Comments on: FOR FRAK SAKE: Bolts beat Caps 3-0

By: That Just Happened: Canucks beat Caps 4-2

That Just Happened: Canucks beat Caps 4-2 — Sat, 15 Jan 2011 03:06:52 +0000

[...] you think Wednesday’s shutout loss to the Lightning was the nadir of the Washington Capitals’ season? Or maybe it was the 7-0 loss to the [...]

By: Peter Hassett

Peter Hassett — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 03:56:22 +0000

@NorthernBoy

Haha. Everyone needs an editor is what I always say.

I get the feeling Ovi pulls the “put me in coach” move a lot, and BB trusts him even if he shouldn’t. But ultimately it’s Bruce’s call who plays and who doesn’t. Everyone is eager to play, but BB should know by now that giving OVechkin oodles of ice time isn’t making progress.

By: Northern Boy

Northern Boy — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 02:30:40 +0000

Sorry, I meant to say that if your best players aren’t your best leaders then your in trouble.

By: Northern Boy

Northern Boy — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 02:24:13 +0000

Agree with Green Guy. Looks like Ovi showed up at camp with 5-10 extra pounds of non-muscle. Here’s a telling stat. Look at the top 30 scorers in the NHL. Ovi is the only player averaging more than a minute per shift. He stays on the ice way too long. THAT’S SELFISHNESS. If you’re best players aren’t you’re best players then you’re in trouble. I suspect Boudreau knows this. Put Crosby in his place and the Caps already have a Cup in their place. And it’s not because Crosby’s more talented.

By: Bucky Katt

Bucky Katt — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 01:02:14 +0000

NHL Observer sez: “My concern is that the team is mailing the regular season in, and they won’t be ready for the playoffs. They’ll simply get rolled over in the first round and get their coaching staff fired. This team lacks consistancy and heart and it has for a while. Too many bad first periods. Too many blown leads in the third period, and then there was the forgettable December. There are a lot of Caps who will do “a lot” to win. I don’t see any Caps who will do “anything” to win.”

BINGO! Spot on.

By: Colin

Colin — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 00:21:48 +0000

@Lefty – Yes, Hadeed apparently pays them for a certain number of team “accidents” and without Sasha Minor in the lineup, everyone else needs to step up and into the box to meet the quota.

By: BobbyG

BobbyG — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 23:33:26 +0000

“The Caps didn’t even try.”
“I don’t get it.”

That pretty much summarizes last night’s game and my response to it. How and why the Caps couldn’t be motivated to play for the top spot in their division is incomprehensible and totally unacceptable.

I can’t add much more to the excellent posts before mine, except to single out a few with especially insightful observations:
—@Peter: your take on the importance of the regular season to establish good habits, especially the will to win is spot on correct
—@sonja: you and I are wondering about the same things: where has the Caps “team” gone, is there a power struggle with the coach, is thereand internal strife between the Hershey/non-Hershey players?
—@Bucky Katt: YES YES YES! It isn’t the losing that bothers me so much, it’s how the Caps lose. Lackadaisical, non-chalant, lazy play just won’t cut it if the Caps expect to go far in the playoffs. Correction: if the Caps hope the MAKE it to the playoffs.
@NHL Observer: you rightfully singled out two of the worst Achilles heels on the Caps, which goes back to what Peter said about the importance of the regular season to establish good habits. The Caps seem unable, or unwilling, to control the puck and go to the net. And if these shortcomings aren’t resolved, well, even Howard Beale won’t be able to save them and us Caps fans for what will follow.

@Betsy and/or Nyutik: what is BSG that would be preferable to watch? I might have to try it if the Caps continue playing like they did last night.

By: Lefty

Lefty — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 21:34:47 +0000

Good posts by everyone, but I’m wondering why only one touched on something that has been bothering me for awhile. The stupid penalties. Here we haven’t had Semin on the ice for a few games and the rest of the team has stepped up to fill his stupid penalty void. There are multiple reasons the CAPS aren’t playing well and I just hope the coaches and the players get it figured out and fixed. I don’t want to be watching playoff hockey in a few months with no CAP team in it.

By: NHL Observer

NHL Observer — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 20:11:29 +0000

I’ve heard a lot of interesting theories about the Caps problems this year, but it comes down to two serious issues.

1) They are atrocious when handling the puck. They are in the top 10 in the league for giveaways and it doesn’t matter who is doing it, but the problem is magnified when they cough up the puck in their own end or fail to clear the zone. I can’t be the only person who sees this. Backstrom, Ovechkin, Semin and Green keep making the same poor plays with the puck and they keep getting stripped and the next thing that happens is an odd-man rush the other way.

2) They simply won’t drive to the net. The Power Play and the lack of scoring at even strength comes down to a lack of driving to the net and jumping on rebounds. The Caps are great at hitting goaltenders in the logo. It’s frustrating to watch the team put itself in a position night after night, where there could be scoring chances, if they would keep the puck on the ice and generate rebounds to cash in.

There’s a difference between working hard and working smart. Brooks Laich got offended the other day, when someone suggested in an interview that the Caps maybe weren’t working as hard as they should. Well, the truth is, the mental mistakes (giveaways, bad penalties, poor passing) outweigh the improvements on defense (shot blocking and clearing the slot). The boys may be working hard, but they are playing like they don’t care much right now, and they don’t care where they finish, as long as they make the playoffs, because that’s when things matter. Well, you can’t turn good play and bad play on and off like a light switch.

I really like Bruce Boudreau, and he’s actually made some important adjustments to the team’s style of play that COULD pay dividends, but only if they work at both ends of the ice. My concern is that the team is mailing the regular season in, and they won’t be ready for the playoffs. They’ll simply get rolled over in the first round and get their coaching staff fired. This team lacks consistancy and heart and it has for a while. Too many bad first periods. Too many blown leads in the third period, and then there was the forgettable December. There are a lot of Caps who will do “a lot” to win. I don’t see any Caps who will do “anything” to win.

By: J.P.

J.P. — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 19:36:51 +0000

Thank God Bruce reshuffled that PP line-up like he was hinting at, eh? Dividends and pennies from heaven all over the place from that move! Wait, what??

(sigh) I used to think that most of the criticism of BB was unjustified, but his inability or unwillingness to make changes is starting to make me rethink my stance on that. Yeah, he implemented some sort of trap defense that may or may not be working – time will tell – but when you look at how bad the PP has been, and it’s been pretty awful since LAST YEAR, and you realize that almost nothing has been done about it, well, you start to think that maybe that BB’s level of stubborness/wishful thinking/ incessant commercial making(snarkshot!)… is hindering our once-feared PP and ultimately taking points off the board. Blow the damn thing up and see what happens! Changes and adjustments are part and parcel of every sport. It makes no sense to keep staying the course when the course keeps punching ya right in the mouth, almost like it’s trying to tell ya somethin’…