The Peerless Prognosticator is ON THE AIR!!!
The Washington Capital continue their road through
California on Sunday night when they visit the Anaheim Ducks at Honda
Center. The Caps are coming what might
be their best game of the season, a 5-1 thrashing of the San Jose Sharks on Thursday
night that broke a four-game losing streak on the road.
Anaheim is celebrating their 25th NHL
season. Well, celebrating might be too
kind a word. Their 22-26-9 record is
their worst, by points percentage (.465), since the dark 2004-2005 season. Dark would be an apt description of their
season since mid-December. Since they
dropped a 3-1 decision in New York to the Rangers on December 18th
to end a four-game winning streak, the Ducks were shot out of the sky as if they
were hit by a shotgun from a duck blind.
They are 3-16-4 since that four-game winning streak, easily the worst
record in the league over that stretch.
The Ducks’ biggest problem is that they cannot score. They have managed only 35 goals in those 23
games (1.52 per game), 18 fewer than the team ranked 30th in goals
scored (Dallas). Only one player among
the 34 to dress over those 23 games has more than five goals. That would be Daniel Sprong, who has six
goals over this tortuous stretch. Sprong
was traded to the Ducks on December 3rd from the Pittsburgh Penguins
for defenseman Marcus Pettersson.
Sprong, a second round pick of the Penguins in the 2015 entry draft, had
an up and down experience with the Penguins.
Injuries and the depth the Penguins had at forward limited him to 42 games
over three seasons before he was traded to Anaheim. He scored a goal in his first game with the
Ducks, a 4-2 win over the Chicago Blackhawks on December 5th. In 29 games overall with the Ducks he is 9-4-13,
minus-7. In three career games against
the Caps, Sprong is 0-1-1, minus-1.
Over the Ducks’ 3-16-4 run, they have one goal from among
the 11 defensemen to have dressed. That
belongs to Josh Mahura, but he was re-assigned to the San Diego Gulls in the
AHL on January 9th. That
doesn’t mean the defense has been entirely devoid of contributions. Eight defensemen, including the departed
Mahura, have points, led by Brandon Montour and Hampus Lindholm, both with five
(all assists).
Montour is the only Anaheim defenseman to dress for all 58 games this season. A second-round pick of the Ducks in 2014, he is in his third NHL season and is displaying some promise as an offensive defenseman, the recent slim production notwithstanding. After posting two goals and six points in 27 games in intermittent appearances in 2016-2017 stint, he was 9-23-32 in 80 games last season. While he is likely to finish short of last year’s goal mark (he has five and has not recorded one in his last 25 games), his 19 assists are within four of last year’s mark, and with 24 points he is on a pace to eclipse last year’s point total. Montour had a particularly productive string of home games in November and December in which he went 4-9-13, plus-10, over eight home games. Since then, though, Montour has one assist in eight home contests. In five career games against the Caps, he does not have a point and is plus-2.
Montour is the only Anaheim defenseman to dress for all 58 games this season. A second-round pick of the Ducks in 2014, he is in his third NHL season and is displaying some promise as an offensive defenseman, the recent slim production notwithstanding. After posting two goals and six points in 27 games in intermittent appearances in 2016-2017 stint, he was 9-23-32 in 80 games last season. While he is likely to finish short of last year’s goal mark (he has five and has not recorded one in his last 25 games), his 19 assists are within four of last year’s mark, and with 24 points he is on a pace to eclipse last year’s point total. Montour had a particularly productive string of home games in November and December in which he went 4-9-13, plus-10, over eight home games. Since then, though, Montour has one assist in eight home contests. In five career games against the Caps, he does not have a point and is plus-2.
When Ryan Getzlaf took the ice last Saturday against the
Flyers in Philadelphia, he became the Ducks’ all-time leader in games played
(967), passing Teemu Selanne. It is not
the only category in which Getzlaf ranks highly in Ducks history. He ranks fourth in goals (258), first in
assists (653), second in points (911), first in plus-minus (plus-143), tied for
second in penalty minutes (812), fourth in power play goals (78), second in
power play points (313), tied for fourth in shorthanded goals (eight), third in
game-winning goals (50), and first in overtime goals (nine). This season, his production is a reflection
of the troubles the Ducks are having scoring goals. Consider that last season, his 0.89 assists
per game led the league. This season,
his assists per game are barely half of that (0.48). It has been even worse over this dreadful
23-game run, Getzlaf averaging only 0.26 assists per game. Compounding that, he is an incredible
minus-29 over that span. If there is a
team against which he might return to some measure of productive health, it
might be the Caps. Getzlaf is 7-16-23,
plus-5, in 17 career games against Washington.
1. No team has fewer
power play goals on home ice this season than the Ducks (eight).
2. Anaheim’s goal
differential on home ice this season (minus-17) is worst in the league. Their goal differential in their 3-16-4 run
is minus-50 (35 for, 85 allowed).
3. In their recent
3-16-4 run, ten skaters are a minus-10 or worse, five of them minus-15 or
worse.
4. No team in the West
has committed more minor penalties than the Ducks (204, tied with Vancouver).
5. As poorly as the
Ducks have played, don’t sleep on them.
Anaheim has six wins this season when trailing after two periods, tied
for third-most in the league. Then
again, they get a lot of practice. They
have trailed at the second intermission 29 times this season, tied for tops in
the league with New Jersey.
1. The Caps have
spread things out on the road. So far
this season, 20 skaters have scored at least one goal on the road. Last season, that total was 17 skaters all
season on the road.
2. Of 24 skaters to
dress for road games this season, 23 have points. Only Nathan Walker, who dressed for only one
road game, does not have a point.
3. Evgeny Kuznetsov
has been a bad luck shooter on the road.
He has one goal on 58 shots (1.8 percent). That shooting percentage is 190th
of 197 players recording at least 50 shots on the road this season and
second-worst among forwards (James Neal is 1-for-60).
4. The Caps have
committed more penalties than any team in the Eastern Conference (231).
5. Washington is
second in the league in blocked shots (925), trailing only Ottawa (999).
The Peerless’ Players to Ponder
Anaheim: Goaltenders
John Gibson is on the injured reserve list. He will be there for the “foreseeable future.”
Chad Johnson is on the injured reserve list.
Ryan Miller was just re-activated off the injured reserve list. Kevin Boyle has all of three games of NHL
experience, although one of those games was a 35-save shutout of the Vancouver
Canucks last Wednesday, his first NHL win, and he has stopped 85 of 89 shots so
far (.955). On a tram that cannot score,
having this kind of churn in the net is not helpful, Boyle’s performance
notwithstanding.
It could mean that the Caps get to meet an old adversary in
Miller. Now in his 16th NHL
season, Miller is the second oldest goaltender in the league at 38 years old
(Roberto Luongo is 39). Miller is in the
last year of a two-year/$4.0 million contract with Anaheim, and his role with the
Ducks has been primarily to backstop Gibson.
He has been effective in a limited role, going 16-8-7, 2.45, .926, with
four shutouts in 38 games over the past two seasons. He does have rust on him, though. He has not dressed for a game since December 9th,
when he was injured against the New Jersey Devils, and he has not played in a
full game since November 27th when he stopped 34 of 35 shots in a
3-1 win over Tampa Bay. What might
influence the decision here is that in addition to his lack of game experience
over the last couple of months, Miller’s record on home ice this season is
spotty (1-2-1, 3.31, .915), while Boyle is 1-1-0, 1.01, .968 and that
shutout. Miller is 18-14-0, 2.54, .916,
with three shutouts in 33 career appearances against the Capitals.
Washington: John Carlson
John Carlson seems to be suffering a bit in his production
since the All-Star Game. In eight games
since the break, he is 0-3-3, even, in eight games. He is not alone in his quiet play,
though. He is one of five defensemen to average
at least 25 minutes per game since the break, record at least ten shots on
goal, and fail to hit the back of the net.
The others include Ryan Suter, Drew Doughty, and Seth Jones; not a bad
squad. Nevertheless, Carlson is one of four
defensemen in the league with 50 points (he is fourth, 8-42-50), and his 22
power play points ranks third among all league defensemen.
Should Carlson light the lamp on Sunday, he will tie Larry
Murphy for sixth place on the Caps’ all-time list of goals scored by a
defenseman (86). If he gets two assists,
he will become the third defenseman in Caps history to hit the 300-assist mark,
joining Scott Stevens (331) and Calle Johansson (361). Carlson is 2-6-8, minus-2, in 12 career games
against the Ducks.
In the end…
This game has the potential to be a “trap” game of sorts,
the temptation to let down after a big win against a tough opponent, compounded
by a two-day break between games. And,
the Caps are not a particularly effective team when getting two days off, going
4-3-0 this season when doing so. Still,
they are facing an opponent running out of things to play for, one that finds itself
seven points out of a playoff spot and six teams to climb over with 24 games
left to play.
Anaheim calls itself the “City of Kindness.”
The Ducks have been kind to visitors, not disturbing their net very much with
pesky things like goals. The Caps are
coming off one of their best defensive efforts in memory. The object here is not to let up and get
careless against an opponent who has difficulty mustering offensive pressure,
and is in the throes of turmoil with goaltender injuries and a coach who
recently took over without having any prior professional coaching experience.
Capitals 5 – Ducks 2