A TWO-point night: Caps 8 - Thrashers 1

OK, how bad does it get when you lose a game, 8-1 on your own ice?

-- The biggest cheer from the 15 fans left in the arena comes in the third period when the public address announcer comes on and says, “one minute…one minute remaining in the period."

-- The last three goals are scored by: a) a fourth liner, b) the second pair power play quarterback (who hadn’t had a goal in 72 games), and c) the new guy

-- You get one goal on 39 shots against the number three goalie in the Caps’ system

The Caps laid the wood to the Atlanta Thrashers tonight – early, often, and with authority – as they skated the Thrashers out of their own arena in the 8-1 win. It was as complete a game as the Caps have played this year. Why? Well, let’s take a look…

-- 16 skaters – sixteen! – had points (only John Erskine and Shaone Morrison failed to get at least one point, and Erskine skated only one shift in the third period).

-- Jeff Schultz, plus-5 and two assists, a team high 26-plus minutes, a team-high 3:09 of penalty killing time…and he doesn’t even get a star.

-- Mike Knuble had a pair of goals that had Kanoobie yipping for glee in that neither involved and actual shot type motion – a deflection and a redirect off a skate. Now that’s the Knuble we want to see!

-- 12 skaters finished in “plus” territory, eight of them plus-2 or better.

-- All those goals, and Mike Green was the only Cap skater who did not record at least one shot on goal.

-- Only six giveaways, and two of those were by goalie Michal Neuvirth.

-- The Caps were not only 2-for-3 on the power play, they were 2-for-3 on power play shots.

-- The Caps had 1:53 of total power play time tonight. Five seconds of that was the product of overlapping minors to Alex Ovechkin and Slava Kozlov. That was the only power play the Caps did not score on. Otherwise, they needed a total of 108 seconds to score two power play goals.

-- Oh, and of that 1:53 of power play time…Alex Ovechkin only got 33 seconds worth of it, another indicator of how early this one was over.

-- Spreading it around? First line (8-19-22): 3-1-4, plus-6… Second line (28-14-21): 2-3-5, plus-5… Third Line (25-9-16): 1-2-3, even… Fourth line (15-39-10): 1-2-3, plus-3.

Michal Neuvirth stopped 38 of 39 shots, but might have won the game for the Caps with his play in the first period when the Thrashers actually had the territorial advantage early. Ilya Kovalchuk had seven shots for the game for the Thrashers, six of them in the first period – all of them with the Caps nursing a 1-0 lead – and several of them top-notch scoring opportunities. If Neuvirth lets any of them in, it could have stemmed some of the Caps’ momentum.

Mike Knuble’s two goals make nine in double-digits for the Caps (they had nine for all of last season). Next up, Matt Bradley (seven).

Ilya Kovalchuk… seven shots, 11 shot attempts, 21 minutes of ice time… minus-3. He might take a discount to get OUT of Atlanta.

That’s fastest to 60 points in the history of the franchise (44 games), besting the 28-13-4 record the Caps had in the first 45 games of the 1985-1986 season.

And if you’re interested in that vile plus-minus statistic…



Now it’s on to Tampa, where the Lightning will meet the Caps with one day off after three straight days of hockey – the game on Friday that was suspended when the Devils' check for the light bill didn’t clear, the loss in Philadelphia tonight, and tomorrow’s resumption of the Devils game. It sets up well for the Caps, who will try to extend their 12-game winning streak against the Lightning. But tonight was one of those games you want to wrap with a bow and save it to watch again sometime.

Hey...We Have Mid-Season Award Picks, Too

Since everyone else is doing it, we’ll chip in with what are the ne plus ultra of mid-season trophy awards. So, let’s get to it…

Lady Byng Trophy: The Lady Byng Memorial Trophy is an annual award given to the player adjudged to have exhibited the best type of sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct combined with a high standard of playing ability. The winner is selected in a poll of the Professional Hockey Writers' Association at the end of the regular season.

Contenders: Any player with: a) more than 40 points, and b) less than 10 penalty minutes.

The Winner: Zach Parise, New Jersey Devils

Why? Parise will be a contender for other awards – this year and in years to come – but he has 43 points (14th in the league), eight penalty minutes, and what’s more, he is plus-20.

Frank J. Selke Trophy: The Frank J. Selke Trophy is an annual award given to the forward who best excels in the defensive aspects of the game. The winner is selected in a poll of the Professional Hockey Writers' Association at the end of the regular season.

Contenders: Any forward with at least 40 points and a plus-12 or better, unless you’re a former winner, then you’re grandfathered in. Of course, any forward who might be unknown to the casual fan would be a contender, insofar as it demonstrates the voter’s vastly superior knowledge of hockey.

The Winner: Jonathan Toews, Chicago Blackhawks

Why? OK, Toews doesn’t have 40 points, but the Blackhawks are one of the best defensive teams in the league. They are not doing it with goaltending. They are doing it because other teams don’t get many shots on goal (the Hawks have allowed the fewest per game in the league). Toews has been on the ice for only 18 of 90 goals scored against the Hawks this year, although he leads all Hawks forwards in average ice time.

Jack Adams Award: The Jack Adams Award is an annual award presented by the National Hockey League Broadcasters' Association to the NHL coach adjudged to have contributed the most to his team's success. The winner is selected in a poll among members of the NHL Broadcasters' Association at the end of the regular season.

Contenders: Coaches who are doing “better than expected” or who have teams that have already clinched their division.

The winner: Dave Tippett, Phoenix Coyotes

Why? Oh, let’s see… road kill franchise about to be scraped off the pavement and shipped to somewhere in Canada, playing in an arena where one could hit a five iron during a game and probably not hit another fan, previously coached by the games’ most legendary player (if not a Scotty Bowman behind the bench), with talent that can best be described as “middling.” And you have the fourth best record in the Western Conference. We have a winner.

Calder Trophy: The Calder Memorial Trophy is an annual award given to the player selected as the most proficient in his first year of competition in the National Hockey League. The winner is selected in a poll of the Professional Hockey Writers' Association at the end of the regular season.

Contenders: Rookies who have been named one of the NHL’s three stars of the night at least once, is a “surprise,” or is named “John Tavares.”

The Winner: Tyler Myers, Buffalo Sabres

Why? OK, he’s the sexy pick at the moment, but he deserves it, too. It’s harder to quantify statistics for defensemen than for forwards (which is why comparatively few defensemen win the award, sportwriters generally eschewing statistical analysis in favor of another trip to the buffet). But Myers leads all rookies in ice time (responsibility), is fourth in shot percentage (efficiency), is tied for second in plus-minus (effectiveness), is tied for eighth-fewest penalty minutes among rookies playing in at least 20 games (maturity), is tenth in hits (physicality), leads all rookies in blocked shots (fearlessness), and he’s even made one of two Gimmick goals (impishness). He gets the nod.

James Norris Memorial Trophy: The James Norris Memorial Trophy is an annual award given to the defense player who demonstrates throughout the season the greatest all-round ability in the position. The winner is selected in a poll of the Professional Hockey Writers' Association at the end of the regular season.

The Contenders: Nicklas Lidstrom and a bunch of other guys.

The Winner: Mike Green, Washington Capitals

Why? OK, for a long time the NHL would just look at the points rankings for defensemen and give it to the name at the top of the list. That sort of ended with the run of wins by Lidstrom. It continued with the win last year by Zdeno Chara. But look at the citation for the award…"the defense player who demonstrates throughout the season the greatest all-round ability in the position (emphasis added).” Green is the top offensive defenseman in the game. But here are some numbers for you to chew on, too, while you are reminded that Green skates a ton of minutes… Scott Niedermayer (selected as an Olympic team defenseman), on ice for 75 goals against; Dan Boyle (yes, an Olympian), on ice for 51 goals against; Shea Weber (another Olympian defenseman), on ice for 46 goals against; Duncan Keith (this year’s “smart” pick for the Norris), on ice for 44 goals against.

Mike Green – on ice for 44 goals against.

Vezina Trophy: The Vezina Trophy is an annual award given to the goalkeeper adjudged to be the best at this position as voted by the general managers of all NHL clubs.

Contenders: Martin Brodeur and… uh… uh… we’ll think of some

The Winner: Ryan Miller, Buffalo Sabres

Why? Well, there are the games played (37/tied for seventh), wins (25/second), GAA (2.04/third), save percentage (.935/first), the shutouts (5/tied for first). But then there is this, he leads all goalies in save percentage (20 games, minimum) while his team is shorthanded, no small consideration given that the Sabres are a middle-of-the-road offensive team. And no goalie has faced more shots with his team on the power play than Miller, and he has the best save percentage of such situations. He’s been tight as a drum when his team is skating off penalties, and he doesn’t allow the sloppy shorthanded goal. He gets the nod over Mr. Shutout Record Setter.

Lester B. Pearson Award: The Lester B. Pearson Award is presented annually to the "most outstanding player" in the NHL as voted by fellow members of the National Hockey League Players' Association.

Contenders: Alex Ovechkin, Sidney Crosby, [enter third name here]

The Winner: Alex Ovechkin, Washington Capitals

Why? “Outstanding” covers a lot of ground. It could be raw, unvarnished statistical superiority. It could be literally “standing out” from among your peers. In either case, Ovechkin has a compelling case. First, to take care of the atmospherics, he is both the one player who can draw fans out of their seats in any arena in which he plays every time he touches the puck, and he is becoming the face of the game – not in the Pre-Scandal Tiger Woods “I drive a solid, responsible Buick” sort of endorsement lineup, but as a guy who will do anything (and with an understanding of proper product placement) to sell the game and those products he endorses as one of the elite players in the league. Statistically, he is on an 82-game scoring pace that would challenge or easily surpass his previous career highs – goals (63 versus 65 in 2007-2008), assists (61; previous high 54, twice); points (124/112); plus-minus (plus-52/plus-28), hits (239/243), and he is on a pace to have the best turnover ratio of takeaways to giveaways of his career (0.85, not altogether bad for a forward who has the puck so much – compare it to, say, Sidney Crosby, whose ratio is 0.63). If Ovechkin was the standard as the best player into the league coming into the season, and his performance is eclipsing that, well…

Hart Memorial Trophy: The Hart Memorial Trophy is an annual award given to the player judged to be the most valuable to his team. The winner is selected in a poll of the Professional Hockey Writers' Association in all NHL cities at the end of the regular season.

The Contenders: See “Pearson Award,” above

The Winner: Ryan Miller, Buffalo Sabres

Why? Read the citation… “given to the player judged to be the most valuable to his team.” It doesn’t say “skater” or “player who doesn’t wear big pads and a mask,” it says simply, “player.” And “most valuable” doesn’t necessarily mean “best.” If that was the case, we would have no reason for a Pearson Award. Miller gets the nod here, because let’s face it, if the Sabres are relying on Patrick Lalime and Jhonas Enroth in goal, the Sabres are flirting with lottery territory. The man has one one-goal loss in regulation this year, and the Sabres are tied for the fourth fewest three-or-more goal losses in the league this year. He keeps his team in games, and he wins the close ones. No team would be more seriously affected by their most valuable player’s absence than would the Sabres with Miller’s.

Not now, kids... the CAPS are on!

From the club...

The Washington Capitals are partnering with American Media Services Interactive to launch “Capitals Radio,” a customized audio-on-demand player on WashingtonCaps.com. “Capitals Radio” will play Capitals’ podcasts and other digital streaming content. Click here to listen to the Capitals Radio player.

The custom audio-on-demand player will give fans access to high-quality streaming music featuring Capitals’ arena favorites, music from the locker room featuring artists and songs selected by Capitals players. Fans will also have the opportunity to search channels, artists and genres, Capitals archived press conferences, post-game commentary and other audio highlights throughout the season. Fans that have recorded their own songs can share them with the Caps community by uploading their music through the player either by just clicking on the fan band link or going to WashingtonCaps.com/fanband.

The player is the first of its kind in the Eastern Conference and second in the National Hockey League.

Back to the future, I tell ya!

The Peerless Prognosticator is ON THE AIR!!! -- Caps vs. Thrashers, January 9th

The Peerless Prognosticator is ON THE AIR!!!

It’s on the road – again – for the Caps, and as a public service, your ol’ Uncle Peerless is going to provide you with some travel tips, courtesy of the Transportation Security Administration, where every day is the Fourth of July.

First of all, the friendly folks at the TSA want make sure that your “screening experience” – and we are not making that term up, kids – ensures that “you move more quickly and efficiently through the security process.” To that end, you have to “dress the part.” TSA recommends that you “avoid wearing clothing, jewelry or other accessories that contain metal when traveling through the security checkpoints”, such as:

* Heavy jewelry (including pins, necklaces, bracelets, rings, watches, earrings, body piercings, cuff links, lanyards or bolo ties)… world junior championship gold medals probably fall under this category.
* Clothing with metal buttons, snaps or studs… there is no mention of “fighting straps” on hockey jerseys
* Metal hair barrettes or other hair decoration… Is the “M-11 helmet” considered “hair decoration?”

Oops, helmets appear to be covered under “head coverings” (makes sense)…

“You are permitted to wear head coverings and religious garments during the screening process. You may be directed to additional screening if your headwear or clothing (religious or otherwise) is loose fitting or large enough to hide prohibited items.”

Is Sean Avery’s head considered a “prohibited item?” Well, it should be.

We also noted that TSA considers “sabers” a prohibited carry-on item. Ryan Miller must get very uncomfortable stowed in cargo for those trips out west.

And if you’re wondering, yes, hockey sticks are not allowed in carry-on luggage.

Philistines…

However they get there – airplane, train, car, rickshaw, skateboard, Segway (well, maybe not Mike Green) – the Caps are in Atlanta tonight to take on the Thrashers. Talk about teams headed in opposite directions. Since December 1st the Caps are 10-6-0; not great, perhaps, but compared to the Thrashers’ 5-11-3 record (which included a nine-game winless streak) it is positively glowing. The overall numbers look like this…



The Thrashers broke that nine-game winless streak in their last game, a 2-1 Gimmick win over the Rangers. It is worth noting that the Thrashers have not won a game in regulation since November 30th, a 4-3 win over Florida. What happened? Well, it boils down to these two general statements…

They stopped scoring goals.

They gave up a ton of goals.

Since December 1st the Thrashers have scored 50 goals in 19 games (not including Gimmicks). Ten of those goals were scored by Ilya Kovalchuk. That leaves 40 goals for 19 other skaters in 19 games. In those 19 games for Atlanta…

-- They scored two or fewer goals ten times.
-- They had 13 skaters scoring goals.
-- They had only three goals from defensemen.
-- The power play went 11-for-65 (16.9 percent).
-- They had two players who scored at a “20-goal” season pace – Kovalchuk (10 goals in 19 games) and Nik Antropov (nine in 17 games).
-- They have no goals from Todd White (who played in 18 of the 19 games); White has but three goals for the season, compared to 22 last year.
-- They have two goals from rookie Evander Kane (playing 18 of those 19 games), this after Kane registered eight in his first 24 games.

The dropoff in offense is matched only by some ghastly results at the other end of the ice. In the last 19 games for Atlanta…

-- They have allowed four or more goals 13 times.
-- They had a streak of six consecutive games of giving up at least four goals.
-- Penalty killers skated off only 50 of 66 shorthanded situations (75.8 percent).
-- In 57 periods of regulation hockey, they gave up two or more goals in 22 periods, three or more in six, and gave up five goals in the second period of a 5-2 loss to Toronto on December 7th.
-- They failed to achieve a save percentage of .900 in 15 games.

They have been, be kind, awful. What might be more amazing is that they won five games at all, although all of them were won in extra time, and three of them went to a Gimmick.

The big story for the Thrashers isn’t even on the ice. It is whether Ilya Kovachuk will hold out for an $11.36 million a year (add your own number of years here) deal to stay in Atlanta or be traded sometime over the next two months as a rental for picks, prospects, and/or players. After missing six games with a broken foot in November he is 16-21-37 in 29 games (25-22-47 in 37 games overall). Since single-handedly keeping the Thrashers in last Saturday’s game against the Islanders until they could lose in a Gimmick (he was 1-3-4 in a 5-5 game after regulation), he is scoreless in his last two games and in danger of setting a personal season high streak of three games if he fails to get a point tonight. It would also tie his season high streak of games without a goal (three). Given his history against the Caps though, it will be a tall order to keep Kovalchuk off the score sheet. In 43 career games against Washington he is 24-28-52, and he has a pair of goals in the only meeting in which he skated this year.

After two seasons in Buffalo lost to injury and ineffectivess, Maxim Afinogenov was given up for dead, so to speak, as an NHL-caliber player. The Thrashers signed the winger to a free-agent deal on the eve of the regular season, and at $800,000, one might have to consider him a bargain. He is second on the team in goals (15), third in assists (24), second in total scoring (39), tied for third in power play goals (three), and is fourth in ice time (17:58) among forwards. His 15 goals almost equals the total of his last two years in Buffalo combined (16) in fewer than half the games played. He has found the going a little more difficult lately – 4-10-14, minus-13 in 19 games since December 1st. Afinogenov is 11-11-22 in 32 career regular season games against Washington.

Until Vyacheslav Kozlov finished the 2007-2008 season with only 17 goals, he had a string of 12 seasons out of 13 in which he scored goals at a 20-plus-per-season pace. When he slipped to 17 two years ago, it might have signaled the beginning of the end for the then 35-year old forward. But he rebounded to 26 goals last year giving hope to Thrasher fans that there would be a scoring complement to Kovalchuk. But this year he has eight goals in 43 games and only 11 assists to go with them. He is 4-2-6 in this 19 game slump the Thrashers are in. Perhaps more alarming, he has no goals in his last nine games and no points at all in his last eight. What he does do well, though, is get the Gimmick goal. He is 4-for-6 this year, and he is 27-for-46 over his career (58.7 percent shooting percentage). Kozlov is 18-22-40 in 54 career games against the Caps.

If a goal was scored by the Thrashers in the past six weeks, there was a good chance Tobias Enstrom was in on it. He hasn’t scored any of those goals in the past 19 games during which the Thrashers have slumped, but he has 15 assists over that time and authored a six game points streak along the way. Enstrom is a defenseman who always seems to be flying under the radar of a Zdeno Chara, a Mike Green, or a Chris Pronger, but he has been one of the bright lights for Atlanta this year and is very much an underrated commodity. He is fourth among all NHL defensemen in scoring, and on a team that has had a lot of difficulty keeping pucks out of its own net lately, his plus-6 is commendable. He is 2-10-12 in 16 career games against Washington.

OK, so who will it be in goal? Will it be “The Moose,” Johan Hedberg – 4-4-3 in this 19-game slump, 2.62, .907, or will it be “The Sieve,” Ondrej Pavelec – 1-7-0, 5.25., 860? It might be worth noting that in Pavelec’ only win he allowed five goals in a 6-5 overtime win against Dallas. He hasn’t allowed fewer than three goals in a game since he shut out the Red Wings on November 25th (the shock appears not to have worn off). He even allowed three goals in less than 11 minutes worth of work in a 6-4 loss to Boston in the game before Christmas. He has had his troubles against the Caps, too – 1-4-0, 3.90, .868, and he has lost his last four decisions.

Meanwhile, Hedberg has allowed more than three goals in “only” four of 13 appearances since December 1st (including two of his last three). He came into the first meeting of the clubs, on October 22nd, in relief of Pavelec and pitched shutout ball for 26:11 in a 5-4 loss. Otherwise, he is 9-3-2, 2.87 over his career against the Caps.

The Peerless’ Players to Ponder:

Atlanta: Rich Peverley

Peverley has been a royal pain in the backside for the Caps since he was claimed off waivers by the Thrashers from Nashville in January 2009. He has played in six games against the Caps since and has a point in every game (2-4-6). However, he is only 3-6-9 in 19 games since December 1st. If Atlanta is going to win games, they have to get players like Peverley started to take pressure off of Kovalchuk.

Washington: Brendan Morrison

Morrison has had his own slump lately. In his last 14 games he is 1-1-2 and except for a three-game run in which he had a total of 12 shots on goal has had trouble getting anything on net (nine shots on goal in the other 11 games). He has, however, had success against the Thrashers. Morrison is 6-10-16 in 11 career games against Atlanta, including points in each game this season (1-1-2 in two games).

Keys:

1. Remember the Hurricanes! OK, so it doesn’t have quite the juice of “Remember the Alamo!,” but the Caps should be mindful of taking a club having their troubles too lightly. Carolina came into Verizon Center a couple of weeks ago with their one road win and their league worst record and pasted the Caps, 6-3. Yes, Atlanta has had a devil of a time winning games of any sort recently, but they’re not dead, either.

2. Score early, score often. The Thrashers have allowed 42 first period goals this season, fourth most in the league. No team has scored more in the first frame than have the Caps – 51 goals. Do the math.

3. On your mark…get set… Since Bruce Boudreau took over the Caps, Washington is 9-3-1 against Atlanta. The common thread in the four losses is that the Caps failed to score in volume (a total of seven goals in the four games). Since John Anderson took over behind the Thrasher bench, the winner of every game has scored at least four goals. These haven’t been goalie duels. Atlanta has had trouble scoring goals lately (49 goals in 19 games since December 1st – 2.58/game), Washington hasn’t (60 goals in 16 games since December 1st – 3.75/game).

In the end, if the Caps don’t look at recent records, take the ice, and just take care of business, this should not be a competitive game. But there is the matter of the divisional rivalry of the teams, the personal rivalry of Alex Ovechkin and Ilya Kovalchuk, and the coaching rivalry between friends Bruce Boudreau and John Anderson. No two teams in the division might take more joy at beating the other than the Caps and Thrashers. That said, this is likely to be a track meet, but Atlanta hasn’t had enough of the support scoring to take enough of the burden off of Kovalchuk to make Atlanta a favorite…

Caps 6 – Thrashers 3

A TWO-point night: Caps 5 - Senators 2

Ain’t nothin’ like home cookin’, is there?

The Caps made it two in a row and seven of eight at home with a 5-2 win over the Ottawa Senators. Not that is wasn’t without its moments of suspense, thanks to a somnambulistic second period. But the Caps kicked things into high gear in the third period with three goals to win going away.

The Caps mixed things up offensively. Three players had multi-point nights, but ten players shared in the scoring. You knew it might be a big night on offense when “Muffins,” himself – Boyd Gordon – got things off and running by putting a shot on goal (only his sixth of the year), then pouncing on a rebound off a shot by Matt Bradley a couple of seconds later, laying out and sweeping the puck past goalie Pascal Leclaire.

Then, as if to continue the “dog-bites-man” sort of evening it was becoming, Mike Knuble gathered the puck and dashed (no, really… dashed) down the right side, letting fly with an innocent looking shot on goal that somehow eluded Leclaire to give the Caps a 2-0 lead at the first intermission.

But there must be something about the goal at the eastern end of Verizon Center. When the teams changed ends for the second period, the Caps offense (so active in the first, while shooting toward the east), went dormant in the other end. Not that Ottawa was putting on fireworks display of their own, but they did manage the only goal of the period. At 17:45 Chris Phillips used Alex Kovalev as a enough of a screen (or at least a nuisance to goalie Jose Theodore) to fling a wrist shot home to halve the lead at the second intermission.

Then it became “The Nicklas Backstrom Show.” In the first minute of the third period, Backstrom and Alex Ovechkin played the puck back-and-forth as they were crossing the Ottawa line. Backstrom looks as if he would carry the puck around the net, but instead fired a shot from a bad angle that handcuffed Leclaire dropped behind him to restore the two-goal lead.

Later in the period, Backstrom had Leclaire guessing wrong once more. After Ovechkin dropped Alex Kovalev at the Ottawa line (eliciting a roar from the crowd), Backstrom picked up the puck at his own blue line and skated down the middle. He had an opening to Leclaire’s righ,t and he took it. Leclaire bit on the move, overplaying the short side as if not to make the same mistake he made on Backstrom’s earlier goal. But Backstrom this time carried the puck around the horn and stuffed it on the other side before Leclaire could recover.

All that was left was to see if Ovechkin would get his first goal as Captain and send the Caps faithful scurrying to the restaurant offering free wings for five goals by the Caps. He did, taking advantage of some sloppy neutral zone play by the Senators and taking advantage. With the puck loose outside the Ottawa line, he collected, then got the advantage when Mat Carkner got turned the wrong way. Ovechkin sped in, moved the puck to his backhand with Carkner desperately trying to hook him, hold him, or sing him a lullaby. It was no use; Ovechkin flipped the backhand under the crossbar and the Capitals’ scoring ledger was complete. Ottawa added a goal in the dying seconds to make our prognostication look good, the final score being 5-2.

Other stuff…

-- Backstrom was cooly efficient, almost surgical, and error-free to boot. Two goals (on three shots), an assist, a takeaway, two blocked shots, and he won nine of 17 draws. He won the first star (to make another prognostication look good as our “player to ponder”… we had a pretty good night – go figure).

-- Ovechkin had what I might call a “three-inch night.” He had ten shots on goal, and only one went in. But if not for a shot being three inches to close to the body here, three inches too low there, and so on, Ovechkin might have had a five-goal night. He had pucks in good shooting areas and had good releases. But sometimes, like a hitter in baseball hitting line drives right at fielders, he managed to find a piece of Leclaire’s equipment often with good shots.

-- Matt Bradley gets more out of ten minutes of ice time than most guys get out of 20… ok, 15. Two assists, plus-1, a couple of decent scoring chances, and a lot of havoc created. He had a nice night.

-- For the record, the top line of Ovechkin-Backstrom-Knuble was 4-3-7, plus-8 (Ovechkin did score his goal with Bradley on the wing in place of Knuble).

-- David Steckel was 9-for-14 in the circle. That’s 19-7 the last two games. Scoring isn’t the only thing subject to being in a groove.

-- Speaking of draws… Tomas Flesichmann, 12 up and three down??

-- There might be some psychic satisfaction at seeing Mike Green pin Jarkko Ruutu to the ice, but if you’re a Caps fan, seeing that trade off – Ruutu going off with Green with the game still in doubt (3-1 at the time) -- had to get fans a bit jumpy.

-- John “five-by-five” Erskine had a nice night – five hits, five blocked shots

-- Bruce Boudreau said in the post game that with a little luck, Jose Theodore could have had a shutout. He had no chance on the Phillips goal, which looked as if it was deflected in front, and on the second the Caps were, as Boudreau put it, “brain dead.” Everyone was on the side of the ice away from Jonathan Cheechoo, who took a cross-ice pass from Shean Donovan and had time to write a sonnet before lifting the puck over Theodore. As it was, Theodore had a solid game, rarely (if at all) allowing Ottawa any rebounds to put back.

-- The nice thing about a 5-2 game is that the minutes get spread a little more evenly. Only three players with more than 20 minutes for the night, and it’s worth noting that Mike Green played “only” 22 minutes, this after logging 30-plus minutes in three of his last four games.

-- Jeff Schultz, another quiet night of effectiveness. 19:54 in ice time, two blocked shots, an assist, plus-1, and he led the team in PK ice time (3:16).

-- It was an extremely choppy game, an indicator that Ottawa really misses Daniel Alfredsson and Jason Spezza. There wasn’t a lot of flow, especially in the first two periods. One indicator of this was total shot attempts. The Caps had only 55 (they had 70 in Tuesday’s win over Montreal), and Ottawa had only 52.

-- Ovechkin is now tied for third in points, third in goals, tied for first in plus-minus, and first in shots… all while playing 6-8 fewer games than other leaders in those categories. His repeating as Hart winner is problematic, but there isn’t even a second place in the Pearson sweepstakes.

All-in-all this was the same sort of “workmanlike” effort that the Caps had on Tuesday. Coach Boudreau was right in describing the Caps as “floundering” in the second period, but they righted themselves quickly in the third period. The two games this week could be signs of a nice little run as the Caps hit the road. They are 6-0-0 against their next three opponents – Atlanta, Tampa Bay, and Florida, teams that are a combined 5-8-3 since Christmas. For now though, this is a win that had a lot of authors, just the thing to make everybody happy.

The Peerless Prognosticator is ON THE AIR!!! -- Caps vs. Senators, January 7th

The Peerless Prognosticator is ON THE AIR!!!

The Capitals skate in the second half of their mini-home set against the Ottawa Senators tonight at Verizon Center, and we have a treat tonight as the cousins – Cheerless and Fearless – honor us with a visit. Guys, how was your holiday?

Fearless: "Great as always, cuz. Good food, holiday music, good friends…"

Cheerless: "What friends? You’re about as loved as Bettman at a Stanley Cup Game 7."

Cheerless, you sound as if you had a less-than-merry Christmas.

"Well, yeah… all I wanted was "an official Red Ryder carbine-action 200-shot range model hockey stick with a compass in the blade, and this thing which tells time."

I don’t know, cuz. Sounds dangerous.

“We kept telling him, ‘you’ll shoot er eye out, you’ll shoot yer eye out.’”

“Don’t get started, cuz…”

“You should have seen him on Christmas morning, tearing around under the tree looking for his Red Ryder hockey stick. He got a dirigible, a pair of socks…”

But no Red Ryder…

“No official Red Ryder carbine-action 200-shot range model hockey stick with a compass in the blade, and this thing which tells time."

Right…

“Well, that’s not quite the way you put it, was it, cuz?”

“OK, I said, ‘O Fudge!...No official Red Ryder carbine-action 200-shot range model hockey stick…"

“yadda-yadda-yadda…Only you didn't say ‘Fudge.’ You said THE word, the big one, the queen-mother of dirty words, the "F-dash-dash-dash" word!”

Really?

“Yeah, which meant washing my mouth out with soap. Fearless over here thinks he’s such a hoity-toity gourmet, but over the years I’ve gotten to be quite a connoisseur of soap.”

Do tell…

“My personal preference was for Lux, but I found Palmolive had a nice, piquant after-dinner flavor - heady, but with just a touch of mellow smoothness. Life Buoy, on the other hand...”

That bad, eh?

“Yeah, tastes like the chicken tenders at Verizon Center.”

Well, we hope next Christmas will be kinder to Cheerless, but the task at hand is for the Capitals to go to 2-0 at home in the new year. And to do that they will have to defeat a somewhat depleted Ottawa Senator team. Daniel Alfredsson and Jason Spezza – players who have averaged 88 and 86 points per year, respectively, since the lockout, are out until at least February. Spezza is out with an MCL tear, and Alfredsson is out with a shoulder separation.

The Senators have been playing without both since Alfredsson went out in a ghastly 8-2 loss to Pittsburgh in the last game before Christmas. After that game they were 5-8-0 for the month of December. But an odd thing has happened since then. The Senators are 4-2-0 since Christmas. Their goals for/against isn’t spectacular (19 for, 18 against, not including Gimmicks), and they don’t seem to have relied on a cornerstone goalie – Pascal Leclaire went 3-1-0 in the first four games after Christmas, Brian Elliott going 1-1-0 in both starts in the new year (Leclaire relieved Elliott in the second of these games, a 4-1 loss to Boston). They’ve just found a way to muddle through.

Or perhaps more accurately, “grit” their way through. We happened upon the Ottawa Sun entry for today’s game and took note of Don Brennan’s article describing the days off a player might take when he’s got some dings and dents. Some folks might call it a “maintenance day,” but as Brennan reports, the Senators have another name for it…

“Princess Day.”

Hockey players are a tough lot.

What the absences of Alfredsson and Spezza will mean is that the scoring burden has to be spread around. The overall numbers look like this...



Mike Fisher has inherited the description of “Senators’ leading scorer” for the moment (15-17-32), although his output has dried up a bit as of late. Since Christmas, as the Senators have gone on this 4-2-0 run, Fisher is 0-3-3 in the six games and has not had a goal since December 16th, a goal-less streak of ten games. He has, though, had a respectable output against the Caps, going 9-8-17 in 25 career games against Washington. He is 5-4-9 in his last eight games against the Caps.

Another Senator who had a ten-game goal-less streak broke out in a big way last weekend. On Sunday Alex Kovalev potted four goals in a 7-4 win over the Flyers. While Kovalev was held without a goal in a 4-1 loss to the Bruins on Tuesday (he assisted on the only Ottawa goal), the outburst is a reminder that Kovalev can still, at age 36, summon up the big score from time to time. In 59 career games against the Caps Kovalev is 17-28-45.

When last we spoke of Milan Michalek, in a preview of the November 23rd contest with the Caps, he had gotten off to a 10-goals-in-20-games start. Well, since then Mihalek has six goals in 23 games, one in his last 18, and none in his last eight. That qualifies as a slump. Despite the slump, though, Mihalek remains the top goal scorer for the Senators (16), including the absent Alfredsson and Spezza. In four career games against the Caps he is 1-3-4.

How, then, have the Senators done it? Well, 22 of 24 players who have dressed for Ottawa this year have goals. Ten have at least five. It’s not “Capitals” level of production, perhaps (Washington has eight players with at least ten goals), but it has allowed Ottawa to remain in the top-eight playoff mix. In the 4-2-0 run so far since Christmas, nine Senators have shared in the 19 goals scored. There are, of course, the four that Kovalev has, but four have come from another, unexpected source. Ryan Shannon has come alive since Christmas. Whereas he had no goals in the 31 games he played before the holiday, he has four in six games since (although none in his last three).

In goal, neither Pascal Leclaire nor Brian Elliott have a lot of experience against the Caps. In three career games against Washington, Elliott has a 1-1-0 record, 3.78, .835. Leclaire is 0-1-0, 2.55, .907 in two career appearances. Elliott has the only appearance against the Caps this year, getting the win in a 4-3 overtime decision.

The Peerless’ Players to Ponder

Ottawa: Jarkko Ruutu

Ruutu isn’t going to get you a lot of points (8-8-16 in 43 games this year, 1-2-3 in 15 career games against the Capitals). But he is a pest…ok, he’s dirty. In those 15 career games against the Caps he has 36 penalty minutes. If he’s heading off to the box (and he didn’t in the first meeting of these teams), he’s giving the Caps – with the league’s second-best power play – opportunities that a team like Ottawa (16th in penalty killing) probably can’t afford.

Washington: Nicklas Backstrom

You can’t really say Backstrom is in a slump, but he seems to have hit a pothole. In his last eight games he is 4-3-7, plus-2 (and a migraine), which is a bit off his season scoring pace. He has, however, had success against Ottawa (3-8-11 in nine games). Should he go without a point tonight, it would tie his season high streak of games without a point (three).

Keys:

1. End it early. The Caps have outscored Ottawa 49-32 in the first period this year. As if to emphasize the point, the Caps have allowed only 25 first period goals this year (fourth fewest in the league), while Ottawa has allowed 40 (sixth most).

2. Scrape off the rust. It appears as if Jose Theodore will get a chance to work his way out from the back of the dog house tonight. Theodore has played in seven of the Caps’ 17 games since Thanksgiving, during which he is 4-3-0, 2.72, .903. However, after turning away 27 of 28 shots in a 6-1 win over Colorado on December 15th, he has but two appearances since, neither inspiring a lot of confidence – a 3-2 loss at Vancouver in which he stopped 17 of 20 shots, and a 6-3 loss against Carolina in which he was lit up for five goals on 25 shots.

3. There’s even strength, and then there’s “even strength.” This gets back to a player like Ruutu and his ability to take another Cap off when he gets frisky. No team in the league has more 5-on-5 goals than the Caps (99). But at 4-on-4, the Caps rank tied for 21st in goals scored (two).

In the end, the Caps have a distinct firepower advantage with Alfredsson and Spezza out. That means they have to dictate the pace of the game. They can’t react, they have to attack, and this emphasizes once more that first key. Watch to see if the Caps go to the first intermission with a lead, preferably a multi-goal lead. Given the performance of the teams to date, you could reasonably expect that (they had a 2-1 lead in Ottawa in November and lost in overtime). That’s how we think it will play out.

Caps 5 – Ottawa 2

Role Models for a New Captain

Yesterday the Washington Capitals named Alex Ovechkin the 14th captain in team history. The honor makes Ovechkin, at 24 years of age, the third-youngest captain in the NHL, older only than Jonathan Toews (21) and Sidney Crosby (22). He inaugurated his reign with a rather poetic quote that seems to capture how Ovechkin plays the game…

“I have a 'C' on my heart, but I'm going to do the same thing."

It’s one thing to play the same way with or without a “C” on your heart, but wearing that “C” confers a certain measure of responsibility. He will not lack for role models, though. History is littered with captains. You can’t swing a deck chair or a yardarm (would that be “metre-arm” in Canada?) without hitting some captain who might serve as an example to the young Ovechkin. We’ve taken a few moments to scour the history books to see which style of captaincy might best suit Ovechkin…

Capt. Merrill Stubing

Posting: Master of the Pacific Princess, a cruise ship notorious for weekly romantic escapades in exotic locales.

Style: Good natured, father-figure to crew; skilled seaman (amazing that the Princess never sailed rough seas or sailed through stormy weather) but occasionally bumbling in dealing with his daughter, maybe because she didn’t show up until the second season.

And this applies to hockey…how? A locker room is like a cruise ship… lots of different personalities, lots of guys sent up, sent down, sent out, brought in. A captain needs to be affable and approachable to all sorts of personalities. And Stubing wears shorts… like hockey players.


Capt. Francis Xavier (Frank) Furillo

Posting: Captain, Hill Street Precinct

Style: Often reserved, with occasional flashes of moral indignation and temper, other times passionate (usually when canoodling with the public defender, Joyce Davenport). Subplot involves his long-suffering relationship with ex-wife, who is a whack job, not unlike some high-strung athletes.

And this applies to hockey… how? Police captains have to deal with a lot of nasties. Think of a city full of Sean Avery’s and Daniel Carcillo’s. Oh, and they have to deal with slow-witted police chiefs… sort of like referees, without the orange arm-bands.


Capt. Georg Ludwig von Trapp

Posting: A really big house in Salzburg, Austria…certainly a bigger house than you’d think a Captain could afford on his salary.

Style: At times rigid and overbearing, but with a heart (and voice, even if it was dubbed) of gold. Lacks management skills in some respects, requires assistance of a governess to oversee his seven children. Plays a mean whistle.

And this applies to hockey… how? Every kid wants to do his or her own thing, and it takes a stern hand with a gentle touch to keep all of them in line. You can let Mike Green wear a Mohawk, but you can’t let him wear curlers and bunny slippers.


Capt. Ahab

Posting: Master of the Pequod, a whaling ship

Style: Maniacal obsessive. Had this thing for a big fish (ok, “marine mammal”). Big quote: “To the last I grapple with thee; from hell's heart I stab at thee; for hate's sake I spit my last breath at thee.” Sounds sort of like what one might say about Sidney Crosby in a Game 7 of a playoff series.

And this applies to hockey… how? What, you aren’t getting the Sidney Crosby analogy? What are you, dense?


Capt. Barney Miller

Posting: Captain of the 12th Precinct, NYPD

Style: Flexible, able to juggle many balls in the air at once. Manages a squad that can only be described as, “eclectic” (a habitually late subordinate whose name no one can pronounce, to a detective who writes books and produces adult films on the side, to a veteran nearing retirement who has lost a step (or six), to a wisecracking squad member who gambles a bit too much and makes bad coffee, to a uniformed apple-polisher who will leave no behind unkissed in his pursuit of a detective’s badge). Requires quick-thinking, tolerance, and an ability to look good in a 1970’s era moustache.

And this applies to hockey… how? You’ve seen Barney Miller having to deal with Inspector Lugar? Well, it’s kind of like dealing with Bill McCreary.


Capt. Wallace B. (“Old Leadbottom”) Binghamton

Posting: Commander of a patrol boat fleet in the Pacific theater of World War II

Style: Relentless, temperamental, perpetually frustrated, and… oh, yeah… loud. Seems to have spent entire tour of duty in a single-minded pursuit to catch a subordinate PT boat commander red-handed in one of his weekly opportunistic schemes.

And this applies to hockey… how? Well, it probably has something to do with being loud. We’re working on that.


Capt. Horatio Magellan Crunch

Posting: On the front of cereal boxes for almost half a century

Style: Well, stylish (it’s an epaulets thing). As a problem-solver, uses a method best described as “crunch-a-tizing.” We have yet to find this method in the management literature.

And this applies to hockey… how? C’mon, any Captain named “Crunch” is born for hockey. He couldn’t be any more “hockey” if his first name was “Brendan.” Besides, have you seen Ovechkin actually play?


Capt. James Tiberius Kirk

Posting: Captain of the Starship Enterprise (NCC-1701)

Style: Scene-chewing, but oh, how the ladies love him. A port in every star cluster, as it were. No one faced higher odds against him in battle; no one faced grimmer situations in going where no man has gone before (or in trying to settle one of the interminable arguments between Dr. McCoy and Commander Spock). He could be flip with a phrase one moment, deadly with a phaser the next. No Starfleet regulation was stiff enough he couldn’t bend it, no Romulan tough enough he couldn’t vanquish him.

And this applies to hockey… how? OK, OK, Ovechkin likes the ladies, too. But on the other hand, he can be flip in a commercial one moment, deadly with a laser wrist shot the next. Besides, couldn’t you imagine Ovechkin in the locker room before a big game saying, “we may go up in the biggest ball of fire since the last sun in these parts exploded, but we've GOT to take that one-in-ten-thousand chance!"


So… what sort of Captain is Alex Ovechkin going to be? Ahab-like with an obsessive desire to vanquish Sidney Crosby? The “crunch-a-tizer” that reflects a certain “Captain Crunch” mentality? The flexible and accommodating leader of an ensemble cast like Barney Miller? The hard-charging, rules-be-damned Captain Kirk? Or like the quick-with-a-whistle von Trapp? Only time will tell, but there is no shortage of role models to look to for advice.

He just might want to think twice about taking it.

A TWO-point night: Caps 4 - Canadiens 2

Workmanlike.

It wasn’t pretty, or more to the point, the Caps weren’t effective when they tried to be pretty. But when they just let fly, good things happened. They parlayed some welcome offense from Alexander Semin (two goals) and Tomas Fleischmann (goal, two assists), and a strange goal from Eric Fehr into a 4-2 win over the Montreal Canadiens in Game 1 AO (After Ovechkin was named permanent captain).

It wasn’t just a night of firsts for Ovechkin, either. It was Tomas Fleischmann’s first night as a full-time (well, almost full-time) center, and the early returns are quite encouraging. Of course, the only reason the Caps are doing this is as prelude to a blockbuster trade (hee-yeah… right).

But back to the game, it was a case of the Caps taking advantage of what looked like an off night for the Montreal defense (for the sake of Habs fans, we hope so… you’d look far and wide before you found a defenseman in white who had a good night). It would have been worse on the Canadiens had not the Caps all too often tried to make one last pass, foregoing a shot at netminder Carey Price. Bobby Bigpants had a decent game, but for the early part of the evening he either had really good looks at shots, or the Caps misfired (the Caps had 30 shot attempts in the first period, 11 on goal, none in the net).

In the second period, the Caps made things a bit easier on themselves by making things simpler for themselves. It didn’t hurt that Montreal took a couple of boneheaded roughing penalties – Scott Gomez for starting a kerfuffle moments after Semin scored to put the Caps up 3-1, retaliating for Semin tripping a Canadien who dropped Semin to the ice; and Maxim Lapierre for starting a scrum at the Washington net at a stoppage of play. The Caps didn’t score on either of those power plays, but coming in the latter parts of the second period, with Montreal down 3-1, the Canadiens could not establish any offensive rhythm to get themselves back in the game.

After that, it was a matter of clamping down. That does not mean playing prevent defense, and it looked for a while as if the Caps were doing just that. It made it easier for the Canadiens to make a game of it when Mike Knuble took the first of his two penalties in the third period. The Canadiens scored on the resulting power play, causing an uneasy grumble among the Caps faithful.

But that’s as close as Montreal would get, Semin slamming the door on the comeback by rifling a shot past Price with just over two minutes left in regulation. And thus, the Reign of Alexander The Captain began with a glorious victory… well, a victory.

Other stuff…

-- We are always impressed by Price’s preternatural calm in net. Nothing seems to faze him. But calm can become sleepy in the blink of an eye, too. Price’s calm served him well when he could get good looks at shots and let Caps commit (his waiting on Mike Green to go high glove when Green had space and time to wind and fire anywhere he wanted was the best example). But later, when Caps like Semin and Fehr were shooting from odd angles or through screens, Price could only wave at the puck.

-- The goal by Fehr was well-deserved. It wasn’t pretty, to be sure. He took a feed from Brooks Laich and just shoveled the puck to the net. But in the “good things happen when you shoot” file, it hit a body in front and caromed into the net. It’s a bit of a reward for all the hard work he does at the other end forechecking. That’s two goals in three games for Fehr (with a healthy scratch thrown in).

-- One game at center, one three-point game… Tomas Fleischmann’s first three-point game of the year. Shoot, he even won six of nine draws.

-- Whether he was a winger or a center, Fleischmann made a really smart play when defenseman Andrei Markov ended up without a stick. He skated right at him from the corner. With Markov unable to employ a stick to poke check or otherwise harrass him, Flesichmann had more or less an unimpeded path to the net, where he beat Price low to the stick side.

-- John Erskine had a rough night. He couldn’t keep Scott Gomez from bothering him off the puck behind the Caps net just before Montreal scored their first goal of the evening, and he seemed to have a devil of a time keeping his skates under him. It showed in the third period. Whereas he had 5:48 and 4:17 in ice time in periods one and two, he was limited to 2:43 in the third.

-- Interesting move with Montreal on the power play and a faceoff in the Caps end. The Caps sent out Nicklas Backstrom late with David Steckel taking the draw. Insurance, one supposes (since Backstrom came off right after the draw). Such is the Montreal power play that you’d want that second center out there in the event Steckel was tossed from the circle.

-- Here’s a line… 2:42 in ice time, no shots, no shots blocked, no missed shots, no hits, no giveaways, no takeaways, no blocked shots, no faceoffs taken . That’s your line, Georges Laraque.

-- Michal Neuvirth tied for the team lead in giveaways. OK, it was only two, but still… that’s not a stat you want your goalie tying for the team lead in.

-- Neuvirth was solid in the usual goaltender responsibilities. Montreal scored on goal off a deflection and another when a pass nicked a skate on the way through. Hard to fault Neuvirth in either instance. But something to note about Neuvirth is that the skaters look to play with more discipline in their own end in front of him. Whatever the reason, he is now 4-2-0 in his last six decisions, 2.34, .918. Pretty respectable for a guy who under normal circumstances would be starting in Hershey.

-- He didn’t get a star, but should have (we hope he got the hard hat). Matt Bradley had ten minutes of raw cracklin’ energy out there. He was chugging all over the ice hunting down Canadiens and had a couple of nice scoring chances (he had four shots to Ovechkin’s three tonight).

-- When Alex Ovechkin signed his contract extension with the Caps, he celebrated the way you might expect – he went on a six-game goal scoring streak. David Steckel signed a contract extension today, and he celebrated the way you might expect him to – he won ten of 12 draws. Each man playing their role.

The Caps looked a bit listless in the first period and tried to get a little too cute when they did have some energy. If not for that, this game might have been over early. Frankly, we were very much underwhelmed by Montreal. Perhaps it was the absence of the Kostitsyns, who provide quite a bit of skill to the lineup. But at five-on-five the Canadiens weren’t much of a threat to score, and in fact did only by way of a fluky bounce.

But two points is two points, and on the night when the Caps reached the 25-win mark, they churned out the points in a workmanlike effort, the kind that will see them through the long days of January.

OK...so let me get this straight

This...



...did better than this...

...in television ratings in Philadelphia.

This isn't about Philly, the Mummers are a big deal there (the Mummers also beat the Tournament of Roses Parade in ratings). This is about NBC...

Nice call, guys.

The Peerless Prognosticator is ON THE AIR!!! -- Caps vs. Canadiens, January 5th

The Peerless Prognosticator is ON THE AIR!!!

The Caps return home this evening for a contest with the Montreal Canadiens. A home game has been a rare occurence for the Caps, their having skated on home ice only five times since Thanksgiving.

"Monsieur Peerless, Monsieur Peerless…"

Who's that?

"It's me, your old pal Frenchy..."

Listen, Frenchy, let me ask you something. Do you like good food?

"Oh, but of course. Uh, the French love good food."

Well, then, I guess that would make you an "Eatie Gourmet."

"Oh, ho, ho, ho, Monsieur Peerless… "

Oh, Frenchy.

"Oh, ho, ho, Monsieur Peerless."

You know, I really shouldn't kid Frenchy...because sometimes he "Stan Getz" mad at me, and he could "Al Hirt" me.

"Uh, Monsieur Peerless, let's make some prognostications."

Okay, Frenchy. What would you like to hear?

"Well, uh, I love a good happy ending for ze Caps as much as the next man."

Well, Frenchy, it isn’t any funnier now than it was when you did that schtick in the movie, but we are a sucker for a happy ending, even if "happy" is not the sort of ending the Caps have had lately. The Caps are losers of their last three games in regulation, which hasn’t happened in more than two years. They will look to keep that number from growing to four in a row when they host the Montreal Canadiens, winners of six of their last eight games coming into this contest.

The Habs have been hanging at the periphery of the playoff mix for a while now, a product of a good – if not great – December in which they went 9-7-1. The Canadiens might be forgiven for such a finish to the year, given that they played in four back-to-back contests during the month, and five times they played three games in four nights (including a four-in-six nights run in the middle of the month). They’ve been busy. Overall, their numbers shake out like this…



What the Canadiens have been doing right is converting on the power play. Leading the league in power play conversions is not new to Montreal, in that they led the league in both the 2006-2007 and 2007-2008 seasons (slipping to 13th last year). At the moment they are the only team standing between the Caps and the top spot in that measure (24.8 percent to 23.5 percent).

And it really was about the power play in December. Of the 48 goals the Canadiens scored in the month, 18 were the result of power plays. They were 18-for-47 for the month – 38.3 percent. After going 0-for-6 in their first three games of the month, they sizzled at 43.9 percent in the last 14 games of December.

They do spread it around, too. Three players for Montreal have at least five power play goals on the season – a defenseman, a center, and a winger. Marc-Andre Bergeron leads the Canadien blueliners in scoring (10-22-32), and he is tied for the team lead in power play goals with six. 15 of his 32 points have come on the power play.

Andrei Kostitsyn will be absent on the wing for this game, and his five power play goals will be missed, but an old friend to Caps fans could pick up the slack. Glen Metropolit is tied for the team lead in power play goals with Bergeron (six), and eight of his 20 points overall have been scored while on the man advantage. It is putting Metropolit on a pace for the highest scoring season of his career. His pace of 20-20-40 would eclipse his 2007-2008 season with Boston (11-22-33).

But what seems to feed it all is the play of Tomas Plekanec. The center leads the team in overall scoring (10-36-46) and is the straw that stirs the drink on the power play, having recorded 17 assists on the man advantage (1-17-18). He has been a royal pain in the backside for the Caps, too, going 8-9-17 in his last 14 games against the Caps.

The Canadiens seem not to have settled on a number one goaltender, as Jaroslav Halak has been pushing Carey Price all season for the responsibility. Halak’s numbers are not that much better than Price’s. In GAA they are virtually identical (2.64 for Halak to 2.62 for Price), as is their save percentage (.922 for Halak to .916 for Price). What Halak has done that Price hasn’t is win (11-6-0 versus 10-14-3 for Price). Halak comes into this game as the hot goalie for Montreal, 6-2-0 in his last eight decisions with a 2.24 GAA and .944 save percentage. Of note is the fact that he’s faced a ton of shots – an average of just over 40 shots per game in his last eight appearances.

Price, though, has gotten the call in each of the previous two meetings of the club this season, going 1-0-1, 2.40, .912 in the process. The strange part of his record against the Caps is that in four decisions, he has only one win. But he has yet to lose in regulation to the Caps, losing on three occasions in extra time.

The Peerless’ Players to Ponder

Montreal: Andrei Markov

Markov has played in 29 career games against the Caps. He has yet to record a goal. There is no team against which he has played this often and failed to do so. Since coming back from having a tendon in his ankle lacerated, he is 3-8-11 in eight games. And, in keeping with the theme, he is 3-3-6 on the power play in those games. He had a seven-game scoring streak broken in the Canadiens’ last time out, a 1-0 loss to the Buffalo Sabres.

Washington: Tom Poti

Poti leads the Caps in shorthanded ice time per game by a fairly wide margin (3:27/game to 2:59 for David Steckel and 2:34 for the next defenseman in line, Jeff Schultz). Given how hot the Canadiens’ power play has been, he’s going to have a bulls-eye on him whenever the Caps are a man short.

Keys:

1. Irresistible force, meet immovable object. While the Montreal power play is the most efficient in the NHL, it might not be the most effective one. Why? Well, no team in the NHL has had fewer power play opportunities than the Canadiens (124, compared to 162 for the 13th-ranked Caps). On the other hand, the Canadiens have converted a whopping 33.9 percent of their road advantages, by far best in the league. The Caps have allowed the fifth fewest man advantages in the league this year at home, averaging 3.6-per-game, and the third fewest power play goals overall (eight). That is largely a function of the Caps having played fewer home games than any team in the league, but this is still the game within a game that bears watching.

2. 42… Of the 110 goals scored this year by the Canadiens, that is the number they scored in the second period of games, the most of any period. It also happens to be the number of goals allowed by the Caps in the second period of games, the most of any period. Montreal hasn’t lost a game when leading after the second period this year (13-0-0). The Caps are 3-7-2 when trailing after two periods. Whoever wins the second period is likely to win this game.

3. Familiar surroundings? Since Thanksgiving the Caps have played only five games (of 16 total) at home. Will the Caps settle in and feel comfortable in their new/familiar surroundings the first time back after a long trip west and after spending so much time away from the friendly confines of Verizon Center? The Caps are, after all, the East’s best home team, winning percentage-wise.

In the end, this game is likely to turn on how many opportunities the Canadiens get on the power play. Hold them to four or fewer, and the huge advantage the Caps have in 5-on-5 play (a difference of almost two-thirds of a goal per game) is magnified. That’s where the game will be won…

Caps 4 – Canadiens 2

A NO-point night: Kings 2 - Caps 1

Well, the first half is in the books.

It wasn’t the way the Caps would have wanted to end the first half, a string of three losses with the last one coming this afternoon in Los Angeles at the hands of the Kings, 2-1. Not only are the Caps ending the first half on a downer, they lost Nicklas Backstrom for the last 37 minutes of the game this afternoon with symptoms of a migraine headache.

But the operative word for today’s game was “special.” As in “what happened to the Caps’ special teams, specifically the power play?” The Caps had five power plays this afternoon, including a 53-second 5-on-3 during which they managed only one shot on Kings goaltender Jonathan Quick. The Caps did manage to score once on the man advantage, a laser from Mike Green early in the second period. They also managed to give one up on the power play when three Caps got caught below their own goal line, the other two losing track of Michal Handzus, who took a pass from Brad Richardson and rifled the puck past Michal Neuvirth and Mike Green to give the Kings their final margin for the win.

Other stuff, including intermittent looks on the bright side…

-- The Caps end the first half 24-11-6, which is just slightly behind their pace at the turn last year (27-11-3).

-- Despite the extra work the power play has been getting in practice, it looks discombobulated. Guys look as if they know not where to go, when to shoot, which pass to make. Part of that might have been the absence of Backstrom, but it can’t explain all of it.

-- Again, the Caps have shown no particular skill in winning close, low-scoring games. This is the sixth consecutive loss in games where they scored three or fewer goals.

-- With Atlanta sinking like a rock (4-10-2 since December 1st), the Caps now have a 12-point lead on second-place Tampa Bay in the Southeast. Even without the “Southeast Exception,” the Caps have the third-best record (standings points) in the East.

-- It’s one thing for Karl Alzner not to have a shot attempt. It’s another for Quintin Laing not to have one. But Mike Knuble?

-- Is the 3:19 shift Alex Ovechkin took early in the third period the longest shift in the NHL this year? If it is, the shifts of 2:58 and 2:26 he took in his last two shifts of the game can’t be far behind. He was on the ice for 5:24 of the last 7:39 of the game.

-- Mike Green was right behind, skating 5:03 of the last 7:39.

-- By way of comparison, Raitis Ivanans skated a total of 3:59 for the Kings.

-- When a team outshoots the opponent 27-19, out-attempts them 56-44, you’d have to think the other goalie had a good game. He did… but it didn’t hurt getting a few extra quick whistles with pucks lying open in the crease, either.

-- This ended a five-game points streak for Ovechkin. The Caps are 1-6-0 in the seven games in which he failed to register a point this year.

-- Too bad Mike Green didn’t have more goaltender in him… if he’d been able to hug that short side post more, Handzus might not have had any room to tuck the puck into the net on the game-winner. But hey, you want to stick your face in there when a guy is snapping the puck at it?

-- At least the Caps managed to end up with a double-digit shot total for the first period. Next objective… getting a goal. This was the third straight game without a goal in the first period for the top first-period-scoring team in the league.

-- That makes 7-3-0 for the Kings against the East (4-1-0 against the Southeast). The Caps are now 5-4-1 against the West (1-2-0 against the Pacific).

-- So, who is having the worse slump?... the Caps (losers of their last three by a combined score of 13-6) or the Penguins (losers of their last four by a combined score of 13-7)?

-- So, who is having the worse slump II? Alexander Semin (0-1-1, even, in his last four games in which the Caps are 1-3-0) or Evgeni Malkin (0-1-1, minus-4 in the Pens’ four-game slump)?

-- Before we all join hands and go off the deep end, let’s remember, the Caps are 3-3-0 in their last six games skating a goaltender in five of those six games who should be tending goal against Binghamton this evening. That said, Michal Neuvirth had allowed more than two goals only once in those five games (3-2-0, 2.41, .917).

-- By the same token, this is something that has to be worked out, and we note with a bit of a head scratch that Braden Holtby is getting his second straight start of the weekend tonight for the Bears against Binghamton. Is Semyon Varlamov not ready for even his conditioning assignment?

-- Three players were on the ice for all three goals… the goalies and Mike Green. Busy night.

The Kings played this one as if it was a road game – deliberate, strong on the boards, few chances taken. In other words, they outworked the Caps for much of the game. And the Caps really do have to find ways to win games like this. They are fine at the 5-3 win, but not so much at the 3-2 variety (the sort they needed today). They are coming home, but they will be greeting the Montreal Canadiens in doing it, winners of six of their last seven. Then Ottawa, winners of three of their last four. If you are thinking this gets easier, well, maybe it doesn’t.

The Caps have not lost four games in regulation since losing five in a row, November 10-21, 2007. You might remember what happened when that happened. We’re not suggesting any changes of such magnitude are being considered or should be made, only that it’s been a while since the Caps have had to deal with this sort of regular season adversity. It will be interesting to see just how they deal with it.

The Peerless Prognosticator is ON THE AIR!!! -- Caps vs. Kings, January 2nd

The Peerless Prognosticator is ON THE AIR!!!

It’s a new year and a clean slate for all of us. For the Capitals, they get to make their first marks on the slate this afternoon (note: 4:00 PM Eastern start time) against the Los Angeles Kings in beautiful Los Angeles, the City of Angels…

“Dat iss not de fool name uff da city…”

Governor?

“Ja…und dat iss not de fool name uff Los Angeles.”

You don’t say?

“El Pueblo de Nuestra Senora la Reina de Los Angeles de la Porciuncula.”

I must say, your Spanish is impeccable.

“Rosetta Stone.”

Too bad they don’t have one of those for English.

“Fery vunny. Zere are many udder vacts about Los Angeles you might not be avair uff.”

Zuch… I mean, such as?

“Frrrrench Dip vuss infented in Los Angeles.”

They invented Nicolas Sarkozy?

“Ferry vunny…oh, und did you know dat de first Hollyvood production company opened in an abandoned tavern in de city?”

It would explain a lot…

“Und ze first parking meter vuss in Los Angeles.”

I’m betting it’s still broken.

“You are a real comedian…you zhould vurk at The Laugh Factory.”

Oh, that’s ok… I’d hate to interrupt your act.

Well, this is the first act of 2010, and the Caps are in Los Angeles hoping to make opening night a successful one. The Caps come into this one with a record of 19-9-1-4 in “first games” of the new year (not counting the late start in 1994-1995) and winners of their last two by a combined score of 13-7. Only twice have the Caps played the Kings in the year’s first game, splitting two decisions – an 8-3 win in 1979 and a 7-4 loss in 1990.

What these two teams reflect is the difference between the Eastern and Western conferences. The Caps, with 55 points, sit third in the East. The Kings, meanwhile, are sitting in the eighth spot in the West, only two points ahead of the Dallas Stars. But the Kings are a formidable club in their own right, having earned 49 standings points at their half-way point of the season. It says something that the 3rd and 10th place teams in the West are separated by a mere six points. The overall numbers of these two teams fall out as follows:



The Kings come into this one in a bit of a slump, having lost five of their last seven games. Six of those seven games were played on the road, which made the Kings the NHL’s road warriors at this point in the season. No team has played more games away from home than have the Kings (24).

In those last seven games the Kings have not suffered from poor defense – they allowed only 18 goals in going 2-5-0. What they have had is a lack of offense. In only their most recent game – a 5-2 win over Minnesota that broke a four-game losing streak -- did the Kings score more than three goals.

Brad Richardson (2-4-6) and Michal Handzus (2-4-6) are the leading scorers for the Kings in this seven-game slide. You might be forgiven for not knowing who Brad Richardson is, as this is his fifth season in the NHL and only his second in which he has dressed for more than half his team’s games. It might be a measure of the difficulties the Kings have had on offense that one of their leading scorers in these last seven games is the Kings’ 13th leading scorer for the season. He has appeared twice against the Caps and has not yet recorded a point.

Handzus, on the other hand, is not unknown to Caps fans. In his 11 seasons in the NHL he spent three of them skating for the Philadelphia Flyers – his only stop in the Eastern Conference among the five teams for which he has played. He is also 2-4-6 in this seven game run and is 2-3-5 in his last four. Fun fact: His nickname is “Zeus.” Guess it has to be. In 20 career games against Washington he is 6-7-13.

Alexander Frolov leads the Kings in goals in their 2-5-0 stretch (three). Although he is 3-2-5 in these games, it took a 2-1-3 effort against the Wild in his most recent game to pull him up to 4-2-6 in his last 11 games. A player of immense individual skill, he hasn’t yet put things together. It looked as if he might after a 35-goal campaign in 2006-2007 and again after last year’s 32-goal season, but since the lockout Frolov has averaged 30-38-68 per-82 games. Good, but it would seem he should be doing more. He has seven goals in his last 28 games. He has had some success against the Caps, though, going 4-6-10 in seven career games.

The mystery for the Kings is what is going on with Anze Kopitar. Before Thanksgiving, Kopitar was playing as if he would be the player to end Alex Ovechkin’s consecutive run on Hart Trophy wins. In 25 games before Thanksgiving, Kopitar was 14-19-33, plus-6 in 25 games. Since? It’s another story, altogether. In 16 games since, he is 2-4-6, minus-4. Those two goals are all he’s had since Veterans Day. What Kopitar has had, though, is success against the Caps. Last year he was 3-1-4 in two wins over Washington, and he is 4-1-5 in four career games against the Capitals.

The Kings feature two defensemen who will be making appearances in the Olympic Games in February. Jack Johnson was named yesterday to Team USA, while Drew Doughty was named to Team Canada on Wednesday. Neither have reached their 23rd birthday, but they serve as the Kings’ defensive cornerstones and should do so for the next decade or more. The pair are a combined 13-30-42 so far this year, with Doughty’s 9-18-27 in 41 games putting him in a tie for sixth in scoring among NHL defensemen.

In goal, Jonathan Quick has appeared in 37 of the Kings’ 41 games and would seem to be the one to get the nod for this one. The sturdily built Quick (6’1”, 223, more like an outside linebacker) is another Olympian on the Kings roster, the Connecticut native having been named as the third goaltender for Team USA. In this 2-5-0 run by the Kings, he has played well enough to be better than 2-4-0, but his 2.69 GAA and .905 save percentage can’t be described as “sparkling.” Quick has faced the Caps once in his career, taking a 5-4 decision last season in Washington.

The Peerless’ Players to Ponder

Los Angeles: Dustin Brown

Last year’s Kings’ MVP is a feisty sort who is likely to draw checking responsibility against the likes of Alex Ovechkin. He has the capacity to frustrate and get under the skin of opponents. He is also the big hitter on this team – 143, third in the league. In last year’s series, he not only made life difficult for the Caps in the Kings’ end, he chipped in a goal and three assists in the two games, the goal being the game-winner in the Kings’ 5-2 win in Washington on November 20th. He is 1-3-4 in five career games against the Capitals.

Washington: Alexander Semin

Semin has one goal in his last eight games and three in his last 12. He has not had a lot of success against the Western Conference – 14-12-26 in 42 games over the last three seasons and so far in this one. Watch for how much he contributes on the power play. He is 3-7-10 on the power play in wins this year, but he has only one power play goal since Veterans Day.

Keys:

1. Olympi-drama. Drew Doughty is going to Vancouver for Team Canada, Mike Green is not. Green has more goals, more assists, more points, a better plus-minus, logs more ice time, has more blocked shots, has a better takeaway-to-giveaway ratio. The question here is, will Green use this as motivation to bear down and focus on the game at hand, or will he play outside himself in a more individual attempt to outshine Doughty?

2. Three is not the charm. The Caps have not lost three consecutive games in regulation this year and in fact have not done so since March 1-5 last year. The Caps will get a scheduling break after this with 11 of their next 18 games at home, but with Buffalo now having caught the Caps in the standings and Pittsburgh breathing down their necks with Boston not far behind, stopping the bleeding is important here.

3. Keep the box empty. Los Angeles has had fewer power play opportunities on home ice than any team in the league (54 in 17 games). The Caps have allowed a respectable 85 power plays on the road in 22 games (15th most in the league). If the Caps can keep the Kings from adding to that home ice power play total, their superior 5-on-5 play should put them over the top.

The Kings are one of those teams it is easy to underrate. They aren’t seen much back east, and they’ve had some difficult seasons in recent years. But they have come along nicely in the fashion you’d like to do it, building from the goal on out. The Caps have alternated wins and losses in their last four trips to Los Angeles. Having lost on their last trip…

Caps 4 – Kings 2