Caps Sleep In 4-1 Loss
By Rodger M. Wood
18,398 fans at the Verizon Center Saturday afternoon matinee were again shortchanged when the home team stopped playing halfway through game and lost to the harder working Los Angeles Kings 4-1.Scoring an unassisted goal at the 1:06 mark of the first period, Ovie gave fans false hope. Today’s outcome wasn't different than the past six contests against Western Conference teams, in which the Caps were beaten decisively.Back to normal after the goal, the Caps played decent defense for a period and a half, but then gave up again against another tough opponent. Kings forwards swarmed harder and harder on the Caps goaltender, Semyon Varlomov as the game wore on, and whose big tough defensemen knocked Caps forwards on their butts.Perhaps our European stars, Alex O, Niklaus Backstrom, Alexander Semin, Marcus Johanssen, Michael Neuvirth, and Semyon Varlomov can’t cope with the Western Conference’s rugged game.Near the end of the first period, DJ King tried to energize his teammates, taking on Kings Kevin Westgarth in a rugged heavyweight battle, and throughout the game, by hard checking opponents, crashing on net, and shooting the puck, but his good effort did't help.While King’s plus/minus was zero, All Star defenseman Mike Green and Jeff Schultz’ was a -3, indicating they were on the ice for three of the Kings goals, and forwards, Jason Chimera, Brooks Laich, and Mathieu Perreault a -2, indicating they were on the ice for at least two of the Kings goals.Before the Caps go West next week to face the Phoenix Coyotes Monday, Anaheim Ducks Wednesday, and San Jose Sharks Thursday, maybe some of our Caps need to be sent back to Hershey where they will not be traumatized by such tough competition.In summary, the bottom line this afternoon was Kings 4 Caps 1.Ottawa’s Good Center Mike Fisher Traded to Nashville: Needing a good second line center badly, the Caps lost out again, when former Caps GM David Poile traded a 2011 #1 draft and a 2012 conditional pick (third or second, depending on how many rounds Nashville wins) to Ottawa for two way center Mike Fisher.
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Caps Take Off Night against San Jose
By Rodger M. Wood
Coming off successively strong two way wins against conference rivals Tampa and Pittsburgh, the Capitals once again decided to take a night off Monday to lose at home to a hustling Western Conference challenger, San Jose Sharks 2-0.As in the other seven games they were shut out this season, the Caps showedvery little of the infamous rhyming game virtues, spark and heart.It’s also a possibility they just weren’t tough enough after two days rest to cope with the very big tough defensemen protecting the Sharks blue line.Highly rated rookie defensemen, John Carlson, Kurt Alzner, and the Caps first line forwards, Ovie, Niklaus Backstrom, and Jason Chimera were on the ice for both the Sharks goals from the Caps blue line midway through the third period.In any event, they lost again with only the excuse that coming off a six game injury, $6.2 million dollar man, Alexander Semin, was not yet in game shape.If that was case, why did they send Jay Beagle, who gave the Caps 100% spark and heart all of the time for lots less money, back to Hershey the day before.Penguins Matt Cooke Suspended Four GamesPenguins Matt Cooke, who tried to injure Alex O with a knee to knee check in Saturday’s game, was suspended by the NHL for the 4 games for a hit from behind on Columbus’ Fedor Tyutin on Tuesday night.
Is Stars Brad Richards Coming to the Caps?There are some wild rumors circulating around the Caps are considering a trade of right wing Matt Bradley, one of the rookie goaltenders, Semyon Varlomov,Michal Neuvirth, or Braden Holtby, and a #1 draft pick, for Dallas center and leading scorer, Brad Richards. Richards leads the Stars in scoring with 22 goals and 39 assiststhe 2010-2011 campaign.
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Caps Blank Penguins
By Rodger M. Wood
The Caps played tough two way hockey for three periods to shut out arch rival Pittsburgh Penguins 3-0 in their own version of the Super Bowl at the Verizon Centre Sunday afternoon.While the Penguins had difficulty mounting any offensive attack without star centers Sydney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, who were on the sidelines with injuries,the Caps, spurred on by the aggressive play of its second, third, and fourth lines, sent wave upon wave of offensive attackers on Penguin goalie Marc- Andre Fleury, who had to resort to acrobatics to keep the puck from going into the net.Taking advantage of the Penguins not covering up the point, Brooks Laich, assisted by defenseman John Erskine’s slap slot, scored the go ahead and eventual game winning goal at the 18:22 mark of the first period.Center Marcus Johansson victimized the Penguins with a flashy shorthanded goalwhich gave the Caps a 2-0 lead early in the second period.Mike Knuble’s pay off for an injured face and hard work was an empty netter at the end of the game to make the final score 3-0.In his first start since January 18th, Caps Michael Neuvirth blanked the Pens with 22 saves for the Caps first Penguins shutout at home since 1990 – 1991 season.The win didn’t come without any costs as Caps all star defenseman Mike Green took a shot in the head near the end of the first period. While Green said it was only a cut, he didn’t return to the ice in the second period and was under doctor’s observation Monday.The Penguin/Capitals rivalry became even more heated when Penguins Matt Cooke, who has a reputation for dirty play, tried to take Ovie out in the third period with a leg check.Hats off to Caps Matt Bradley for trying to get a piece of Cooke in the last minute of play, but unfortunately, he will have to wait until the end of upcoming road trip before he can exact due process.Earlier in the third period, engaging him in a wrestling match, Wilkes Barre call up Tim Wallace fought Caps David Steckel in an obvious attempt to make Steckel pay for an accidental blind side hit on Sydney Crosby in the Winter Classic.The Caps return to the ice against Pacific Division second place San Jose at home Tuesday night.
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Capitals With Neuvirth Blank The Pens! 3-0
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Caps’ Tough Guys Win Big Game
By Rodger M. Wood
After Coach Boudreau’s tough guys, Matt Hendricks, and Matt Bradley disrupted the goaltender and beat down the opposition’s bullies, the Caps played physical two–way hockey, which beat Southeast Division leading Tampa Bay last night 5-2.Once they found out the coach’s strategy of defensemen passing the puck to each other in their own zone worked to force Lightning forwards to make the first move, they broke down the Tampa neutral zone trap, which had been so successful the previous two Tampa games in which they had been shutout.Eight minutes into the game, Matt Hendricks took the final step necessary to make the strategy a sure winner when he crashed the nets, and collided with Lightning goalie Dwayne Roloson, who responded by throwing four punches to Hendrick’s head and losing his focus the rest of the game.On the ensuing four on four penalty play, Mike Green set up Nicklas Backstrom for the tying 1-1 goal, and ended Roloson’s two game magical shutout spell over the Caps.Upset by his contact with Roloson, Lightning forward Steve Downie took on Matt Hendricks, in their one fight a game series which they’ve conducted the past three games.While Downie and Hendricks were off serving 5-minute penalties, Matt Bradley took on Lightning forward Adam Hall, who had punished Caps defenseman Mike Green moments before with a hard check behind the Caps nets.The fights energized the Caps offense, which seemed to have been intimidated the past two games by those “tough” guys and Tampa Bay defenseman, Mattias Ohlund.The Caps first line of Alex Ovechkin, Backstrom, and Jason Chimera started skating and checking harder, found more open space, and stood in front of the net disrupting the Tampa goalie the remainder of the game.But it was Brooks Laich, assisted by line mates Mathieu Perreault and the ever hard working Jay Beagle, who broke the tie with his 10th goal at the 6:38 mark of the second period.On a power play two minutes later, Alex O’s hard work paid off with his 20th goal, assisted by Backstrom and John Carlson to make it a 3-1 game.With less than a minute remaining in the second period, Lightning forward Brett Clarke made it a 3-2 game with a power play goal, the first the Caps penalty kill unit had allowed in 27 tries.Midway through the third period, Caps forward Backstrom put the game out of reach 4-2 with his second goal of the night, and at the game’s end, giving up a sure goal for himself, Ovie unselfishly assisted on Jason Chimera’s empty netter making the final score 5-2.Caps goalie Varlamov was spectacular in the nets again, stopping 23 of 25 shots.The win, moved the Caps within three points of Tampa Bay in the Southeast Division first place battle.The Caps meet Pittsburgh at home In their own Super Bowl Sunday at 12:30 PM.
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Good Start, Bad Finish!
By Rodger M. Wood
After a 5-day All Star break, and truly enough time to sort out a winning strategy for the stretch run and April playoffs, our poor Caps still couldn’t get the complete game they needed to beat playoff nemesis Montreal Canadiens in a big test at the Verizon Center last night.Pressing ferociously in the Montreal end most the first period, they took a 2-0 lead on an even man goal by Mathieu Perreault and a power play goal by Mike Knuble, which was also assisted by Perreault.At the intermission, they could rest assured their play was aggressive and power play was working well again, They were looking good and the 18,398 Capital fans attending had to be impressed after their one period rejuvenated play.But then after defenseman John Erskine fell down at mid ice and couldn’t get back to defend, the roof fell in. With Russian forward Andrei Kostitsyn flying on his flank in a pretty two on one breakaway, Habs captain Brian Givonta beat Caps goalie Semyon Varlomov at 8:29 mark of the second period to make the game 2-1.Less than three minutes before the end of the second period, Caps defenseman, John Carlson made a rookie mistake trying a drop pass to Perreault, which was interceptedby Canadiens Thomas Plekanec, who set up Givonta for the tie goal, his second of the night.While they didn’t cost any goals, questionable tripping, slashing, and hooking penalties to Brooks Laich, who doesn’t drawn that many penalties, cost the Capstheir aggressive get up and go in the second and third periods.The Caps worked hard to kill the penalties, hung on in overtime, tied 2-2, but then proceeded to lose their 8th straight half sucked cough drop game on Givonta’s goal in theovertime shootout.Caps goalie Semyon Varlomov was spectacular in the nets again, stopping 36 of 38 shots.After the game, Coach Boudreau chalked the defeat up more to mistakes than Caps lack of hard play.The Caps meet Southeast Division leader Tampa Bay Friday at Tampa. Tampa beat the conference leading Philadelphia Flyers 4-0 at Philadelphia last night to take a five point lead over the Capitals for first place in the division race.
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Name The Cap, Download A Free Digital Image
Clues:
- 1. He was born May 3, 1957 in Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China.
- 2. He spent 2 NCAA seasons at the University of New Hampshire.
- 3. He played with Montreal and Washington.
- 4. He won the Norris Trophy in two seasons.
- 5. His nickname was "Department of Defense."
Contest Rules:
- 1. Email us at contest(at)capitalpowerplay.com or follow us on Twitter (http://twitter.com/cappowerplay)
- 2. Email us with the subject “Name The Cap” or DM (direct message) your answer to @cappowerplay on twitter.
- 3. Each correct answer will receive a link to download the high resolution image (3130px × 2075px).
- 4. Limit of one entry per person.
*Note: Contest closes 30 days after the post date.
Great Defense but No Goals!
By Rodger M. Wood
The Caps played good defense against Atlanta last night, but couldn’t buy a goal to save their souls.And this has been the story the past two games. The Capitals have held opponents to a goal each in regulation, but scoring only a goal themselves both games, lost to the Rangers Monday night at home in a shootout 2-1, and the Thrashers Wednesday 1-0 away, making the seventh game the Capitals have been shutout this season.There is no way in the world either of these teams should beat our Capitals, especially on home ice, but can you believe Wednesday’s night win was sadly the Thrashers’ third win in a row over the Caps.Both games looked like figure skating events at the Olympics. Skating around in wide circles, Johansson, Backstrom, Ovechkin, Green, Chimera, and Carlson made doing Figure 8’s looked good for the fans.It was disappointing to see our favorites futilely try to mount any offense, especially on the power play, which they have scored on once in the past five game. The Caps prevented the opposition from scoring goals, but couldn’t reverse the tables to score some goals themselves.Defense wins games, but only when a team score more goals than the other team. If the Caps don’t learn to do both quickly or trade for some players who know, can, and want to score goals at the same they play good defense, fans, you can kiss the playoffs “goodbye” Either the Caps will not make them or if they do, not make it past the first round.It was good to see Matt Bradley back on the ice again. As soon as he gets ice acclimated, he will give the Caps more heart.While Caps baby goalies are playing great, they need to stay healthy and on the ice. Michael Neuvirth is injured now, and Varlamoiv’s just getting back.After losing a shutout late in the third period to the Rangers, Braden Holtby was faked out of his jock on three shots in the shootout. Varlamov allowed only a goal to the Thrashers.While Caps goalies are giving the team a chance to win, they aren’t getting the offensive support they need to win.
Without An Offense, Caps Fall to Rangers In Shootout
Post game recaps for your reading pleasure:
"Matt Hendricks has somehow become the nucleus of the Capitals offense. and No seriously, Braden’s save percentage in his last three starts is .967. That’s 87 saves on 90 shots. PEOPLE." - Rangers Beat Caps 2-1(SO), Offense M.I.A - Russian Machine Never Breaks
"Aesthetically, the game was like watching a performance art depiction of a root canal, a game that was played just the way the Rangers wanted it – zone to zone, not much flow, and few in the way of real scoring chances." A ONE-point night --Game 50: Rangers 2- Caps 1 (OT/Gimmick) - The Peerless Prognosticator
"Long gone are the days of the high-risk, high-reward Capitals who were capable of blowing out anyone, anytime." Knuble and Laich still Missing in Action - Homer McFanboy
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Alex the Great Lights Up Hockey Night in Canada!
By Rodger M. Wood
Scoring three goals in a Caps 4-1 win, unselfishly blocking opponent shots in front of a young goalie, and crushing opposing skaters with body checks all over the ice, Alex O played last night in Toronto like he was on a mission to show fans on Hockey Night in Canada that he was still the great one.Assisted by Nikolas Backstrom and Jeff Schultz, he opened up scoring at the 14:27 mark of the first period, at 1:12 of the third period, assisted by Green and Chimera, he scored the Caps game winner, and at the end of the third period he scored an empty netter to make the final score 4-1.Between Alex O’s goals, Matt Hendricks scored a nice breakaway goal, his 6th of the season.
Sharing the limelight with Ovi in his second start in a row and tenth NHL game of his career, rookie goalie Braden Holtby put on a spectacular show stopping 35 shots, many of which were serious Leaf scoring threats.Caps defensemen, Mike Green, Scott Hannan, Jeff Schultz, John Erskine, Karl Alzner, and John Carlson helped young Holtby with a stingy aggressive defense, which blocked double digit shots and forced Maple Leaf snipers to shoot from the perimeter.This past week the Caps gained five of six points in road games against the Flyers, Islanders, and Leafs to stay a point behind first place Southeast Division Tampa Bay and 7 ahead of 3rd place Atlanta.Caps forwards Boyd Gordon and DJ King are back on the ice, but Alexander Semin, Matt Bradley, and Tom Poti are on the sideline.The Caps play at home today against the New York Rangers.
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Progress Is Made, Caps Beat Islanders
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"The Laziest Five Guys"
By ThomA quote by the Flyers game announcers regarding the Capitals play or lack of play during the Caps vs. Flyers game: "That was the five laziest guys you could have found to have on the ice against that line." Summed up by Russian Machine Never Breaks, "They played 40 seconds of gritty hockey in an hourlong game."
Caps Fight Back Against Flyers
By Rodger M. Wood
The Caps fought back to a 2-2 draw against the Broad Street Bullies last night at Philadelphia in regulation, but lost 3-2 in overtime.The game started off like, “Oh, here we go again,” when the Caps fell behind 1-0 early on Jeff Carter’s goal at the 1:31 mark of the first period, but the Caps showed more fight this game, starting with Caps DJ King pummeling a 6-3 230 Flyers goon named “Jody Shelley” at center ice a minute later.Caps showed more toughness at the end of the first period when defenseman John Erskine challenged each and any one of the Flyers on the ice to fight or go to the dressing room, and throughout the game with their bone crunching checks.After Claude Giroux scored the Flyers’ second goal at midway point of the second period for a 2-0 lead, the Caps staged a ferocious comeback, fore checking, dumping the puck in the Flyers end, and collapsing in front of the net. The hard work paid off with Mike Knuble’s rebound goal, assisted by Marcus Johansson, at the 7:58 mark of the third period, and Alex O’s 2-2 tie goal a minute later.While the Flyers won 3-2 in overtime on defenseman Andrej Meszaros’ hard wrist shot from the point, Caps goalie Semyon Varlomov kept the Caps in the game with his unbelievable goaltending, after replacing injured Michael Neuvirth in the second period.Atpyically unmarred by penalties in the second and third periods, all the Flyers/Caps goals were scored with no man advantage.While getting only a point for the tie in regulation and falling a point behind the Lightning in the Southeast Division race, the Caps’ comeback showed they can take the ice and beat an Eastern Conference point leading Flyers (65) anytime home or away, and more especially when the puck starts bouncing and the referee start calling a few penalties their way again..The Caps move on to Nassau Memorial Coliseum to face the New York Islanders Thursday night and the Toronto Maple Leafs away on Canada’s Saturday night hockey, which was made famous by HOF broadcaster Foster Hewitt back in the 1950s when I was growing up in Detroit.
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Caps’ Juggled Up Lines Beat Ottawa
By Rodger M. Wood
Coach Boudreau’s juggled up Caps lines paid late dividends, scoring three goals midway through the third period to beat the Ottawa Senators 3-1 at the Verizon Center last night.The Senators played a solid game until they unraveled in the 3rd period under the intensepressure of Caps back checking. Benefiting from new line mates, Alex O. and Marcus Johansson’s hard checks in the corners freeing up the puck, Brooks Laich scored over Senators goaltender, Brian Elliott’s shoulder to tie the game 1-1 at 7:15 mark.
Forty-five seconds later, John Carlson made the Senators pay for Milan Michalek’s cheap shot of Karl Alzner into the boards, when he put the Caps ahead 2-1 with their first power play goal in 11 attempts.Jason Chimera scored the decisive third goal, assisted by David Steckel and Karl Alzner at the 13.31 mark.Caps goalie Michael Neuvirth stopped 22 of 23 shots, won his 15th game of the season (15-6-4 overall). He only faltered on Mike Fisher’s 12th goal of the season at the 1:12 mark of the first period. He looked sharp the remainder of the game, much like the good goalie he was this past October.Tied for first place in the Southeast Division with the Tampa Bay at 57 points each, the Caps start a crucial three game road trip at Philadelphia Tuesday.
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Caps Play Better But Lose To Canucks 4-2
By Rodger M. Wood
The Caps played with zest in the first and third periods, but outplayed much of the game lost 4-2 to the high flying Vancouver Canucks at the Verizon Center last night.Typical of his hard play, Matt Hendricks crashed the nets and scored the first goal to give the Caps a 1-0 lead at 5:50 mark of the first period and encouraged home town fans to believe this game was going to be different than the past five games, in which the Caps failed to score a goal in the first period.Less than three minutes later, Canucks defenseman Alexander Edler tied the game 1-1 with a shot from the blue line, which found its way through traffic past Caps goalie Semyon Varlamov, who stopped 31 of 34 shots and had been playing super goal the past five games with a 1.25 goal against average.The Canucks went ahead in the second period on defensemen, Christian Ehrhoff’s goal from the point and a breakaway goal by forward Daniel Sedin, who with his twin brother Henrik, gives the Canucks lots of offensive fire power.
Late in the second period, the Caps started putting pressure on the Canucks, but had to wait midway through the third period before Marcus Johansson put the second goal past NHL all star goalie Roberto Luongo. Johansson was assisted by Brooks Laich and Nickolas Backstrom.Canucks Daniel Sedin scored his second goal of the night, an empty netter, to end the game 4-2.Injured in a collision with line mate David Steckel, Eric Fehr left the game in the 3rd period. Alexander Semin, DJ Bradley, and Matt Bradley were still on the side line with injuries, taking lots of tough offense out of the lineup.The Caps resume play against Ottawa Senators in a 3 PM game Sunday.
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