Primero-rounders (Sutherby, Eminger) que pero un año o hace aparecido ser el ‚  del blocksà del edificio se desechan tan hoy ya o los cambios. Matt Pettinger also may not ultimately prove to be a part of the Caps’ glory core. These disappointments don’t represent dramatic misfires by management so much as they do a relatively typical progression toward the destination of durable postseason contender. Among the Avs, Devils and Wings there were a litany of first-round flameouts. The key in hockey to being durably good is first to have been durably bad — real bad. With but two lottery picks on their roster the Caps are nowhere near in possession of the rebuilding blocks accumulated by the bottom feeding clubs years ago in Ottawa, San Jose, Detroit, and New Jersey.  

The success in Philadelphia this season is evidence of last season’s 30th place finish being an aberration. All surrounding it has been postseason qualification. 

A lot of criticism of George McPhee these days centers on the team’s failures in spite of its roster being larded with first-rounders. Two thoughts about this. One, while the aggregate number of them is relatively high, many were plucked from the crap-shoot bottom half of rounds one. And, not incidentally, from relatively weak draft classes. One of the reasons McPhee was able to acquire as many first rounders as he did the past five years was because his peers thought relatively little of them. But for a team in the ashes, it was wise to gamble on quality emerging from such volume . . . with predictable attrition a part of the equation.

Mike Green, Alexander Semin, and Boyd Gordon are jewels from this strategy. But Jeff Schutlz, Joe Finley, Eric Fehr, and Sasha Pokulok are not. Not yet. One or two may ultimately prove to be reliable producers on Caps’ playoff teams, but today they aren’t. And that moreso than any other reason is why the Caps are where they are.

Too much in the way of expectations was foisted upon 19-year-old Nicklas Backstrom this fall. He’s a rookie fast emerging as a legit Calder candidate — accomplishment enough. To imagine him the lynchpin of a season-long, productive second line, with no pro hockey experience in North America whatsoever, was delusional and without precedence.

But great suffering breeds great dreams. The Bruce Boudreau-led Caps are awakening from years of nightmare hockey. They just don’t yet have the sleep swept out of their eyes.      

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Posted at 2:36 am. Filed under Alexander Ovechkin, Front Office, George McPhee, Olaf Kolzig, Ted Leonsis, Washington Capitals.
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7 Comments

  1. Jon wrote:

    Outstanding post!

    Saturday, December 1, 2007 at 9:26 am | Permalink
  2. frets wrote:

    Well said. Unfortunately, Caps fans are in all too familiar territory again this season.

    Saturday, December 1, 2007 at 12:10 pm | Permalink
  3. langway wrote:

    Well said. I’ve already got an eye turned towards the top-end talent available in the ‘08 draft (Stamkos, Pietrangelo, Doughty, Beach, etc.) But I’ve got to wonder whether or not it’ll be GMGM making the pick in Ottawa if things continue on their current course.

    While Leonsis has been fairly patient over the years in staying the course on the rebuild, that patience can’t be unlimited. Another season as a cellar dweller and it’s going to make it fairly difficult to convince STHs that the rebuild is going as expected. That’s just another reason why declaring the rebuild as over was such a huge PR mistake.

    Saturday, December 1, 2007 at 3:59 pm | Permalink
  4. HotDog88GT wrote:

    There’s an excellent piece on The Fourth Period, here: http://www.thefourthperiod.com/news/was071126.html

    I have to agree that Washington’s talent level just isn’t there yet, and I’m OK with that now (I wasn’t in October). However, the one area that no one is speaking of
    is goaltending. Kolzig and Johnson are a slightly above average tandem. If Washington’s goalie draft picks develop as slowly as the rest of them, will Olie will be coaching that netminder when the Caps make a Cup run?

    Saturday, December 1, 2007 at 7:45 pm | Permalink
  5. dmg wrote:

    Good read.

    I believe the Capitals are only in year three of their five year plan (05-06, 06-07 and now 07-08) and that’s what McPhee has said. Even if you were to count the lockout year, they’re still in year four.

    I also think the development of Jeff Schutlz, Joe Finley, Eric Fehr, and Sasha Pokulok has been fine. Yes, Fehr over Getzlaf was a mistake but not as big a mistake as it would have been if Fehr hadn’t had injury problems. Pokulok is in the same boat in terms of injury. Schultz is only 21 still and looks better every game, Finley is still young as well, and it takes players of their size more time to raise their game to an NHL level.

    As you’ve said this team is going to be very good for a number of years starting soon, unless things go horribly haywire. I wish more people could realize this, and that rebuilding a real NHL franchise is a lot more painful and bumpy than it would seem on paper (on in video games…)

    I think that for many of us the problem is this year was forgetting how young this team really is. There’s a lot of talent on this roster but with where so many of the players are right now they’re going to be so inconsistent that it’s going to be hard to win a lot of games. We could still be only one year away from a playoff berth though…

    Sunday, December 2, 2007 at 12:48 am | Permalink
  6. pepper wrote:

    I agree that an organization cannot script a rebuilding plot with a glorious end after a pre-determined number of seasons. But, nevertheless, it’s got to be McPhee that goes after this season, if we’re not in the playoffs.

    A coaching change has done little, imo, after a 6 game assessment. Perhaps Boudreau can effect some change from a good week of instruction, but that’s really not how the NHL works. There will be a few tweaks here and there, but nothing major, I’d wager.

    With perfect hindsight, the rebuild was hastened with unrealistic expectations and the hope that not-quite-the-right FAs would fill too many holes (and, as you mention, Backstrom would immediately command a pivotal, quite literally, position for a playoff-bound team).

    Whatever character and positive attitude which Hanlon created the last two seasons disappeared with a shake up in personnel and the aforementioned expectation that such shake up would lead to a 25 point (!) improvement. Was that McPhee selling Ted a fraudulent bill of goods? I think that this season’s record will answer that question.

    Monday, December 3, 2007 at 12:05 am | Permalink
  7. JR wrote:

    Good post, but let me ask, when were Detroit and NJ bottom feeding clubs? 1980? What about a team like the Avs who won cups and now seemingly are well on their way with great young players like Paul Stastny (2005, 44th), J-M Liles (2000, 159th), Peter Budag (2001, 63rd overall). I could say the same for the Devils, Wings, maybe even the Flyers. Other than slam dunk (top 5) picks, the Caps whiff EVERY year after the first round. And for that matter, the first round has been way to dicey a proposition. You can’t call 10 years of bad results bad luck.

    Monday, December 3, 2007 at 1:37 pm | Permalink

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