Doug Johnson, Puck Buddy, files your pregame report. Tweet.

The PreGame: On Wednesday night, we saw flashes of brilliance. Perhaps our squad has turned the corner. We finally figured out the PP. And yet, for the past four weeks, we’ve seen things we haven’t wanted to see. Ugly things. Things we’ve flinched from; things we’ve shielded our juvenile eyes away from. Things a pure heart shouldn’t see: the last gasping moments of the Boudreau era. We think it’s time to banish what was… for what is now.

There comes a moment when we own our time. Tonight we declare: an end to what was.

[Call the Spirits! North, South... East and West...Harken to me now! Hear us!]

Bruce – Juggles – is passed.  And now, like a veil lifted from our eyes, we see again our gallant Capitals squad. God Save the King! We will love you always Coach, but you are now past us. Be well, and fear the Caps.

• We see our Everywhere utility player Nick Backstrom, the hardest working man in the ice-business. We see our Terrier tenacious Jeff Halpern making goals and making them for others; the true test of loyalty. We see our Captain (Mon Capitan) working the first few games more like a team leader than a leader of the team. We see Carlson stepping into unusual shoes. We see Troy Brower, trying with all his might – though we might need just a little more try. And we see ChimmeROAR, gilt in armor and triumphant on the field of battle. We see you all…
• All of you: you, Papa Knubs, Viking Laich, Czechtastic Neuvirth and Voukon, Hero Ward, Heartthrob Mojo, Flow Perreault, Alzner. Eakin…all of you, you are hereby freed!

With this spell, We free our Washington Capitals from all hexes! We banish your curse in the name of Dale Hunter! We banish your curse in the name of Rod Langway! We banish your curse in the name of Olaf Kölzig! In the holy name of Craig Laughlin, you are released to be your true selves! C-A-P-S CAPS CAPS CAPS!

The Puck Drop

So yeah, we figured we’ll start with a pagan invocation. Heck, I’ve been a participant in multiple ceremonies, and I can promise the only thing you’re likely to experience is mosquito bites. Still: we are invoking the great spirits. Don’t let your sensitive children look, or let those who have a brain in their head read on, as everything that follows is just words.

What Makes Them Hot

Matt Frattin

1: Kessel Run: At 33 Points (theirs) vs. 29 (ours), Toronto has a serious leaf/lead on us. More than that; the goal numbers say it: the Make-Beliefs have earned 86 Goals for vs. 90 Goals against; the Caps, meanwhile logged a mediocre 83 Goal for vs. 87 Goals for – a near draw with what should be a middling team. But…

2: Kessel Again:We noted earlier the talents of Ron Wilson’s squad.  Ugh. UGH. Phil Kessel is logging so far a 17G 18A plus-1, which feels unholy, if you ask us. A look at his previous five games suggests he’s not one to be contained. Other teams have tried to stop him up to no avail. The solution: don’t stop him up, run him into the boards. Run that bastard! Our advice: Someone Take That Kessel Run!

3: First up Front: Recent Leafs play suggests they come out stronger early than later. Look at Clarkson & Frattson.

What Makes Them Not

1: Road Win. So Coach Hero Hunter has had two wins – one on the road and one at home. There’s nothing that adds to a non-streak like another win. Coach Hunter: we think your team is paying attention. We think you’re working in exactly the right way. And we think Friday is going to be the third W in your NHL cloth.

Luke Schenn

2: Ovie Uber Alles: Every bone of me hates using German – sorry, we remember still what you did to us. Yet, Ovie Wednesday night somehow svengalied the refs, what with his punches to the opponent’s yambags and all, and skated clear. Sasha – our dear Sasha – has been the target of late of priapic refs, smearing him with flopping penalties. But Lo!, has our Sasha-Bear received penalties of late? Nay… or at least, less-nay. We seem to be seeing a return of Alex Ovechkin the Monster maker.  We hope he carries his close associates with him.

The OT

This is simple. Our blessing is upon you. The Capitals shall win, because they know they will.

The Pre-Game: Oh Lordy, we hate being right. Especially if it involves Canada. Not as in: their single-payer health care system is far more efficient than our insurance company-laden poop pie. More like: there’s no more dangerous team than an underestimated one with shelves of talent and an insane fan base. (Either way, it’s a poop pie, frankly.)

So here we are, game 3 of 3 of the road trip, landing us square in Squaresville: Toronto. (Wagging finger in old maid mode:) We warned you about those teams! We cautioned against squads whose numbers didn’t quite look right, yet had piles of skill ready to dump on the ice! What, you didn’t listen? You think you know better? Are you listening to me?

Uh, no, chances are, you’re not. At least not based on the last few Caps’ book in Vegas. We think that changes Saturday.

The Puck Drop

Rumor was, long ago, there was a rainbow in Toronto, and a pot of gold at Yonge Street. Of course, that’s before the city ripped it all up, replacing the record stores and adult theaters with Benettons and Timmy Hos. Progress.

Brian Burke

But they still have maple donuts, the CN Tower, and the Maple Leafs, led by none other than Brian Burke. Dare: go look up “truculence” online right now, and tell me that you don’t get a reference to Brian Burke. Look, we love coach Juggles; but head-t0-head against Brian Burke? We know how that comes out, and it’s got the bacony-stink of Canada all over it.

For years the Make Beliefs were a joke just somewhat above the Senators. Or below, depending on the season. But welcome to 2011, where the Toronto Maple Leafs are among the best teams in the league (10-6). Other than the furrowed brow of Burke, what brought the Leafs to this point?

What Makes Them Hot

Phil Kessel

1: What We Expected: Phil Kessel. We’ve been dealing with this gnat for years, and unfortunately he’s not fading. With a monster 25 points (13 G, 12 A), you might think he’s the cudgel the Leafs draw out whenever it’s not working for them. In truth Kessel isn’t a bludgeon; he’s a game-maker. As in: he has a history of edging the Leafs out of a draw, moving them into a winning position. He’s one of those guys you hate, consistently moving his squad from tie to W. We expect no different Saturday.

Joffrey Lupul

2: What We Didn’t: Joffrey Lupul is a square-headed, 28-year-old sausage from Alberta – meaning nobody from nowhere. Yet he’s proving this season he can play with the big boys (which, at 206, he qualifies for.) He’s 11th in the league for goals, and 10th for overall points, which means while Kessel can’t dig the Leafs out of a hole, Lupul likely can. And to top it off, he’s smokin. We hate you Joffrey Lupul. Please call us.

3: Toronto Heat: You ever take a look at the Leafs bench? What is that, “Twilight” stand-ins? OhMyGod, we love our Caps but if you’re just trawling around the web – not like we ever do that – looking for studly hockey players, go no further than Toronto. And they’re good payers, so just relax. We realize this makes some of you uncomfortable (or at least, you say it does) and it has nothing to do with play on the ice. But remember: we called the last two games, and we’re just a couple sissyboys, so give credit where it’s due.

4: We Miss You Stecks! Sure, he may have waffled on Brad’s diss on Sasha, but…we still love you!

What Makes Them Not:

1: It’s Not You, It’s Me: The Capitals fairly leaped off the bench at the start of the season, but seem to be hitting a slow patch. Nicky’s performing better than last year, but Green’s absence has hurt the team, and Vokoun – always a slow starter – is proving unusually slow. Slouches always happen, but ours of late seem to be concentrated on the road. Also, we’re still a better come-from-behind team, which means you need your clutch players like Wideman, Ward, Knuble and others in a pinch. We’d rather see less white-knuckling.

Ben Scrivens

2: Options Open: Burke’s been fairly clear: he’s not spectacularly happy with his netminders. Jonas Gustavsson and Ben Scrivens have both been a disappointment this year, and, despite his age, James Reimer is basically a rookie – and by his numbers, always will be (.912 Sv% 2.58 GAA). Do the Leafs need better goal-tending? Obviously. Is Burke looking around for just that? Apparently. But no-one at this point wants to talk about the obvious: these guys have to go if the Leafs are going to move forward.

 3: Who’s Your Daddy? This might be shocking for Washington audiences, but do you know who owns the Maple Leafs? No, not a billionaire nor an investment house conglomerate. It’s the Ontario Teacher’s Pension Plan. Serious. They own a significant majority in the team enterprise, but now a new group (possibly lead by The Great One) wants ownership. Nothing like success to bring out the weasels. And nothing like corporate bullies to ruin a good team. Redskins, anyone?

Predition: Caps 4, Leafs 2.

Four on Four OT

Jeff Halpern

So OK, we sorta knew this already, but we’re just going to ask it for giggles. When did Jeff Halpern get so blazing hot? Perhalpy about 10 years ago, when character starts to bleed into a man’s face. Or maybe he was just born with it. Maybe it’s fatherhood. Whatever: Halpy looks you in the eye – whether you’re a dork hockey fan or a Hadeed carpet commercial camera or, we imagine, an opponent. He’s been bloody good this year, taking and making hits, setting up draws when he can, or just out-maneuvering the other team. We’ll just stick with bloody good.

The Shoot Out

We’ve heard through various channels that some of you, specifically a small, vocal subsection, have taken hurt at some of our jibes in our previews. We understand words can hurt. It’s never our intention to lacerate; merely jest. However, if some of our words have cut, remember that words can heal, too. We apologize. Now grow a pair and get on with it.

Photo credit: Orange County Register

Teemu Selanne is one of the greatest hockey players ever to lace up skates. His 642 career goals rank him in 12th place of all time. He’s led the league in goal-scoring three times during his career, and he won the Stanley Cup with the Anaheim Ducks in 2007.

Put simply, the man knows how to score goals and win games. So when Teemu started talking about Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin with Alisa Volbidaht of Sovetsky Sport, we paid attention.

During the long Q/A, the Finnish Flash gives his opinion on Ovi’s recent “benching,” what the Great Eight needs to do to regain his scoring touch of years’ past, and who he thinks will win the Rocket Richard trophy.

The interview, published in Wednesday’s issue of the Sovetsky Sport newspaper, is translated below by RMNB’s Fedor Fedin.

Selanne’s Comments On Ovechkin

Alisa Volbidaht: You recently played against Alexander Ovechkin. Many Russian fans think our best forward is degrading. He’s predictable, he only has one move. Do you agree?

Teemu Selanne: Ovechkin’s play, of course, still has fire in it. Everybody wants to stop him. He has some tough nights. Well, in every game he’s getting defended very tightly. If you give him freedom, he’ll use it. What’s happening right now with Ovi is not a big deal. He just needs a breakthrough. Find a way to get open and score. He needs to change something in his game. I’m not worried for him. Ovi is a great forward. Great players know how to get the job done.

Alisa Volbidaht: What’s your advice for him?

Teemu Selanne: Relax and enjoy!

Alisa Volbidaht: Ovechkin in a game against the Ducks was so relaxed that he swore at Coach Boudreau, who benched him late in the game.

Teemu Selanne: Emotions are always high. Especially when the game isn’t coming to you. But those are just words. It happens in hockey. The words are forgotten, the deeds are remembered.

Alisa Volbidaht: Was Bruce Boudreau right in benching him?

Teemu Selanne: I don’t know what was going on between them. I simply believe that the best players need to be the best, and they need to be on the ice during critical moments. I was shocked when I didn’t see Ovechkin. But that’s none of my business.

Alisa Volbidaht: Have you ever had a conflict with a coach?

Teemu Selanne: No. Sometimes I express my opinion. Sometimes they disagree. That’s it.

The Rest of the Article

Teemu Selanne: When I give interviews to the Russian media, I first of all thank my coach Boris Mayorov, who worked with me during the early 90′s in Jokerit. I immensely respect him. He taught me a lot.

Alisa Volbidaht: Mayorov now contributes to our newspaper.

Teemu Selanne: You’re lucky. He played a big role in my successful NHL debut. Mayorov is very smart, especially in hockey theory. He knows the game well and helps young players reach their potential. He told me not to go to the NHL too young. I went to Winnipeg only at the age of 22.

Alisa Volbidaht: Boris Alexandrovich [Mayorov] said that you have a big collection of cars.

Teemu Selanne: I only have 20 left. My fleet is disappearing!

Teemu Selanne, Selanne’s Maybach and Cam Fowler.

Alisa Volbidaht: If SKA offers you a contract, which car will you drive from Helsinki to Saint Petersburg?

Teemu Selanne: I’ll probably drive my Maybach.

Alisa Volbidaht: So is this a deal? I’m calling St. Petersburg!

Teemu Selanne: I didn’t say I’ll sign a contract! I’m too old to play in Russia. Maybe I’d think about doing that earlier in my career. But now – no for sure. It’s difficult to go around the world with four kids. My sons like Anaheim.

Alisa Volbidaht: Have you ever been to Russia?

Teemu Selanne: I have only played in Moscow. I liked your capital city very much. It reminds me of New York City.

Alisa Volbidaht: Do you know any Russian words?

Teemu Selanne: All the bad words.

Alisa Volbidaht: Any good ones?

Teemu Selanne: Dobry vecher ["Good evening"], S Novym godom ["Happy New year"],  Krasivye glaza ["Beautiful eyes"]. Alexey Zahmnov taught me Russian. We were roomates playing for Winnipeg. I learned the unprintable words from him as well.

Alisa Volbidaht: In Anaheim, Ruslan Salei, who died in the Yaroslavl tragedy, was your teammate.

Teemu Selanne: Oh… That was one of the most sad days in my life when I found out Salei was actually on that plane. There were rumors that Ruslan was not on board the Yak-42, that he went to Minsk earlier. But… Salei was a great guy. We played together a lot. Simply… a heartbreaking tragedy. Life is often unfair.

Alisa Volbidaht: Have you had any flight incidents?

Teemu Selanne: God has blessed me. [Teemu knocks on wood]. Flights are not one of my favorite ways to spend some time. It is probably the worst part of sports.

Alisa Volbidaht: You have five goals and 14 points in 14 games. You’re one of the NHL’s leading scorers again. How do you feel?

Teemu Selanne: It’s cool. The older I get, the more fun I have playing. Don’t take this game against the Rangers into account. We had almost no energy. But I really enjoy playing hockey.

Alisa Volbidaht: Jaromir Jagr is shining in Philadelphia. He’s 39. He’s scored 15 points, and tallied six goals in 14 games.

Teemu Selanne: Oh, Jaromir! My good friend and a great player. I’m very glad that the old guys can still keep up with the youngsters.

Alisa Volbidaht: Do you have enough in tank to have a whole year of that?

Teemu Selanne: Sure! The key is to believe it!

Alisa Volbidaht: We do. Right now you’re beating Perry and Ovi in the scoring race.

Teemu Selanne: Goals and points come if you play well. They are not that important by themselves. The main thing is team wins.

Alisa Volbidaht: Who will be the NHL’s top scorer this year?

Teemu Selanne: Interesting question… Many guys can. We talked about Ovechkin – he gets better with every single game. Toronto’s Phil Kessel has played great. I don’t think there is one player who is going be much better than the others. Let’s wait for the surprises.

Alisa Volbidaht: Maybe even Selanne?

Teemu Selanne: Anything can happen [winks].

Additional reporting by Ian Oland.

Anze Kopitar celebrates a goal last year against the Blackhawks. (Photo credit: Harry How)

Editor’s note: You can win a 1-year subscription to ESPN Insider and a $25 gift certificate to Front Page VA by guessing Neil’s first two draft picks tonight. Check out the details on our Facebook page.

As part of ESPN.com’s NHL family, I was invited to participate in their fantasy hockey draft this past Tuesday. Just me and guys like Craig Custance, John Buccigross, and Scott Cullen.

No pressure.

Victoria Matiash has already given a bird’s eye view of the draft, but I thought I would run through my thought process on various picks and give you some ideas for your fantasy draft. Plus, you can see how I do for the season because we are making the results public.

Here were the ground rules for the draft:

Participants included, in original order, Craig Custance, Tristan Cockcroft, Tim Kavanagh, John Buccigross, Pierre Becquey, Michael Hume, Victoria Matiash, Neil Greenberg, Sean Allen and Scott Cullen. Categories include goals, assists, power-play points, plus/minus, penalty minutes, shots on goal and average time on ice for skaters and wins, save percentage and goals-against average for goaltenders. Slots to fill include nine forwards, five defensemen, one “utility” skater, two goaltenders and a five-man bench.

My philosophy was simple: grab young, healthy, talented players with upside. Let others worry if Patrick Kane would be healthy or if Sergei Kostitsyn can once again score 20 goals on less than 100 shots.

I had the eight pick. With my editor Mike Hume drafting before me (he knows which players I fancy) and Cullen having back-to-back picks behind me I knew I had to make strategic decisions.

Not surprisingly, Alex Ovechkin, Steven Stamkos, and Daniel Sedin went in the first three picks. Hume knows I think Corey Perry was no fluke, so the chances of him dropping to me were nil. That left me with Anze Kopitar (who I think will contend for the Art Ross) or Henrik Lundqvist as my first pick. Luckily for me, I got both of them.

My third choice was also an easy one: Duncan Keith. His boxcar stats may have fallen, but he is as fundamentally sound as he has ever been, and he remains my preseason favorite for another Norris-caliber performance.

My next pick caused some raised eyebrows:

Also noteworthy was Greenberg’s choice of Jeff Skinner ahead of Eric Staal. Ranked higher in ESPN.com’s projections, the captain of the Carolina Hurricanes is expected to put up superior numbers across the board. But obviously, Greenberg preferred to put his fantasy faith in the reigning Calder Trophy winner.

Fantasy hockey is about looking forward. While there is no doubt Eric Staal is a 70-point player, Jeff Skinner is (conservatively) a 60-point player who could put up over 70 points next year. So I got a player who may put up five points less or 10-15 points more than Eric Staal. In a rotisserie league with hockey geniuses it was worth the gamble, in my opinion.

I struggled with my fifth pick a little. I had Phil Kessel, John Tavares, and Loui Eriksson queued up but pulled the trigger on Kessel, thinking that one or both of the others would be there for me on my next picks.

I was right about Loui Eriksson, who I took with my sixth pick, but not Tavares, who went three picks before me in round seven.

With Tavares and Matt Duchene off the board, both of whom I think can post 30 goals in 2011-12, I decided to shore up my goaltending and took Jimmy Howard.

A quick note on goaltenders: I only considered drafting Henrik Lundqvist, Pekka Rinne, Cam Ward, Jimmy Howard, or Corey Crawford. Why? Too long to explain here, but I did some analysis on when goaltenders have their breakout season based on age and experience and these five fit the bill. I did the same thing last year and had only two goaltenders on my list: Pekka Rinne and Cam Ward.

In round eight I took Joe Pavelski, which was a solid pick there and then my first miscalculation of the draft came at the hands of Scott Cullen.

I feel Jamie Benn is this year’s sleeper. I think he has 30-goal potential and could end up surprising many people. With my ninth pick I took Evander Kane, thinking Benn would slip past another four picks. Nope.

Cullen: “I’ve been touting Jamie Benn going back to the second half of last year, when his ice time went up dramatically; he’s been my preferred pick as a breakthrough/sleeper forward since. So, by the ninth round, when I had already addressed all my positions to some degree, it felt right to take a young player that has a chance at 70 points. “

If you have a chance to pick up Benn in your league, do it.

Right now. I’ll wait.

It will be him and Eriksson that pick up the slack left by Brad Richard’s departure, not Michael Ryder. In the draft room Hume asked how many of Benn’s goals the last two years came via a Brad Richards primary assist. One. And Richards had only one secondary assist the year before that. Benn is the real deal.

I took Alex Pietrangelo after I misjudged the “sleepiness” of Benn. The D corps looked to be thinning after Dion Phaneuf and James Wisniewski were taken off the board, so I grabbed Pietrangelo. “Good for 45 points, I think he’s a solid fantasy pick.”

Next picks were unremarkable, but ones I believe have some big upside: Erik Karlsson, Tyler Ennis, Patric Hornqvist, Tyler Kennedy, Mikael Backlund, Patrik Berglund, Jakub Voracek and Nathan Gerbe.

I did have two moments of weakness where I got homesick and drafted Dennis Wideman (15th round) and Brooks Laich (20th round).

So there you have it. Be sure to check out how I am doing from time to time. Also, if you would have drafted differently or just want to comment on the draft in general, let us know in the comments.

Neuvy celebrates with his teammates after coming up victorious in the shootout. (Photo credit: Graig Abel)

What can’t Knuble do? (Photo credit: Graig Abel)

In their first game of the final back-to-back of the season, the Capitals found themselves in Air Canada Centre to face the surging Toronto Maple Leafs. Since the All-Star break, the Leafs have gone a ridiculous and improbable 18-7-5, riding mid-season call-up James Reimer’s (Oops, sorry!) Optimus Reim‘s incredible goaltending back into playoff contention.

Unfortunately for the Leafs, their chances of still making the playoffs were about as likely as Jason Chimera having a 50 goal season: less than one percent. To stave off mathematical elimination for one more night, they had to have either a regulation or overtime win against DC and a loss from Buffalo.

“They have to have every point,” winger Brooks Laich explained to the media after the Capitals pre-game skate. “They have to have every point in regulation the next three games and then hope for the best. This is an elimination game for the Leafs and they’re going to show us their absolute best.

Toronto certainly came out hard, as Nikolai Kulemin tallied the game’s first goal — his 30th of the year — 5:37 into the first period on the power play. After the Leafs brought the puck up the ice with speed, Kulemin cut to the middle of the circles, used Karl Alzner and John Erskine as a screen and flicked a wrist-shot past a helpless Michal Neuvirth. Alex Ovechkin responded 6:49 later with his 300th career goal, blasting a power-play one-timer from inside the left circle past an overpowered Reimer.

Joffrey Lupul regained the Leafs lead in the second period, slipping past Jeff Schultz on a two on two rush and knocking home a brilliant pass from everyone’s favorite last pick in the All-Star Fantasy Draft, Phil Kessel. John Erskine — yes, John Erskine — then answered Lupul’s tally midway through the period, misfiring on a thigh-high shot from the point by nearly five feet. Lucky for Big John, it ricocheted off of Luke Schenn’s rump and into the back of the net. 2-2.

That score held up until the end of regulation. But by then, the Leafs playoff hopes had been dashed as Buffalo defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning, 4-2. The Sabres victory also ironically clinched the Capitals fourth straight Southeast Division crown.

Neither team managed to score in overtime or the first three rounds of the shootout. So Bruce Boudreau turned to 38-year old Mike Knuble in the bottom of the fourth.

“I was going down the list oldest to youngest and I had Arnott up and then I looked down, I said, ‘Knuble’s older,’ so I went with him,” Boudreau explained. “There’s no science or anything involved in that tonight.”

Kanoobs went on to beat Reimer high and glove side, prompting a raucous celebration at their end of the ice with Neuvy. Caps beat Leafs, 3-2 (SO)!!

• With tonight’s win and Philadelphia’s loss, the Capitals moved into sole possession of first place in the Eastern Conference. If the playoffs started today, the Capitals would be matched up against the New York Rangers in the first round.
• In their last nine games that have gone to overtime, the Capitals have a record of 8-0-1.
• For those who missed it earlier today, Alex Semin did not travel with the team and stayed at home in Washington to rest an unspecified (wrist, wrist, wrist) injury. Via Katie Carrera: “He could play if we wanted him to play today,” Boudreau said. “I hope he’s back tomorrow but if he’s not…. hopefully it will be Saturday. If it’s not, then hopefully it will be the first game of the playoffs.” Coincidentally, the Capitals were not whistled for any stick infractions during the game.
• Rogers Sportsnet revealed during their telecast that Toronto was willing to pull their goalie in the final minutes of overtime because Buffalo held a tie-breaker over them, making a shootout victory worthless. Had there been an empty net goal in OT, it would have been only the fourth time in the modern era (1968 – 2011) that it’s happened. #fancystats
• While the Capitals held a 41-21 advantage in shots, the teams were almost even in regards to scoring chances, with Washington out-chancing Toronto, 22-17.
• The Capitals accrued five chances on the power play tonight, the most they’ve racheted up in a game since they blew out Edmonton 5-0 on March 10th (eight chances, two power play goals).
• Alex Ovechkin‘s 300th career goal was nice. But I was more impressed by the tenaciousness he exhibited throughout the entire game and how hard he competed. Ovi went through three sticks in the first period alone, broke Tyler Bozak’s ankles (figuratively speaking) with a move in the offensive zone and attempted a mind-bending 17 shots over the course of the entire game. Ovechkin also had his customary four hits. The only troubling number I saw in the final box score was Ovechkin’s TOI stat. The Russian Machine played the most minutes of all Capitals fowards (23:36).
• Ovechkin now has 23 goals in 23 career games against the Leafs.
• Despite being the most ineffective defenseman on the ice and looking like like he was skating in mud, Jeff Schultz logged heavy minutes, receiving 26 plus minutes from Bruce Boudreau. Sarge was cleanly beaten to the net by Toronto players on three different occassions, one of which led directly to Joffrey Lupul’s second period goal. If we examine his scoring chances numbers, Mr. Nasty’s awful night is even more evident. Schultz was on the ice for nine chances against — or almost half of Toronto’s chances on the night.
• Nicklas Backstrom was nine of 22 in the faceoff dot (41%) and finished a minus-one on the night. Backstrom has also gone 19 straight scoring chances without a goal. So basically, he’s due.
• Brooks Laich, Jason Chimera and Jason Arnott were each on the ice for only one even strength scoring chance apiece. However, Laich was on the ice for all five power play chances the Capitals generated and also drew a powerplay by himself after going hard to the net in the second period.
• Eric Fehr, Marcus Johansson and Marco Sturm were each on the ice for nine scoring chances for.
• The Leafs’ James Reimer was the hard luck loser tonight. He had several ten belle stops, most notably his diving two-armed save on Marcus Johansson from point-blank range.

• Okay, now I’m starting to see what Leafs fans are getting so excited about. Reimer, who is in the top five of all NHL goalies with 20 wins since the All-Star Break, also has some pretty sweet nicknames such as The Reiminister of Defense. My favorite? The statue. I’ll let Wikipedia explain: “[This nickname] resulted from head coach Wilson’s attempts to suppress the hype around the rookie goalie only a short time into his NHL career, saying “There’s all this [attention] around here, a guy wins a game and we’re ready to build a statue for him.” Awesome.
• Finally, one worrisome stat heading into the playoffs? The Capitals have given up a powerplay goal to their opponents in three of their last four games.

Joe B Suit of the Night

Tonight, the Capitals played an opponent who was in playoffs mode for 59:10 of the game. Tomorrow, they will face a team who was eliminated from the the big dance several weeks ago and has nothing to play for except for pride. If the Capitals can somehow win out Wednesday and Saturday against the Panthers, they will be the Eastern Conference’s number one seed, something that six weeks ago seemed very unlikely. Oh, the wonders of net crashing and a dedication to defense!

See you back here tomorrow night!

Additional reporting by Neil Greenberg.