2009-2010 Caps Season Wrap-Up Part III The Forward Ranks

All right, let's keep the train rolling...

Nicklas Backstrom: A+, He shattered his career highs in points and goals this season.  Ok it was only his third NHL season but he established himself as a top level player in the NHL and handled things much better in the playoffs this season than he had in his first two.  His Game 2 Hat Trick was a testament to that.  The pressure is really on Backstrom now because he's now locked up for the next ten years and will be expected to perform at this level if not higher for all ten of them.

Eric Belanger: C+,  The one deadline day acquisition that the Caps will at least attempt to keep.  He had a hard time fitting in with the Caps after the trade primarily because he kept bouncing between the second and third lines but given his style of play, could be the center for a true third line checking unit should he stay in D.C.  His arrival also helped to improve the Penalty Killing a little bit.

Matt "Omar" Bradley: B+,  A career year for the 31 year old fourth liner who set career high marks in goals, assists, and points this season, besting his previous totals which all came in his rookie season.  His ice time diminished after the trade deadline as the Caps picked up players much more willing to go to the front of the net than Omar is.  He has one more year left on his contract and plenty of players in Hershey behind him on the depth chart making this upcoming season huge for him.  He may not finish it here in D.C. if he doesn't build on the numbers he put this past season.

Jason Chimera: C+, Acquired in late December for the former team Captain Chris Clark along with Milan Jurcina, Chimera had trouble adjusting to Bruce Boudreau's style of play.  However he did eventually catch on and could be a useful checking line winger because he just doesn't have a goal scoring touch.

Eric Fehr: B-, No other player is abused by Boudreau as much as Fehr.  He posted career highs across the board this season despite constantly being yanked, sat down, and scratched for his defensive miscues.  Fehr also got on the scoreboard in the playoffs this year, scoring three goals and an assist in the seven games after just scoring one goal in his previous 14 playoff appearances.  Which of course means he'll be a healthy scratch for opening night...  Fehr is an RFA and expect the Caps to make a move to protect his rights.  If Fehr is smart he'll elect arbitration to force the Caps to keep him or move him.  Either way, we hope he can continue to show his improvement as we think he'll be needed on the top lines at some point in the next couple of years.  At age 24, he's nowhere near tapped out on his potential.

Tomas Fleischmann: C-, Fleischmann is easily the second biggest enigma on the team.  Here's a guy whom Boudreau absolutely loves and is only 26 years old.  He set career marks for goals, assists, points, and even finished as a plus player for the first time in his career this season.  Yet when the chips are down and the pressure is on, he's nowhere to be found.  3 goals, 2 assists, and 5 points in 22 playoff games are a testament to that and even Boudreau had finally seen enough, scratching Fleischmann for Game 7.  Fleischmann had just one assist in this year's playoffs and it came in Game 2.  In an attempt to finally get him going, he was tried at center on the 2nd line but that experiment failed miserably after a promising start.  Simply put, there's really nowhere this guy fits on this team. He posted some nice career numbers this year which should help him as an RFA but the Caps need to look into trading him now while he's got a high value and a somewhat reasonable salary going forward.  He's great from November through February but the Caps really need somebody who can get it done in April, May, and June and Fleischmann can't.

Boyd Gordon: INCOMPLETE,  Gordon's season was derailed by a bad back that he kept re-injuring.  He never got into the flow of this season.  A lost year for the guy who does well on the fourth line and Penalty Killing unit.  At age 26 he's young and as an RFA the Caps really don't have to worry about losing him to another team right now.

Mike Knuble: B+,  Brought in to camp out in front of the net to tip in shots and score off of rebounds, Knuble put up some fantastic numbers this season skating on the top line at age 37.  He's got another year left on his contract and he could improve upon those numbers if he was placed on the top Power Play unit.  He had only two goals in the playoffs though and one was shorthanded which was disappointing with all the shots the Caps were generating in the series.  And because of his age, he won't be around much longer which begs the question, who is going to eventually take his place on the top line?

Brooks "and Dunn" Laich: B,  Stop us if you've heard this before, but career highs for this guy too this season.  Brooks found himself a home on the second line this season and maybe in a couple of years he could inherit Knuble's spot on the top line because he remains willing to go to the front of the net.  After all, that's where he plays on the Power Play.  His fortunes however rise and fall because of his linemates and not the other way around.  Laich scored two goals in the playoffs including the lone tally in Game 7.  However it is his tire-changing episode after the game that most people are going to remember.

Brendan Morrrissonn: C+,  Brought in on a one-year deal to center the second line and revive his career, Morrrissonn gets mixed marks at doing both.  There were parts of this season where he looked great and there were parts of the season where he looked awful.  The deadline deals created a glut that did him no favors either but by that point his star was clearly fading in Boudreau's mind.  The concern that cropped up during the season that his play could price him out of the Caps plans going forward was dashed (they tried Fleischmann in that role for crying out loud) and now the question that the Caps face is do they want to bring him back to center the second line again?  Probably not but we'll see because he could be the best option out there right now for the Caps.

Captain A.O.: A-, He once again set a career high, in assists, this season and after being named team Captain; found a way to raise the level of his game.  However a couple of injuries and suspensions took their toll on him as he came up short on the Ross and Richard Trophies.  Furthermore, we happen to think that the suspensions will be used against him in the voting for the Hart and Pearson/Lindsay trophies as well completely shutting him out on hardware for the 2009-2010 season (unless you want to count the President's Trophy).  Captain A.O. also led the team in points in the playoffs after a slow start to Game 1.  Our advice to him going forward, is to first of all, ignore the critics who are likely to back down now that the Olympics are well within the rear view mirror.  Secondly rediscover his joy in playing the game.  That more than anything else is what has made him what he is today and endears him to fans.  Trust us, the NHL pays a bigger price by branding him a thug and suspending him all the time than he does by playing hard.  He's the best player in the league and it is because he plays the game so hard.  If he stops doing that, he stops doing what makes him special.

Alexander "Slappy" Semin: B+,  Ok folks, we need this explained to us here because we just don't get it.  Slappy sets career highs for goals and points this season.  He had the second fewest PIM's of his career, scored shorthanded for the first time in his career (twice!), and was a point-per-game producer in his first two trips to the playoffs.  Yet because of a 2 assist effort in the first round this season and zero goals on 44 shots in 7 games, you want to run him out of town?  That's just over six shots on goal per game in the first round folks.  Slappy averaged just under 4 shots on goal per game in the regular season and he still has 24 points in 28 playoff games which is more than respectable.  He agree, he's an enigma who is great when he is on and is as bad as anybody when he doesn't care.  But you cannot blame his lack of goal scoring in the first round on a lack of effort or him just not caring enough.  And don't forget, it was Slappy that broke up a shorthanded breakaway in Game 5 and did so without taking a penalty negating the Caps Power Play.  If your wishes are granted and Slappy is dealt, who replaces his scoring on the second line?  We know Fleischmann can't handle the load and Boudreau would have to be fired in order to give Fehr a shot who certainly can't score at the clip Slappy does.  Slappy took a gamble and signed a one year contract so the Caps can't get him to sign another extension until January 1st, 2011.  His next contract however could go down to the wire before getting done.

David "Bolt Cutter" Steckel: D+, Ah, finally a forward who didn't set career highs this season.  Ok, his +4 was a career high but nothing to write home about.  After his excellent play in the playoffs last year, we were really disappointed that he didn't build on that this season and once the roster got loaded up at the deadline, his ice time really dwindled and he was a non-factor in the playoffs this year.  He's a faceoff specialist which earned him a three year extension which starts with the upcoming season.  He could be on the way out though if he doesn't develop the other parts of his game with all the talent sitting in Hershey.

Scott Walker Texas Ranger: B-,  Another deadline pickup who technically doesn't qualify but we'd thought we'd grade him too.  He was brought in for depth and that's what he provided and maybe a little extra leadership in the lockerroom.  We would have liked to seen more of him in the playoffs because he's a player willing to get in front of the net and get dirty.  The Caps though have already decided to let him go and not bring him back for the 2010-2011 season and at age 35, he doesn't have much NHL time left anyway.

When you look at the gaudy offensive stats you have to grade it out at an A+ but when the offense came up dry in the playoffs, you just have to scratch your head.  The Power Play unit operated at 25.2% in the regular season and went 1 for 33 in the first round for just 3%.  For the record that isn't the worst of the first round, the Buffaslugs went 0-19.  However leading the league in goals by 45 and Power Plays in by 3.4% and 11 goals doesn't mean everything is perfect and the offense doesn't need any tweaking.  First of all, Bruce Boudreau has to develop, deploy, and trust a second Power Play unit.  His top Power Play unit gets way too much of the man advantage and the second unit just doesn't get enough time to generate anything.  Secondly, yes we still need a second line center.  That's on General Manager George McPhee's list.  Some fans think that "Mighy Mouse" Mathieu Perreault could fill that role but we're not convinced.  Finally, while the job of the forwards is to score goals, they also have defensive responsibilities too.  Too many forwards were blowing assignments and the zone leaving the blueline exposed this past season.  That has to change if the Caps want to improve upon this season.

2009-2010 Caps Season Wrap-Up Part I I Defense and Goaltending

FYI, a skater has to be on the NHL roster for half the regular season or 3 playoff games to qualify for this review.  We're going to review all three goaltenders though.

Joe Scorvo: C,  A deadline pick up who has already been told not to expect an offer from the Caps and won't be back next season.  We're not surprised that he isn't being retained but we are disappointed by the decision.  He could have been a quarterback on a second Power Play unit but was hardly ever given the chance.  But at the end of the day, the Caps have a log jam on the blueline and a guy without a contract for next season is the easiest one to get rid of.

John "Coach's Pet" Erskine-Bowles: C-, If the deadline deals made by General Manager George McPhee did anything positive, it meant we didn't have to watch the Coach's Pet in the playoffs.  Though to be fair, with plenty of health scratches this season and a much reduced role, Erskine-Bowles really shouldn't have that moniker anymore.  He's got a contract for next season at $1.25 million and could be a candidate for a buyout, but we're not counting on it.

Mike "BEAM ME UP" Green: B+,  One of two whipping boys for the Caps defense who is actually better than most people think, both in his all-round play and defensive capabilities.  He's not a stud in his own zone and we doubt that he'll ever be, but he has two problems that need to be addressed pronto.  #1, He tries to do too much in his own zone.  That more than anything else gets him into trouble.  If he stays within himself he's more than capable of getting the job done.  It is when he tries to make the big play or steps out of his character that he gets into trouble in his own zone.  #2.  He simply doesn't handle pressure very well.  It's clear that the criticism from the stands, press, and various brass gets to him and so he goes out and tries even harder to prove them all wrong.  If he wants to improve and prove all of his detractors wrong, he needs to relax and let things come to him rather than trying to create everything on his own.



Shaone Morrrissonnn: C,  Well, for a guy playing on a one-year deal hoping to hit the UFA jackpot, he came up short.  We can easily see the Caps letting him go if any kind of bidding war for his services start but we don't think that's going to happen so the Caps aren't likely to move towards giving him an offer until after July 1st.  His numbers this year were average for him and quite frankly, there is much about him that stands out.  If the Caps can get an upgrade anywhere, he would be a guy left out in the cold.

Tom Poti: C+,  We're beginning to understand why the New York fans hate this guy so much.  For a guy with a reputation of being a smooth puck handler, Poti commits some of the ugliest turnovers you have ever seen.  Yet Poti is considered one of the better players the Caps have in the defensive zone.  But as the season wore on he made some huge and costly gaffes and then took a puck in the eye in Game 6 which ended his season.  Poti will be next season's Brian Pothier, a veteran player at the end of his contract that McPhee dangles and trades at the deadline for additional depth.  While his $3.5 million cap figure could make that harder than it was with Pothier and his $2.5 million, Poti likely has just one more season left in Washington.

Jeff "Sergeant" Schultz: A,  The most favored whipping boy of Caps fans, Sarge finally started to put it all together this season.  You don't lead the entire NHL in +/- by accident folks.  Does Sarge need to work on his defensive game?  Yes.  Does he need to get better with the puck on his stick?  Yes.  Should he hit a little more?  Yes, but that's never been his style so don't expect him to turn into the next Scott Stevens.  Lost in all the complaining about Schultz is his young age.  Folks, he's just 24 years old.  If he was Erskine-Bowles' age, 29, we could understand the complaints, but Sarge is still developing and doing a decent job of learning on the fly in the NHL.  The Caps would have loved to give him more time in the AHL but things just didn't work out that way.  He's an RFA and should be back unless he can figure out a way to get a huge offer sheet or an  arbitration jackpot.  This is a guy we'd like to see on our blueline for a long time to come.

Tyler Sloan: C-,  The poor man's Erskine-Bowles, he saw limited action during the season and in attempts to get him some ice time and maybe expand his role, Bruce Boudreau tried him as a forward.  That experiment didn't last long either.  He was inexplicably given a two-year extension during the season but not much of a raise with that extension so he only occupies a roster spot.  However, that two-year extension may be what keeps him as the 7th defenseman ahead of Erskine-Bowles in 2010-2011.


"A Real American Hero" John Carlson: A-, He's just 20 years old.  The Caps wanted him to spend the entire season in Hershey and gradually work his way into the NHL in 2010-2011.  However, Carlson's play in Hershey and Washington just wouldn't let that happen.  We will throw down the gauntlet right now and say that the 2010-2011 season is going to be tough on this kid as he should start the season in Washington.  However, this kid is good and will steadily improve and should be an anchor on our blueline for years to come.

Karl "Malden" Alzner: INCOMPLETE,  He doesn't fit the criterion for making the rundown here but we would be remiss if we didn't mention his season which was a disappointment.  He was supposed to start the season in the NHL but salary cap issues and the fact that he could be sent to the AHL without having to clear waivers conspired against him.  Then once he was called up, he didn't show much more than what he did last year and with the team on a roll all throughout the regular season, it was tough for him to find a spot in the lineup and as a result he ended up back in Hershey.  He also got passed by Carlson on the depth chart and prospect rankings during this season.  However he should start the season in Washington next year, but once again, finding him a place will be difficult if he doesn't show any improvement.

Jose "Alvin, Simon," Theodore: A-, You really have to feel for this guy not only on a personal level but on a professional level since he arrived in Washington.  For a goaltender who posted 30 wins in the regular season for the fourth time in his career (and second consecutive season in Washington) he had an amazingly short leash from Boudreau.  He also earned those 30 wins in just 47 appearances, 10 games less than he appeared in last year when he won 32 games and the fewest appearances in his four 30 win seasons.  Yet his time in the Washington net is done unless he's willing to take a massive paycut at age 32.  We don't think he will or should.  Some will point to his playoff performance this year but he had just two games and probably the worst matchup for him, his hometown team and the one he broke into the league with opposing him.  We happen to think that had the Caps played anybody else in the first round, Theodore would have been ok.  We wish him nothing but the best going forward and hope he finds a team that will appreciate him.

Semyon "The Saviour" Varlamov: INCOMPLETE,  Clearly Boudreau's favored goaltender, he was getting plenty of time to get into form when his entire season was derailed with a knee injury that kept him on the shelf for two months.  When any player misses the amount of time that The Saviour did, it ruins their entire season.  However Boudreau gave him all the time in the world to get his game back on track after returning from the injury at the expense of a hot Theodore.  Varlamov played well in the playoffs, but not well enough and just never got back into the groove that he was on before he got hurt in December.  The concern with The Saviour is his fragility.  He's a very good goaltender and at age 22, a really good chance to be a great goaltender for a long time.  But he has to stay healthy in order for that to happen and if he can't do that, the Caps have to have somebody else on standby to take over.  Luckily the goaltending prospect pool for the Caps is deep right now.

Michal "Bebe" Neuvirth: B-,  The Caps play up Neuvirth's abilities to be on par with Varlamov, when as it stands right now, that isn't exactly the case.  However, Neuvirth showed in his limited action this season that he can get the job done on the NHL level.  And quite frankly, with Varlmov's injury issues, we're not too concerned with turning the starting job over to him should The Saviour end up missing another two month stretch of the season.  He's another youngster in goal so the Caps should have him around for a long time.  As a matter of fact, we wouldn't be the least bit surprised to see him eventually take the #1 goaltender job in D.C. should Boudreau give him the chance.


Overall, the Defense this year gets a C- from us this year.  The overall numbers ranked middle-of-road compared to the rest of the league and there were not nearly as bad as many made them out to be.  They were often overshadowed and often rescued by an offense that went berserk in the regular season so they didn't have to be that good.  However, the biggest problem with the defense was the Penalty Killing which stunk to high heaven all season long.  The unit finished 25th overall in the NHL but was near the bottom all season and under 80% the entire way.   If the Caps can improve the penalty killing, it will go a long way to changing the minds of people who think that the Caps have huge issues in a goal and along the blueline.

2009-2010 Caps Season Wrap-Up Part I

Well, the Lord certainly does work in mysterious ways...  As disappointed as we were with the Caps untimely demise in the Stanley Cup Playoffs this season, it turned out for us, and maybe the Caps too, to be a blessing in disguise.  With everything that has gone on in our personal and professional lives since Game 7, we have a hard time wondering just how in the world we would have been able to keep up if the Caps had advanced further and further into this year's playoffs.  And the time way has given us a chance for a little less emotional perspective on the season which is always good.

#1.  If we learned nothing else about this team, it is that it peaked too soon this season.  That and nobody in their right mind could predict what happened in the Eastern Conference Playoffs this season.  The top 3 seeds all went out in the first round and seeds 7 and 8 faced off for the Conference Finals.  That does not happen very often , so not only were the Caps not alone in the unmet expectations department, it was just a fluky playoff year.  Maybe next year the Caps won't try to push so much out of the regular season.

#2.  Bruce Boudreau is going to have to change his style.  No we're not calling for a switch to the trap and a totally defensive oriented mindset.  However the run-and-gun style he's installed is detracting from the defensive system he is trying to use.  Maybe it is that maturity factor creeping in again, after all the oldest of the core players is just 26 years old.  But Boudreau also has to stop playing favorites among certain players and punishing others when they have bad games/mistakes.  The first round disaster was not Boudreau's fault alone but he bares a fair amount of responsibility with the way he manages the lineup.

#3. George McPhee's to-do list has grown.  Part of Bourdeau's lineup issues stems from the fact that he's doing the best he can with what he has.  The Caps have a superb top line, a second line that would be the top line on half of the teams in the NHL (in spite of the lack of a true second-line center)  one that you could designate as 1-B.  A third line that plays more like a second line and one of the better fourth lines in the NHL.  But what this season and playoffs exposed was the lack of a true third-line checking unit.  In addition to finding a center for the second line and a top-drawer, physical, stay-at-home-defenseman;  McPhee needs to give Boudreau the proper tools to build a third line checking unit.  This is something that the Caps have lacked since the Halpern-Konowalchuk-Dahlen unit was broken up.

Overall, there are still bright days ahead for this franchise.  Yes, tweaks need to be made but a total and complete overhaul is not needed.

Out of Cap Jail

Well folks, it took some time, more than many people would have liked, but General Manager George McPhee has finally gotten Michael "Meadowlark" Nylander off the salary cap.

The immediate effect of this is likely to disappoint many as well.  After all, bringing up Karl "Malden" Alzner will only increase the log jam on the blueline that has forced Tyler Sloan into skating as a forward in order to get into a game.  And during his time with the Penguin Scum, Chris Bourque showed he's not ready to be a full time NHL player.  We don't see how minor league call-ups at this point can make the Caps any better.

What we believe this does do for the Caps is two-fold; first of all it gives us the flexibility to make a move to add salary at the trade deadline later this year.  Another rental like Sergei (#3) Fedorov or Esa Tikkanen.  Secondly without digging into the minutiae of the Collective Bargaining Agreement, the Caps now have the ability to get Nicklas Backstrom and Alexander "Slappy" Semin signed to contract extensions well before July 1st.

As for Meadowlark, we wish him well.  It just didn't work out for his second tour of duty and now he actually gets to earn his salary by riding the buses for Grand Rapids of the AHL.  It couldn't have been easy for him to sit as long as he did and to his credit, he didn't make waves and disrupt the team either last year or this year.  Maybe he'll now be able to convince a KHL team he actually wants to play for to pick him up.  But the bottom line is, he's gone for good and by agreeing to play out at least this year in the AHL, he helps the Caps become a better a team.

Dirty Is In the Eye of Beholder?

We couldn’t help but notice an increase in readership the last couple of days.  We normally see these kinds of spikes in page views when the Penguin Scum appear on the Caps schedule or when we hurl further insults at Pittsburgh.

So we figure you’re surfing on by to get our take on A.O.’s suspension.  Fair enough, who are we to deny our adoring public what they want?  Aside from our busy schedule (and us more loopy than normal on the various fumes emanating in our command center right now) we were refraining from commenting because once we weighed in on this situation, there wouldn’t be anything else for anybody to say about it.

First of all, we’ll admit we were wrong with our prediction of a 10 game suspension.  We thought that the NHL would take the opportunity to “send a message” and ensure that A.O. couldn’t win another automatic award this season.  Sure, you could say that 10 games would be too many for the league to sit one of their superstars, but you would be forgetting the fact that the NHL does little to push A.O. on their own in the first place. Unlike other alleged NHL Superstars, A.O. is as popular as he is because of what he’s done on the ice, not what the NHL has done for him off of it.  So the short of it is, despite being the two-time MVP and goal scoring leader, the NHL doesn’t feel like they owe him any favors.  After all, the more he plays, the more he makes a mockery of the NHL’s marketing ploy.

Yet, the NHL shockingly did to A.O. a favor here by suspending him for only two games.  First of all, it is a good bet that A.O. would have missed tomorrow night’s game at home against Florida as a precaution and it wouldn’t have been the worst thing in the world for him to miss Saturday night in Philadelphia either.  However, from a business standpoint, neither the Caps nor the Flyers need much help when it comes to selling tickets.  But the Ning sure do and that’s when A.O. is eligible to return, next Monday night in Tampa.  Of the next ten opponents, only Tampa and Colorado have had trouble selling tickets this season.  So by allowing A.O. to possibly return on Monday, the NHL helps their overall bottom line.  After all, under the current CBA, the league needs to generate as much revenue as possible to keep the players happy and the only way the NHL can reliably do that is through ticket sales.  So while A.O. gets two games off to heal, the NHL does itself a favor by only shelving him for two games he might have missed anyway.  (Though the $98,844.16 in forfeited salary goes to the NHLPA’s labor battle war chest.  Another reason to shorten his suspension as much as possible.)

Though the dominate topic of conversation over thee past couple of days has been, “is A.O. a dirty player?”

Our answer is no.  Here’s why.

First of all, as our Ultimate Fighting on Ice (UFOI) brethren love to tell us, hockey is a contact sport.  Those of us who want to see fighting banished from the NHL are often accused by UFOI fans of wanting to take all hitting completely out of the game as well.  But that is not the case and just one of their many red herrings and strawmen.  A.O. plays the game hard, the way many think the game should be played.  Yes, we agree that he can be reckless and out of control at times but there’s a difference between being reckless and out of control and dirty.

Have you ever seen A.O. deliver a two handed slash to the back of a player’s leg? (No he’s not Mary-OH! and Mary-OH! never got suspended for the times Mary-OH! did exactly that)  Have you ever seen A.O. clobber somebody in the head with his stick or try to carve up somebody’s face with the blade? (Too many players in this category to name)  Have you ever seen A.O. spear somebody in the gonads? (We’ve seen it happen to A.O. three times already)  Have you ever seen A.O. sucker punch somebody? (Paging Mr. Ward.  Mr. Aaron Ward…) 

We haven’t.  And if you have, please send us video of said incidents to capsnut over at gmail dot com because we’d like to see it.  Those are the marks of a dirty player.  In addition to never seeing A.O. pull those kinds of stunts, we've also never seen him run away or back down from a challenge.  It is well know the easiest way to "awaken the beast" is to start hitting A.O. and many players don't want to do it, because he's likely to to hurt you more than you could hurt him.

Yeah, there was the hit from behind on that Scumbag Dani Briere during his rookie season.  But as soon as he delivered the hit, A.O. knew he messed up and he pulled off from the hit.  If A.O. had followed through on that hit, Dani might have never gotten up.  The slew foot on Rich Peverley earlier this season was in a battle for a loose puck, not an open ice kickout at the end of the game of a player whose team is beating you.  The hit on Patrick Kaleta last week was a charge, not a board, and in the grand scheme of things, a result of officials trying to get home early for Thanksgiving.  There was all kinds of nonsense going on when A.O. applied that hit and the refs had to put a stop to things right away.  And as we said before, the hit on Monday night was a lot like the hit on Sergei Gonchar in the playoffs.  Tim Gleason tried to jump out of the way of an oncoming hit and A.O. couldn’t react in time.  Had Gleason and Gonchar not reacted the way they did, yeah they would have been plastered and posterized by A.O., but there also wouldn’t have been any knee on knee contact.  And please note, despite what some reprobates might say, we're not blaming Gleason for following his natural instincts.  We wouldn't to be hit by A.O. either.  The same goes for Gonchar whom A.O. concussed in a Russian Super League Game during the 2004-2005 lockout with a clean shoulder on the chin.

So if you want to take hitting out of the game, tell guys who play the game hard like A.O. does to “tone it down.”  While we abhor the racism card, we have to believe that the typical Canadian mindset is coming into play.  After all, Bobby Clarke is hailed as a national hero for his slash of Valeri Kharlamov in the 1972 Summit Series.  Why should a Russian who plays the game "the way it is meant to be played" be afforded the same courtesy?  After all, didn't Don Cherry once say that A.O. played the game like a Canadian before he realized he was a Russian?

Your 2009-2010 Washington Capitals Preview

So as you’ve probably noticed from our Season Preview looking at all the other teams, everybody has questions hanging over them heading into the season. Reading previews for the Caps heading into 2009-2010, most question the Caps goaltending and defense. The Caps are starting off the season with a 3-headed monster in net; Jose "Alvin, Simon," Theodore, Semyon "the Saviour" Varlamov, and Michal "Bebe" Neuvirth. Unless something downright crazy happens, Theodore won’t be here next year and could be gone at some point this season for a variety of reasons. That would leave two rookies to carry the load and stop acting like a rookie has never ever in the history of the NHL backstopped a team to the Stanley Cup. While it has been awhile since the Caps have not had a settled #1 goaltender heading into the season, there is simply too much talent in net right for this position to be a total failure, though there will be those who will quickly point to it if things don't work out.

The defense on the other hand is better than advertised. No, they’re not a shutdown defense, but they get the job done. We admit, we never thought a team that had Pavel Kubina as a shutdown defender could win the Cup, yet that’s exactly what happened in 2004. As much as we rag on John "Coach's Pet" Erskine Bowles, the Caps really don’t have better options at this position and must make do with it. General Manager George McPhee tried to get Chris Pronger from Anaheim but properly balked at the high asking price. Remember he tried to land Zdeno Chara too but he wasn’t interested at the time. Though you have to wonder if that would still be the case today.

The thing however that everybody needs to remember is that there were questions about the goaltending and defense heading into last year and yet in spite of them the Caps; cruised on into another division title, racked up 108 points in the standings, and despite facing a bad and obvious hose job, got to Game 7 in the Second Round and should have advanced further in the playoffs. For all the yelling and screaming about this team, from the fans McPhee must be doing something right considering just two years ago the Caps had their second consecutive 70 point season and are now considered serious contender for the Stanley Cup.

Don't get us wrong, there is some legitimate concern on the back end, but that isn’t what we see dogging the Caps heading into this season.

First of all, do the Caps have enough maturity to win? We happen to think that the biggest problem the Caps had in the First Round against the Rangers was a lack of maturity which is why they fell behind 3-1 and needed seven games to advance. While there are fewer rookies and second year players in critical positions this year, this team is still very young in its core. Alexander "Slappy" Semin, is the oldest of the bunch and he’s going to be 25 in March. The players need to stop worrying about their goal celebrations, hair styles, automobiles, and partying and need to concentrate on winning. Yes, part of what makes this team so much fun to watch is their youthful enthusiasm. We happen to think that they can keep a good bit of it but still bear down enough to win it all. The Caps could really use serious veteran leadership to help this come along. While having Sergei (#3) Fedorov around was nice, it was clear that his effect on the younger players had waned as last season wore on. People also forget he too was rather flamboyant in his youth, though not to the extent of some of our guys.

Secondly, to the Caps have the desire to win? You might think that is the same as maturity but it isn’t. Those of us in the D.C. area know very well what you get when you have a team that talks about winning more than actually doing it. And the best example we can come up with in terms of desire is an NFL Greatest Games we sometimes come across. It chronicles the 1983 NFC Championship game between the Washington Redskins and the San Francisco 49ers. The Redskins won that game 24-21 after blowing a 21 point lead in the fourth quarter to earn a trip to Super Bowl XVIII. The 25 yard game winning field goal with 40 seconds left was set up by two controversial penalties on the Redskins final drive of the game. In the special that runs on ESPN and NFL Network from time to time, members of the 49ers state that their anger over losing that game the way they did spurred them to an 18-1 record and a Super Bowl XIX win the following season. We’ve all heard about the angry text messages that Bruce Boudreau received after the Penguin Scum were handed the Cup back in June, do the 2009-2010 Caps have the same anger that the 1984 49ers did? If they do, this could be a very special season in D.C. But make no mistake, desire will have to be just as a big part of this as maturity and luck because unlike some teams in the NHL, the Stanley Cup will not be handed to the Caps on a silver platter. The Caps are going to have to earn every bit of it should they end up winning the Cup this season.

So how do the Caps get there? Well first they’ll need a strong start out of the gate which won’t be easy with their early schedule. Four of the first five and six of the first ten opponents made the playoffs last year and are expected to be in the playoffs again this year. Non-playoff teams Toronto and Nashville won’t be easy games either, at least at the start of the season. While we don’t expect anybody to take the Caps lightly, the Caps need to lay out early this year that they are serious about winning this year. The Caps will also need continued focus all season long which also won’t be easy with key players heading off to the Olympics in February and others wanting to join them, how much of a distraction will that be? And while the Caps can’t backslide down the stretch like they did last year, though a tougher schedule at the end of this season should prevent that, they also can’t play lackadaisically like they did against teams like Tampa and the New York Islanders all too often a year ago. Furthermore, the Caps have to stay healthy, too many injuries started to pile up late in the season and in the playoffs last year. With the salary cap and waiver process, the team’s depth will eventually take a hit. Though we will admit, there’s not much the Caps can do about injuries other than wish for good luck and fast healing.

The NHL likes to run a marketing slogan, is this the year? After spending the first three years on this pathetic excuse for a blog downplaying the Caps chances and expectations, this year, we aren’t. Folks, there’s no hiding it, this team is good, very good. It isn’t perfect, no team in this league is, but the 2009-2010 Washington Capitals have the best chance of winning the Stanley Cup since the Caps teams of the mid-1980’s. And while the offense is as good as it has ever been, this is not a team that is going to blow opponents out 12-2 every night. And we guarantee you a stretch of poor play at some point this season with some mind boggling losses thrown in for good measure. We might even have to pull a Houdini act in one round of the playoffs to get by. But folks, there’s no reason not to expect the Caps in the Stanley Finals this season nor should we be laughed at for having dreams of a Stanley Cup parade down Pennsylvania Avenue in June 2010.