My Thoughts

Dear Washington Capitals,

You did it again. You were poised for greatness and now you are an afterthought of the 2011 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Disappointed, chokers, and heartbroken represent a short list of the many words I have heard to describe the events of this Caps season.

While I am upset, my level of devastation has now dissipated and I am completely at peace with what transpired over the course of the last week. I am finding the people who seem to be most distraught by the Caps sudden eviction from the playoffs are the "bandwagon" fans. The people who are the newly minted "Rock the Red" era fans, the ones who can't stand to see another DC sports team become the punchline of the sporting world.

First and foremost, I do not have any problem with "bandwagon" fans. I love to see so many people showing an interest in the sport, and I harbor no bitterness towards them. When it really comes down to it, we are all, to some extent "bandwagon" fans. None of us came out of the womb with a Caps t-shirt on. Every single fan's level of passion was sparked by one singular event, for some that event occurred at an earlier place in time.

For me, my first Caps memory came when I was five years old. I went with my mom and uncle to see the Caps play the Flyers at USAir Arena. I have almost no recollection of the game, except for the score (3-0 Flyers), and Dale Hunter's disallowed goal. The ensuing sight and sound of the Caps goal siren will be forever etched into my memory, and my love for the team and the sport grew from there.

I have been a die hard supporter of the team for the majority of my life, and there is nothing in sports that would make me happier than to see the Caps win a Stanley Cup. However, them losing does not eat away at my soul like it does to many. I have read too many articles, tweets, and Facebook posts that would lead me to believe that there is a direct correlation to the Caps losing and an end of the world scenario.

I began to wonder why my level of frustration did not parallel that of many other fans. I knew the answer was not because I lacked the passion for the team, or that I did not care about the team. I was somewhat perplexed by the question, and then it hit me.

I love them unconditionally. In fact there are very few things I love in life more that hockey, and more than this team. My love, however, does not come from idolizing players, or because the Caps are trendy and hip. Instead, it comes from the profound impact the Washington Capitals have had on my life. Some of my greatest memories are a result of experiences I have had with this team.

I was there when Petr Nedved iced the Caps in the 4th Overtime. I felt like I had lost a friend when Jim Carey was traded. I was there when Peter Bondra got a hat trick on souvenir cup night at USAir Arena, and there were thousands of broken pieces of plastic on the ice from the cups being hurled in celebration. I remember Joe Juneau's goal that sent the Caps to their first Stanley Cup, and I was there for Game 4 of the ensuing sweep at the hands of the Red Wings. I even sat in the Garden and watched the Caps lose in a 16 round shootout to the Rangers.

I was at Verizon Center many nights when it was so empty that the noise level was comparable to that of a public library. I was there for the infamous "Fire Hanlon" game, and the next home game, which was coincidentally Bruce Boudreau's first.

I was there for Hunter, the Chief, Simon, Killer, Tinordi, Peat, Brashear, and the rest of the never ending list of pugilists. I've seen Bondra, Pivonka, Ridley, Langway, Johansson, Miller, and of course Ovechkin. The name Esa Tikkanen makes me cringe, but Segei Fedorov always can bring a smile out of me.

I sat through the good times and the bad, I was there for Jagr, the firesale, the rebuild, and the now. Abandoning the team was never an option, they have become way too much a part of my life. I have an infinite amount of great memories with them and no matter how much they disappoint me I will always support them.

I suppose it really is not about the wins or the losses, but instead its the feeling I get every time I walk into Verizon Center for a hockey game. Whether they are a last place team of NHL journeymen, or a first place team made of first rate superstars, the Caps are the Caps, and for that I will always love them.

For better or for worse, I have been there, and I will always be there. The wins are nice, but the memories are even better.



Sincerely,

A Fan for Life

Whoever Wins Game 3

Whichever team wins tonight will win the series. That is my rather simplistic outlook on the Caps current situation. If they go down 3-0 they are then relegated to Death Row. Maybe you prolong the inevitable by winning Game's 4 and 5, but the overwhelming odds are stacked against you. Also being down 3-0 with game 4 less than 24 hours would only add to the myriad of obstacles that would be facing the Caps.

Conversely, a win tonight puts a lot of pressure on Tampa to take game 4 on home ice. When you couple that with a quick 24 hour layoff, the Caps should be sitting pretty come Wednesday night/early Thursday morning on their plane ride home with a tied series.

I guess we will know tonight who is going to win the series. No, that's not true. What I really mean is we will know tonight whether or not the Capitals have any chance at winning this series.

Just doin' the Ference

The NHL has been the stage for some legendary goal celebrations, perhaps none as great as what Andrew Ference did last night. I suspect this will start a new trend on rinks across the country where kids are going to top off big goals by just doin' the Ference.

Conservative and a Hockey Fan: A Man After my Own Heart

Our nation's top law makers have had a busy two weeks. Between Libya, Planned Parenthood, and the near miss on the shutdown, there has been had a lot on their plates. Despite the hectic schedule Rep. Thaddeus McCotter (R-MI) was still willing to take a few minutes and talk some hockey with me.

For those who do not know of him, McCotter is a 5th term congressman from Michigan's 11th District. His district encompasses much of suburban Detroit, naturally making him a Red Wings fan. As he put it "it's Hockeytown, everyone loves the Wings."

The idea for interviewing McCotter came about when I noticed he tweets about the Red Wings on a semi-regular basis. To be perfectly honest, I was not fully sure what to expect when interviewing him. I was slightly nervous that maybe his tweets were fueled by the need to appease his hockey loving constituents, and his knowledge of the game would be minimal at best. I quickly learned that my fears could not have been further from the truth. Unlike some of his colleagues, McCotter, is very well versed on the subject of his favorite teams.

McCotter's understanding of the game stems from his time spent playing hockey as a kid. Although he was never involved in organized hockey, like a lot of Michigan's youth he learned the finer points of the sport playing pick up on the frozen ponds and creeks during the notoriously cold winter months.

Our conversation covered just about every hockey realm imaginable, we chatted about past and present, real and even hypothetical events. The most entertaining discussion of the imagination came about when I asked him, “who would win a heavy weight battle between his Republican colleague Jon Runyan and former Red Wing pugilist Joe Kocur?“ In perhaps a somewhat surprising decision, we unanimously scored Kocur as the victor, so long as they were on skates.

He made reference's to Caps Legend "Olie the Goalie" and NHL great Bobby Orr. The conversation turned to Orr when I asked, "where Nick Lidstrom stacked up all time on the list of greatest defensemen?" He responded, "number two, obviously Orr is number one."

His affection for Lidstrom is not limited to his play on the ice. Lidstrom is actually a resident of Novi, Michigan a city in McCotter's district. McCotter says "everything you hear about him is true, he gives back to the community, he is just a great cat."

As they always are this time of year, Lidstrom and his teammates are a popular topic of conversation in Detroit. Since Lidstrom has been a member of the Red Wings the team has never missed the playoffs. That trend started in 1992 and continues this year as the Wings are once again among the favorites to win the Western Conference. Detractors of the team, do however, cite one major common concern regarding their playoff fortunes. The Wings are statistically the oldest team in the NHL and many wonder how it will affect their energy if they embark on a long journey through the playoffs.

Don't mark the congressman from Michigan's 11th district on the list of those concerned. McCotter believes the age of the team translates into experience, an essential component that is vital to any deep playoff run. "Look at our older guys, you have Osgood, one of our backup goalies, and we all know he can come in and do the job. Mike Modano is on our 4th line, how many teams would love to have him on their fourth line? Guys like Bertuzzi and Lidstrom, when you mix all that in with some of younger guys like Abdelkader and Helm -one of the fastest players in the league- that's a pretty good team."

It is certainly tough to disagree with McCotter's sentiments regarding the Wings. They have had great success over the course of the past 15 years using that exact recipe of speed, skill, and experience. As McCotter pointed out, that is in many regards similar to the approach George McPhee is taking, and has been taking with his Washington team.

As a fan of hockey and as a temporary resident of DC it becomes almost impossible for him not to have some understanding of the re-birth of hockey in DC. The Caps rabid following has been a welcomed change for the congressman during his tenure in DC. He said, "[I remember] hearing in 98 when Red Wings fans had no problems getting tickets for the Stanley Cup Finals in DC... its great to see what has since happened to hockey in DC."

There is no denying the Congressman's knowledge of the game, appreciation of the history, and overall enthusiasm for it. However, being a member of congress requires that McCotter have certain unavoidable responsibilities that limit how often he is able to watch. He told me "you are lucky if you get to catch part of a game, let alone the whole thing." Although he is not able to watch as much as he would like, advances in social media assist him in following his local sports teams. McCotter cites his twitter account as one of the ways he remains as up to date as he possibly can.

As our conversation turned away from Twitter, I asked him what he thought of Alex Ovechkin. His reviews came back positive, he echoed my sentiments about him being a blue collar type player with world class talent. He compared Ovechkin's dominant physical prowess to that of Red Wing great Vladimir Konstantinov. A compliment of that nature coming from a Wings fan should perceived as the highest form of flattery. McCotter's praise of Ovechkin did not just stop at his similarities between Konstantinov, he also lent his two cents in the always hotly debated NHL topic, who is better Ovechkin or Crosby? He said he would take Ovechkin, but he did caution that his view on the subject maybe slightly skewed due to the Red Wing Penguin rivalry.

With President Obama's consistent dismissal of hockey it is nice to know that there is at least one powerful member of our federal government who likes the sport. Although, I did find out that McCotter is not powerful enough to help me in my quest to get a Caps jersey placed on the Statue of Freedom on the Dome of the Capitol. For that he says "you have to ask Boehner, but he is probably a Blue Jackets fan, or maybe even a Cleveland Barons fan."

The #winning goal and the two ensuing hugs

In my life I have never seen what I saw last night after last nights OT winning missile by Alex Semin. It has nothing to do with the outcome of the game itself, or anything of real significance. What I noticed was the way the team celebrated, generally when a guy scores a game winner every single player on the team mobs him.

This was not the case last night. After Semin scored about 4 or 5 of the Caps players swarmed Jason Arnott and celebrated as if he was the one who scored the game winner. I understand the respect the guy carries in the locker room, and I realize he made a great play to set up the goal, but that was just somewhat bizarre. If you watch the video posted below you will notice two separate celebratory hugs going on.

It is a little odd to see, but it also further emphasizes how much respect Arnott has with the guys on the team. Personally, I prefer unity following a big time OT win. However, I will admit that in some weird way this is kind of cool.

Playoff Time

Nothing quite says playoff hockey like a bitter rivalry.

Boston - Montreal is always fun. Especially when you consider the newly minted history of this past regular season. Should be a fun series.



Washington - Pittsburgh also a great time. HBO, Winter Classic, Ovechkin and Crosby, etc. We can only hope these two teams meet at some point in the playoffs.


While we are on the topic of rivalries its tough to ignore one of the best ones of my lifetime. Although the hatred has subdued, and one of the teams is noy in this years playoffs you can never go wrong posting a video of Brendan Shannahan clothes-lining Patrick Roy.

Thought I had the flu, then I realized it was just Caps Fever.

I keep reading articles for how the Caps can beat Lundquist, the answer is pretty simple. Go to the net. Hockey games, especially playoff ones, are won in the area between the hash marks extended to the goal line. The long range wrist shots from the tops of the circles that go bar south may look pretty cool and get the girls all hot and bothered, but they don't win games. Ok, let me rephrase that, they WIN games, but they don't win series', and they certainly don't win championships.

In reality, a goal is a goal, there is no extra reward for a highlight reel goal. As a Caps fan my jaw dropped when I saw this goal, but my heart exploded through my chest when I saw this. Ovechkin's was an amazing goal in a meaningless game, Joe Juneau's was a garbage goal that caused the 4th grade version of me to have an asthma attack.


Preview For NYR Series

Last year's Caps team did a terrible job of crashing the net. Everyone raved about how great Halak was because he saw about 50 shots a game and the Habs still managed to win the series. The operative word being "saw." There was no net solid net presence, nothing obstructing his view of the puck. No disrespect to Halak, but any NHL caliber goalie can stop that many shots when they have a clear sight line.

The other single biggest factor to the '10 playoff debacle was odd man rushes coming the other way. The Caps had a tendency to continuously get three forwards sucked down well below the hash marks in the offensive zone. Any type of quick turnover lead to an odd man rush the other way, and against a speedy team and skilled team like Montreal more times than not odd man rushes turn into goals. A quick systematic fix for this is to dump and chase. The Caps were not familiar with this most basic of hockey strategies last season.

My keys for a Caps first round Win against the Rangers are go hard to the net, screen the goalie, simplify their attack i.e. dump and chase (which they have done this year), and limit odd man rushes. If they are able to do these things then there becomes about a snow balls chance in Guantanamo Bay that the Rangers win this series.

For the Rangers to win, a lot has to go there way. However, as Caps previous post-seasons have shown us, anything is possible. Rangers are first and foremost going to have get world class goal tending out of their world class goaltender. Lundquist play is going to dictate whether or not the Rangers have any chance in this series. Good goal tending alone can't win this series for New York. In tandem with that, they're going to need to convert their scoring chances at an above average rate.

Caps in 6

Why Brooks Oprik Should Have to Fight John Erskine

Hockey in my estimation is a game of great equivalency. No one team, or single player should be held to a higher standard, while the off ice police have trouble comprehending this, the on ice police do not. Although Zdeno Chara might not have been reprimanded by the league, he will eventually have to answer to someone. Retribution is just as much part of the game as the surface they play on.

When Claude Lemiuex hit Kris Draper face first into the boards during the 96 playoffs he was immediately suspended by the league. But the punishment handed down to Lemiuex by the league was not enough to satisfy the Red Wings. "An eye for an eye" was their motto, as it is the motto of many teams and players in the NHL. "The code" has long been when you injure an opposing player in a questionable fashion you are then required to take your medicine. The Red Wings sought their pound of flesh, Lemiuex turtled and the rest his history.

However, the code appears to be evolving and its necessary presence is extending to borders it does not need to reach. During the 2011 Bridgestone Winter Classic, David Steckel late of the Capitals collided with Sidney Crosby away from the play. Crosby has had concussion like symptoms ever since. While the incident was certainly unfortunate, it appeared to be completely unintentional. Steckel was attempting to get up the ice and back into the play when his shoulder caught the head of an unsuspecting Crosby. Crosby has yet to play since this incident. Correction, Crosby has not played since the following game when he was driven head first into the boards by Tampa Bay defenseman Victor Hedman.

In the next meeting between the Caps and Pens, Derek Engelland and Michael Rupp, both well respected fighters challenged then-Capital David Steckel to drop the mits. Their willingness to engage with Steckel was their attempt at gaining some measure of retribution on Steckel. Wisely, Steckel declined the kind requests of Misters Engelland and Rupp, although he would eventually fight Tim Wallace. Wallace an AHL call up who virtually no one outside of his family or close group of friends had ever heard of. This begs the question, what warrants retribution in today's NHL?

If Steckel's accidental hit on Crosby justifies the response given by the Pens players, then the league has entered into a new era of retribution. Retribution used to mean something, it was used to police malicious hits and liberties taken upon certain players. For all intents and purposes a new precedent has been set, one where players are responsible for everything they do on the ice, whether it be intentional or accidental.

In line with the standards set forth by the Penguins, Brooks Orpik has to answer the bell, for ringing Mike Green's. Yes, he was shooting the puck towards the goal, but the fact is he hit Mike Green right in the head. Green has only played two games since then and was just recently placed on LTIR. It only makes sense that Orpik have to answer to one of the Caps tough guys. Am I being unreasonable? Obviously I am, but look all I want is the equilibrium to be restored not only in Green and Crosby's heads, but in the NHL as well.

Game Recap

Game Recap
After watching last night’s 3-1 loss to the B’s one thing remains abundantly clear, Alexander Semin is either really good or really bad. If you’re Coach Bruce Boudreau all you can do is hope that the good Alexander Semin shows up more often than not or at the very least that the good Alexander Semin shows up when it matters most. If previous seasons serve as any form of indication as to what to expect from enigmatic Russian then know this, when the Caps desperately need production Semin will be harder to find than a snow ball in Kabul.

The thought of trading Semin is a nice one, unfortunately his subpar production in the playoffs makes him the least valuable 40 goal scorer in the entire NHL. His value to the Caps (still yet to be fully determined) is seemingly greater than anything another team would be willing to give up to get him. Last night’s performance by Semin was packed with lazy penalties, inaccurate shots, forced passes, and poor defensive posture.

Aside from Semin’s dismal play there were a few bright spots to take away from last night’s loss at Verizon Center. The PK remained perfect, even killing off a 53 second 5-3 in which Jeff Shultz and Brooks Laich completely neutralized a struggling B’s PP. Semyon Varlamov came on in relief for an ailing Nuevirth who left in the 1st period with the flu. Many questions have surrounded the Caps goaltending situation, a lot of people would believe that Nuevirth had all but sealed his fate as the Caps number one goalie. However, last night’s performance Varlamov reminded Caps fans that he is also a very capable young goaltender. He yielded only one goal, coming off of a well screened Matt Hunwick long range wrist shot from in the 3rd.

On a final note the Capitals continue to rack up the fighting majors. They are now tied as a team for the second most fights with 7 through 6 games. Matt Hendricks squared off with Gregory Campbell early in the first and Milan Lucic had a bout with John Erskine. This was Lucic and Erskine’s second fight, the previous one was a decisive victory for Big John. This fight was closer than the first go around, Erskine landed a few early but Lucic was eventually able to counter Erskine’s rather aggressive fighting style with a large bear hug. The two exchanged a few punches before Lucic was able to wrestle Erskine to ground.

The two teams meet up again on Thursday night to complete the second half of this home and home. Don’t expect to see Erskine and Lucic to go again, however a DJ King Shawn Thornton rematch could be a possibility. The Capitals had a total of 20 fights all of last season. At this rate they will surpass that number by early November. I expect the fight totals to taper out at some point, but for fun I’ll set 30 games for the over/under on surpassing 20 fighting majors this season.

It ain't over til' it's OV

The Caps rally from 2 down to win 3-2, in OT, against the Predators in Nashville.

During the 2nd period I was thinking about what I would title my game recap and was leaning toward "Kill me now... Just do it already".  The Caps looked like a broken Arnold Schwarzenegger from the first Predator movie after two periods of play.  However, much like the movie, the all but beaten Caps regained their composure and defeated the Predators. 

The Capitals looked abysmal after two tonight; they were losing nearly every battle imaginable.  The Preds were winning the battle along the boards, and were continuing to force the Caps offense to them.  The Caps looked sloppy in the neutral zone and in their own end. Turnovers at the blue-line and neutral zone and their inability to clear the defensive zone cleanly created numerous scoring opportunities for the Predators.The Caps were out shot 39-34, though it was a much larger margin until the 3rd.  The Preds, won the face-off battle  32-26 and managed 11 takeaways.  

After two periods the Caps were trailing 2-0, with the goals for the Predators coming from J.P. Doumont in the 1st and Jordin Tootoo's deflection off of Brian Fahey's skate in the 2nd.  

Enter Micheal Neuvirth, tonight's game's saving grace. Neuvy made 37 saves, including a dazzling glove save on a breakaway by Joel Ward in the 2nd (caused by one of many turnovers at the caps blue-line). Nuevy's glove hand was impeccable tonight, and his performance thus far should make for tough competition for Varlamov when he makes his return. 

Neuvirth was able to keep the scoring deficit manageable until the Caps found their game in the 3rd.  The game opened up and the tempo picked up considerably.  The Caps began winning board battles and fore-checking successfully, after looking uninspired for the first two periods.  Alex Semin opened the scoring for the Capitals with a Power Play goal that trickled past Anders Linback, who also had a great night in goal for the Preds with 31 saves.  Brooks Laich's tenacity on the fore-check led to Tomas Fleischman's, game tying, tally.  

In Overtime, as one would expect, Alex Ovechkin took control.  After tearing into the offensive zone, Ovechkin was taken down by Ryan Suter, giving the Caps (who were 2-5 on the man advantage) an OT power play.  One minute later, Ovechkin fired a shot from the point and it was deflected in by Brooks Laich for the game-winner.

In a game that for all intents and purposes the Caps should have lost, a stellar performance in goal by Michael Neuvirth kept them alive long enough for Ovechkin & Co. to come alive in the 3rd and mount a comeback; taking 2 points away from a solid Nashville club.

* Perhaps the most surprising stat of the night is that the Caps remained a perfect 21-21 on the PK... While their Power Play is only at 4-22.