It's a TWO point night -- Caps vs. Hurricanes, Opening Night

Monster.

That, despite one goal on the scoresheet, was the game Alexander Ovechkin had in the Caps’ 2-0 win in the home opener. Olaf Kolzig earned the first star, and deservedly so for a 23-save shutout of the Carolina Hurricanes, but Ovechkin was all over the score sheet:

-- Six shots

-- One goal (game winner, and his 200^th NHL point)

-- Four hits

-- Three takeaways

-- Three blocked shots

-- No giveaways

And it wasn’t like it was just “The Olie and Ovie Show,” either. The Capitals showed the fans in an up-close-and-personal way the stunning difference between this year’s club and the first two editions of the post-lockout Caps. The Caps led in shots, 14-2 after one period and 29-11 after two, the product of playing keep-away with the puck and playing the passing lanes in their own zone exquisitely. The Olympia ice resurfacer hardly needed to resurface the Caps’ end in either of the first two periods.

There were moments, though, when in the third period the Caps looked as if they were ripe to be had. Going into what might have been an early shell (as often as not, a “prevent defense” only prevents one thing…winning). Carolina was able to turn the tables on the Caps and dominate possession and territory in the third, but Kolzig turned away all 12 shots he faced, and the boys stiffened their defense when necessary.

In the numbers were some other encouraging signs amidst the Caps’ 2-0 start:

-- Alexander Semin had four shots and a number of excellent chances. Although he did not score, for a shooter it was a night that said…”soon.”

-- Nicklas Backstrom had another point, and you had to be paying close attention to see why. On a power play, Backstrom had the puck deep in the left wing corner. He worked himself around the boards and found himself with space between himself and a defender. Rather than blindly throw the puck to the point or curl the puck back around the boards – as a rookie might – he made the patient play. He held the puck looking for an opening. He found Alexander Semin, who moved the puck to Milan Jurcina at the top of the zone for a clear shot that found the back of the net. It isn’t a play one gives a second thought about for a veteran, but rookies – in their first game at home – might not make that play.

-- Boyd Gordon held his own against the wizard of the dots, winning six of11 draws against Rod Brind’Amour.

-- The defense held Erik Cole and Eric Staal without a shot on goal (Cole was held without an attempt, Staal had three shots blocked). Cole was 7-5-11 last year against the Caps; Staal was 4-5-9.

-- 15 of 18 skaters were credited with hits, Milan Jurcina, Matt Pettinger, and Alexander Ovechkin leading the team with four, apiece.

-- 11 skaters were credited with blocked shots, Ovechkin’s three leading the way.

-- The penalty killers snuffed out all four man-down situations, making them 8-for-8 in two games.

-- The Caps had 15 takeaways to six for Carolina. Adding in giveaways, the Caps won the turnover battle, 29-24.

-- Shots allowed – 23. That’s 52 in two games. Last year: 63 in the first two games.

Defense is going to be ahead of offense at this time of team and timing and chemistry work themselves out on the offense, especially on the power play and with new ingredients being added to the Caps’ mix. That would seem to account, in part, for the Caps’ comparative inability to finish in some situations, most notably the four-minute man advantage tonight. But plays worked, passes found their targets, players were in high-probability scoring areas without sacrificing defensive responsibility. These are things in which the Caps rarely found themselves last year. It’s only two games, but all signs thus far are encouraging.

It’s the difference between “ugh” and “wow.”