under new Head Coach Peter Laviolette but had a four winning streak snapped on Thursday night by the Toronto Maple Thug Leafs in their last game.

What The Natives Are Saying:

(Com)Post.  Examiner.  Caps.com.

Neutral Views:

NHL.com.  AP Wire.

Open Source Intelligence:

Philadelphia Inquirer: goale controversy, surprise player.


What Do We Expect Today?:

We think it is pretty safe to say that this will not be the Philadelphia Flyers team that the Caps waxed 8-2 back in the December.  The Flyers have adjusted to Head Coach Peter Laviolette's system and have gotten themselves back onto the fringe of the playoff picture in the Eastern Conference.  Furthermore, Michael Leighton was taken off of waivers by the Flyers from Carolina and has been playing some of his best hockey of late.  This makes the possible decision to use Ray Emery in goal today all the more baffling as Philadelphia is going to need every point they can get between now and the end of the season.  But that's the Philadelphia Flyers for you.  So even if the Caps aren't able to post another pasting of the Flyers, the Caps have shown that they can take care of Philadelphia, after all, the Caps have scored 17 goals in the three games so far this season, nine of them before the tailspin that cost John Stevens his job.  What is going to make the difference for the Caps today is how well they decide to play defense.  Jose "Alvin, Simon," Theodore seems to have gotten back into his groove and we hope that Bruce Boudreau doesn't decide to "see how Michal Neuvirth would handle the situation" like he did in the first game with Seymon "The Saviour" Varlamov.  Because that's a certain recipe for a disaster.  The Caps should do anything they can to make Philadelphia's road into the playoffs harder.

Caps Nut Official Prediction:

Caps 5
Flyers 2
Winner by Semin
(23-24 on the season with one perfect game)

Caps vs. Maple Thug Leafs 1-15-2010 Wrap Up

The Local Yokels:

(Com)Post.  Examiner.  Caps.com.

The Neutral Observers:

NHL.com.  AP Wire.

The Other Side:

Toronto Globe and Mail: Thug Leafs crushed, another day, another five points.  Toronto Star:  run over, stats and stars.  Toronto Sun: burned Thug Leafs, switch on, Thug Leafs Replay, Thug Leafs Report.  Thug Leafs.com


Final Thoughts:

Per Tarik from the (Com)Post no automatic suspension for Jason Chimera which once again makes us wonder why the NHL even bothers from time-to-time.  While we didn't see what Jay Rosehill did to John Carlson we once again wonder, would Rosehill have taken that run at Carlson had he not been looking to start a fight?  Furthermore, we should note that Rosehill compounded the whole thing with two violations of "The Code...er...Crock."  First, he landed punches on Chimera well after Chimera had fallen to the ice and the linesmen had intervened.  Secondly, he then tossed his helmet at Chimera as he was being lead away.  We fully expect the other NHL players to police the game as they so often do and "send a message" to Rosehill that his violations of "The Code...er...Crock" will not be tolerated...

47 down, 35 to go.

Caps vs. Thug Leafs 1-15-2010 Post-Mortem

And you wondered why we called them the Thug Leafs...  Onto the Battle Damage Assessment...

THE GOOD:

• Some kudos to the penalty killers who have taken things on the chin recently but came up large with a 1:41 5-on-3 kill late in the third period.  Yeah, the game was well in hand and a Toronto goal at that point would have been purely cosmetic.  But Caps killed it as if the game was on the line and were 7 for 8 for the entire game.
• Mike Knuble scoring two goals tonight.  But what was most impressive/important is that they were the "garbage goals" that the Caps have been accused of lacking in the past.
• The Power Play got rolling tonight, 2 for 5 on just four shots on goal.
• Oh yeah, that Captain A.O. guy.  Only one goal tonight, but four assists and we were wondering why he didn't get a point on the Caps 6th goal tonight?  He's 65 points behind Mike Ridley for 6th on the Caps All-Time Scoring list and wouldn't put it past him to make a serious run at that.  But he is only two points off the NHL Points lead and should he end up with another Art Ross Trophy despite missing 8 games, he should win the Hart and Pearson Trophies again as well.

THE BAD:

• For a little bit there it looked as if the curse of the early goal would bite us again.  After scoring on their first shot, the Caps only took one other for the next ten minutes and that came on a dump-in.  8 shots total in the first period compared to 14 for the Thug Leafs.
• How did the Caps end up with twice as many penalty minutes, 48, as the Thug Leafs, 24, when the Caps won the game by 5 goals?

THE UGLY:

• Garnet Exelby:
  
  
  
  
  Photo from Thug Leafs.com
  
  
  

Ok folks, we need an explanation here because we thought that the whole idea of the instigator penalty is to penalize a player who starts a fight with a player who did not want to fight.  Much like Steve Downie on Tuesday night with Captain A.O., is there any shadow of a doubt that Colton Orr was looking to start a fight when he went hunting Mike "BEAM ME UP" Green's head in the third period down by five goals?  We don't think so, but that's what you get when Chris Rooney is on the ice attempting to officiate a hockey game.  Otherwise, you could be forgiven for thinking like we did this morning that the Caps were not going to take tonight's game seriously enough.  Well, they clearly did as they made this look as easy as it should have been.  Amazing what happens when the home team is off the night before while the visiting team is playing.

It has been...  A TWO POINT NIGHT!!!

Caps vs. Maple Thug Leafs 1-15-2010 Preview

Washington Capitals (28-18; 62 points; 1st Southeast Division, 3rd Eastern Conference, 5th Overall) vs. Toronto Maple Thug Leafs (18-27; 43 points; 5th Northeast Division, 14th Eastern Conference, 28th Overall):
Caps Game #47, Home Game #21, NHL Game #705

Caps "Magic Numbers" (Caps Points Earned+Lost by team named) to clinch:
Playoff Spot: 57 Atlanta
Southeast Division Championship: 57 Atlanta
Eastern Conference #1 Seed: 77 New Jersey
President's Trophy: 77 New Jersey

Verizon Center, Washington, D.C., 7:07 pm. Washington TV: Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic. Radio: WFED 1500-AM. Toronto TV: None. Radio: CFMJ 640-AM.  Canadian National TV: TSN, RIS (French).  NHL Center Ice: Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic and TSN feeds.

Tonight, the Caps wrap up a three games in four nights run by starting a three game homestand when they host the Toronto Maple Thug Leafs.  This is the fourth and final meeting this year between the teams with the home team coming out on top in every game so far this season.  The Thug Leafs were in action last night when they ended a four game losing streak by beating the Philadelphia Flyers at home 4-0.  It was Toronto's second win in their last eight games.  The Thug Leafs have lost their last four and eight of their last ten games on the road.

What The Natives Are Saying:

(Com)Post.  Caps.com.

Neutral Views:

NHL.com.  AP Wire.

Open Source Intelligence:

Toronto Globe and Mail.  Toronto Star:  dream scenario, not going anywhere, finesse works, fitting in well.  Toronto Sun: they're alive, no big whoop, notes, Leafs Report, angry GM, wide awake.

What Do We Expect Tonight?:

Well folks, this is shaping up as a classic trap scenario.  The Thug Leafs come into town with a dismal record on the road and overall, making their first stop on a five game road trip, owning the worst Penalty Killing unit in the NHL, and having played the night before and their third game in four nights.  The Caps on the other hand have games coming up against Philadelphia, Detroit, Pittsburgh, and Phoenix next week with three of those four games at home.  You could understand why the Caps might be looking past the Thug Leafs tonight despite losing the last two games against Toronto.  Furthermore, Bruce Boudreau in his comments yesterday gave no indication that Michael "Bebe" Neuvrith will be assuming the backup goaltender role tonight.  So will Bebe get pulled for the third game in a row?  But after three poor first periods, the Caps could use a Power Play or two tonight to get things going.  The Thug Leafs did play last night so they could be prone to taking a couple of penalties early on tonight.  The fatigue factor will also swing the Caps way late in the game if the Caps need to mount yet another comeback.  So it looks as if the Caps will have to stay in a total funk in order to lose this game tonight.

Caps Nut Official Prediction:

Caps 5
Thug Leafs 3
Winner by Laich
(22-24 on the season with one perfect game)

Caps @ Panthers 1-13-2010 Wrap Up

The Local Yokels:

(Com)Post.  Caps.com.

The Neutral Observers:

NHL.com.  AP Wire.

The Other Side:

Miami Herald

Final Thoughts:

Well folks, we've had some busy times this week at work and ended up falling asleep during the game last night, especially after it looked as if it was going to be a repeat of the Tampa game with Michal "Bebe" Neuvirth being chased for the second consecutive game.  And while the defense was once again atrocious in front of him at times, he still allowed goals that he simply shouldn't have.  Jose "Alvin, Simon," Theodore looked to have a much better relief outing last night than he did on Tuesday cleaning up messes in front of him.  But with a tough schedule of games next week quickly coming up; Philadelphia, Detroit, Pittsburgh, and Phoenix (yes, we're including Phoenix) the Caps have only one more game (tomorrow against Toronto) to get their act together. The odds are pretty good that the Caps won't be able to recover from slow starts against those teams they way they have these past three games.

46 down, 36 left.

Caps @ Ning 1-12-2010 Wrap Up/ Caps @ Panthers 1-13-2010 Preview

The Local Yokels:

(Com)Post.  Caps.com.

The Neutral Observers:

NHL.com.  AP Wire.

The Other Side:

St. Petersburg Times: still fighting, here we go again.  Tampa Tribune: streak over, quick trigger.


Final Thoughts:

Sounds like we didn't miss much, except for maybe the Caps turning into the Philadelphia Flyers....

45 down, 37 to go.


Washington Capitals (29-18; 60 points; 1st Southeast Division, 3rd Eastern Conference, 5th Overall) @ Florida Panthers  (18-27; 43 points; 4th Southeast Division, 13th Eastern Conference, 27th Overall):
Caps Game #46, Road Game #26, NHL Game #690

Caps "Magic Numbers" (Caps Points Earned+Lost by team named) to clinch:
Playoff Spot: 60 Atlanta, and Tampa Bay
Southeast Division Championship: 60 Atlanta and Tampa Bay
Eastern Conference #1 Seed: 81 New Jersey
President's Trophy: 81 New Jersey

BankAtlantic Center, Sunrise, FL, 7:37 pm. Washington TV: Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic. Radio: WFED 1500-AM. Florida TV: Fox Sportsnet Florida. Radio: WAXY 790-AM.  NHL Center Ice: Fox Sportsnet Florida and Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic feeds.

Tonight, the Caps get a chance to rebound right away when they finish off the Florida two-step and their three game road trip when they visit the Florida Panthers.  This is the second time the Caps have visited the Panthers and the Caps have won all three meetings so far this season.  While the Panthers got a win in their last game on Saturday night, a 3-0 shutout of the Senators in Ottawa, it was just their second win in their last seven games overall.

What The Natives Are Saying:

Caps.com.

Neutral Observers:

NHL.com.  AP Wire.

Open Source Intelligence:

Miami Herald.

What Do We Expect Tonight?:

Well folks, how bad do things have to be for Bruce Boudreau to take the blame for something?  After two consecutive poor performances in the first period; Boudreau is stepping up and taking the blame which is something he wasn't doing just a couple of weeks ago when the Caps were laying eggs in the first period.  So now we're back to the team not coming to play in the first period.  In some fairness, we've come to expect this problem when the team has back-to-back games in Florida.  The Caps usually get a day or two off before having to play the first game and as a result, often get a little too much sand in their skates.  So will it be drilled out of the Caps tonight?  Better yet, will Boudreau use the quick hook of Michal "Bebe" Neuvirth last night as the excuse to give him yet another start?  But right now folks, it seems pretty simple for the Caps.  Get off to a good start and the game will fall their way.


Caps Nut Official Prediction:

Caps 2
Panthers 4
Winner by Weiss
(22-23 on the season with one perfect game)