The Islanders were up, and the Caps, well, it’s hard to say if they were up or down. Was it a bad game, or is this their real level? There seemed to be some sloppiness, and the late collapse is something Caps’ fans are used to from the past two seasons.
- I’m not a bandwagon jumper, but maybe, just maybe, can we begin to think that the power play is a problem for the Caps? And it’s not just the personnel? Gaining the zone was supposed to be a strength for this team, and it was hard to watch the attempts tonight. We’ve heard for two seasons that it wasn’t the coaching, it was the talent. Developing chemistry has been the buzz-phrase for the troubles, but again, teams that want to make the playoffs this year need to get things in order ASAP. The points in October count just as much as in March, and so do the concerns.
- Jeff Schultz might not have had his best day. He was caught in no-man’s land on the first goal, and looked out of sorts. (Edit: I mis-identified Poti for Schultz on the first goal. Apologies to all parties involved.)
- If Boyd Gordon is the entirety of the Caps’ PK, that may need addressing, too.
- Alex Ovechkin was a house on fire who had trouble corralling the puck, especially early. I continue to wonder if he needs to go back to a lesser-curved stick, as it’s not his shot that is the issue, it’s the puck control.
- That said, good goal, Ocho.
- The Caps out-shot the Islanders, but Ricky DiPietro didn’t have the hardest night of his life. The Isles played the body and kept it simple, for the most part, and took advantage of a fortuitous bounce.
- Man, was I wrong about Bill Guerin.
- Injuries, as a whole, need to be thrown out the window when it comes to this loss. It was a winnable game, with plenty of opportunities, but the Caps overhandled the puck, waited too long, and didn’t simplify. On a team with the puck control talent that they have, grip it ‘n’ rip it might be some decent advice. The Caps could use some ugly goals.
- Brendan Witt was hit in the face with a puck. No word or any threat to retire afterwards. All kidding aside, you can’t like an injury like that and we hope it’s nothing that will cause any trouble. Hopefully Witt is up and back to his usual ill-tempered self soon.
- Tomas Fleischmann had his best game this season, even discounting the goal. He had some purposeful shifts, and wasn’t afraid to lead the rush. Maybe the top line isn’t the place for him?
- Last-minute addition: Nicklas Backstrom was the a big part of the reason that Fleischmann scored today. If we could see that a lot more in the young Swede’s career, that would be fine. Maybe even predictable?
Hard to wait all week for a game like that, but the Caps are at .500, which, without all the talk of playoffs in the preseason, we’d be happy with. Let’s get the team to chalk this one up, realize that there are things that need fixing as far as strategy goes, and gear up for the Ryan Malone hype machine on Saturday.
10 Comments
I really don’t think Hanlon is the greatest coach as is evident tonight. When you don’t have Semin, you still shouldn’t try to have balanced scoring lines. Play Nylander with Ovechkin already. Ovechkin-Nylander-Kozlov would be a dominant line and give them some momentum.
omg, your point addresses one of my key concerns: that Kozlov is a better RW than Centre. He’s average at best on faceoffs (that’s being generous), and the organization clearly needs a top-line RW. I agree 100% that, at least to this untrained eye, the time for Ovie-Nylander-Kozlov seems to be now.
I am concerned that the Caps are too willing to push players out of their ideal position. Zubrus was a mediocre center, but he’s actually a quite good wing, adept at going into the corners to gain the puck. Kozlov and Backstrom more of the same? Nylander? Backstrom, for one, seems to be getting in the right spot regardless.
I was pleased to see Motzko seemed to fit in well. When challenged in our zone, he kept it simple and cleared it. When driving on offense, he put the pass where it needed to be.
In the “New NHL,” Witt has evolved from a penalty-prone tough with good positioning to a solid defenseman with toughness. I’m sorry to see luck do him ill.
Flash’s best game indeed. Was it the pressure removed or chemistry. Luck? The setup man?
Green was rad. He deserves a mention. How many times did he look like a forward crashing the net? He was out for that Isles goal, but it wasn’t his man who scored.
Futher…
There is nothing which pains me more to say than Kolzig is looking less than I’d hoped, indeed expected. The five-hole shot was narrowly framed by teammates and distracted by a falling Islander, but should have been stopped. There’s been many more “should haves” than I expect from Kolzig so far.
Off topic, but check out Lindsay Czarniak’s 10/16/07 interview with Tom Poti via CapsTV. Nothing we didn’t already know, but I still ejoyed watching her…uh it…uh the interview.
Empty,
Schultz wasn’t on the ice for the first goal.
Ordered,
Hanlon has had Ovie-Nylander-Kozlov on the ice for three shifts this year, and they were scored against on two of them. The first time was the only goal in the 2-1 win over NYI, and it was the Isles’ fourth line that did them in. The second time was the Sabres second goal on Sat. nite, 11 seconds after their first one.
And … if you go with 8-92-25, what’s the second line?
False,
Kolzig led the league in save pct. and his 1.35 GAA was second in league going into tonight’s game. Bad night tonight, sure. But where exactly were all the “should haves” before tonight? I think the guy has given up three even strength goals in four games. That would work for most folks.
Vogs (and all), thanks for the input. Three shifts isn’t a statistically significant sample size to make solid) conclusions, but a line being -2 in three appearances is not a good start, agreed.
But three of the team’s four offseason focal points were identified as “Center, RW, puck-moving d-man, shut-down d-man”, and the team filled the first three with 92, 25, and 3 respectively. If the RW solution (Kozlov) is now playing center instead… then the team’s FAs only filled 2/4. Obviously I’m not privy to the team’s longer-term line plans; perhaps this is all just biding time until Backstrom is ready for center duties?
As for the second line, I’d like to see Backstrom centering Semin & Flash (or perhaps Clarkie on RW instead). Until Semin’s return, of course, things will be tough… but the team’s depth, one would hope, can compensate for the loss of a single player.
I’m no doom-and-gloomer by any stretch: I believe in the team’s players, direction, and overall plan. And I do believe the team can get into the playoffs. But, at this point, the consistency and chemistry required to make the playoff leap seem not yet firmly entrenched on the team.
Thanks for the correction, Vogs. I’ll have to go back and see who was on Kolzig’s glove-side post.
I second that OC. 2nd line should be Flash-Backstrom-Clark until Semin returns, and then its healthy-scratch time for #43.
Solid job as usual, Empty. No, Boyd Gordon isn’t the entirety of the Caps’ penalty killing, but Boyd Gordon + David Steckel just might be. With the two of them splitting time, so that one of two of them was on the ice for almost 100% of the time the team was shorthanded, the team gave up no power play goals. Steckel by himself can only cover half of that time, and I have read that none of the eight power play goals that the Caps have given up in the last three games were scored when he was on the ice. (I haven’t checked that one for myself yet, but I want to believe it’s true.) Having both of them available seems to be pretty crucial for this team.
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