Was it really that close? Absent a television feed, it was hard to know...
It is either a measure of just how bad Atlanta is, or how tenacious the Caps were to stay in it (after their all-too-patterned “hot start, followed by nap time” style), but the numbers in the 2-1 overtime loss to the Thrashers don’t tell a pretty story for the Caps…
Blocked shots. Once more, the Caps registered double digits in attempts blocked – 13 (Atlanta had only four attempts blocked). That’s actually an improvement; since registering 30 of that specie against the Rangers, they have gone 25-20-13. Hey, it’s progress, but here is the comparison to watch as the Caps travel to Ottawa on Thursday. Anton Volchenkov (surprise, surprise) leads the NHL in blocked shots with 66. Alexander Ovechkin has had 57 shots blocked thus far. Tomorrow night, Volchenkov might get 20 himself.
Turnovers. The Caps lost this battle, 23-16. Atlanta had 16 takeaways to eight for the Caps. Guess they just wanted the puck more.
Faceoffs. The Caps – seventh in the league, even after last night’s game – lost that battle 28-21 to a club that this morning still finds itself 22nd in the league. Guess Atlanta just wanted the puck more…well, Bobby Holik, anyway. He accounted for the entire difference, going 15-7 in draws.
Hits. OK, we’ve been here before – it’s a subjective measure. But the Caps had nine to the Thrashers’ 13. Who led the Caps?...the new kid, Chris Bourque…he had two. That’s not his problem, that’s everyone else’s.
How did this game go to overtime? Well, if Ilya Kovalchuk plays more than 9:02 (having departed with back spasms), chances are, it wouldn’t, despite what seemed to be a fine effort on the part of Caps goalie Brent Johnson. But looking at the numbers (and as JP suggests over at Japers’ Rink, Alex Ovechkin’s were among the worst you’re likely to see from him), it seemed to be the tale of a bad team against a frustrated one.
It is either a measure of just how bad Atlanta is, or how tenacious the Caps were to stay in it (after their all-too-patterned “hot start, followed by nap time” style), but the numbers in the 2-1 overtime loss to the Thrashers don’t tell a pretty story for the Caps…
Blocked shots. Once more, the Caps registered double digits in attempts blocked – 13 (Atlanta had only four attempts blocked). That’s actually an improvement; since registering 30 of that specie against the Rangers, they have gone 25-20-13. Hey, it’s progress, but here is the comparison to watch as the Caps travel to Ottawa on Thursday. Anton Volchenkov (surprise, surprise) leads the NHL in blocked shots with 66. Alexander Ovechkin has had 57 shots blocked thus far. Tomorrow night, Volchenkov might get 20 himself.
Turnovers. The Caps lost this battle, 23-16. Atlanta had 16 takeaways to eight for the Caps. Guess they just wanted the puck more.
Faceoffs. The Caps – seventh in the league, even after last night’s game – lost that battle 28-21 to a club that this morning still finds itself 22nd in the league. Guess Atlanta just wanted the puck more…well, Bobby Holik, anyway. He accounted for the entire difference, going 15-7 in draws.
Hits. OK, we’ve been here before – it’s a subjective measure. But the Caps had nine to the Thrashers’ 13. Who led the Caps?...the new kid, Chris Bourque…he had two. That’s not his problem, that’s everyone else’s.
How did this game go to overtime? Well, if Ilya Kovalchuk plays more than 9:02 (having departed with back spasms), chances are, it wouldn’t, despite what seemed to be a fine effort on the part of Caps goalie Brent Johnson. But looking at the numbers (and as JP suggests over at Japers’ Rink, Alex Ovechkin’s were among the worst you’re likely to see from him), it seemed to be the tale of a bad team against a frustrated one.
Just so we're clear, the bad team won.
One point is better than none, and about the best that can be said for it is that it slows the bleeding. But to the folks at the NHL and Versus…thank you for that exclusivity deal on telecasts. The Peerless might have removed his eyes with a grapefruit spoon had he watched this one.
One point is better than none, and about the best that can be said for it is that it slows the bleeding. But to the folks at the NHL and Versus…thank you for that exclusivity deal on telecasts. The Peerless might have removed his eyes with a grapefruit spoon had he watched this one.
5 comments:
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I don't know if this slows the bleeding at all. I mean, it was Atlanta.
The Capitals looked good; the outshot the Thrashers 16-6 in the first behind the help of three power plays.
What killed them was the referees only calling penalties on the Caps the rest of the game to make up for it, save for a hit from behind on OV by Holik. I guess the refs were intimidated by the Thrashers baby blue jerseys?
Nice Blog :)
Are we done benching Jurcina yet? Please?
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