Peerless' Late Night Musings -- Out-Trotzing Trotz Edition

We did not get a chance to put up a post-gamer, but with the clock ticking toward four a.m. on the east coast, we have some thoughts after the Caps' 3-1 win over the New York Islanders...

• Neither of these teams went into the game as the best of possession teams, the Caps and Islanders ranking 24th and 27th, respectively, in SAT percentage at 5-on-5.  But, the Caps went "the full trotz," posting a 68.42 CF% for the game against their former coach, their best this season (source: naturalstattrick.com).  When circumstances dictate, the Caps can call up games that look like last spring.
• Alex Ovechkin became the first player in NHL history to record ten 45-plus goal seasons when be paddleball'ed the puck out of the air over goalie Thomas Greiss' left shoulder and gently into the net for what would be the game-winning goal.  When he scores his next goal, he will become the first player in NHL history with ten 46-plus goal seasons.  Alas, his 47th goal will merely tie him with Mike Bossy and Wayne Gretzky for most 47-plus goal seasons (nine).
• The Caps, the worst faceoff team in the league, lost only 24 draws to the Isles.  That is the second fewest number of faceoff losses the Caps have had in a road game this season (they had 23 against Montreal on November 1st) and their fewest in a road win.
• Nicklas Backstrom is back to being "Backstrom-y."  He had an assist, and that makes six helpers in his last eight games and 12 in his last 18 games.
• Three wins in a row.  That broke a 19-game streak without a winning streak of that length, over which they went 7-9-3.  Timing is good.
• The Caps held the Isles to 21 shots on goal, the lowest total allowed to an opponent this season (22 vs. Arizona on November 11th and vs. Columbus on January 12th).  The odd thing, the Caps have recorded 25 or fewer shots on goal allowed to Metro teams nine time this season, and the Isles are the only team to make that list twice.
• Here is one to impress your friends and confound your enemies. That was just the sixth time in Braden Holtby's career that he played a full game facing 21 or fewer shots and the first time he won such a game.  Bonus...it's the first time in 28 appearances, regardless of ice time, that he won a game when facing 21 or fewer shots (he was 0-18-0 with nine no-decisions).
• John Carlson skated 23:20 in ice time.  It is only the 15th time in 64 games this season that he skated less than 24 minutes in a contest.  Ten of them have come on the road.
• Speaking of ice time... short leash?  Message Sending?  Looking for a spark?  Whatever, Andre Burakovsky skated just 7:32, his lowest ice time in a road game this season.  It is the second time in barely a month he logged less than eight minutes, although he did average 12:12 over ten games going into the game against the Islanders.
• Carlson and Dmitry Orlov had odd games.  Each player had four shots blocked; neither had a shot on goal.

In the end...

Talk about controlling your destiny.  The Caps have 18 games remaining after the win against the Islanders.  Ten of them are against Metropolitan Division teams, and they have another three -- the entire season series -- in a two-week period against the Eastern Conference leading Tampa Bay Lightning to close March.  It should be interesting.  Or, as Bette Davis put it...