On Frozen Blog » Brian Sutherby

Captain Clark: "100 percent" a Go

The OFB Team — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 18:17:37 +0000

At the onset of Labor Day weekend, it was most encouraging to see Capitals’¬†right wing¬†Chris Clark in his training clothes, fresh from rigorous labor out on the Caps’ Kettler ice sheet earlier today.
Word broke about two weeks ago that the team captain had made a significant recovery from the debilitating groin injury that all but shelved his 2007-08 season. Today, I wanted a progress report from him with an eye toward his fitness after a couple of weeks of daily skating at Kettler and with an eye toward the start of training camp in three weeks.
“I have to ask you the obligatory question — you are X percent recovered today, and you believe you’ll be X percent recovered come the start of camp?” I asked.
“One hundred and one hundred,” Clark replied, with a broad smile.
Credit for Clark’s full recovery goes to Vancouver physiotherapist Rick Celebrini, who also supervised ex-Cap Brian Sutherby and his struggles with a nagging groin injury a couple of years ago. Clark will return to Vancouver this weekend, flying out Sunday and spending a couple of days with Celebrini¬†for a final “peace of mind” checkup.¬†But it’s already¬†’all systems go’ for the former 30-goaler — he has¬†no restrictions in his August training at Kettler.
I asked Clark if he’d wished he’d gone to see Celebrini back in November, just as his injury hit, with the hopes that the celebrated specialist’s treatment might have taken hold and allowed him to return last season, most particularly for the playoff series with the Flyers.
“I thought about that, but the injury wasn’t serious, it was just slow to heal,” he said. In other words, there just wasn’t any urgency to pursue specialized treatment during the first half of the season. Clark’s injury just didn’t mend as such setbacks usually do, and the arrival of the offseason,¬†joined by the prolonged lack of healing,¬†dictated¬†his traveling across the country to see the renowned physiotherapist.
This week also brought news about foreign language and pro sports — the LPGA Tour this week announced that proficiency with English would be mandatory beginning in 2009. It’s an issue that affects the NHL; in the New York Times’ account of the new ladies’ tour policy, it noted that a handful of NHL clubs had a similar requirement in their rooms. I wanted the Caps’ captain’s¬†vantage in the matter¬†–¬†specifically, is English proficiency an issue in the Caps’ room?¬†Has he as captain initiated and promulgated such a policy?
Turns out, even with a handful of English-speaking-challenged players on the Caps’ roster, there are no communications issues. Everyone¬†on the team, Clark noted, recognizes that for the purpose of communications unity, of getting on the same page, the team has to¬†communicate in English.
“I played in Europe, and I gravitated to guys [who spoke English],” Clark told me. “That’s always going to be the case.”
An issue could arise, Clark conceded, if the number of non-English-speaking players reached something akin to a critical mass, but the Caps now don’t have anything close to that challenge, so there is no explicit language policy, dicated by the captain or team management.¬†Even with Alexander Semin, he noted, “he understands English well¬†. . . once in a while, if there’s some confusion, Sergei [Fedorov] or Alex [Ovechkin] will explain¬†something to him.”

The Miracle on 7th St.

The OFB Team — Thu, 07 Feb 2008 14:45:03 +0000

I’m not armed with data that allow for a comparison of Washington sports teams though the decades who’ve performed miraculous rises from last-place ashes to first-place perches, as this hockey club has in the past 11 weeks. I’m not sure I need it, though. What the Caps have accomplished just since November 23 is nothing short of miraculous and may qualify as ranking with the most impressive — and most unlikely — resurrections in Washington pro sports history.
At Thanksgiving, the Caps were 30th in the league. This morning, they’re third in the East. That isn’t quite leap-frogging over 25 teams. It just feels like it.
It feels like it because of the manner in which this team’s surge has shaken the league’s standings. They’re the Comeback Kids. Ten times they’ve trailed in games and come back to win. Ten times, with nine of them in just Bruce Boudreau’s first 33 games as head coach. They’re also Giant Killers: the swept Senators want no part of the Caps in the postseason — nor might anyone else in the East, of any playoff seed, for that matter. They’re dedicated puck-pressurers and goals-in-bunches lamp lighters. They have star power and heart-and-soul short-shifters who think nothing of throwing their bodies in harm’s way, every shift.
Heck, they even win shootouts now!
What’s perhaps most exciting and rewarding about this run is that it’s been accomplished without any significant personnel manuevering from management. Brian Sutherby was traded in late November, right before Glen Hanlon’s dismissal. Bruce Boudreau was promoted. That’s it as far as notable changes go. No blockbuster deal sweeping out sectors of the early season’s sourness. Just a new maestro and a new MoJo. What we’ve witnessed since Thanksgiving has been a highly organic maturation of, and determination within, a roster that management has carefully assembled over some years. And it’s highly likely that the overall product is going to improve further.
This hockey team is remarkably resilient, too. They’ll will lose one game and get right back to winning the next. Then they’ll bundle a couple of Ws together. That’s how they’ve passed four teams in the Southeast with stunning swiftness. Imagine what they might do this spring with a healthy Chris Clark and Brian Pothier in the lineup.
Maybe this is more impressive: think about the number of instances in which the Caps have been genuinely outplayed by an opponent since Boudreau took over. There was Montreal on the road immediately after the All Star break. And when else? Thirty three games and one thorough stinker among them.
This ain’t bad, either: the Caps are now finished for the season against perhaps the East’s three best teams, Philly, Ottawa, and Montreal. Their record in those 12 games? 8-4.
There was a brief moment Tuesday night in Columbus — now known as McCreary’s Mischief — when the battle-scarred Caps’ chronicler in me reverted to a pessimistic fatalism of previous seasons. It was that sort of bizarre event that seemed so . . . Capitals-esque. But my composure returned, I kept watching, and rather rationally I think I adopted a muted expectation that all was not lost, that this Capitals’ team was different. And so why wouldn’t Tom Poti pick that moment to score his first goal of the season, and of course you know who not long afterward send the home crowd out into the Ohio night dejected from sudden death defeat.
It’s interesting to note that in 1983-84, a 101-pt. Capitals’ club — the very first 100-pt. Caps’ club — had three of its members earn heavy hardware. Bryan Murray won the Jack Adams, Rod Langway garnered his first Norris Trophy, and Doug Jarvis won the Selke. That’s the only time the Caps have won three of the league’s prestigious awards from the same season. That was a summer of awards that portended a period of distinct prosperity — the club’s first. This Capitals’ club won’t earn 100 points this season, although it might arrive at 95. Who might you think are frontrunners for the Hart, Adams, and Calder trophies at this moment?

Suts a Duck

The OFB Team — Tue, 20 Nov 2007 00:39:42 +0000

Per the Washington Capitals press release:

The Washington Capitals have acquired a second-round choice in the 2009 Entry Draft from the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for center Brian Sutherby, vice president and general manager George McPhee announced.
Sutherby, 25, played five games for the Capitals this season and scored one goal. He had 61 points (26 goals, 35 assists) in 257 career games for Washington.

It's All Good (but for the playing of the games)

pucksandbooks — Mon, 01 Oct 2007 16:28:46 +0000

What did the Washington Capitals accomplish with their preseason this September? A good bit, I think. First and foremost, they accomplished the most important task: they avoided serious injury — we’ve no indication that Alexander Semin’s ankle sprain is serious. The second most significant accomplishment, in my opinion, was seeing a healthy number of fresh faces perform at a high level and well integrate with the returning Caps’ core. Tomas Fleischmann, it appears, has won first line right wing duty. He’ll be centered, at least initially, by Viktor Kozlov. So two-thirds of Washington’s top line is new this season. It looks more playoff worthy than either of its previous incarnations the past two seasons.
Speaking of looking playoff worthy, the Caps break camp boasting one of the most intriguing second lines in all of hockey — assuming Alexander Semin’s ankle is merely a day-to-day ailment. Nicklas Backstrom’s poise and production from his very first exhibition game on exceeded I think even management’s rosiest forecast. Look for him to improve month by month as his freshman season progresses, and for him to be lodged on everybody’s short list of Calder candidates come spring. Like the Caps’ top line, the second, centered by Michael Nylander, is 66 percent new this autumn.
Line three will have a new look as well. Boyd Gordon will center it, and Matt Pettinger will flank him on the left. But another Hershey Bear, Dave Steckel, made real loud noise (especially in the faceoff circle) this training camp. He may best draw man in the entire organization, he plays a smart game, and he partners exceedingly well with Gordon. (Caps’ fans can only hope Gordon and Steckel replicate in Washington their two-way work from Hershey’s postseason run to Calder glory in 2006.) Captain Chris Clark appears to be a bit of the utility infielder for the first three lines — he’s likely to see duty on all three this season. At times he should skate on Gordon’s right, at others — perhaps as with this week, when a teammate up top is injured — he’ll skate in the top 6.
That Caps’ fourth line, just 30 hours before opening night rosters must be submitted to the league, may still have five bodies vying for assignment: Donald Brashear, Matt Bradley, Brian Sutherby, Brooks Laich, and Ben Clymer. In recent seasons the Caps’ roster has had the look and feel of too much muck and grit too high up front. This autumn, a lot of it has been pushed downward, and a logjam has emerged. It’s been at least five years since the Caps could credibly claim three lines capable of producing points with any reliability. They’ll be able to in 2007-08.
There’s considerably less turnover and churn on the blueline: only Tom Poti arrives from outside in the top 6. Caps’ management is looking for its blueline corps to mature and blossom organically, and this September, there were encouraging signs of marked improvement from within. Milan Jurcina returned to Washington brimming with bulging biceps; his teammates coined for him the nickname “Juice.” He doled out dozens of bruising hits last season after arriving from Boston, and 2007-08 could see him stake a legitimate claim as an impact, top-2 physical force.
When the Caps sent Mike Green back to Hershey last spring they instructed him to go offensive. He did. That burst of production from the blueline continued this preseason, when for much of it Green led the Caps in scoring. He was on nobody’s radar for power play point duty three weeks ago; now he may be part of the unit’s second pairing.
Last season Brian Pothier, out of necessity, was forced into roles and minutes he wasn’t accustomed and suited to. Look for him to flourish in a more stable — and within an overall more talented — defensive unit. But he is also capable of performing at a high level — anyone who saw him skate for Mike Sullivan and the United States at last spring’s World Championships would agree.
There were no questions about the Caps in net heading into camp. There are none departing it.
There is health. There is the league-wide sense that while the rest of the Southeast stood pat, the Caps upgraded. There is buzz. There is optimism. All is good. Now, it’s time to drop the puck.

Sunday with Suts

pucksandbooks — Sun, 16 Sep 2007 20:52:11 +0000

The swollen and bruised Russians are dressed and practicing this morning. None were making the trip to Carolina today anyway. Their commarade Ovechkin is anything but beat up; he was in his usual Acela Express super stride, and he made a point of turning this morning’s 9:30 practice partly into his own personal competition with Olie Kolzig, dancing hip jigs at scores and uttering rink-wide-audible, English-blended-with-Russian oaths at his failures, during every drill. (For his part Kolzig didn’t man his crease quietly during the challenge.)

Another entertaining portion of the day’s first practice arrived at its end, when Hershey Bears’ bench men Bruce Boudreau and Bob Woods, who ran practice, placed 10 pucks on the two bluelines and divided the session’s skaters into two teams for a quasi-shootout showdown. I was wondering how early into camp I’d see the Caps try and address last season’s shootout woes. My recollection is that Hershey didn’t fare much better, so it may have have been a mutually beneficial endeavor. But this drill was as much relatively relaxed fun as anything else, and you could hear and see the enthusiam in every skater.

Players were seated on the two benches, and rotated taking shots. When a player failed in his shot he had to retrieve the puck and skate it back to the blueline and “tag up” with the next skater. The competition only ended when one team had bettered its goaltender with all 10 pucks. Jacub Klepis was by far the most impressive shooter, potting three behind losing netminder Kolzig in very elite hands fashion.

You try and remind yourself that barely a long weekend’s worth of camp has been completed, but with it so compressed now, actually, by day’s end, camp will be about one-fifth completed. The Caps have already made cuts.

Over camp’s first three days Brian Sutherby has been a standout performer. His stride, too, has been strong — he’s absolutely flying out there, skating as well as I’ve ever seen. After today’s first session I asked if him if he’d done anything new or distinctive with his training this summer. This biggest change, he told me, was getting back on the ice a lot earlier than usual.

“I started skating twice a week in early June, which a lot of guys don’t do,” he said. “I also worked on my strength, just trying to get stronger.”

“I want to get lower [in my stride]. You see how low guys like Nylander and Crosby get in their strides . . . taller guys have to work at it.”

His long battle with a troubling groin appears to be in the past. “It’ll never be 100 percent,” he told me. “I battled it a long time, and it feels great now. I think I’ve put [that concern] to bed for the most part.”

I also asked him to try and place this year’s camp into context with the other half dozen or so he’s completed with the Caps. I wanted to know how far he’d thought the organization had come since his arrival in it.

“Compared to the first couple of camps, we’re getting right there, with where we want to be,” he told me. “Back when I first got here, we were supposed to be good — we had guys like Jagr. Now it’s a lot different. We have a lot of depth. We have a lot of young guys but they’ve got 150, 200 games in the league.”

Reminder: today’s matinee exhibition opener in Carolina will be audiocast on the Caps’ web site, with Mike Vogel teaming with Steve Kolbe on the call.

Summer State of the Team – The Forwards

pucksandbooks — Mon, 30 Jul 2007 22:32:21 +0000

As Training Camp slowly (so slowly) approaches, we decided to take a quick look at some of the new faces, returnees, hopefuls and last-chancers that will be vying for a spot in the Caps’ forward corps. Battles at many slots are expected, and this may be one of the most competitive camp in Caps’ history.
First, we’ll examine the forwards, a group that received an infusion of talent down the middle and added a veteran scoring winger:
Nicklas Backstrom — The youngster is seemingly a lock for the big squad. A slick-passing center with hockey sense and puck-control, the most impressive thing about his game at this point may be his attention to the other end of the ice. His awareness and positioning without the puck, coupled with his creativity and vision should be a boon to either of the Caps’ elite left wingers. Foot speed is a concern, and while he won’t arrive in North America to the same fanfare that Alex Ovechkin did, the “Next Great Swede” will have all the eyes of his country upon him.

Matt Bradley — Largely considered to be a spare winger in the upcoming season, his physicality and willingness to do the little things ensure he’ll have a veteran’s chance at training camp. Good speed, a team-first attitude and a bit of an edge to his game keep him in play for the big club, if only in a press box role.
Donald Brashear – His first season riding shotgun for the Caps was a solid one, with Brashear leading the team in PIMs and tied at 9th in the league with 14 majors (and a game misconduct and a match penalty thrown in for good measure). The big winger brought pretty much what he was advertised to bring, resulting in a contract extension for the 07-08 season, and will be expected to continue his role as the Caps’ cop and be a physical presence on the ice.
Chris Clark — The captain of the club may fill any of the top 3 right wing spots. Obsessive work ethic on and off the ice, he willingly goes into corners to dig out pucks, forechecks with enthusiasm, and may not be physically capable of putting in an effort of less than 100%. 110%? Hey, he’s human, but he also will play with no teeth and some kind of horrific dental damage, so I think we can all agree the guy is tough, works his butt off, and is a complete pain to play against. Jumping to 20 goals from his previous current high upon his first season with the Caps, the gritty winger hit 30 last year, and signed the rare player and team friendly extension this off-season. He’s the slide guy as far as the right wing position goes — Coach Hanlon can deploy him with Ovechkin or Semin’s line to do the hard work, or can join up on Boyd Gordon’s right to form two-thirds of a formidable checking line.
Ben Clymer — 06-07 was largely forgettable for Clymer, with a failed experiment putting him back on the blue-line early in the season, and fighting lingering injury for the full 82 games. The winger didn’t seem to have his usual jump, which much of his game is based on. Often kind of an afterthought for the upcoming season, much like Bradley, the thought here is a healthy Clymer will likely get regular minutes on either the 3rd or 4th lines, and have a bounce-back season.
Eric Fehr — So far the lanky sniper hasn’t been overwhelming in his 25 NHL games (2 goals, 1 assist, +1, 35 shots), but has shown signs of what the Caps liked in him, including paying some attention to the opposition when he doesn’t have the puck. What could be an interesting training camp for the youngster from Winkler has something of a spin on it, as he is recovering from a hip injury that only recently has begun to heal up. A healthy Fehr could challenge for a spot on the big club, but if not fully recovered, a spot in Hershey to shake the rust off and get back into game shape seems likely.
Tomas Fleischmann — Another young winger who may contend for a spot on the Caps, though his finish to last season doesn’t provide a lot of momentum (pointless in his last nine games). Fleischmann did have some nice offensive moments, including an impressive 4 point game against some shaky Tampa goaltending, and he is now subject to waivers, which adds some import for both the player and the club to find a spot for him on the big squad. Possibly a make-or-break season for the talented Czech.
Boyd Gordon — Maybe the breakout player of the 06-07 campaign, Gordon took over the 3rd line center slot and it doesn’t look like he’ll relinquish it anytime soon. Good in the faceoff dot (52%), ever-vigilant in the defensive aspects of the game, he also chipped in 29 points and anchored the penalty kill. We can probably pencil Gordon in at checking line center for the foreseeable future.
Jakub Klepis — Another candidate for a make-or-break camp, the skilled Klepis spent half of the NHL season with the parent club, and didn’t exactly set the world on fire (3 goals, 7 assists). While he occasionally showed glimpses of his considerable talents, and he is a solid point-producer at the AHL level, he hasn’t seemed to be able to put it together in the NHL. Time may be running out for Klepis, as he’s no longer waiver-exempt, and the top two center spots look to be filled by Nylander and Backstrom. Klepis may very well be an odd-man out this season, or potential trade bait, though it’s unlikely that he would bring a bounty back in trade by himself.
Viktor Kozlov — A new face for the 07-08 season, Kozlov is a versatile forward who can play both center and wing, though he is stronger at the wing. Not physical but a big body, Kozlov has some past chemistry with Alex Ovechkin, is solid defensively, and is coming off a career high in goals. With the good comes the bad, however, and Kozlov has been criticized for a lack of consistency and effort level, though he played well under Ted Nolan, a guy who doesn’t put up with a lot of loafing. There were times last season when the Islanders’ faithful were less than thrilled with Kozlov’s sometimes hot, sometimes cold play.
Brooks Laich — The freshly-arbitrated center now has a one-way deal that should keep him in the mix in D.C. Solid defensively with good size, and occasionally displaying some offensive acumen, Laich is a forward in the mix for the bottom six spots — a crowded field. There has been some thought that the upcoming season could be the time when Laich’s game takes off, and it may have to in order to get regular ice time.
Jason Morgan — A solid AHL performer, he figures to get at least a quick look at camp, though it is more than likely that he has been brought in for duty in Hershey.
Joe Motzko — Another probable Hershey signing, Motzko has only had a brief taste of the bigs (11 games), but fits the role of a veteran scoring presence for the Bears.
Michael Nylander — The guess here is that a certain Russian left winger who goes by “Ovie” smiled when he found out the Caps had brought in the veteran Swedish pivot. A gifted playmaker who has excelled with star flankers, Nylander also is an excellent stickhandler, and should be able to gain the offensive zone unaided, freeing Ovechkin up to get into position in the slot and get his stick cocked and ready to convert some clever feeds. Also providing a boost to the power play, Nylander gives the Caps a skilled offensive center, and it seems a given that he will be presented every opportunity to develop a solid working relationship with Ovechkin. The fact that Nylander should be able to help his younger countryman Backstrom along is a bonus.
Alex Ovechkin — 06-07 was an interesting season for the phenom, coming into camp admittedly out of shape, and not really looking like himself until later in the campaign. With defenses keying their game-plans on stopping #8, he had less space to work with, and even had some fans expressing unhappiness with his play. All that said, he put up 46 goals and 92 points in what some considered his sophomore slump, and figures to put up more impressive totals with the addition of some skilled forwards, and a more effective power play. Ovechkin has vowed to come into camp in shape, and hopefully he’ll be primed for a big season.
Matt Pettinger — The follow-up to his break-out season followed a similar pattern: a few games missed to injury, some strong defensive play at even-strength and while a man down, and a few goal-scorer’s goals. Pettinger’s all-around game coupled with a strong work ethic and a shoot-first mentality make for a strong checking-line player who can chip in some offense, and it will be a surprise if he isn’t dressed on Opening Night.
Alexander Semin — The Other Alexander returned to the NHL in 06-07 and showed that Ovechkin isn’t the only Russian on the squad with jaw-dropping skills. Showcasing some impressive puck-handling, as well as one of the best wrist-shots in the game, Semin gave the Caps a bona-fide offensive threat outside of Ovechkin. Of course, with Semin, you get some frustration as well — late in the season he seemed to lose all faith in his line-mates and tried to do everything himself. Hopefully, the addition of a skilled centerman will bring out the playmaking elements of his game.
Dave Steckel — A terrific all-around player for Hershey, Steckel managed to put up numbers despite being assigned the other team’s top line and given heavy penalty kill minutes. This is an important season for the big center, as he seems have hit his ceiling in the AHL — the NHL is the next step. Another part of the group vying for spots on the bottom 6, Steckel’s impressive wingspan and man-down acumen may give him a bit of an advantage over the other contenders, as the club is looking to upgrade both pk units. Definitely a player to watch in camp.
Brian Sutherby — Another player who may be entering a pivotal season, as his claim to the checking line center role has gone to fellow WHL alum Gordon. Sutherby has been and will be dogged by a groin injury that has cost him a bit of his skating, but his competitiveness, leadership, and willingness to play with some edge are commodities that clubs value. His offensive production took a bit of a dip last year, though he’ll never be counted on for necessary offense, and there has been speculation of Sutherby maybe switching to wing, where he can use his size and strength to more of an advantage.
Kyle Wilson — recently signed by the Caps after his solid season in Hershey, Wilson’s smart game and development intrigued the big club. Likely in Hershey the bulk of the season, he’ll help shore up the club’s middle.
Other players who may get a look on in D.C. but may spend the majority of their time in Chocolatetown are Andrew Gordon, Travis Morin, Andrew Joudrey, Chris Bourque and Steve Werner.
Much like the defense, the battle for the 12+ spots in Washington should be a spirited affair. It’s conceivable that up to 5 forward spots on Opening Night’s starting line-up could be up for grabs, so the onus will be on each player to come in to camp in shape and ready to play from the word ‘go’.

Washington Capitals Depth Chart, Summer 2007

pucksandbooks — Fri, 20 Jul 2007 23:30:06 +0000

Herewith, our attempt to devise a depth chart for the Caps to coincide with the recent completion of the team’s annual Rookie Development Camp. It’s important to note that with it we are not forecasting specific line combos but rather attempting to slot players by position according to their professional production and most recent performances in evaluative settings. It’s also important to note that a number of forwards in the Caps’ system play more than one position up front. The Russian elites and Matt Pettinger appear locks on the left side for well into the next decade, whereas the right side seems to carry many more question marks.

We’ve envisioned this as a file hopefully sparking spirited reaction and respectful challenge. We welcome your proposed modifications.

Eminger, Suts Re-up

pucksandbooks — Tue, 17 Jul 2007 20:45:09 +0000

The Caps this morning announced the resigning of defenseman Steve Eminger and center Brian Sutherby. Terms were not disclosed.
Update: Tarik has the details — both received one-year pacts, Eminger’s for a million bucks, Suts at 800k. Also, the Caps today announced the signing of free agent, depth center Jason Morgan. The 30-year-old Morgan got a cup of coffee with the Minnesota Wild last season (four games) and 57 with Houston of the American Hockey League.

Morning Cup-a-Joe (2/13/07)

pucksandbooks — Tue, 13 Feb 2007 19:29:17 +0000

What kind of fan does this make me — the Caps aren’t going to qualify for the postseason this year, but I don’t even want them to? I acknowledge that professional athletes have fiery competitiveness in their DNA, and I am aware of GMGM’s longtsanding assertion that there’s a real crapshoot quality to the NHL’s postseason, but to me conspicuously flawed clubs have no business bearing brass ring aspirations. I have no interest in seeing this Caps’ team, as it’s currently comprised, go into a round one series with a second-line center by committee, a mish-mash of mid-level and inexperienced blueliners, and wildly unbalanced scoring among four lines.
I can speak only as a fan, but it seems to me there’s only one reason to venture into the postseason: to win. How plausible is postseason winning for an outfit that’s yet to prove it can be competitive regularly with the Florida Panthers? All manner of consolation prizes to the postseason — of “experience” and “character” building — strikes me as diversionary prittle-prat, the domain of losers. Me = not interested in door prizes.
Generally by February the interminable NHL season reveals the true identity of its member clubs, and what we know of the Caps after nearly 60 games this season is that they’re still searching for their durable identity. Mercifully, the organization allowed the delusionally inaccurate marketing slogan “Always Intense” of a couple of seasons ago to wither into oblivion. (They’re rarely intense in Sunrise.) Here’s my free marketing advice for a slogan: “We’re building something.”
And that’s really good news.
Olie Kolzig’s injury yesterday occasioned what I regarded as a surprising torrent of “our playoff hopes are dashed now” reactions from fans and media. (Tarik this morning at least termed them “feint.”) Those plausible hopes were dashed a couple of weeks ago. How does a battered 12th or 13th place in the conference outfit consistently better the points tallies of upwards of a half dozen clubs above them, all of whom possess more experienced bluelines and better balanced scoring? And above them aren’t the Florida Panthers.
I understand as well as anybody the accumulated shoulder slumping of years’ worth of being on the outside looking in as far as the playoffs are concerned. But I’m preferential to the Buffalo style of organization building: you’re bad when you’re on the outs, but once in, you’re very, very good. And there are other similar models; it pains me to say it, but the Pens may be on the cusp of arriving at that status. At least they might soon wreak their havoc in another conference.
It’s been a season of mixed developments for the Caps. They’ve found a terrific captain in Chris Clark, settling for a while a glaring leadership void. Boyd Gordon has enjoyed a grand development leap. Alexander Semin is on the cusp of superstardom. Mike Green has played brilliantly, quite well, and poorly — about what you’d expect from a talented rookie logging veteran’s minutes. And in an admittedly brief audition Green’s ’04 draftmate Jeff Schultz has demonstrated poise and promise. But there have been, too, glaring and daunting instances of regress. Brian Sutherby’s atrophied offense, Ben Clymer’s merit-based benchings; even one-dimensional play from #8. Kris Beech’s flop was wholly predictable.
I’m accused at times of being a glass-is-half-full optimist, even when the losing is at its ugliest, the line combinations their most cluttered, the standings woes their most worrisome. This morning my metaphor is aeronautical. Our playoff charter is at the gate, but mechanics are still working on it, the flightplan is still being verified, and inside the terminal, on two walkways moving passengers in opposite directions, the walkway toward boarding bears a better volume than its counterpart.

Morning Cup-a-Joe (2/2/07)

pucksandbooks — Fri, 02 Feb 2007 18:19:32 +0000

(Channeling Elton John) (Kidding) Sir Elton almost certainly didn’t have the 2007 postseason aspirations of the Washington Capitals in mind when he recorded ‘Candle in the Wind,’ but this morning said candle is tottering in Tornado Alley. It’s been pleasant imagining our torment in the Igloo drawing to a Baltimore Colts-like close this season, but tomorrow afternoon, I suspect, we’ll be reminded of Kansas City’s proximity to mobile home mayhem as Sidney & Co. State Farm claim our season. And right about now I wouldn’t mind auditioning Elton in front of Kolzig’s crease.
There are nemesis teams . . . and then there are the Florida Panthers. As in the last-place-in-the-Southeast-all-season-long Florida Panthers (until this morning), whom we can’t remain competitive with into a second period. A fourth-place club in the Southeast last season, they took seven of eight from the Caps then. The first clear sign this winter of funnel cloud formation for me was the Saturday matinee immediately before the All Star break, a rematch with the Cats precisely a week after the 7-3, 50-plus-shots-surrendered mauling in Sunrise. A lifeless Caps team on January 20 whimpered into the break on the short end of a 4-1 game.
Realignment, anyone?
Then they returned from the break and laid an egg in Carolina. They won the next night’s rematch, but that was misleading: they were solidly outshot, and they were the beneficiaries of numerous Carolina miscues laid at the feet of our snipers.
Injuries tell a fair portion of this season’s mid-season collapse, but they do not account for the quasi-regular lifelessness gutting the competitiveness out of games before many fannies have found their seats. Ronnie Wilson’s last couple of Caps’ teams had the Dahlen-Halpern-Kono line to thwart early opposition surges, settle things down, home and away. It also chipped in timely goals. This Caps’ team doesn’t. It also doesn’t have a superstar forward yet able to embrace high stakes showdowns and will his undermanned team to a tough victory.
Yet.
Nor is the blame to be shouldered solely by the super-skilled sophomore. Last season’s less talented Caps, overmatched virtually every night, fairly thrilled its fans with its tenacity, its perserverence, its gumption and guile. And what sets this season so disspiritingly apart from last is that the very agents of that heart-and-soul outfit this season are . . . AWOL. I don’t envy GMGM as winter turns to spring and he confronts personnel decisions all of us thought long settled by last season’s grinding success.