The 2008-2009 season, by the "tens" -- Wingers: Brooks Laich

Brooks Laich

Theme: “…someone’s gotta do it.”

When you’re the return in a trade for a local hockey icon, chances are your journey in your new city is going to be a bit bumpy. For Brooks Laich, the return in a trade sending Peter Bondra to Ottawa in February 2004, the road was a bit bumpy. And in his first 150 games with the Caps over three seasons, it was just that – 15-24-39, -12 on teams that didn’t perform very well. Then last year, Laich took a big step up – 21-16-37, -3, eight power play goals, four game-winners, and six more points in seven playoff games. It got him an “A-“ from this corner last year.

With that step up, Laich grew into something of a cult hero among Capitals fans, becoming the local version of Chuck Norris. That aside, his season last year created some expectations this year, perhaps improving on the sort of production out of the third line that has eluded the team since Steve Konowalchuk averaged 17-22-39, +8 over a six year period in the 1990’s. In fact, Laich did improve on last year’s numbers, going 23-30-53, -1, with nine power play goals, three game-winners, and once more skating in all 82 games. He chipped in another three goals and seven points in 14 playoff games. His ten-game segments went like this…


What steps off the page is the matter of his consistency. Five to seven points per segment, for the most part. At least one goal scored in seven of the eight full segments (not altogether bad for a checking line forward). At least one power play goal in five of the eight full segments (not bad, considering he was fifth in average power play ice time among forwards). At least ten hits in six of eight segments. Between 20 and 30 shots on goal in six of eight segments. He registered at least one point in 40 of 82 games. He played at least two games against 17 teams and scored against 15 of them.

If there was one thing distinguishing about Laich it was that he liked home cooking – 11-21-32, +5 at Verizon Center, 12-9-21, -6 on the road.

He also seems to be a “Patrick” sort of player, at least this year. The Atlantic Division is made up of teams that used to share a division address with the Caps – the Patrick Division – and Laich had an especially good year against that group: 8-11-19 in 20 games, including a 2-4-6 line against Pittsburgh in four games.

Drilling down further, Laich was a competent enough scorer at even strength – fifth among the team’s forwards (50 games minimum) in goals scored per 60 minutes and seventh in total points per 60 minutes of ice time. But on the power play, Laich was fourth among forwards in total scoring per 60 minutes and was fourth – ahead of Alexander Semin – in goals scored per 60 minutes.

What Laich was able to do better than any Capital forward was draw penalties. His differential of penalties drawn per 60 minutes to penalties taken of +1.2 tied for the team lead (Eric Fehr). But his ratio of penalties drawn to those taken – 4.6:1 – was by far the best among forwards. And that gets to the heart of the matter. More than most, perhaps all Caps forwards, Laich stuck his nose into high-traffic areas, the sort of places one has to go to draw fouls. He had the shortest average shooting distance among Caps forwards, although this is damning with faint praise – Laich was 57th in the league among forwards playing more than 50 games in this measure. The Caps were the hockey equivalent of a jump-shooting team in basketball.

Goal scoring by Laich has turned into something of an intriguing attribute. He’s gone from eight to 21 to 23, a signal that perhaps there is some more upside there. But it is the variety expressed in his 23 goals this year that makes for intrigue about his possibilities. Even strength goals among forwards? Third, behind the Alexes. Power play goals? Third (Ovechkin, Backstrom). First goals? Third (the Alexes again). Game winners? Fourth. If Laich can squeeze a goal or two out of each situational category, he could be the next 30-goal scorer for the Caps.

Laich has shown himself to be versatile – able to play any of the forward positions (he was fourth on the team at 51.1 percent on draws, despite spending most of his time on the wing). He’s been opportunistic, as evidenced by his production in a variety of situations. He’s been durable, playing in all 82 games the past two seasons. He’s been responsible, taking only 13 minor penalties in those 82 games this year (compare that to 16 for Michael Nylander in 72 games and 11 for Chris Clark in 32 games). Being responsible didn’t keep him from exerting a measure of physical play – fourth among Caps forwards with 99 hits.

Laich’s production in the playoffs – 3-4-7, even, in 14 games – was roughly consistent with his regular season pace of scoring. And he did tie for second among Cap forwards in power play goals (two). He could have used some help, but in the end it became evident that the Caps just didn’t have another forward to do the dirty work in difficult areas of the ice. It was dirty work, and someone had to do it. This season, Laich did. But the Caps will need more of it next year – from him and others. He didn’t have quite the leap in production this year that he had last, but it was still a good year.

Grade: A-

Old Cap, New Coach

On the heels of the Colorado Avalanche firing Tony Granato and five others in the organization, former Capital Joe Sacco has been named head coach for the Avs.

Sacco played for 13 seasons in the NHL with five teams. He played in 213 regular season games over three seasons with the Caps, going 14-30-44, -2, with 149 penalty minutes earned.

Promoted from the Colorado affiliate Lake Erie Monsters the past two years, he joins Craig Billington -- a former Caps goalie -- who is assistant general manager for Colorado. Congrats, Joe.

A Hall of Famer..."surprised and disappointed"

Tom Glavine was released by the Atlanta Braves yesterday. Glavine, a 22-year veteran of major league baseball, has won 305 games over the course of his career, including five 20-win seasons. He can also point to eight all-star games, two Cy Young Awards, and a World Series most valuable player award on his resume. He is, by any definition of the term, one of the all time greats in major league baseball history. He responded to his release by texting, “I’m surprised and disappointed. I’m ready to pitch.”

But as any hockey fan probably knows, baseball wasn't the only thing in which Glavine had talent. Glavine was a fourth-round draft pick of the Los Angeles Kings in 1984 (69th overall) after putting up 47 goals and earning the Merrimack Valley Conference most valuable player trophy with Billerica (MA) Memorial High School.

Glavine was drafted ahead of such notables as Brett Hull (6th round/117th overall), Luc Robitaille (9/171), and Gary Suter (9/180) in the 1984 draft.

Glavine, although he is 43 years old, might be "surprised and disappointed" over his release from the Braves, but he doesn't sound like a guy ready to hang up his spikes. Sounds like a hockey player.

Thanks to SpeedKillz over at The Official for reminding us of Glavine's previous life.

The 2008-2009 season, by the "tens" -- Wingers: Viktor Kozlov

Viktor Kozlov

Theme: “Good enough never is.”

Chances are, if you look up the word, “enigma,” in the dictionary, you will find a picture of Viktor Kozlov. Despite almost universal opinion that he has extraordinary skill, he has been a thoroughly ordinary player over the course of his career. He has never had more than 25 goals (more than 20 only twice), never had more than 70 points (more than 60 only once). And this year, he took a big step back from his first year with the Caps in 2007-2008. A look at his ten-game segments paints a picture…

Kozlov was building a pretty nice season in his first 40 games -- not great, "nice" -- improving in each ten-game segment so that through 40 games he was on a pace to go 20-37-57 (if he played all of his games for the rest of the year), which would be consistent with his previous year’s numbers (16-38-54). But Kozlov had a miserable second half. In his next ten games he went 2-2-4. Then, he sustained a groin injury and missed nine games. After that, he was 2-8-10, -6 in his last 20 games.

And even in those 20 games, there was enough exasperation to go around. He had multi-point games against Nashville (two assists), Tampa Bay (three assists), and Buffalo (two assists). But he managed only goals against Florida and Atlanta and was a minus player in half of those last 20 games. He had only two power play points in that stretch (compared to 2-11-13 in on the power play in his first 47 games).

Overall, his numbers weren’t there against top-flight competition. Against the other seven playoff teams in the East, Kozlov was 3-7-10, -4 in 24 games (10-21-31, -5 against everyone else in 43 games). He did fare somewhat better in the playoffs, going 4-2-6, +5 in 14 games, including four points and plus-5 in the seven-game Pittsburgh series. It serve to underline that there was so much room between Kozlov’s talent and his production this year.

If you look at the sort of measures collected at behindthenet.ca, we’d find that his production was, again, rather mediocre. Among Caps forwards playing at least 50 games, he was eighth in points scored-per-60 minutes at even strength. That is disappointing, considering he spent most of his time skating on a line with Alex Ovechkin this year. That point is driven home by the fact that he was ninth among those forwards in total assists-per-60 minutes at even strength, barely eclipsing the production of David Steckel, who is not employed to be a playmaker.

Look at other numbers, continue to be disappointed. Kozlov was dead last on the team in plus-minus. He was worst on the team in goals scored against on ice-per-60 minutes at even strength. He was seventh on the team among forwards in goals scored for-on-ice per 60 minutes (50 games played minimum) while at even strength.

Then look at some other numbers, and be exasperated some more. In the playoffs, Kozlov – not generally thought to be much of a stalwart in terms of defensive play – had the best (as in “fewest”) goals scored against-per-60 minutes at even strength among Capital forwards playing in at least ten of the 14 playoff games. He was second in differential (goals scored for/goals scored against per 60 minutes) at +1.79 (Alex Ovechkin, +2.44). Kozlov – who until this year had never so much as scored a single playoff goal – was second on the team in goals scored per 60 minutes at even strength. He was second overall among Caps forwards in plus-minus.

Kozlov is as confounding a player as confounding gets. He has the talent to dominate at this level of play, but never has. And he is too far along in his career – now, it seems, destined to continue in Russia – to expect him to change. At times he can embarrass a goalie with a flick of his wrists, or he can settle the team down by using his size and puck handling skills to dictate the pace and lug the puck into scoring territory.

But there are other times, on display much too often, when Kozlov seems to be putting forth the sort of effort one finds in a recreation league (with apologies to those dedicated fans of the sport). He seems to be going through the motions, content to skate his shifts without mission or purpose. He is the gifted student who seems to get by with “good enough.”

Kozlov’s playoff performance redeemed, to a point, an indifferent regular season that saw his plus-minus plunge by 37 points (from plus-28 to minus-9), while his scoring dropped in terms of points-per-game (from 0.67 to 0.61). But that should not be interpreted as his having an outstanding post season. It was merely better than what he did in the first 82-game segment of the season, which was marred by a poor second half. His regular season looks a little too much like Lee Stempniak (14-30-44, -12 in 75 games). We think having to make that comparison in the context of Kozlov’s skill is one that should never be made.

Kozlov is very hard to grade because of his inconsistency, his flashes of artistry interspersed with stretches of seeming indifference. Last year, we gave Kozlov a B-, largely because of his consistency. This year, we could have gone anywhere from a C+ to a failing grade. We split the difference, more or less...well, less than the "Gentleman's 'C'."

Grade: C-

Math Lesson

The last team to lose Games 1 and 2 on the road and win the Cup -- the Montreal Canadiens over the Chicago Blackhawks... 38 years ago.

And overall, it's 41 of 44 times (93.2 percent). These are not good numbers for folks of a black and Vegas gold persuasion.

The 2008-2009 season, by the "tens" -- Wingers: Tomas Fleischmann

Tomas Fleischmann

Theme: “Suspense is worse than disappointment.”

Leave it to a Scot to provide the theme for a Czech, but Robert Burns gives us both sides of the coin with respect to Tomas Fleischmann. If you look passively at his line for the season – 19-18-37, -3 in 73 games – you might be inclined to think, “not bad for a 24-year old (he turned 25 two weeks ago) with less than 120 games of experience coming into the season.” In fact, he beat our projection for the year.

However, his season fades somewhat as one starts drilling into his numbers. First, his season by the tens suggests early success and late changes…

In fact, his season does seem to break cleanly into halves. In the first half, Fleischmann played in 32 games and went 12-7-19. He looked as if he’d add his name to the 30-goal scorers that Caps employ. But along with the scoring, Fleischmann was a -11 in those 32 games. Worse, he was a minus player in 14 of those 32 games. It was mixed fruit in terms of results.

In the second half, Fleischmann skated in all 41 games, and his plus-minus improved to +8. But his scoring fell off to 7-11-18. And, if one further decomposes the last half, he was 4-8-12, +13 in the first half of that and 3-3-6, -5 in the latter half. That latter half of games in the second half saw a 14-game streak in which Fleischmann failed to register a point. The slide continued into the playoffs, where Fleischman was 3-1-4, even, in 14 games.

It was not a strong finish.

If one digs even further into Fleischmann’s numbers, one finds… a mess. Scoring? He was fifth among Capitals forwards (minimum: 50 games) in five-on-five points-per-60 minutes. It’s what you’d want from a “top six” forward. But… he was third worst among forwards in goals scored against at five-on-five per 60 minutes. He was second in quality of competition (source: behindthenet.ca). But… he was eighth in Corsi rating, ahead of only the checkers and Brooks Laich.

There are also certain mysteries about Fleischmann’s numbers, and they have to do with special teams. Fleischmann was fifth among forwards in penalty killing ice time per game. One might be forgiven for wondering, “why?” Among Caps forwards playing at least 50 games, he had the third worst goals scored against per 60 minutes total. And given that Michael Nylander and Donald Brashear (the two guys he beat out) skated a total of 1:53 shorthanded all season, well…

The power play isn’t as much a mystery as it is a bit of a head-scratcher. Fleischmann was seventh on the team in average ice time on the power play. He was also seventh on the team in points scored per 60 minutes on the power play. He had a total of two power play points (both goals) in the second half of the year, whereas he had eight (5-3-8) in the first half (32 games played).

The good news, though, is that in just about every respect, Fleischmann improved on his career-best numbers to date. He went from 10 to 19 goals, from 30 to 37 points, bettered his plus-minus from minus-6 (in 2006-2007, but in only 29 games) to minus-3, increased his power play goals from one to seven, increased his game-winning goals from one to four, improved his shooting percentage from 9.3 percent to 14.5 percent, improved his takeaway/giveaway ratio from 1.38 to 1.56.

But while there were statistical improvements, there was a somewhat disturbing aspect to his numbers. He was 12-10-22 in 41 wins for which he dressed, and he was 7-8-15 in 32 losses. While he did score more in wins, it isn’t that large a spread (by way of comparison, to pick a player at random, Viktor Kozlov was 11-21-32 in 43 wins, 2-7-9 in 24 losses). It suggests that Fleischmann wasn’t all that much of a difference maker in terms of his scoring contributing to wins. There are factors that could influence that, such as ice time, participation on special teams, etc. It’s worth noting, too, that the Caps were 9-0-0 in games Fleischmann missed. That’s not the sort of difference-making the Caps or their fans would like to see.

The improvements in Fleischmann’s numbers are indicative of a player who still has upside, and the suspense is in finding out just how much of it there is. But there is also a sense that the season, especially the last 35 games or so (including the playoffs) was a disappointment. Those numbers suggest a player who was running out of gas. Fleischmann might be deemed a bargain at $725,000, but he’s also been given a lot of chances to grab a top-six spot. His numbers to date, including those this year, aren’t at that level of production – his scoring numbers were roughly equivalent among forwards with Dallas’ James Neal and Pittsburgh’s Miroslav Satan. If Fleischmann can cobble together a season that reflected the pace he set in the first half – it would have projected to 32-17-49 – he would be a fairly good complement to the forward lines. But he is also a skill winger on a club with two world-class wingers on its roster. Is Fleischmann one-too-many for his level of production? We’ll see. For this year, though…

Grade: C

Calder Cup Final - Game 1: Hershey Bears 5 - Manitoba Moose 4 (OT)

For video highlights...

...check these out.

The 2008-2009 season, by the "tens" -- Wingers: Eric Fehr

Eric Fehr

Theme: “…in this immense confusion one thing alone is clear. We are waiting for Godot to come.”


Somewhere in there, there is a goal scorer. Somewhere in there, there is a player who has hands soft enough to gather up passes and quick enough to snap off wrist shots that leave goalies picking pucks from the back of their nets. Caps fans got a glimpse of that with Eric Fehr this year, but only a glimpse. Whether it was a product of ice time (or the lack of it) or failure to grab opportunity by the throat when he did get ice time, Fehr netted only 12 goals in this, his first “full” season with the Caps.

But his ten-game segments are somewhat revealing in a promising sort of way…


Fehr potted nine goals in his last 32 games, a 23-goal pace over 82 games. That’s not bad for a guy who only once in those last 32 games played as many as 15 minutes in a game and who averaged only 11:30 a game in that stretch. Most of that output was earned in games 51-60 (the sixth ten-game segment), when Fehr went 6-4-10, +7. It wasn’t as if he skated a lot more – he averaged 12 minutes a game over those ten games. But, Fehr shot the puck more. He had, by far, his highest shot total of any ten-game segment (29) and his best shooting percentage (20.7 percent).

The statistics are, as they often can be, misleading. Fehr feasted on the Southeast Division this year, going 8-1-9, +5 in 20 games against the weak sisters of the division. Against everyone else, he was 4-12-16, +3 in 41 games. He did not have a goal against a Western Conference opponent in ten games.

On the other hand, Fehr had some rather surprising numbers. Among Caps forwards playing in at least 50 games…

- He had the second best Corsi rating (behind only Sergei Fedorov)

- He was third in goals scored per 60 minutes (Alex Ovechkin, Alexander Semin)

- He was fourth in total assists per 60 minutes (Nicklas Backstrom, Ovechkin, Semin, Michael Nylander)

- He led the team in penalties drawn per 60 minutes and tied Brooks Laich for penalties drawn/penalties taken per 60 minutes differential.

- He did this without the benefit of top-end teammates. In the behindthenet.ca five-on-five quality of teammate measure, only David Steckel, Matt Bradley, Boyd Gordon, and Donald Brashear had lower numbers, a reflection of those four being checking/energy line forwards.

There is a “what happened?” aspect to Fehr’s game this year, and it is reflected in the playoffs. Fehr averaged only 11:14 of ice time for the year, but come the playoffs, it was cut further. In eight full games (he was hurt in game two against the Penguins and did not appear for the rest of that series), Fehr averaged barely eight minutes of ice time a game and only once topped ten minutes (a 4-0 Game 5 win over the Rangers). It is little wonder that his numbers sank to nothing – no points and minus-3 for his playoffs. He netted only 10 shots on goal, none after Game 6 of the Ranger series.

Fehr is an arbitration-eligible restricted free agent this summer. With the Caps losing perhaps as many as three forwards – Sergei Fedorov, Viktor Kozlov, and Donald Brashear – to Russia’s Kontinental Hockey League, there will be room on the team heading into the 2009-2010 season. There will be opportunity to grab a fistful of ice time, and the Caps certainly need a bigger forward who can find the back of the net and play responsibly (Fehr has never been a “minus” player in the NHL in parts of four seasons). Fehr scored 146 goals in 275 games with Brandon in Canadian juniors. He netted 50 goals in 161 games with Hershey in the AHL. He’s demonstrated he can be a goal scorer, even in the NHL in limited time.

What he hasn’t demonstrated is an ability to stay healthy or to score goals on a consistent basis, despite the lack of ice time. We have to think the club will qualify Fehr for next season. Although we’ve been waiting for that player who scored 50 or more goals in consecutive seasons in Brandon to appear here, it might be that his time is about to arrive, even if he’ll never be a 50-goal scorer in the NHL. We’ve been waiting for Godot long enough. He has to show up… now.

Grade: B-

The 2008-2009 season, by the "tens" -- Wingers: Chris Clark

Chris Clark

Theme: “…regards to Captain Dunsel”

Chris Clark is the kind of player any team with Stanley Cup aspirations has – needs to have – on its team. He hits, he checks, he forechecks, he stands up for teammates, he pays a price to make a play, he doesn’t take a shift off. He’s also missed 114 games the past two seasons, 50 of them this year (plus six of 14 in the playoffs). For the team captain, that has to be agonizing, doubly so for a player with Clark’s work ethic.

But while Clark was dressing for only 32 games this year, the Caps were setting a franchise record for standings points, tied a team record for wins, and finished third in scoring. Clark’s having scored 50 goals over 152 games in his first two seasons with the club looks like a distant memory. What’s more, Clark’s presence in the lineup this year was something of a drag on the club. In his 32 games, the Caps were 17-15 (losses including those in extra time). His ten-game splits lack any sense of continuity…



We didn’t think Clark would come all the way back from his career years in 2005-2006 and 2006-2007. But we couldn’t have foreseen his having another season that looked hauntingly like last one. In this nightmare of a season…

- Clark returned from his injury plagued 2007-2008 season to play in 20 of the Caps’ first 21 games. But he was only 0-3-3, -5 in those games, then missed 14 games with a fractured forearm.

- Clark scored his only goal on New Year’s Day, in the midst of a stretch in which he played in 12 of 14 games.

- Then, he finally succumbed to a problem he’d had since training camp – a torn tendon sheath in his wrist that required surgery and put him on the shelf for the last 33 games of the regular season.

It all ended up reflected in his final numbers – second worst among forwards (minimum 30 games) in his Corsi rating, second worst in goals scored per 60 minutes, worst in primary assists per 60 minutes, second worst in goals scored for the Caps per 60 minutes of ice time, second worst in penalties taken per 60 minutes of ice time (although he was second best in drawing them). In 2006-2007, when Clark was on his way to a 30-goal season, he skated less than 15 minutes in only four of 74 games. This past year, he skated more than 15 minutes only four times in 32 games and only once after October 23rd.

And perhaps most disturbing, in the last 23 games in which he skated this season, he accumulated 30 minutes in penalties (10 minors, two five-minute majors). In was a trend that emerged in his injury-stunted 2007-2008 season (43 PIMs in 18 games). That might have been “cheating” of a sort as a product of the injuries through which he was trying to play. But discipline has been a problem for these Caps for two years, and the Captain being a part of that is not the sort of “lead by example” the team needs, either.

And what had to be especially frustrating for Clark and the Caps was that on both occasions he went on the shelf for long stretches, he appeared to be coming out of his points-scored funk, if not his goal scoring drought. He had assists in consecutive games on November 19th and 20th against Anaheim and Los Angeles before going down to injury two games later. Then, he had consecutive games with assists once more on January 20th and 27th against Ottawa and Boston before going down for the remainder of the regular season after the Boston game.

Clark has two more seasons on a contract that will pay him $2.633 million a year. At age 33, one wonders if the injuries haven’t taken a disproportionate toll on his game, which relies on toughness and a grinding style. He was getting the ice time of a fourth liner at the time he went down to injury, which really is no place for the captain. He has shown an ability to be opportunistic, evidenced by his netting those 50 goals in two seasons playing the opposite wing from Alex Ovechkin. Whether he can regain his health to be something approaching that player next year will go a long way to determining how far the Caps go. For now, though, you don’t want to downgrade a player because of his injury absences, but this wasn’t the Chris Clark Caps fans had become accustomed to when he was playing, either. Has his absence and lack of production the last two years turned him into "Captain Dunsel?" Hopefully, he can heal this off season and put the bad taste of the last two years out of his memory.

Grade: C-

stats from behindthenet.ca

The 2008-2009 season, by the "tens" -- Wingers: Donald Brashear

Donald Brashear

Theme: “a distinction without a difference”

The Caps were 37-26 (losses including extra time defeats) with Donald Brashear in the lineup this past season. They were 13-6 in his absence. This is not the result one might be looking for in a difference maker. Looking at his ten-game segments, he registered at least ten penalty minutes in six of seven segments (he did not play in the last 14 games of the regular season), was a minus player in five of seven segments, did not register a point in the last 50 games of the regular season after December 16th, and scored his only goal on December 4th…



The 2008-2009 season represented Brashear’s lowest goal total (one) since failing to register a single tally in the 1995-1996 season. It was his lowest point total since that same 1995-1996 season. Among players appearing in at least ten games he was worst on the club in minutes played per minor penalty taken (23.6). Compare that to a Matt Bradley – who had two fewer fighting majors – who skated for more than 122 minutes per minor penalty taken (fifth best among players appearing in at least ten games).

With respect to enforcement duties, Brashear played in ten games in which he earned a fighting major (he had two in a December 20th game against the Flyers). The Caps were 5-3-2 in those games. More to the point is where those penalties came in those games:

Oct. 10 (vs. ATL): 19:40, 3rd period. The Caps were already trailing Atlanta, 7-4, and would lose by that score.

Oct. 25 (vs. DAL): 15:59, 2nd period. This penalty came immediately after the faceoff following a Dallas Stars goal that made the score 4-3. There would be no more scoring in that second period. The teams traded a pair of goals each, the last being Alexander Semin’s game-winner in overtime in a 6-5 win.

Nov. 6 (vs. CAR): 16:45, 1st period. Carolina scored early in the first to take a 1-0 lead. This lead would hold up until this infraction and through the period. The Caps would score early in the second to tie the game, but Carolina would regain the lead later in the period. The Caps scored twice late in the third period to win, 3-2.

Nov 19 (vs. ANA): 2:46, 2nd period. This was another of the “ensuing faceoff” variety, coming just after Washington scored to make the score 4-2. The Caps would score once more in the period (at 17:48), then score the next goal mid-way through the third period to take a 6-2 lead. They would go on to win, 6-4.

Nov. 22 (vs. SJS): 3:24, 1st period. If one of the reasons for fisticuffs is to grab momentum or give your team a charge, this didn’t so it. San Jose scored three goals after this in the first period and never looked back in a 7-2 win.

Dec. 20 (vs. PHL): 7:38, 1st period; 12:03, 3rd period. The first battle of two battles in this one – both against the Flyers’ Riley Cote – came with the Flyers already ahead, 1-0. It was lost in a 25-shot barrage the Caps leveled at Flyer goalie Antero Niittymaki. The second scrap might have been of the “frustration” variety, the Flyers having built a 6-1 lead by the time Brashear and Cote went at it again. The Flyers won, 7-1.

Jan. 27 (vs. BOS): 9:39, 3rd period. Brashear was the opponent for Byron Bitz’ first NHL fight in what was at the time a 2-2 game in Boston. It didn’t seem especially important to the result, as the teams went to an overtime before the Bruins came out on top, 3-2.

Feb. 11 (vs. NYR): 2:43, 1st period. This was one of your odd ones. Brashear had just gone off after a three-second shift in a scoreless game, then came right back on to take on Colton Orr. One could say he squared off on his first shift. Then, Matt Bradley did the same thing three seconds later, taking on Aaron Voros. Neither bout seemed especially influential on the flow of the play, although the Caps did take a 2-1 lead into the locker room after one period. The Rangers won, though, in a Gimmick, 5-4.

Feb. 26 (vs. ATL): 2:52, 2nd period. This was one of those bouts that seems to have had an unintended effect. Coming when it did, with the Caps nursing a 2-1 lead in the second period, it might have given the Atlanta Thrashers some life (or maybe not). The Thrashers scored just over a minute later. But the Caps had the last laugh in a 4-3 win.

Mar. 10 (vs. NAS): 12:27, 1st period. In what would be, by contemporary standards, a fight-marred game (there would be three bouts in this game against Nashville), Brashear got things started against Wade Belak. It would be his last moment on the ice for the regular season, as he sprained a knee in this fight. Matt Bradley would face Jordin Tootoo three seconds after this fight, and John Erskine would give Wade Belak another shot at a Capital 4:18 into the second. None of this seemed to have any influence in the outcome, a 2-1 overtime win for the Caps.

Looking at the fights, they look like a window into the past. No fewer than six of the 11 were against fellow enforcers or guys accustomed to dropping the gloves (Jody Shelley, George Parros, Riley Cote (twice), Colton Orr, Eric Boulton). None appear to have really had an impact on the decision. It calls into question just what Brashear’s role is – or might be – on this team. His hockey skills seemed to have diminished considerably. His enforcement role seems to have little demonstrable effect on outcomes. He was worst on the team (minimum: 60 games) in penalties taken per 60 minutes at 5-on-5. The Caps were not, at least looking at their record, a better team with Brashear on the ice. Even with the six-game suspension in the playoffs, he didn’t appear to have merited a sweater, given that the Caps could have used some more defense and some more offense from the lower half of the forward lines.

The Caps are a club that lacks a measure of grit. But grit should not be confused with inconsequential side shows that too many fights in the NHL have become. Brashear’s trading fists with others of his type just don’t appear to have much influence on the game anymore. That certainly seemed to be the case this year, and while he gives every indication of being a fine teammate, and will hit and forecheck, Brashear’s other skills did not translate into very much production, either in his own statistics or the team’s win-loss record.

Grade: C-

The Last Prognostication You'll Ever Need -- The Stanley Cup Final: Detroit vs. Pittsburgh

So here we are, right back where we were this time last year – Wings…Penguins.

Why Detroit can’t lose

They’ve seen it all. The Red Wings are in their fifth Stanley Cup final in the last 12 seasons. In the previous four appearances, they did not fail to win the Cup. It started in the 1996-1997 season. From that team, Nicklas Lidstrom, Tomas Holmstrom, Kris Draper, Kirk Maltby, and Chris Osgood remain. Lidstrom has 228 games of playoff experience entering these finals. Holmstrom, 145. Maltby, 162. Draper, 198. Osgood, 122 (19 with other teams). Compare this to Pittsburgh, where Bill Guerin leads all Penguins in playoff experience – 122 games. In the four Stanley Cup finals the Red Wings have played in the last 12 seasons, their game record is 16-3. Only once in eight tries have they lost either of Games 1 and Games 2 (an overtime loss to Carolina in Game 1 in 2002 – they won the next four games).

That’s the history. The fact is, Lidstrom, Holmstrom, Draper, Maltby, and even to an extent Osgood have not been the keys for this team. They are just so uncommonly deep. Six players with at least ten points in 16 playoff games, 15 with at least five. Only one skater among the 23 who have dressed for the Red Wings is in minus territory (Maltby, minus-2), and two are above plus-10, 11 are at least plus-5. Nine different players have game winning goals in the 12 wins so far in the playoffs. Ten different players have power play goals. No Red Wing who has taken at least 100 draws has lost more than he’s won. And, for a team with something of a reputation as being too “European,” they have more guys with 10-plus hits coming into this series in 16 games played (17) than Pittsburgh does in 17 games (15).

The Red Wings do the big things well – they score (3.69 Goals/game in the playoffs), they defend (2.12 goals/against), they have the largest goal differential by far (+1.57 goals/game, compared to 1.06 for Pittsburgh), they are best in five-on-five play, they have the third best power play (25.7 percent, compared to Pittsburgh at seventh with 19.3 percent), they get and hold a lead (they’ve won eight of nine games when scoring first, tops in winning percentage at .889), they don’t wilt late (9-0 in games in which they’ve led after two periods, tops in the playoffs).

They also do the little things well. They are second in faceoff winning percentage, second in shot differential per game, second in fewest penalty minutes per game. They have been out-shot only twice in 16 playoff games and have out-shot opponents by at least ten shots in ten of 16 games.

Oh, and then there is Marian Hossa – the guy who spurned a contract offer to remain in Pittsburgh to skate for the Red Wings. He is 10-32-42 in 32 career games against the Penguins. Pavel Datsyuk came into this season without having scored a goal against the Penguins in six career games. By the end of the season, he added two games of experience against the Penguins…and scored three goals.

Why Detroit can’t win

Detroit is banged up. Lidstrom, Draper, and Pavel Datsyuk have been banged up. Only Lidstrom will play in Game 1. Jonathan Ericsson is still recovering from an appendectomy; it’s uncertain whether he will play in Game 1. Add to this that Games 1 and 2 are being played back to back, and it has all the makings of the Red Wings getting out of the gate slowly at home. Losing one or both games on home ice could be death against a team that is 6-2 on its own home ice in the playoffs.

Then there is the matter of history. Last year, the Red Wings shutout the Penguins in Games 1 and 2 at Joe Louis Arena. Pittsburgh will be remembering that embarrassment.

Detroit had little difficulty with either Columbus or Chicago, both young teams with no playoff experience to speak of. They did struggle with Anaheim – a physical team, but also one with their own cadre of playoff warriors. Pittsburgh is young, but it is also a team that has played in 42 playoff games the last three years (including this one). And Pittsburgh has a lot more skill than do the Ducks.

The Peerless’ Player to Ponder

Johan Franzen

“The Mule” is the leading scorer for the Red Wings in this post season (10-9-19 in 16 games). However, his splits by series offer a warning. Against Columbus, he was 2-4-6, +4 in four games. Against Anaheim, he was 6-3-9, +3 in seven games. But against Chicago, he was 2-2-4, +2 in five games and had only one point (a goal) after Game 1. What’s the difference? Chicago is a much speedier team than either Columbus or Anaheim. Pittsburgh does not lack for speed and will make Franzen play in his own end more than he might against teams like Anaheim or Columbus. If that eats into his production at the other end, it will be trouble for the Red Wings.

Why Pittsburgh can’t lose

We’ve said it before, and it bears repeating – Sidney Crosby is on a mission. He has been held off the score sheet only twice in 17 games. He’s had multi-point games 11 times (the last three games in a row). He hasn’t had a minus game since Game 5 against Washington (the last time he was held scoreless). He’s won at least 50 percent of his draws in 12 of 17 games, including six times over 60 percent. Among players with at least five goals in the playoffs, he is fourth in shooting percentage with a whopping 22.2 percent. It goes on and on.

But then there is the matter of Evgeni Malkin. Since taking the collar against Washington in Game 4 of the conference semi-finals, Malkin is 7-8-15, +6 in seven games. As well as Crosby has played, if Malkin hadn’t come alive in game 5 of the Capitals series (he had the game-winner in overtime), going 1-6-7 in Games 5-7, we’re probably talking about a whole different opponent for the Red Wings in the finals.

But good as those two are, there are other stories. None is better for Penguin fans than that of Sergei Gonchar, who has skated in 15 playoff games, the last five on a knee that might need surgical repair after this last series is completed. Gonchar, not necessarily included among the “stitch it up and get me back out there” category of player, gritted in out in a four game series against a Carolina team whose speed could have made Gonchar’s life miserable. Instead, he skated for more than 20 minutes in three of four games in a Pittsburgh sweep. His experience on the blue line can only help against a team that seems always to have the puck.

While perhaps not as deep as the Red Wings in terms of production, the Penguins are not simply The Sid and Geno Show, either. Eight players have game-winning goals among the 12 wins so far, seven have power play goals. They also have six players with at least ten points in the playoffs. They have three players at plus-10 or better (to the Wings’ two).

Pittsburgh seems to have found another gear since Game 6 of the Washington series. In five games since losing that game in overtime, they have outscored opponents 26-11, outshot them 168-139, converted five of 21 power play opportunities, killed 11 of 12 shorthanded situations. Those 26 goals in their last five games – it is the most scoring they have had in any five-game stretch this season, regular season or playoffs.

Why Pittsburgh can’t win

Pittsburgh played three comparatively weak defensive teams in getting to the finals. Philadelphia, Washington, and Carolina all gave up at least 2.70 goals/game in the regular season. Detroit wasn’t any great shakes, either (2.93/game, tied with Washington for 19th). But oh, have the Red Wings turned things around. They have allowed only 2.12 goals/game – second among all playoff teams. The Penguins are certainly a step up in class for the Red Wings in terms of firepower, but the Red Wings are at least that on the defensive side for the Penguins – and, they’ve been here before.

Pittsburgh has out-shot opponents in 14 of 17 playoff games so far. But seven of those came in the Washington series against a team that struggled to get the puck out of their own end for long stretches (and still took the Penguins to seven games). If there is one team the Penguins have face that resembles the Red Wings in style, if not execution, it is Washington. Detroit does not have an Alex Ovechkin, but they do have a Pavel Datsyuk (even if gimpy) and a Henrik Zetterberg. And Detroit’s blue line will probably not struggle nearly so much as Washington did moving the puck in their own end.

The Peerless’ Player to Ponder

Bill Guerin

Guerin – a late season pick up from the Islanders – has already set a personal best for playoff scoring in a season (7-7-14 in 17 games). It is the first time he’s been in double-digit playoff scoring since 1995. His plus-11 is a personal playoff best and the first time he’s been in “plus” territory in the playoffs since that 1995 season. His two game-winning goals is a personal playoff best. He’s tied his playoff high for goals scored. He’s never taken more shots on goal than he has in this playoff year. The thing is, if he doesn’t keep up that pace, it isn’t likely the Penguins are going to win this series, even if Crosby and Malkin get theirs (which they seem likely to do).

We haven’t mentioned goaltending for either team. Frankly, we don’t see this as a “goaltender’s” series. That is a good thing for Pittsburgh, oddly enough. Chris Osgood, who struggled quite a bit in the regular season, has a better GAA (2.06 to 2.62), a better save percentage (.925 to .906), has more shutouts (one to none), and has fewer games in giving up three or more goals (three to four) than his counterpart, Marc-Andre Fleury. None of this is to disparage Fleury’s performance, thus far. He’s had a good playoff run. But Osgood’s numbers, while significantly better than those he posted in the regular season, are hardly a fluke, given his playoff history. Five times in his career, Osgood has played more than one playoff series in a season with the Red Wings. In those years, he has never had a GAA above 2.12, he has only once had a save percentage below .918 (and that was in 1996). He has a total of ten shutouts in those five years. For Osgood, the season seems to start in April. One could argue that Osgood’s numbers are a product of the team around him being so good. Well, that’s really the point – the Red Wings know how to play these games. That’s why they’re the defending champs, and until a team beats them, we think it folly to pick against them.

Detroit in 7

Deja "but"

Last year, Capitals goalie Cristobal Huet was caught looking the wrong way with a puck loose in front of him, and his season was snuffed out as Joffrey Lupul stuffed it behind Huet in overtime to send the Philadelphia Flyers onward to the second round of the 2007-2008 playoffs.

Last night, it happened again. After having made a spectacluar right pad save on Johan Franzen while lying on his stomach late in regulation to keep Chicago's season alive, Huet got caught looking the wrong way in overtime once more, this time at his right post with Tomas Holmstrom on the doorstep. But the puck was on Darren Helm's stick on the other side of the crease, and Helm only had to bunt the puck the last few inches to seal Detroit's 2-1 overtime series-clinching win.

Wings/Blackhawks Photo by Claus Andersen/Getty Images

Pretty soon, they'll have enough for a team called, "Kapitals"

Sergei Fedorov... Viktor Kozlov...

...Richard Zednik.

RDS.ca is at it again, reporting that former Capital and current Florida Panther Richard Zednik has signed a two-year deal to skate with Yaroslavl in Russia's KHL.

Zednik, Fedorov, Kozlov... Jan Bulis plays over there. Joel Kwiatkowski... Ben Clymer... Bryan Muir... Artem Ternavsky... Igor Ulanov... J-F Fortin... Ivan Ciernik... Igor Shadilov... Michael Yunkov... Jaromir Jagr.

Maybe we'll move to Russia and blog from there.

Will the last Russian please turn out the lights...

First, Sergei Fedorov is described as possibly headed to Mettalurg Magnitogorsk. Now, a report that Viktor Kozlov has signed a contract to play with Salavat Yulaev Ufa in the Kontinental Hockey League in Russia.

In two seasons with the Caps, Kozlov played in 148 regular season games, going 29-66-95, +19. In 21 playoff games with Washington over the past two seasons, he was 4-5-9, +1.

Is it true? Hey, who knows?

Fedorov going home?

TSN.ca reports (via RDS.ca) that Washington Capitals center Sergei Fedorov is set to forego re-signing with the Caps to take a two-year deal with Mettalurg Magnitogorsk in Russia's Kontinental Hockey League.

The deal is reported to pay Fedorov $3.8 million per year (he earned $4.0 million with the Caps this past season) and has the added benefit of allowing Fedorov to play with his younger brothers, Fedor, who played 18 games in the NHL with the Vancouver Canucks and New York Rangers (he last played in the NHL in the 2005-2006 season), and Evgeny, a former seventh round draft pick of the Los Angeles Kings (he did not play in the NHL).

Of course, the report should be taken with a grain of salt, because: a) it is based on Russian sources (not always reliable), and b) it contradicts this report from Ryan O'Halloran over at the Washington Times just ten days ago indicating Fedorov's desire to return to the Capitals.

The next course..."Moose"

It was Penguin...

...then Bruin...

...now, Moose.

Moose is not generally a dessert course, but it'll do. The Manitoba Moose closed out the Houston Aeros last night, 3-1, to win the AHL Western Conference series, four games to two. So now, we know who the opponent will be for the Hershey Bears in the Calder Cup finals. The Bears roared back with four straight wins after dropping the opener in the Eastern Conference final, the last victory being a 5-2 win in Providence to end the Bruins' season, four games to one.

The schedule for the Calder Cup final is out, for those of you thinking of a trip up to Hershey.

Games three, four, and five will be played in Hershey on June 6 (Sat.), June 7 (Sun.), and June 9 (Tues.). The teams have not met this season.

photo: Kris Craig, The Providence Journal

The 2008-2009 season, by the "tens" -- Wingers: Matt Bradley

Matt Bradley

Theme: “…keeps going and going and going…”

Matt Bradley is closing in on 500 regular season games played in the NHL (289 with the Caps), not bad for a fourth round (102nd overall) draft pick who signed with his last two clubs – Pittsburgh and Washington – as a free agent. His career is testimony to the benefits of persistence and hard work, night in and night out. His 2008-2009 season reflected that kind of consistent ethic…

…but not without some concerns. That hits total changing little from one ten-game segment to the next over the last sixty or so games shows his consistent willingness to be the physical forward the Caps have in short supply. His taking a total of only seven minor penalties for the season shows that his physicality is expressed within the rules…unless liberties are taken with him or teammates. His nine major penalties for fighting illustrate that characteristic.

But there is still that problem that seems to have worked its way through the bottom two lines of forwards. In 81 games, Bradley scored 11 points (5-6-11). In fact, his offense bore a striking (and disturbing) similarity to that of Boyd Gordon. He scored only one regular season goal in 42 games after netting one against Tampa Bay on New Year’s Day. He had only three points after netting two (a goal and an assist) against the Lightning on January 1st. He was 2-2-4, +5 in six games against Tampa Bay, but only 3-4-7, -6 in 75 games against everyone else. And here might be the strangest Matt Bradley number of them all…

Zero.

That would be the number of points he registered against Southeast Division teams not calling themselves the “Lightning.” 18 games, no points, minus-4.

If one looks more closely at those ten games segments, there is a concern with respect to declining production. There were those four goals in the first 39 games of the year with only one in 42 games thereafter, but there was also the matter of his registering 61 of his 98 shots for the year in those first 39 games. We didn’t project him as having a big offensive year any more than we did Boyd Gordon, but we didn’t project him going into an even deeper offensive shell in the second half of the season.

Bradley is a bit tough to get a bead on in terms of his offensive potential. His first three seasons were partial-year affairs with an inconsistent San Jose team (although he did have 22 points in 54 games in his second season there). From there he went to a bad Pittsburgh team where he put up only 16 points (with a -27) in getting the most average ice time he’s had thus far in his career. He moved to Washington after one season, where he put up 19 points and 13 points (the latter in only 57 games) for a couple of rather atrocious teams. The past two seasons, playing for a playoff team, his offense hasn’t improved, although his plus-minus has improved along with the team so that he is more or less an “even” player.

What confuses the picture is his playoff performance this year. Starting with Game 5 of the opening round series against the Rangers, one in which he netted two goals (including the game winner) after being elevated to the third line, he went 2-4-6, +3 in ten games, while averaging 14:40 in ice time.

Getting more offense out of the bottom half of the forward lines – Bradley being part of this group – is important in this respect. Bradley was one of five Caps forwards playing at least 50 games who was on the ice for more even strength goals against that those scored for the Caps when he was on the ice (source: behindthenet.ca).

Bradley has shown himself to be persistent, an annoyance to other teams, a player who brings a physical edge, and a “stand up” guy (except in fights, when he seems to get knocked down a lot…we do admire his nerve, though). He has shown a tantalizing glimpse of being a bit more of an offensive threat, enough that we were wondering if the corner down by Section 103 at the Verizon Center might be renamed “The Bradley Corner.” Even on a team with as much goal scoring as the Caps, this would be welcome to take a bit of the heat off a rather top-heavy output among the “Young Guns.” He will never be confused with Wayne Gretzky, although he does share something with the hall of famer – both are winners of the William Hanley Trophy as Most Sportsmanlike Player in the Ontario Hockey League (Gretzky in 1978, Bradley in 1998). But maybe, we’ll see a little more offensive production next year.

Grade: B-

The 2008-2009 season, by the "tens" -- Centers: Boyd Gordon

Boyd Gordon

Theme: “If only they were all Tampa Bay”

Boyd Gordon scored his last regular season point on Valentine’s Day, an assist in a 5-1 win over Tampa Bay. He scored his last goal of the regular season on New Year’s Day in a 7-4 win over Tampa Bay. He had his only multi-point game of the season in that New Year's Day game against Tampa Bay. He had more points against Tampa Bay (1-2-3 in three games) than against any team he faced this year. In three full seasons he has not in any of those seasons scored more against another team than he has against Tampa Bay. In 19 career games against Tampa Bay, he is 4-6-10, +8. Against the rest of the league he is 16-40-56, -10 in 248 career games.

Unfortunately, they’re not all Tampa Bay. And this is a problem. We didn’t project Gordon to have a big offensive year, but for the second straight season, Gordon’s numbers have dropped since setting his career bests in 2006-2007 (71 games, 7-22-29, +10). And for the second straight year, he played in fewer games (63) than he did in that 2006-2007 season (71). After scoring that last point of the regular season on February 14th, Gordon went 0-0-0, -5, in 16 games before missing the last ten games of the regular season. After that last regular season goal on New Year’s Day, Gordon was 0-2-2, -5 in 27 games and twice missed at least five games to injury. He did return to play in all 14 playoff games, but he was 0-3-3, -1 (0-1-1, -3 in seven games against Pittsburgh). His ten-game segments for this season did not look all that productive…


It was not an especially memorable year for Gordon. However, he was still second best among the team’s centers in goals scored against, on ice-per-60 minutes at even strength and was virtually indistinguishable from the Red Wings’ Pavel Datsyuk – a Selke Trophy finalist – in that measure in four-on-five situations. And he did finish 13th in the NHL among players in faceoffs (minimum: 500 draws), but even here it is a bit misleading. He was fourth on the team (behind David Steckel, Sergei Fedorov, and Brooks Laich) in faceoff winning percentage in shorthanded situations (50.5 percent).

Looking at Gordon’s ten-game segments, there is nothing there that is particularly distinguishing – not surprising for a “defensive” forward, these numbers being primarily offense-oriented. But there lies the problem, too. While Gordon is not expected to be a scoring forward, he is one of the players one might be looking at during those times when folks lament the Caps’ inability to get some contribution – any contribution – from the bottom two lines of the forward squad.

Gordon is a defensive specialist. And it is worth noting that in the Pittsburgh series, the Penguins scored 27 goals. Eight of them were scored with Gordon on the ice. In only one game (Game 4) did the Penguins not score at least one goal with Gordon on the ice, and two games winners (both in overtime) were scored with Gordon on the ice. Certainly the Caps had their problems defensively in the second round series, and Gordon cannot be held singularly accountable for those goals scored while he was on the ice. Still, this is not the sort of outcome one might expect from a forward who is expected to be of the shut-down sort, especially when he is bringing little offense to the table (one assist in the seven game series against the Penguins).

Was the broken finger he had that ended his regular season a bother? Were the back spasms that interrupted his regular season a problem? Maybe, but he also won the majority of his draws in six of the seven games of the Penguin series (four times over 75 percent), four of the seven games in the Ranger series.

Gordon finished 139th among centers in scoring in the regular season. Brian Sutherby outscored him (8-7-15 in 59 games). Jeff Halpern outscored him (7-9-16 in 52 games). Glen Metropolit outscored him (6-11-17 in 76 games). You see a theme here? If you do, you might wonder if Gordon is going to be joining that group… former Caps centers. He is a restricted free agent and wouldn’t seem likely to command more than the $725,000 he earned in 2008-2009, especially with David Steckel set to earn that amount next year having had an arguably better regular and post season than Gordon had.

Grade: C

A Happy and Safe Memorial Day

"The 30th day of May, 1868, is designated for the purpose of strewing with flowers or otherwise decorating the graves of comrades who died in defense of their country during the late rebellion, and whose bodies now lie in almost every city, village, and hamlet church-yard in the land. In this observance no form of ceremony is prescribed, but posts and comrades will in their own way arrange such fitting services and testimonials of respect as circumstances may permit..."

-- General Orders No.11, Washington, D.C., May 5, 1868

The 2008-2009 season, by the "tens" -- Centers: Michael Nylander

Michael Nylander

Theme: “Paradise Lost”

Michael Nylander played in 72 games this year. That is not a misprint, but it had to be the most anonymous 72 games perhaps ever logged by an NHL player, certainly among those who make almost $5 million a year. When the season started, we thought Nylander would bounce back – somewhat – from last year’s season lost to injury…


Here is a player who, coming into this season, averaged 19-43-62 per 82 games over an NHL career that spanned 848 games. 72 games later, he was an afterthought on a team with hopes of competing for a Stanley Cup…


What happened?

After scoring six points in his first four games of the season (2-4-6, +2), he went 25 games without a goal with only nine assists. He went 36 games with a total of only two power play points (both assists in a game against Anaheim on November 19th). By appearances, the Caps had changed their basic philosophy in Nylander’s absence the previous year, relying on a north-south, high-tempo style of attack that was at odds with Nylander’s more deliberate, east-west, curl-off and find the trailer sort of approach to offense. In a real and in a figurative sense, Nylander never caught up.

Looking at the ten-game segments one can see a slow descent into irrelevance. His scoring started in a manner consistent with his career trend (eight points in his first ten) games, but he’d never reach that mark again, getting more than four points in any ten-game segment only once. He had a total of seven multi-point games for the season (by way of comparison, Brooks Laich had 11; Eric Fehr had five), four of them before Thanksgiving.

In other areas, he was worst on the club in faceoffs among players taking at least 200 draws (perhaps a lingering effect of his shoulder injury). He took as many shots per game (1.2) as defenseman Milan Jurcina. He was ninth on the team in power play scoring (4-6-10), but had only five power play points in the 2009 portion of the season. This is a guy who was 18th in the entire league in power play scoring (14-23-37) in the year before he rejoined the Caps. Among the Caps’ centers, only David Steckel and Boyd Gordon averaged fewer points per 60 minutes at even strength, and Steckel and Gordon are defense-first players. That might not be true of Nylander, who was on ice more frequently for goals scored against at even strength per 60 minutes than any other center on the club.

Statistically, stylistically, whatever – this season was largely a disaster for Nylander. Whether this is a lingering product of his injury in the 2007-2008 season or his playing a style incompatible with that currently employed by the Capitals, there are some important decisions with respect to Nylander’s future on the club – decisions that are difficult to separate from Sergei Fedorov, who had his own production problems (perhaps a combination of age and health issues).

Nylander has two more seasons at $4.875 million a year to go on his contract. A 13 minute a night, 35-point center earning that sort of money is a substantial drag on the Caps’ payroll and their flexibility to make roster moves. His offensive production (9-24-33 in 72 games) was approximately equivalent to Columbus’ Manny Malhotra (11-24-35 in 77 games), a player who earns less than one-fourth what Nylander does ($1.2 million).

We said that Nylander’s season was a slow descent into irrelevance. Here is one way to look at that. He only dressed for 35 of 44 games in the 2009 portion of the season and skated for more than 15 minutes in only five of them. In his last year with the Rangers before signing with the Caps he had only five games all year out of 79 in which he played in which he skated less than 15 minutes.

It would be easy to forget that Nylander was 5-14-19 in 21 games with the Caps before Bruce Boudreau took over early in the 2007-2008 season. If anything, this lends weight to the argument that Nylander has not so much forgotten how to play hockey as much as he is a bad fit for this particular team. On teams that play the equivalent of a half-court offense – such as that which the Rangers played when he and Jaromir Jagr skated for the Rangers—Nylander has been, and would appear still to be, an effective player. On this team? It would not seem likely.

Nylander’s problems are not necessarily of his making as much as they might be the status of his physical recovery and the style the club plays. Still, he did not perform well within this structure, and for that…

Grade: C-