164 goals and secondary scoring

The Caps have 164 goals this year. Of that total, Alex Ovechkin has 48 (29.3 percent). Pleasant as that is, there is a flip side...one not so pleasant.

After Ovechkin, the next leading Caps goal scorer is Mike Green -- a defenseman -- with 15. Alexander Semin is the next highest goal-scoring forward with 14. Having done this in only 39 games (a 29-goal pace for a full year), one might take comfort in the fact that at least Semin can provide some scoring balance.

But the Caps are still a team that lacks consistent supplemental scoring support. Given the constant that Ovechkin seems to be, when the Caps get that supplemental scoring lift, they are formidable. When they don't...well, you get last night.

This is a problem that could solve itself if Semin can maintain or improve upon his pace after such a sluggish start due to injury. And, getting Chris Clark back could provide a lift as well. Brooks Laich has had a career year in goal scoring (nine, and counting), but getting some more out of the lower half of the forward lines would really be helpful. The trio of Matt Pettinger, Boyd Gordon, and Clark, which one doofus thought could combine for 50 goals this year, has 12 among them.

Perversely, the Caps might be in the best position in the Southeast to get such a lift from in-house sources as we move to the last 24 games of the season, depending on what their intra-division rivals do.

Carolina already has moved their second leading goal scorer (Cory Stillman, with 21), although they still have Ray Whitney (21) providing some support. Atlanta might move Marian Hossa (his 25 goals is second on the Thrashers to Ilya Kovalchuk's 39) before the trading deadline. One wonders if Tampa Bay will move Vaclav Prospal and his 25 goals in response to some controversy over his commentary that might have been construed as opinion about his coach. Then there is the matter of whether Florida will or will not move Olli Jokinen, who actually leads his team in goal scoring.

At a time of year when GMs are evaluated by fans by the ferocity with which they consummate deals, the team that stands pat might win for the others losing.

Only in hockey...

...would you find a "Bobble-fists Night." In this instance, it is the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins honoring Dennis Bonvie on March 28th...

...Bonvie has accumulated 4,290 penalty minutes in his AHL career with eight teams. He also has 311 minutes in 92 NHL games. We're guessing there weren't a lot of those minutes logged for hooking.

A one-point night: Thrashers 3 - Caps 2 (OT/SO)

There are bad one-point games, and there are good one-point games. Last night’s 3-2 shootout loss to the Atlanta Thrashers qualifies as the latter as the Caps finally solved Thrasher goalie Kari Lehtonen for the tying goal in regulation with less than two minutes to play to earn the point.

It was a game that, for the Caps, involved a lot of unproductive energy. They pounded 41 shots at Lehtonen, but there were precious few of the rebound or follow up variety. It is probably instructive that the Caps’ first goal of the contest was scored when an Alex Ovechkin shot pinballed onto the stick of Viktor Kozlov, who had nothing but net to shoot at. For the rest of the game, Lehtonen was given the chance to see shots clearly and handle them cleanly.

Lehtonen also played Sidney Crosby for a moment, hitting Marian Hossa with a “long bomb” of a pass that Hossa took almost at the Caps’ blue line with less than a minute to go in the second period. Hossa scored what could be his last goal at home as a Thrasher (he is rumored to be on the trading block, and Atlanta does not return home until after the trading deadline) by skating in alone on goaltender Olaf Kolzig and sweeping the puck under Kolzig’s right pad.

Washington clearly had the territorial advantage in the game, especially in the first and third periods. And despite puring shot after shot at Lehtonen, no more than the usual level of frustration seemed to grip the club. At least they were consistent in continuing to shoot the puck. The persistence paid off with 1:21 left in the third period when Alex Ovechkin skated in and ripped a shot between Lehtonen’s glove and body for his 48^th goal of the season.

The result left the Southeast Division a muddle. Three teams sit atop the division with 60 points. And, the teams seem to have settled into a pattern of close-to-.500 play as the record over each of their last ten games suggests:

The game was remarkable in one respect. A team getting off 41 shots is a team that has the puck a lot of the time. But the Caps didn’t generally start plays with the puck. The Thrashers won 39 of 60 draws (65 percent). Only David Steckel finished with more wins than losses in the circle (7-for-13). The trio of Bobby Holik, Eric Perrin, and Todd White won 32 of 49 draws.

Nicklas Backstrom had a pair of assists to tie Chicago’s Patrick Kane atop the rookie scoring list with 47 points apiece. While the rookie of the year race seems destined to come down to those two players, Tobias Enstrom continued to make a case for his efforts as well. The Thrasher defenseman led the club in ice time last night (26:32) and contributed an assist on the Eric Perrin goal that opened the scoring for the Thrashers. Enstrom is fourth among rookie scorers (35 points, 14 more than the next closest defenseman – Dallas’ Matt Niskanen) and is plus-three for a team whose defense is often a bit lead-footed.

The game was decided by Bettman’s Gimmick when Eric Perrin scored on a move that Caps TV announcers Joe Beninati and Craig Laughlin described even before Perrin skated into the center circle to take the puck (skate in, fake backhand, pull puck across, lift forehand over goalie’s pad) and Slava Kozlov circled wide right, swooped in and snapped a shot past Kolzig’s right pad. For the Caps, Alexander Semin fired the puck wide to Lehtonen’s right, and Lehtonen closed the Caps out when he bobbled a shot by Boyd Gordon, but swiped the puck off the goal line to earn for the Thrashers the extra standings point.

Two points separates first and fourth in the division now, so each day promises a shakeup of the standings unless a team can put a streak together. Since the club “officially reached mediocrity” on January 19^th, they’ve slowed their torrid pace under Bruce Boudreau. The 6-4-1 record is a bit off from the 15-7-4 pace set in the first 26 games under Boudreau, and it might be a reflection of the higher stakes for which games are being played and the continuing holes in the lineup left by the absences of Chris Clark and Brian Pothier.

The good way to look at this, perhaps, is that the Caps have something of a foothold on the top spot (they “lead” the division based on fewest games played among those tied with them at 60 points), and they have divisional games to come that present the opportunity to build on that.

Up next is the Florida trip – the Panthers and Lightning – and a chance to open a bit of room between themselves and those teams, at least. When the Caps return home next Thursday to take on the Islanders, they could be solidly in first place…

…they could find themselves in fourth place, too.

Fleischmann Re-Signed for Two Years

The Capitals are reporting that they have signed forward Tomas Fleischmann to a two-year deal (terms not disclosed).

Fleischmann -- in his first full season with the club -- is 6-15-21, -4, in 53 games. He came to camp in September without a contract and played himself into a one-year deal and onto the top line for opening night. He was a bit overwhelmed in that role and bounced among the lines for a time. He has been seeing more time on the second line with Alexander Semin and the center of the week.

This is an interesting move for the club. Fleischmann has seen modest improvement over his first two abbreviated seasons with the club (a total of 43 games, 4-6-10, -13, coming into this season). His play of late has improved, and if anything he's been a bit snakebit in terms of recording goals.

The Caps now have all six of their "top six" forwards signed for next year (assuming one includes Fleischmann in this group) -- Alex Ovechkin (through 2020-21), Alexander Semin (through 2009-10), Michael Nylander (through 2010-11), Viktor Kozlov (through 2008-09), Nicklas Backstrom (through 2009-10), and Fleischmann.

What makes this interesting is that Eric Fehr -- who might be expected to compete for a top-six spot himself -- is a restricted free agent at the end of this season. And, there is Chris Clark (he of the 30 goals last season on Ovechkin's line and who is signed through 2010-11) who can fill that top-six role, too. It makes for the kind of competitive decisions that coaches (and GM's) would rather have.

There's Somethin' Happenin' Here...

...what it is ain't exactly clear.

OK, those are the first two lines of "For What It's Worth," by Buffalo Springfield, and like the last two lines, we ought to be thinking, "Stop, children, what's that sound? Everybody look what's going down."

What's going "down" is what's going up...attendance, that is. If you look at the Caps' 29 home dates so far, the graph looks like this...

We've marked Game 9 -- the 5-1 loss to Atlanta on the day before Thanksgiving -- as perhaps the low point of the season for the club on the ice.

Since that gruesome loss, the Caps are 21-11-4, and their fortunes at home mirror the rise in the standings. The trend in that graph is unmistakably upward. Look at the five game averages over the course of the season:

1st five: 13,797
2nd five: 13,880
3rd five: 11,803
4th five: 15,091
5th five: 15,488
last four games: 17,053

There is that 11,803 in the third group of five games, corresponding to the five games played at Verizon Center from November 26th through December 12th. However, that might be explained by frustration over the season as it had unfolded to that date and the holiday shopping season getting underway. Whatever, since then, the Caps have seen attendance rise substantially and dramatically.

Winning does that.

What it means is that maybe Verizon Center is going to be the place to be for the next few months for things other than concerts and Georgetown University men's basketball games...

The Peerless Prognosticator is ON THE AIR!!! -- Caps vs. Thrashers, February 13th

The Peerless Prognosticator is ON THE AIR!!!

On the road again…that’s where the Caps find themselves tonight as they visit Philips Arena and the Atlanta Thrashers in one of what will be always a series of critical games against a Southeast Division foe.

After this contest, this trip will continue with a special treat for the boys, as Tarik El-Bashir reports in this morning’s Washington Post:

"The Capitals open a critical Southeast Division swing tonight in Atlanta, then will be joined by 16 fathers -- and one father-in-law -- for this weekend's games in Sunrise, Fla., and Tampa."

We thought we’d bring in a few famous fathers to get their take on what this trip might be like for parents and children…

First, we have Jim Anderson of Springfield. Jim, you have three children, correct?

“I have three wonderful kids…two daughters – Kathy and Betty – and of course, my son, Jim junior.”

That’ would be Bud…Jim, what are the biggest problems you have to deal with in raising three children?

“Oh, that’s easy…always having to know what’s best. Every night, I come home from work, take off my sport jacket, put on my comfortable sweater, and want to just kick back with a martini… But no, I have to deal with the everyday problems of a growing family. And I have to always be this thoughtful, responsible adult who deals with every crisis with a warm smile and some sensible advice. I envy today’s Dads, who are pretty much big, goofy doofusses who couldn’t spell ‘Dad’ if your drew it on a blackboard for them.”

It sounds like a lot of pressure, but Cliff Huxtable, you think it’s all worth it, don’t you?

“Oh, absolutely (rolls eyes). We have five kids – Sondra, Denise, Theo, Vanessa, and…and…

Rudy?

“Rudy…I always miss that one. He’s a handful…”

She…

“Really?”

So Cliff, what’s the secret to raising five kids?

“Lots and lots of Jello pudding…”

Last, we have Homer Simpson, and you’re also from Springfield, aren't you?

“Uh-huh…”

You have three children at home, right?

“Uh-huh…”

You’re always having to deal with daily problems with Bart, Lisa, and Maggie, aren’t you?

“Who?...”

Your three children…Bart, Lisa, and Maggie…

“I thought there were doughnuts…”

Well, we’re out of doughnuts, but we do have a game tonight, and the Caps find themselves looking up once more at the Carolina Hurricanes as the boys skate against the Thrashers. Carolina beat Boston last night, 3-2…fortunately, it was not a three-point game.

But as for the Thrashers, they are a team of streaks lately. Since alternating wins and losses over a six game stretch from December 27^th to January 6^th, they’ve had these streaks:

Two losses (one in a shootout)
Two wins
Five losses (two in shootouts)
Three wins
Two losses

They won their last outing – a 2-1 overtime win against Tampa Bay – but their 6-6-3 record over the last 15 games is the very definition of “treading water.” The particulars over those 15 games:

Record: 6-6-3
Goals for/against: 31/41
Power Play: 9/54 (16.7%)
Penalty killing: 50/60 (83.3%)

Atlanta has suffered a lack of offense. In the past 15 games, they have scored more than two goals just three times (all in wins). And, they’ve struggled mightily even in getting shots to the net. In the ramped-up NHL, they’ve managed to average only 24.9 shots a game (if that was a full-season figure, it would be last by almost a full shot per game) and have registered fewer than 20 shots three times.

For a team with offensive firepower of the likes of Ilya Kovalchuk and Marian Hossa, with a Mark Recchi, Todd White, and Slava Kozlov thrown in, the sustained lack of offense is unsettling…one worries that they are just on the cusp of breaking out. As for Kovalchuk and Hossa, their numbers look very ordinary over the last 15 games:

Kovalchuk: 5-1-6, -9 (12 games)
Hossa: 8-3-11, -6

The 13 goals is respectable, but the 4 assists between them is telling. It is a problem familiar to Caps fans – a lack of supplemental scoring (18 goals in 15 games from players not named “Ilya” or “Marian”). Recchi has one goal (1-9-10, -5), as does White (1-5-6, -3). Kozlov has two (2-5-7, +2).

However, these are players who seem to save some of their best for the Caps over their respective careers:

Kovalchuk: 34 games, 20-24-44, +16
Hossa: 43 games: 22-26-48, +13
Recchi: 87 games, 46-58-104, +23
Kozlov: 43 games, 13-15-28, +4
White: 16 games, 5-8-13, +10

As dormant as they have been, Caps fans will hope the trend continues, which means the burden falls to Kari Lehtonen to keep pucks out of the net. He’s done his part. In 12 games in this stretch, Lehtonen has an unremarkable win-loss record of 5-4-2, but his GAA is 2.14, and his save percentage is .936 – both fine numbers. He also has a shutout in the mix, that accomplished against Washington on February 2^nd. After a rocky start, he’s been consistently solid over the last five weeks. And, Lehtonen has a fine career mark against the Caps – 7-3-2, 2.63, .915 in 12 career games. He is 1-2-0 this year.

Coach Bruce Boudreau puts it succinctly… "We're playing everybody that we have to beat." That’s it in a nutshell as the Caps head off on a road trip in February that has meaning. And in the game of leap-frog that the Caps and Carolina Hurricanes are playing lately, the Caps will jump the ‘Canes once more…

Caps 3 – Thrashers 2

Hmm...

Sami Lepisto has been called up to the Caps.

Now, just what does that mean? Well, John Erskine is hurt, Steve Eminger isn't. The Caps are about to embark on a couple of weeks of important road games against division rivals.

Let the questions begin...

Is Lepisto here to travel with the team to acclimate himself and be available if a defenseman falters?

Is Eminger going to sit in favor of Lepisto?

Is he insurance in case Shaone Morrisonn (who has taken five minor penalties in his last two games) is not truly healthy?

Is Lepisto part of the "rotation" of defensemen who get a sweater on the odd night to keep others fresh while Erskine is on the shelf?

Stay tuned!

And now, he's gone...

...maybe just wanted to visit the museums.

AH-hahahahahaha

It isn't often we will go off the rink for a topic, but this morning, The Peerless is yukking with glee over this...

We have no sympathy for those among users of that gizmo who aren't involved in national defense, homeland security, or emergency health care.

As you can tell, we do not own and have never so much as held one of those things, and won't...ever. The only legitimate use we can see for one of these things if one is not employed in national defense, homeland security, or emergency health care is to communicate updates on hockey trades as we approach the trading deadline.

Does that make us a "flat-earther" in the eyes of afficionadoes?

No, it makes us sane.

Scoreboard glancing in the age of parity

It might not yet be time for full-fledged scoreboard watching, but a glance here and there might be expected of Capitals Nation, which hasn't glanced at anything except the summer schedule for the draft and free agency these past few years at this time.

Tonight, the marquee game for followers is Carolina at Boston. Who to root for, who to root for...

Carolina is one point behind the Capitals, with the Capitals holding a game in hand.

Boston is two points ahead of the Capitals for "eighth" in the East in points, and the Bruins hold two games in hand on the Caps.

So, does the discerning fan root for one club to lose, remain in second place in the division, and give up another game in hand?

Or, does the worrisome fan root for the other team to lose, remain within spitting distance in points, and give up one of the games in hand they hold?


Let's just hope it's not a "three-point game."

Well Wishes to Zed

The Panthers have set up a page for fans to post their get well wishes to Richard Zednik. Zednik, who suffered a skate injury on Sunday that left his carotid artery "hanging like a thread," is recovering and is expected to resume normal activity in 6-8 weeks. As for his return to the ice, that is not yet clear.

From the ESPN.com story on his recovery...

Attending surgeon Sonya Noor said there were no initial signs of brain damage, which is a fear whenever the coratid artery is clamped. She said clamps were in place for about 15 to 20 minutes during surgery, which she considers a short time.

"So far, he looks very good. He's awake, oriented," said Noor. "He remembers what happened last night."

Let the deals begin!...Hurricanes and Senators start the party.

TSN.ca reports that the Ottawa Senators and the Carolina Hurricanes have made a deal. The particulars...


-- Ottawa receives defenseman Mike Commodore and forward Cory Stillman




-- Carolina receives defenseman Joe Corvo and forward Patrick Eaves.


Ottawa gets perhaps the best player (Stillman, although he's only 3-4-7, -11 in 17 games in 2008), Carolina gets younger. So, from the Southeast race perspective...what's in it for Carolina?

Well first, let's look at it from Ottawa's point of view...both Commodore and Stillman are UFAs after this year, so you'd think Ottawa was going for a specific short-term remedy. Size on the blue line, additional offensive potential and veteran experience to give some relief to the top line of Heatley-Spezza-Alfredsson. Given that Ottawa is 5-8-0 in their last 13 games, a shake-up seemed to be in order, too. This would qualify.

For Carolina, this is a bit of a curious deal...one that suggests the future in mind, not the present. Eaves is a restricted free agent after this year; Corvo is signed through the 2009-2010 season. If nothing else, the Hurricanes get quicker (and a bit younger) in the short term. But on balance, we're wondering how this deal helps Carolina in the 2007-2008 race to the playoffs.

Given the Caps' success against the Senators this year, this might not be the worst of deals that could have taken place.

Oh, to be young and in a playoff race...

We’re in the last 25 games of the regular season, and for the first time since the 2002-2003 season, they are games that will matter to the Caps.

For this squad, though, it is uncharted territory. Only four players currently with the club dented the statistics of that last playoff season season for the Caps…Olaf Kolzig was, of course, the cornerstone netminder. Michael Nylander, who would leave for Boston and New York before returning this year, played in 71 games and was 17-39-56. The other two – Steve Eminger and Matt Pettinger – combined to play in 19 games. Eminger played in 17 games while spending most of the year in Kitchener in the OHL, and Pettinger played one game for the Caps, spending most of the year in Portland of the AHL.

These guys haven’t been to war together…at least not at this level.

We bring this up because with all the attention being paid to Alex Ovechkin lately, he’s likely to get even more as the focus of a Caps team that is a legitimate contender for a playoff spot. We’ve talked about his remarkable consistency before, and it merits some attention in terms of what might be expected as the Caps head into the home stretch. If one looks at the NHL season in terms of its prelude and its home stretch, the boundary of which is the trading deadline, then Ovechkin registered goals/assists/points-per-game in his first two years is as follows:

2005-2006

Before deadline (60 games): 0.70/0.62/1.32
After deadline (21 games): 0.48/0.81/1.29

2006-2007

Before deadline (63 games): 0.56/0.62/1.17
After deadline (19 games): 0.58/0.37/0.95

The points-per-game was rather consistent in the stretch of his rookie season (fewer goals, more assists). In his second season, there was a considerable dropoff in his assists and points-per-game, but the Caps were not a team of gifted finishers, either. Chris Clark benefited from skating on the opposite wing, but there wasn’t much to spare in terms of a center who could score, and the Caps defense was goal-challenged all year.

So what? Well, if folks are looking for a let down or Ovechkin hitting the wall, his brief history in the NHL suggests otherwise. He’s been scoring at precisely a goal-a-game pace since Thanksgiving (33-20-53 in 33 games). There is little to suggest that his 1.61 points-per-game pace since late November is an aberration.

Add that to a club that is following the script of having important cogs growing together (and winning a championship) in Hershey, then you’d have to think that as this precocious group of kids faces their first stretch run test, the game plan is unfolding as it was drawn up.

Russian vs. Russian

Each has played 18 games in 2008...


Alex Ovechkin and Evgeni Malkin...if no one else dressed, that would have been a pretty good 2004 draft.

The Unkindest Cut

Above you see Richard Zednik and Olli Jokinen of the Florida Panthers celebrating one of Zednik's goals in a hat trick performance against the Toronto Maple Leafs last week.

Tonight, the feelings among the Panthers, their fans, and the world of hockey in general are a good deal more somber.

Richard Zednik was injured this evening as a result of a freakish tumble and swing of a skate by Jokinen, who was trying to fight off a check during the third period of the Buffalo Sabres' 5-3 win against the Panthers in Buffalo.

You can find the video of the incident without much trouble, if you are so inclined. It is not pretty to watch. It was uncomfortably reminiscent of another incident in Buffalo -- in March 1989 -- when Sabre goaltender Clint Malarchuk nearly lost his life to a skate blade slicing through his neck. Or that of Bengt Akerblom, who died as a result of an accident similar to Malarchuk's that occurred in an exhibition game between Swedish hockey teams Brynas and Mora in October 1995.

It is a reminder that hockey, for all its grace and power, is a game that is played quite literally "on the edge."

Caps fans -- perhaps peculiarly so -- have seemed always to have a soft spot for Zednik. You can find "Zed-heads" even today among the faithful. Perhaps it is a function of his having achieved a measure of success in the league despite having been drafted 249th overall in 1994. To accomplish what he has, having come from so far, is a reflection of the player and the person.

For both, we and all Caps fans wish a speedy recovery. Get well, and come back soon, Zed.


Sabre goaltender Ryan Miller, in front of whom the play unfolded, reacts:

Now THIS is a promotion!

Minor league franchises in all sports are legend in their imaginative use of promotions to bring fans to the stands. It is in this vein that we salute the AHL's Peoria Rivermen, who have a special treat for fans following their game against the Iowa Stars on March 22nd...

...wrestling.

Whoa, buckos...not just "wrestling," and not even the WWE brand of the sport. We're talking a triple-header of "midget championship wrestling." Let's let Dave Eminian of PJStar.com tell it...

"There will be three bouts in a WWE-style ring, billed as regular; hardcore with trash cans; and everything-goes World Tag Team Midget Championship, with Little Kaeto.

I kid you not. There's a video sample of Little Kaeto and his cohorts on my blog, Cleve's World, at www.pjstar.com.

"I think we're, um, tapping into what has been a strong professional-wrestling market in Peoria over the years," Rivermen president Bart Rogers said in his best deadpan. "These guys are, um, some of the best athletes in the world. We're going to have three big matches, something never done in Peoria.

"It's not often central Illinois is host of a world-championship bout."

Hardcore with trash cans...sounds like a hockey kinda night.

A TWO point afternoon: Caps 3 - Rangers 2 (OT)

The Caps are in first place once more, a product of a hard-fought, often-ugly, occasionally exhilarating 3-2 overtime win over the New York Rangers at Verizon Center this afternoon.

Hard-fought?...you bet. You might not think so looking at the hits recorded (22-12 in favor of the Caps), and there were no fisticuffs, but this was a game that was largely fought along the boards and in the corners. Given that the Rangers played (and won) a game in Philadelphia yesterday, such a game might have been expected to draw heavily from their depleted energy reserves.

For the longest time, the Caps seemed not to concern themselves with wearing down the Rangers, but in the last half of the third period, the Rangers' fatigue began to show, and the Caps were the club with the momentum at the end of regulation.

It didn't take the Caps long to record the bonus point in the extra session. While on the power play -- a four-on-three scenario in the extra time -- Mike Green took a feed from Alex Ovechkin, took a couple of strides toward the Ranger net in the additional open ice, and let fly with a slapshot that found its way through goalie Steve Valiquette's pads for the game-winner.

Until then, though, it was a contest of wills...one the Rangers held the advantage for over much of the contest. The Rangers tried to play an in-their-face, gritty road game, while the Caps were finding themselves unable to develop any momentum or flow. As it was, the Caps managed to get two goals in regulation the ugly way...a loose puck that found its way to Alex Ovechkin's stick and then found it heading past an Eric Fehr screen and into the net early in the first period, and a rebound that Boyd Gordon collected and swept past a diving Valiquette in the closing seconds of the second period.

The Rangers scored their two on a rebound that the Caps could not clear away before Chris Drury swept it under Olaf Kolzig and poor coverage by Shaone Morrison, who permitted Sean Avery to get inside position taking a feed from Scott Gomez to beat Kolzig under the crossbar.

Other than those bursts, there was a lot of mucking and grinding and huffing and puffing. As noted in the last entry, the Caps had some unfortunate "almosts" in goal-scoring, failing to take advantage of a sometimes-shaky Valiquette.

In the end, though...

Alex Ovechkin finished 1-2-3, +1, using his 20th multi-point game of the year to recapture the scoring lead (76 points to 73 for Daniel Alfredsson and Evgeni Malkin, who had a four-point game against Philadelphia this afternoon) and lengthen his goal-scoring lead (47 to 39 for Ilya Kovalchuk)

Alexander Semin had a very quiet two-point game (assists on both the game-tying and game-winning goals)...that's not necessarily a bad thing

No Capital who took more than one faceoff won a majority of the draws they took. The team was 23 for 56 overall.

Jaromir Jagr...two shots, plus-one, no points...again (that's seven games and counting...still think he's more valuable than Marian Hossa or as attractive as Mats Sundin?)

The Caps killed off all six Ranger power plays...it's the first time the Caps have killed of so many power plays without allowing a goal since December 14th against Buffalo (a 5-2 loss)

Defensemen led both teams in shots -- Mike Green for the Caps (five) and Paul Mara for the Rangers (five)

Viktor Kozlov tied for the team lead in hits (three, with Ovechkin and Milan Jurcina)...maybe he thought he was still playing for the Islanders

Today marked Olaf Kolzig's 700th game with the Caps, and the win tied him in career victories with Ron Hextall (296)

The Caps play four of their next five games against Southeast Division foes over the next 13 days, all of them on the road. You could call this a pretty big fortnight coming up. But for now, things look like this...

Caps/Rangers, by the periods

1st period...

Two different games...the Caps strike first on the Ovechkin power play goal and control the territorial aspect...then Sean Avery slipped inside Shaone Morrisonn for a clear shot at Olaf Kolzig, who he beat high to the glove side. The Rangers had the best of things from there.

Don't know if the Caps had the puck for 30 seconds in the Ranger end in the last five minutes. Part of that was having to kill two penalties in the last 5:23, but the Caps never could seem to get a stick on the puck.

Caps were blistered in the circle, losing 12 of 18 (even Jagr's won a draw). Playing with fire. Giving the Rangers possession, and with most of that possession in the Caps' end, the Caps should feel fortunate they aren't down by at least a goal here.

Nigel Dawes has 2:52 in power play time on ice; Jaromir Jagr has 1:08. Such is Jagr's world these days.

Matt Pettinger can't buy a break. Lined one right off the crossbar at 1:19...would have been a great start to the game and maybe the spark Pettinger needs.

Steve Valiquette looks shaky in the Ranger net (first time in his NHL career he's playing back-to-backs), benefited from a quick whistle, or the Caps might have had a 2-0 lead. Avery scored 47 seconds later.


2nd period...

Ugly is good...note that both Caps goals came off traffic and getting shots to the net, not the pretty stuff.

But all in all, that was a gruesome period for the Caps. Three shots in the first 14-plus minutes...three sloppy minor penalties...a bad clear (or non-clear) on a rebound that led to the Ranger goal (and Kolzig's recovery wasn't especially pretty, either).

Morrisonn having about his worst game as a Cap...three minor penalties, was on the ice for the Avery goal (and was the defenseman beaten on that play), and looks a half-second slow in getting into position to defend. He usually rises to the Jagr challenge, but just isn't having a very good day.

The Caps are a bit snake-bit in this game...first it was Pettinger in the first clanging the crossbar, then it was Semin, after making a highlight reel move to spring himself free to Valiquette's right, had the puck slide of the end of his stick, preventing him from lifting the puck off a backhand over the sprawling goalie at 14:39.

Eric Fehr has 5:02 in playing time today. Let's look at the progression of TOI since his call up... 16:46 ... 14:57 ... 12:06... this is not the profile of a guy who can be expected to stick at the moment.


3rd period...

Much better than the second, but the Caps didn't really press like a team should against a club that is playing its second matinee in two days.

Seven shots on goal...another example of not setting a pace. The Rangers looked gassed in the last five minutes.

Kolzig kept the Caps in it with several top-notch saves from in close.

Hollweg took an exquisitely stupid penalty along the boards in tripping Mike Green at the end of regulation.


Overtime...

Green...shot...score, 23 seconds in. His third OT game-winner this year.

Why can't Ovechkin get gigs like this?

Brian Campbell, on "hyperhidrosis"...



Never let 'em see you making an ad about sweat.

The Peerless Prognosticator is ON THE AIR!!! -- Caps vs. Rangers, February 10th

The Peerless Prognosticator is ON THE AIR!!!

And today, it’s a matinee offering as the Caps host the New York Rangers at Verizon Center.

And, as the Caps note in the media advisory accompanying the game preview, there will be other doings in Chinatown that will mean Caps fans need to get an early start to the game (so leave right after you read this). There is a parade in Chinatown today to celebrate the Chinese New Year and the ushering in of the Year of the Rat. According to the Chinese Culture Center of San Francisco…

“People born in the Year of the Rat are noted for their charm and attraction for the opposite sex. They work hard to achieve their goals, acquire possessions, and are likely to be perfectionists. They are basically thrifty with money. Rat people are easily angered and love to gossip. Their ambitions are big, and they are usually very successful. They are most compatible with people born in the years of the Dragon, Monkey, and Ox.”

If you were to look up the birthday of Ranger captain Jaromir Jagr, you would find that his birthday of February 15, 1972 makes him one day removed from being a rat (Feburary 16, 1972 was New Year’s Day on the Chinese calendar…it’s true, look it up!).

But we know better, don’t we Caps fans?

According to the Wikipedia entry for the zodiacal sign “Rat,” rat people “often carry heavy karma and at some point in life may face an identity crisis or some kind of feeling of guilt.”

Now there’s the Jagr we know and love. If anyone should feel guilty about the last half dozen years of hockey, it’s this guy…signs a huge contract, then ultimately gives up on his team, causing ownership to literally pay to have someone else take him off their hands. He has a couple of good years in his new home, then when it comes time to take the reins of leadership and lead the club to a long Stanley Cup run, his year is one big “where’s Jags?” moment.

It’s so bad, even Jagr’s one man fan club is calling him out…

But it’s not like the big guy to suffer publicly…much. Jagr through the years has often been of the “woe is me” school…

"I'm not complaining . . . it's the way it is," Jagr said about dealing with the rough treatment. "It's tough . . . it's not easy, but it's the way it is."

-- Jagr, on February 5^th, commenting on the manner in which he is defended.

"I don't really look at how many shots they got, I look at how many goals we score - and we don't score many goals…"

-- Jagr, last Friday, after going a seventh straight game without a goal.

…and a selection found by perusing the results of searches on Jagr quotes…

“Most people have friends, but no money. I have the opposite.”

“To me, it doesn't matter if I have a 'C' or not. If the team is going to do good, I'm going to get a bigger reward than other guys on the team. But if the team's going to do bad, I'm going to be blamed…”

“Nothing happened. The coach put me out there for the last 20 seconds, but I didn't even try. I just stood there. That's not what we wanted to do, embarrass the team.”

Then, of course, there is the anonymous teammate reported to have uttered this memorable comment…

"When you're losing, Jaromir Jagr is the worst guy in the world to be around because he acts like a suck."

Unfortunately, the Rangers haven’t been losing a lot lately – 6-3-0 in their last nine games, including a 2-0 whitewash of the Philadelphia Flyers yesterday in Philly (the third shutout in their last nine gmes). The Rangers aren’t doing it with offense, either:

Record: 6-3-0
Goals for/against: 23/16
Power Play: 7/35 (20.0%)
Penalty killing: 23/28 (82.1%)
Games in which Jagr has not registerd a point: seven (including his last six)

For the Rangers, the investments in Chris Drury and Scott Gomez have paid recent dividends. Drury is 5-3-8, +2, in this 6-3-0 run (including a pair of game-winners), while Gomez is 2-5-7, +3. Fedor Tyutin leads the club in assists in this stretch with six and has a +6 to go along with it.

The key, though, is Henrik Lundqvist, who has slipped a bit in the win-loss record of late (4-3-0 in this nine-game stretch), but has a 2.28 GAA (better than his 2.37 season mark) and a .906 save percentage (same as his season mark). Since Steve Valiquette pitched the shutout in Philly yesterday (his second straight goose egg – both against the Flyers), Lundqvist would appear to be the one getting the call today.

But what about Jags, you ask? He’s 1-3-4, +3 in this stretch, which is pretty much what his season looks like so far. He is on a pace to finish the year 21-45-66, even, which would be his lowest goal of his career (he even had more – 32 – in the 48-game year of 1994-95). 66 points would be his lowest total since his rookie year (57). To give you an idea of what 21-45-66 looks like, those were the goals-assists-points put up by J.P. Dumont last year in Nashville. Dumont is a fine player…he also is not making $8.36 million this year. And Dumont was a +14.

Jagr has had more than his share of success against the Caps in his career (29-54-83, +11, in 65 career regular season games). He is 0-4-4, +1 in the three games the teams have played this year. But if you’re looking for a former Penguin to torment the Caps, you might cast a glance at Martin Straka (16-26-42, +12, in 44 career games). He is 3-0-3, +1 in two games against Washington this year.

Today’s object is to make Jagr “act like a suck,” and that means pounding the Rangers early and often, coming as they are off a tough intra-divisional game. And it is not as if the Caps lack for motivation. Carolina lost last night, denying themselves the opportunity to take a three-point lead on Washington, but the Atlanta Thrashers beat Tampa Bay in overtime to jump the Caps into a tie with the Hurricanes for the top spot in the Southeast. A win will put the Caps back in the top spot, all alone; a loss in extra time will vault them there by virtue of having played fewer games that either the Thrashers or Hurricanes, despite all three teams having 58 points.

It should be a hard-fought, low-scoring kind of game...the sort in which the Caps are going to depend on goaltender Olaf Kolzig for a solid game. Kolzig, though, has not given up fewer than three goals in consecutive appearances in 2008, and he’s allowed more than three on six occasions in his last 12 appearances. If the Rangers score more than three today, they win.

But, they won’t.

Caps 2 – Rangers 1

A no point night: Hurricanes 2 - Caps 1

There is a proverb that dates to the 14^th century that says, “the pitcher that goes to often the well is broken at last.” It is the origin of the phrase “go to the well too often,” and it refers to repeated behaviors eventually having unpleasant conclusions.

Last night, the Caps spotted the Carolina Hurricanes a 2-0 lead in the first period. No sweat, you say? The Caps have come back from such deficits before?

Well, we’re getting into a different time of year, and a different kind of game…games characterized by tight checking, conservative play, and the ability to play with a lead. In other words, the kind of game the Hurricanes played to hold on for a 2-1 win at Verizon Center.

Cam Ward stopped 33 of 34 shots to make first period goals by Erik Cole and Andrew Ladd stand up in what was a penalty-filled game (12 minors and four fighting majors were doled out by Dennis Larue and Mike Leggo).

The story of the game was told in quotes, some of which might be thought of as the sort that should get some guys to thinking about their games…

“If you can shut (Ovechkin) down or contain him a little bit, you're going to be successful against these guys."

-- Carolina’s Erik Cole

That might be true, but it is something that the other guys might use to motivate their games a bit more (as if that should be needed at this point).

*****

"0-for-7 on the power play defines what this game is about. You have to make teams pay if they're going to take that many penalties against us. It's been a recurring problem the last few games."

-- Caps head coach Bruce Boudreau

Last night was the sixth time the Caps received as many as seven power play opportunities. It was the first such time that they were shutout on the man advantage.

*****

"You'd like to see the wins come more consistently. Win one, lose one, win two, lose two. That's not going to be good enough."

-- Carolina head coach Peter Laviolette

He was speaking of his Hurricanes, but he could have been speaking of any of the Southeast teams. If a team can reel off a streak, that team will be tough to catch.

*****

"It was a great individual effort. (Alexander Semin) did a good job there. But he also took a selfish penalty at the end of the game. Does one offset the other?"

-- Boudreau, speaking of Semin’s goal mid-way through the third period and the penalty he took with 28 seconds left to effectively snuff out what chance the Caps had to mount any further attack.

It is the enigma that is Alexander Semin – a player of amazing skill who can make the most boneheaded decisions at the most inopportune times. If it was earlier in the season, or the Caps had a margin of error, one might think Semin is a candidate to catch a game from the press box. But the Caps might not be able to afford that luxury, either, given the late hour of the schedule and the tight grouping of clubs in the Southeast.
*****

"We haven't played a game of this magnitude for a long time. We understand ... how important these games are. Next time we're in this situation, we'll be ready."

-- Caps defenseman Mike Green

One would have hoped that the Caps were ready last night – they weren’t. Too many penalties, too little energy generated in the offensive end, too many odd-man breaks. The response to this quote might be, “you’d better be…it won’t get easier from here.”

*****

If you looked only at the raw numbers, you wonder, “how did the Caps lose?...they outshot Carolina 34-23…they out-attempted them 72-37 (total shots taken, including misses and those blocked)…had there been a time-of-possession clock, it would have been weighted heavily in the Caps’ favor.

But the game looked like a 60-minute lack of attention to detail. The little things all went in the Hurricanes’ favor, because the Hurricanes worked hard to assure that they would go in their favor. And that was the difference over 60 minutes. They outhit the Caps (23-20), protected the puck better (7 giveaways to 12 for the Caps), paid a higher price (20 blocked shots to 10 for the Caps), and owned the faceoff circle…or more to the point, Rod Brind’Amour owned it (he won 18 of 23 draws). The difference between the teams was encapsulated by the Hurricanes’ ability to kill (or the Caps’ inability to convert, depending on your point of view) a 70-second 5-on-3 situation early in the second period.

It is Carolina that can stretch their lead to three points when they visit New Jersey this evening. If they should fail, the Caps can reclaim the top spot tomorrow against the Rangers. That’s the back-and-forth way it could be for the next eight weeks as we head to the finish, unless a team can reel off a streak…

… or they go to the well too often by getting behind early in games.

The Peerless Prognosticator is ON THE AIR!!! -- Caps vs. Hurricanes, February 8th

The Peerless Prognosticator is ON THE AIR!!!

Game 56 of the season for the Capitals is as big a Game 56 as a Game 56 gets as the good guys DO NOT visit the Carolina Hurricanes in Raleigh, NC, (like we said in version 1.0 of this entry), but host them at Verizon Center.

For those of you needing a recap, the Capitals have completed a 34-game march from the bottom of the Eastern Conference to the top of the Southeast Division and a three-seed in the conference standings. With a chance to wrest the top spot away from the Caps on Thursday, the Atlanta Thrashers canuckled under the superb goaltending of Roberto Luongo as Vancouver escaped Georgia with a 2-1 win.

So now, the Caps have a chance NOT to blow into Carolina (see above), but swirl around the Hurricanes, and LET THE HURRICANES limp back to the Piedmont like a weak breeze…down by three points.

But to do that, the Caps must beat a veteran, battle-tested group that has been able to withstand the fierce winds of adversity this year…to help us peer into the eye of the Hurricanes, we have with us some very famous…well, Hurricanes. We have with us Diane, the first billion dollar hurricane…Lenny, or “Ol’ Lefty, who wreaked havoc on Caribbean Islands from the west…Katrina, who spoiled the party in New Orleans.., and, of course, Wilma, the most powerful Atlantic storm recorded.

Lenny…let’s start with you. You came at those islands from a direction no one would associate with a hurricane. How do you liken that to what Carolina faces now, being in second place looking up at the Caps?

Lenny: “Well, it’s getting late in the season, just like when I strolled through the Caribbean in November 1999. And that time of year, you’re beat up, it’s been a long season, you have nicks and bruises and the odd wind shear. You have to have focus, determination, and a strong eye wall to make a difference at this time of the year. That’s the challenge for the Hurricanes, to make sure their effort doesn’t wane.”

Diane, the Hurricanes are dealing with some critical injuries at the moment – Justin Williams, Chad LaRose, Matt Cullen, Dennis Seidenberg…critical cogs that have missed, and in some cases will continue to miss, time with the club. Will the Hurricanes pull the trigger on a trade?

Diane: “Well, they could. They have a little bit of cap room to accommodate a deal, but wholesale changes don’t seem to be in the cards. The trouble is that with the injuries, they have a greater variety of needs. They might have been in the market for a defenseman, but now they might have to look at some forward help, too.”

In other words, the situation blows…

Diane: “Like a category-five storm over Jamaica.”

Katrina, you might be the most famous of our guests here. But the Hurricanes don’t seem to have that star wattage you see on other teams, especially for one not too far removed from a Stanley Cup.

Katrina: “Oh cher, these Hurricanes…there might not be a category-five player on the team, but they have a lot of category three and four guys – Eric Staal, Ray Whitney, and of course, the storm surge himself, Rod Brind’Amour.”

Why “storm surge?”

Katrina: “He’s so strong in the face off circle and on defense, he’s as relentless as a storm surge heading up Mobile Bay.”

Wilma…you know powerful. No doubt you’ve been keeping up with the media attention surrounding Alex Ovechkin lately – his goal scoring, his taking over the points-scoring lead, his physical play.

Wilma: “I’ve seen more highlights of him on TV lately than I have Jim Cantore…”

It’s not surprising…but my question is, is Ovechkin the most powerful force of nature in the National Hockey League at the moment?

Wilma: “Oh, without a doubt. He’s relentless. He reminds me of…well, me marauding across the Yucatan in 2005. And hit?...what he does to defenders is like what I did to Naples, Florida.”

But hurricanes eventually weaken and blow themselves out…do you see this for Ovechkin?

“Yeah, maybe in about 15 years…”

Well, Caps fans will be hoping Ovechkin, Semin, Kozlov, Green, and the rest of the boys will keep the pressure on the Hurricanes, who are reeling a bit at the moment, having gone 4-7-0 in their last 11 games (two of the wins came in overtime). The particulars:

Record: 4-7-0
Goals for/against: 30/37
Power play: 6/45 (13.3 percent)
Penalty killing: (33/41 (80.5 percent)

Number of games giving up three shorthanded goals, including two on the same shift: one (against the Islanders on January 22^nd, a 6-3 loss)

Carolina has spread what limited scoring they’ve had (for them) around. Fifteen different skates have at least one goal over the last 11 games. Eric Staal leads with four. Brind’Amour has been carrying more than his share of the load as well with 3-9-12 over these games.

Whether a combination of injuries and slumps, though, the Hurricanes have lacked for some secondary scoring. Ray Whitney has only one goal in this stretch, but does have six assists. Erik Cole is 1-3-4.

The Hurricanes have made one move – one that might strike some as a bit desperate. Left winger Sergei Samsonov, acquired by the Chicago Blackhawks last June, was a disaster in the Windy City (0-4-4, -7 in 23 games). He was waived a month ago and claimed by Carolina with the idea of adding some missing oomph to their offense. Well, maybe it hasn’t been an “oomph,” but he has added four goals and five assists in the 12 games in which he’s played.

With Carolina averaging only 2.7 goals a game over these last 11, it’s fallen to the goalies to pick up the slack. Tonight’s likely goaltender – Cam Ward – has all the decisions in this stretch (4-7-0), and is 3.20 and .888 to go along with it.

Carolina, though, struggles on special teams, especially the power play. Their 80.5 percent efficiency mark in the last 11 games is actually better than their league-worst 77.0 percent number in that category. The power play is competent (18.0 percent for the season, 12^th in the league), but has been off the pace of late.

For a game in early February, this is as big as it gets. That’s what having four teams within two points of each other fighting for what is likely to be the only playoff spot coming out of the division will do.

A win does several things for the Caps:

- It maintains and expands their lead in the Southeast
- It preserves the “game in hand” they have on Carolina
- It would be their first three-game winning streak since winning four in a row, January 15-21.
- It would make for a decent weekend and a nice way to move into the game with the Rangers on Sunday.

There are the faintest hints at rumblings with the Caps, but the only rumbling that will be done tonight is that of the Caps storming up and down the ice to beat the Hurricanes…

Caps 5 – Hurricanes 3

...and honest, we are not abusers of prescription substances, much as a reading of the previous edition of this might suggest otherwise.

Caps in art...

The Peerless came upon this through, of all places, a Penguins web site...we like the idea, but one of the drawings has us wishing, if his head was this big he could just lay it across the goal, and no one would ever score.


It is nice work, though...check it out.

This guy's Don Zimmer...

So says Barry Melrose...



You decide...











Nah...Bruce didn't blow a 14 game lead with less than two months to play. And while we're at it with the ESPN boys, E.J. Hradek weighs in...

Nineteen Days to the Trade Deadline

It's coming fast, kids. And all over the hockey landscape, the questions will be of the sort, "where is Mats Sundin headed?"...or, "is Rob Blake headed to Detroit?"

We're thinking those are questions of the wrong sort, or at least that too much attention is paid to them. There is too much a "fantasy hockey" aspect to trades and such in the fan and media communities. There is another class of player that might be just as important as the one that includes names the casual fan would recognize.

Adam Schwartz digs into the matter over at NHL.com, where he looks at "the less-ballyhooed swap." It is an interesting walk down memory lane for those under-the-radar deals that contributed the "character" element to a playoff run.

The only problem we see is his 1998 example. The centerpiece of his example is Mike Keane (one of the best Stanley Cup "good luck charms" in history). Keane, traded to Dallas in the deal described, would skate for a Cup winner the following year and a finalist the year after. But if we're looking only at deals in the context of the year they were made, then one might consider the Capitals dealing Dwayne Hay and "future considerations" for Esa Tikkanen.

Tikkanen would play in 20 regular season games for the Caps at the end of the 1997-1998 season (2-10-12, -4, two game-winning goals) and would be an important ingredient in their march to the Stanley Cup final. He will be forever remembered by Caps fans for the goal he didn't score -- missing a virtual empty net in Game 2 of the finals when a goal would have given the Caps a third period two-goal lead and a leg up on tying that series. But Tikkanen was a character guy -- and a character (how many hockey players spend a portion of their youth refining their skating technique by learning figure skating?).

While we're at it, while it wasn't a trade the acquisition of Brian Bellows as a free agent in late March of that year was another of those "under-the-rader" deals that might mean more to a club's success than the marquee deals. Bellows was 6-3-9 in 11 games (with five power play goals and two game-winners) to close the regular season, and he was 6-7-13 in 21 playoff games.

These two guys managed four game winning goals between them in the last 12 wins of the regular season that year for the Caps. Arguably, without them the Caps wouldn't have advanced as far as they did.

So, as we careen toward the trading deadline, pay attention to the Sundin's and the Blake's...but watchout for the lunch-pail guys and where they end up. Don't be surprised if they go further into the playoffs.

As the season moves along...

Something else to consider when ponder the deserving for trophies at the end of the year...or just another glimpse at the magnitude of how special a season it is that is unfolding for Alex Ovechkin.

Below is chart depicting cumulative goals/assists/points per game. Put another way, it is a graphical representation of how it is Ovechkin got to his 46-27-73 in 55 games.


There really isn't anything surprising here. The troughs in the chart correspond to the period leading up to Thanksgiving. Through 21 games, Ovechkin was 14-9-23 (0.67 goals-per-game, 0.43 assists/game, 1.10 points-per-game).

Since then however, the goals and points per game have taken off (0.84/game and 1.33/game, respectively). Even assists -- which critics in some quarters point to as a lack of playmaking skill -- have increased from that 0.43/game to 0.49/game (a 14 percent improvement). But what matters is the nature of the lines -- they lean upward. This is happening in the midst of a pleasant reversal of the Caps' fortunes.

And these are "cumulative" effects over the entire season, warts and all. If you look only at these last 34 games, Ovechkin's 32-18-50 works out to per-game figures of 0.94-0.53-1.47. In terms we might all understand, that's a pace for a 77-43-120 season. It would be overkill -- hockey being the team sport that it is -- that Ovechkin is carrying the team on his back. But it would not be overkill to conclude that his has been the most valuable contribution to the reversal of fortune (at least among the players) over the last 34 games.

Over?

"Did you say 'over'? Nothing is over until we decide it is! Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor? Hell no!"

It's stirring rhetoric such as that which would eventually elevate seven-year Faber College alumnus John Blutarsky to the United States Senate.

And, it might be a signature of these Washington Capitals. Their 20-10-4 record over the last 34 games is shot through with come-from behind wins. 13 times have they found themselves behind, only to earn points in those games (9-0-4). In five of those instances they were behind by two goals, only to come up with points (4-0-1).

Over?...not when the Caps are playing it's not.

The Capitals and the Hare

Much is made -- well, will be made -- of the fact that the Caps are 20-10-4 since Bruce Boudreau took over behind the Caps bench. It is a fine record, to be sure. But what is perhaps most striking about it is that it is built upon consistency, not streaks.

During these 34 games, the Caps' longest winning streak is four games, while their longest winless streak is three (twice). If you break the games down into five game segments, here is how they have played out:

1. 2-2-1 (five points)
2. 4-1-0 (eight points)
3. 1-2-2 (four points)
4. 3-1-1 (seven points)
5. 4-1-0 (eight points)
6. 3-2-0 (six points)
7. 3-1-0 (six points, and counting)

Total: 20-10-4 (44 points)

In no five-game segment were they more than one-point below .500, and in five of them (including the one not yet completed) they are over .500.

The Caps have churned out wins at a pretty constant rate over the last two-and-a-half months. As much as anything else, it suggests that one wouldn't expect those "dead spots" in the schedule where a lot of points get away in a hurry.

Put another way, the Caps haven't been and aren't streaky; they are consistently good and have been over the last 34-games. Certainly better than some folks give them credit for being.

We can almost hear The Chairman singing it...

Start spreading the news
We’re winnin’ these days
It’s time to be a part of it, D.C., D.C.
These vagabond boots
Are longing to skate
Right through the very heart of it
D.C., D.C.

We want to face off in the city that never sleeps
To find we’re king of the hill…tops in Southeast

These 14^th-place blues
Have melted away
We’ve made a brand new start of it
In old D.C.

If we can win games here
We’ll win them anywhere
It's up to you, D.C., D.C.

We want to face off in the city that never sleeps
To find we’re A-number one…
top of the list…
king of the hill…
A-number one…

These 14^th-place blues
Have melted away
We’re gonna make a brand new start of it
In old D.C.
If we can draw crowds here
We’ll do it everywhere

It's up to you, D.C., D.C.

So?...Who Won??

Shouldn't there have been an overtime, or a shootout, or at least another Hextall ceremony?