A NO Point Afternoon: Washington Capitals -- Game 54: Flyers 2 - Capitals 1

The Washington Capitals traveled to Philadelphia to try to go two-for-two at Wells Fargo Center in the space of less than two weeks.  Instead, the Caps allowed the games first goal 11 seconds into the contest, allowed another in the last two minutes of the first period, and played catch-up for the last two periods, a T.J. Oshie power play goal being all the Caps could muster against goalie Carter Hart in a 2-1 loss.

First Period

It did not take long for the Flyers to take the early lead.  Just 11 seconds into the contest, Cam Atkinson outmuscled Martn Fehervary for the puck in the high slot, and Atkinson backhanded the puck to a charging Claude Giroux, who snapped the puck past goalie Ilya Samsonov to give the home team the early – very early – lead.

The Caps went to a power play shortly thereafter, Isaac Ratcliffe going off for tripping at the 30 second mark.  The Caps could not get the equalizer, though, and the Flyers maintained their lead.

The Flyers dominated possession and territory, but could not add to their lead.  The skating was interrupted momentarily by a bout between Tom Wilson for the Caps and Zack MacEwen for the Flyers at the 16:30 mark that appeared to end in a draw.  Both players went off on fighting majors, but MacEwen had a roughing minor tacked on to put the Caps on a power play.  The Caps could not find the back of the net, and they paid for it as the penalty expired.  Cam Atkinson scored on a two-man rush when Conor Sheary tried to move the puck out of harm’s way and put it on the stick of Cam Atkinson, who chipped it over the left shoulder of Samsonov, and it was 2-0, Flyers, 18:38 into the period.  That would end the scoring for the period.

-- The Flyers outshot the Caps, 14-9, and out-attempted them, 27-15.

-- Alex Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom led the team with two shots apiece; Ovechkin, Backstrom, and Michal Kempny had two attempts apiece.

-- The Caps were 5-for-21 on faceoffs in the period (23.8 percent).

-- Tom Wilson was credited with four of the 11 hits registered by the Caps in the period.

Second Period

Washington went to a power play 6:39 into the period when Ratcliffe took another penalty, an interference call.  It took the Caps only 14 seconds to convert, T.J. Oshie finding open space in the bumper slot to accept a pass from Nicklas Backstrom and snap it past goalie Carter Hart’s left shoulder to make it a 2-1 game at the 6:53 mark.

The Flyers went a man up for the first time in the contest 11:20 into the period when Nic Dowd was sent off on a roughing penalty.  The Caps went two men down when Fehervary was sent to the box for interference at 12:31 of the period.  The Caps managed to kill off both ends of the 5-on-3 Flyer advantage to preserve the one-goal deficit.  And that is how the period would end, the Flyers still up, 2-1.

-- The Caps outshot the Flyers, 11-4, in the period and out-attempted them, 21-19.

-- Washington improve on that ghastly first period in the faceoff circle, winning 13 of 23 draws (56.5 percent).

-- Nicklas Backstrom led the team in shots on goal through 40 minutes with four; Evgeny Kuznetsov had six shot attempts (two on goal, two blocked, two misses).

-- Trevor van Rimesdyk had five of the Caps’ 18 blocked shots through two periods.

Third Period

In a period without much in the way of offense – 12 shots combined for the two teams – and more icing than you’d see on a wedding cake, the Flyers held on to take the 2-1 win.

Other stuff…

-- The 2-1 win for the Flyers was their first in regulation time since February 1^st, when they defeated Winnipeg, 3-1, and only their second regulation win in their last 25 games dating back to December 14^th, when they beat New Jersey, 6-1.

-- Washington outshot the Flyers, 26-22, and out-attempted them, 62-55.

-- Nicklas Backstrom, T.J. Oshie, and Evgeny Kuznetsov all had four shots on goal to lead the team; Kuznetsov had eight shot attempts.

-- After a dismal start in the circle, the Caps recovered somewhat to go 23-for-58 on faceoffs (39.7 percent).  No Capital finished over 50 percent for the game.

-- Trevor van Riemsdyk finished with five blocked shots to lead the team.

-- Tom Wilson was credited with seven hits, Alex Ovechkin with five.

-- Nic Dowd was the only Capital not to register a shot attempt.

-- T.J. Oshie’s goal was his first since January 10^th and his first on the road since he had a hat trick in Ottawa against the Senators on October 25^th  in a 7-5 win.

-- Nicklas Backstrom’s assist on the Oshie goal broke a three-game streak without a point and was his first point on the road since January 28^th, when he went 1-2-3 in a 5-0 win in Dallas over the Stars (five-game road pointless streak broken).

-- The loss to the Flyers was the first to this team of Ilya Samsonov’s career (now 6-1-0).

In the end…

We are here.  The low point of the Caps season.  An opponent that can’t win in regulation scores 11 seconds into the game to take a lead they would not relinquish, then scores in the last two minutes of the period.  Talk about starting and finishing periods poorly.  A listless offense, a discombobulated defense missing coverages, an apparent lack of desire to aggressively pursue rebounds, ineffective zone entries, one-and-done shooting.  There is not a phase of the game in any zone that should give Capitals Nation any comfort at this point.  And with the week coming up – Toronto, Carolina, and Seattle on the schedule – this team might not yet have hit bottom.  That is a scary thing to ponder for a team that should be fine tuning and sharpening itself for the postseason.

 

The Peerless Prognosticator is ON THE AIR!!! -- Game 54: Capitals at Flyers, February 26th

The Peerless Prognosticator is ON THE AIR!!!

The Washington Capitals wrap up their four-game road trip with a Saturday matinee at Wells Fargo Center, where they will wrap up the road portion of their season series against the Philadelphia Flyers.  The Caps will look to sweep the Flyers on their own rink, having bested the Flyers, 5-3, in their other visit, on February 17^th.  Despite their uninspired 4-1 loss to the New York Rangers on Thursday night, the Caps can wrap up a successful road trip with a win in Philadelphia and a 3-1 record on the trip.

Meanwhile, the sinking like a stone Flyers will labor under a six-game losing streak and a 2-14-5 record over their last 21 games when they take the ice to host the Caps (0-4-2).  The most disappointing part of that record is the Flyers’ inability to win on home ice (2-7-3).  Their .292 points percentage on home ice over this stretch is tied for third-worst in the league (we will point out that the Caps’ home winning percentage over this same period is worst in the league (.250/2-7-1).

The Flyers have not had much success from their expected players as far as goal scoring is concerned on home ice over this stretch.  In 12 games at Wells Fargo Center since December 30^th, their leading goal scorers are Oskar Lindblom and Gerry Mayhew with five apiece.  Lindblom is one of the feel-good stories for a team desperately in search of one.  A fifth-round (138^th overall) pick in the 2014 Entry Draft, Lindblom showed steady improvement once he cracked the Flyer lineup in 2017-2018.  He went 2-4-6, plus-4 in 23 games in his first season in Philadelphia and followed that up with a 17-16-33, minus-9, scoring line in his sophomore season. 

He was in the midst of a breakout season in 2019-2020, going 11-7-18, plus-4, in 30 games when he was diagnosed on December 13, 2019, with Ewing’s sarcoma, ending his season.  After almost seven months of treatment, the Flyers showed faith in his ability to return to action, signing him to a three-year/$9 million contract less than three weeks after his last chemotherapy treatment.  Lindblom returned to action on January 13, 2021, scoring a goal in his first game back.  He finished the 2020-2021 season 8-6-14, minus-9, an excellent result for a player recovering from cancer.  His determination in his comeback resulted in his winning the 2021 Masterton Trophy for exhibiting qualities of perseverance and sportsmanship.  Lindblom is 8-11-19, minus-2, in 50 games so far this season and brings a 1-4-5, minus-8 scoring line in 16 career games against the Caps.

Gerry Mayhew does not have the same history as Lindblom, save in one respect – perseverance.  An undrafted player after four years with Ferris State University, he signed a try-out contract with the Iowa Wild of the AHL in March 2017.  He graduated to the Minnesota Wild in May 2019 but dressed for only 17 games over two seasons with the parent club before departing as a free agent.  He was signed by the Flyers in July 2021, but he did not crack the Flyer lineup until December 29^th.  After going without a point over his first six games as a Flyer, he is 6-0-6, even, in his last 11 games with the club.  His scorer’s touch should not be all that surprising, despite his lack of draft pedigree.  In four years at Ferris State, Mayhew scored 52 goals in 150 games.  Over five seasons with the Iowa Wild, he posted 97 goals in 228 games, including 39 goals in 49 games in 2019-2020.  At age 29, finally getting a shot at regular NHL play, Mayhew is a study in perseverance and determination.  In two career games against the Caps, he has a pair of goals and has a plus-2 rating.

The Flyers’ defense has been, in a word, awful.  Ten defensemen have dressed for the team this season, and seven have a negative 5-on-5 on ice goal differential.  Only two have positive goal differentials at fives – Ryan Ellis, with a plus-2 in only four games, and Travis Sanheim, who is plus-2 in 49 games.  Although a modest plus number, it is quite an improvement over his minus-21 in 51 games last season, tied for fourth-worst among 214 defensemen dressing for at least 20 games.  Since his arrival in Philadelphia in 2017-2018, he ranks third in goals scored by defensemen (26), third in assists (78), and is one of three defensemen to post at least 100 points (104) with the club.  His three overtime goals is tied for most among defensemen over that period, his 84 takeaways rank first, and his 391 blocked shots rank second.   

On the other hand, his minus-24 is second worst among 24 defensemen to dress over that period, his 223 giveaways rank second worst, and his 115 penalty minutes rank fourth in that group.  And, his ice time reflects poorly on results.  In 20 games in which Sanheim skated at least 23 minutes, the Flyers are 4-8-8.  But it is still better than instances in which he has lighter ice time burdens.  In 13 games in which Sanheim skated fewer than 20 minutes, the Flyers are 1-11-1.  His offense has largely dried up over the last two-plus months.  He carries a 26-game streak without a goal (0-5-5) into Saturday’s game after going 4-10-14, plus-3, in his first 23 games of the season.  Sanheim is 1-3-4, minus-11 (worst plus-minus against any team he has faced), in 18 career games against Washington.

1.  The Flyers’ 2-14-5 since December 30^th is worst in the league over that span, the only team over that period failing to amass at least ten standings points (nine).

2.  It is no wonder that the Flyers record since December 30th is worst in the league.  They rank 30^th or worse in scoring offense (2.33 goals per game/31^st), scoring defense (3.90 goals allowed per game/30h), power play (11.1 percent/31^st), and penalty kill (67.9 percent/32^nd).

3.  No team has yielded the first goal in more games than the Flyers since their slump began on December 30^th (16 times, tied with Edmonton and Seattle); their record in those games is 1-13-2, fifth-worst in the league.

4.  Only Seattle has fewer goals on home ice (four) since December 30^th than the Flyers (five) during their 2-7-3 slide at home over that period.  The 13 third period goals they scored over the period is almost equal to the total they scored in the first 40 minutes of games (14), but even with that third period goal total, they have a minus-9 goal differential in third periods of games during that span.

5.  Only once in the 12 home games in this slump did the Flyers carry a lead into the third period.  They won, but not until after allowing the Los Angeles Kings to tie the game in the third period before winning, 4-3, in overtime on January 29^th.

1.  In each of their last five losses, the Caps allowed four or more goals; only once this season have the Caps allowed more than three goals in a game and won, a 7-5 decision in Ottawa against the Senators on October 25^th.  In 17 games in which they allowed four or more goals (not counting Gimmick decisions), the Caps are 1-12-4.

2.  In 26 road games this season, the Caps have allowed first period goals in just 11 of them and only twice allowed two goals (November 4^th at Florida in a 5-4 overtime loss and February 1^st against Pittsburgh in a 4-3 overtime win).

3.  In those same 26 road games, the Caps scored at least one first period goal in 17 of them, eight times scoring two or more with a high of four in the first period of a 7-5 win in Ottawa against the Senators on October 25^th.

4.  Does a winning faceoff percentage mean anything?  In a limited sample of road games, not for the Caps.  They are 3-3-2 in the eight road games in which they finished over 50 percent on faceoffs.

5.  No team has scored first in more road games than the Caps, who have done so 20 times in 26 road games.  They are 13-5-2 in those games, their .650 winning percentage ranking 15^th.

The Peerless’ Players to Ponder

Philadelphia: Kevin Hayes

It is not often we feature a player in this space who will not play, but the story of Kevin Hayes is one of frustration that parallels that of the Flyers over this season.  He came to the Flyers in a trade with the Winnipeg Jets in June 2019.  In his first two seasons with the club, he went 35-37-72, minus-8, in 124 games – second in games played for the Flyers, fourth in goals scored, sixth in points, tied for fourth in power play goals scored (seven), first in overtime goals scored (here), and third among all forwards in average ice time (17:38 per game).  But last year, Hayes played with a nagging sports hernia injury for which he had surgery after the season. 

He missed the first dozen games of this season before returning to the Flyers’ lineup on November 13^th.  He lasted just 20 games, though, injuring an adductor muscle that has kept him out of the lineup since his last appearance on January 17^th.  In those 20 games in which Hayes played, the Flyers went 6-11-3, slightly lower on a points percentage basis (.375) than the 9-15-7/.403 Philadelphia has in his absence.  Hayes, a reliable two-way forward who scored at least a dozen goals and posted at least 30 points in each of his seven seasons before this one, is an indicator of the depth of the Flyers’ problems, a team that has a record with or without him in the lineup that is very similar – poor.  Nevertheless, they are likely to miss his 7-12-19, even, career scoring line in 32 games against the Caps.

Washington: Garnet Hathaway

Garnet Hathaway continues to march along toward a career year in his seven years in the NHL.  In 48 games he played to date, he has ten goals, one off the 11 he recorded for Calgary in 76 games in 2018-2019.  All of those ten goals were scored at even strength, setting a new career high.  His nine assists are within three of his career high of 12 set last season with the Caps in 56 games.  He has already tied a career high in points (19) that he set with the Flames in 2018-2019.  His plus-15 rating is a career best.  His 13:54 in ice time per game is a career high.  He has three game-winning goals in 48 games, just two off the five he had in 76 games in 2018-2019.  His 91 shots on goal are already a career best.  His two empty net goals are a career high, as are his three empty net points.  His 0.82 goals per 60 minutes is one one-hundredth of a goal short of the 0.83 goals per 60 minutes he posted with Calgary in 2018-2019.

And, he has done this playing for the most part within the rules.  Despite his being a player who is unafraid of mixing things up and stirring the pot, his 1.44 penalties taken per 60 minutes is a career low.  This season, his contributions matter, as one might expect when a fourth liner produces in the offensive end of the rink.  The Caps are 5-1-1 in games in which he had a goal, 8-3-2 in the 13 games in which he had points.  The Caps are 8-1-3 in the 12 games in which he skated at least 15 minutes.  They are 10-2-2 when he posted at least three shots on goal.  Hathaway is 3-5-8, plus-4, in 19 career games against Philadelphia.

In the end…

The Caps, struggling as they are, are not in the same class of despair as the Flyers, who have one win in regulation time since December 16^th, a span of 24 games (4-14-6 overall).  Every game is a test of one form or another, and for the Caps it is a test to see if a team, struggling but getting healthier, can overwhelm a team playing out the string on their own ice.  Good teams do such things.  After the disappointing effort against the Rangers on Thursday, the Caps have something to prove in this regard.  It would not necessarily make them a “good” team at the moment, but it would make them better than what they displayed in New York, or what they have displayed over the last two months, for the most part.

Capitals 4 – Flyers 1

A NO Point Night: Washington Capitals -- Game 53: Rangers 4 - Capitals 1

The Washington Capitals faced the New York Rangers on Thursday night at Madison Square Garden for the first time since the infamous matchup last May 5^th when the two teams combined for 141 penalty minutes and Tom Wilson cemented the everlasting wrath of the Ranger faithful two days after a game in which the teams combined for only 32 penalty minutes but featured a donnybrook in the second period that involved Wilson and the Rangers’ Artemi Panarin and Pavel Buchnevich.  Oh yeah, and there was also the T.J. Oshie hat trick in a 4-2 win over the Blueshirts in that last visit to MSG the day after his father passed away.  Oshie returned to the lineup in this game for the first time since January 15^th, when he sustained an upper body injury that caused hm to miss 14 games.  Alas, the Caps were never in this contest and dropped a 4-1 decision in one of their most sluggish performances of the season.

First Period

For almost 13 minutes, the teams fought back and forth, but 12:57 into the game, the Rangers found pay dirt, Mika Zibanejad took a drop feed from Alexis Lafreniere and fired a shot from the right-wing circle between the glove and left pad of goalie Ilya Samsonov to give the Rangers the first lead of the game.  It would be the only goal of the period, but just before the horn sounded to end the frame, the Caps drew a penalty on Ryan Strome for tripping, giving the Caps a power play to start the second period.

-- Washington outshot the Rangers, 11-7, in the period and out-attempted them, 18-13.

-- Lars Eller and Connor McMichael led the team with two shots apiece; four Caps had two attempts – Eller, McMichael, Joe Snively, and Nick Jensen.

-- Evgeny Kuznetsov was a perfect 4-for-4 on faceoffs in the period.

-- Nick Jensen led the Caps with 8:23 in ice time; Nic Dowd had just 2:47 in ice time and four shifts for the period.

Second Period

That Caps’ power play lasted 1:07 when Alex Ovechkin was sent off on a hooking penalty to even things up at 4-on-4.  Neither team registered a goal at 4-on-4, leaving the Rangers a power play.  Samsonov made a sparkling save on a redirect attempt by Ryan Strome late in the power play to keep the Caps from falling behind by a pair.  The Rangers did not convert on their abbreviated power play, and it remained a 1-0 game.

Samsonov made another great save, that being of the glove variety on Morgan Barron, which was followed up by a great save by Shesterkin on Garnet Hathaway on a breakaway.

The Caps earned their second power play of the game, when Chris Kreider took a high-sticking penalty at 14:59 of the period.  The Caps did not record a shot on goal on the man advantage, and the game moved on, still a 1-0 Rangers lead.

The Rangers doubled their lead in the 18^th minute when Lafreniere tipped a shot by Ryan Lundgren past Samsonov at the 18:48 mark.  It would be how the period ended, but not before an identical replay of the first period at the end of this one when Strome took another tripping penalty just before the horn to end the period, sending the Caps to a power play to start the third period, perhaps a crucial one to get the Caps back in this game.

-- The teams split 18 shots for the period down the middle, nine apiece; the Caps out-attempting the Rangers, 18-14.

-- Evgeny Kuznetsov was 5-for-6 on draws through two periods, as was Nic Dowd.

-- Connor McMichael led the Caps with three shots on goal through two periods; Alex Ovechkin and Justin Schultz had four shot attempts apiece.

-- Tom Wilson did not have a mark on his line of the score sheet through two periods.

Third Period

The Caps did not score on the power play to start the period, and shortly after that chance expired, they went a man short when Martin Fehervary went off for holding at 3:33 of the period.  The Caps killed the penalty and stayed within a pair of the Rangers.

Chris Kreider all but ended the competitive portion of the contest when the Caps could not clear the puck, it found it’s way to the crease, and when it squirted out to Samsonov’s right, Kreider jumped on it and snapped it into the open side of the net to make it 3-0 at the 6:57 mark.

And in the “let’s just add to the frustration” file, Shesterkin robbed Alex Ovechkin on a breakaway and smothered the puck against his jersey to prevent any rebound chance.

The Rangers made it 4-0 when they caught the Caps napping and broke out on a 2-on-1 break.  Kevin Rooney carried the puck into the offensive zone and fed Barclay Goodrow, who slipped a shot between Samonov’s pads at the 11:09 mark.

The Caps went to their fourth power play of the night at the 15:15 mark when Julien Gauthier tripped Garnet Hathaway as he was circling out from behind his net. The Caps went for the extra attacker, pulling Samsonov to make it a 6-on-4 man advantage.  Nevertheless, the Caps failed for a fourth time to convert with the man advantage.

The last bit of life the Caps displayed came shortly thereafter, Conor Sheary and Ryan Lindgren dropping the gloves, but the tussle was snuffed out in short order when the linesmen stepped in.  Both players were sent off for roughing and slashing penalties.

Alex Ovechkin ruined Shesterkin’s shutout bid when he redirected a feed from Evgeny Kuznetov from the top of the crease to make it 4-1 at the 18:58 mark.  That would end the scoring, ending the Caps’ road winning streak at five games.

Other stuff…

-- The Caps outshot the Rangers, 37-21 and out-attempted them, 54-38.

-- Alex Ovechkin and Evgeny Kuznetsov led the team with five shots apiece; Ovechkin had nine shot attempts after a slow start.

-- Tom Wilson finished the game with a single mark on his line of the score sheet, a shot on goal late in the third period.

-- The Caps had a 31-19 edge in faceoff wins, every Capital taking more than one draw finishing at 50 percent or better.

-- Nic Dowd and Matin Fehervary led the team with three credited hits apiece.  In what was anticipated to be a physical game, the teams combined for only 41 combined credited hits, the Rangers with the 24-17 edge.

-- The fourth line of Dowd, Carl Hagelin, and Garnet Hathaway was the only line against which the Rangers did not score.

-- To no one’s surprise, John Carlson led the team in ice time with 23:05, but it was odd to see Justin Schultz on the top power play unit and not Carlson to start the third period.

-- No Capital finished the game with less than ten minutes of ice time, a bit of a rarity these days.  Hathaway had the lowest amount of ice time with 11:05.

-- Ovechkin’s goal, his 762^nd of his career, brought him to within four of Jaromir Jagr for third place all-time in goal scoring.  Strangely enough, he and Jagr are tied in career points per game (1.11).

-- The loss broke a personal four-game winning streak on the road for Ilya Samsonov.and was the first time he allowed more than three goals in a road game since giving up four to St. Louis back on January 7^th in a 5-1 loss.

In the end…

We are fond of saying that there are 20 games a team will win, no matter what, and there are 20 games they will lose, no matter what.  It is what they do with the other 40-odd games that make or break a season.  Well, this was not one of those 40-odd games.  The Caps were never in this one.  Whether it was rust from being off a week, T.J. Oshie trying to blend back into the lineup after missing 14 games, or sunspots, the Caps were never in this one.  Throw it in the trash, and move on to Philadelphia on Saturday afternoon for the last of this four-game road journey.