Showing posts with label Bruce Boudreau. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Bruce Boudreau. Show all posts

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Hats Off To Semin! Caps Win 6th Straight, Zap Bolts: Capitals 6-3 Lightning

The Washington Capitals did exactly what they needed to do last night, win a divisional game in regulation. This was the Caps 6th straight victory and they have propelled themselves to the top of the Southeast Division, and the NHL with a 12-4-0 record, and now lead the Southeast division by 6 points, and the NHL by just 2.

As usual, the Capitals came out with a somewhat off first period, appearing to yield the edge in play to the Lightning, and once again allowing the opposing team to score first. It is becoming such a regular occurrence, that it almost appears to be built into their game plan: come out flat, give up the first goal or two, let the other team get a little comfortable, then lower the boom. I'm still not sold on this though, especially against such a potent team as the Tampa Bay Lightning with Rocket Richard winning, and current NHL goal scoring leader Steven Stamkos. Last night, this game could have easily been been two or 3-0 in the Bolts favor in the first period had it not been for Michael Neuvirth's best friends, the goal posts. Neuvirth did have a hand in it as well though, stopping 38 shots last night. This was the first of 6 games between the two teams this season, in what is sure to become a heated battle for the division title this year, and for years to come as both clubs are continuing to improve while the rest of the division remains average or below.

Photo by Clyde Caplan, clydeorama.com
The big story from Verizon Center last night however was not Stamkos, or even Alex Ovechkin, it was once again Alexander Semin who turned in his 5th career hat trick, 2nd in 9 games, and scored 5 points on the night, good for earning the NHL's #1 star for the night. 4 of his 5 hat tricks have come against Southeast Division teams. Semin is scoring at a torrid pace and is now with 7 goals, 6 assists in his last 6 games, and is in second place for the Richard trophy so far this season behind only Stamkos with 12 goals, 9 assists, for 21 points. Stamkos has 14 goals, and 26 points. Here are all 3 of Semin's goals.



photo: Nick Wass /AP
However the show was not to begin for the Caps until the second period, as Washington was shut out for the first 20 minutes of play last night. The Caps came out in the second with what appeared to be quite a bit more energy, and finally started to push back, get some chances, and dominate the play in stretches. As has been often the case the Caps also got some offence from the defence last night as well. Defencemen Tom Poti in his first game back from a long 11 game injury hiatus opened the scoring with nice backhand shot on a rebound from a shot Alex Semin from the opposite side. Mike Knuble got the Caps second tally with a great effort while standing virtually BEHIND the Bolts net. The Caps came down the ice on a 2 on 4, and somehow Brooks Laich ended up in front of the Tampa net almost alone. Steven Stamkos bothered Laich enough that he did not get a full shot off and it slithered just wide of a half empty net, but somehow, Knuble while moving from side to side behind the the goal line, and net, AND, being bothered by Pavel Kubina, got his stick on it and got it to go in the net.




photo: Nick Wass /AP
However it was the big 3 that really racked up the points last night combining for 12 total, with Semin's 5 points, Backstorm's 4, and Ovechkin's 3.The third period was the Caps, and Alexander Semins show. Semin got all 3 of his goals in the final frame, and it was 3/4ths of the Caps output for the period.  To the Lightning's credit, they never fully folded, coming back to tie the game twice. The caps were also good on the special teams again last night allowing only 1 power play goal in 5 Lightning chances, while scoring 1 power play goal themselves in the two chances they were given. The Caps improved power play is now ranked 7th in the NHL, while the PK has moved up to 12th.  Also of note last night was Tampa Bay's Vincent Lecavalier, who did not return to the game for the third period and was a non factor in last nights game. It was announced after the game that Lecavalier had suffered a non displaced fracture in his right hand, and will be sidelined for 3-4 weeks. As usual, here is Bruce Boudreau's post game presser:



Hopefully all of this can continue for the Caps over what is going to be a busy weekend for them when they come up against two lesser teams. First up is the struggling Buffalo Sabres in Buffalo on Saturday night who have not won a game on their home ice yet this season, then its back home to Verizon Center for another Southeast Division tilt against the third place Atlanta Thrashers Sunday afternoon. The Caps play the Sabres twice in the next 5 days. With the way the Caps are playing of late, there really is no reason this winning streak cannot extend to 9 games, however the Caps must be ready, especially for Buffalo as they are likely going to be hungry to give the hometown crowd its first taste of victory at HSBC Arena.

Saturday, November 6, 2010

Meltdown Avoided, Third Time's The Charm: Caps 5 - 3 Bruins

Photo Credit: Nick Wass / AP
For the most part the Washington Capitals played a very solid game last night. Outplaying the Boston Bruins in the first period, but coming away with nothing to show for it. It seemed like it was going to be another night of frustration for the Caps as they just could not solve Boston goaltender Tim Thomas, even with a two man advantage and outshooting Boston 8-3. The period would come to an end scoreless.  The second period would prove to be  much the same. Washington had the decided edge in play, and in shots, and finally would break the game open, not only scoring first, but scoring 3 goals while keeping Boston off the board all together to take a 3 to 0 lead into the second intermission. The Caps opened the scoring early in the period, scoring just 59 seconds in and would keep the pressure on for the remainder of the period getting goals from Tyler Sloan, Mike Green, and Alexander Semin.  Semin's goal was a particularly brilliant play catching the Boston defence off guard while they were on the power play by breaking up a pass at the Washington line and springing himself and Mike Green for a 2 on 1 break. The two had a nifty give and go exchange deep in the Boston zone and Semin whipped  the return pass from Green past Tim Thomas for the shorthanded goal to make the lead 3-0.


Photo by Clyde Caplan, clydeorama.com
The Caps and their fans were feeling good going into the third period having chased Boston's top man between the pipes in favor of backup goaltender Tuuka Rask. However the 3-0 lead the Caps had built going into the third period would soon disappear and it looked like Washington was on its way to another monumental meltdown. This was the 2nd straight game the Caps would blow a multiple goal lead allowing Boston to score twice on the power play in less than a minute. Caps coach Bruce Boudreau had seen enough and used his time out to attempt to settle things down, but it appeared it was not going to do any good. though as just under 6 minutes later Boston come back to tie the game at 3 all, and chase the Caps NHL Rookie of the month goaltender Michael Neuvirth. This the second straight game that the Caps would allow the opposition to score 3 straight however The Caps 3 goals in the 2nd proved to be enough, where as the previous game against Toronto the lead was only two. Only this time the Caps would have the answer in regulation.  Enter defencemen John Carlson who at 13:25 of the final period would put the Caps back in the lead for good, scoring what would become the game winner with a blast past the Boston backup. Boston decided to lift their goaltender for the final minute and a half or so of the game but could not get much going. Boston became trapped in their own end with defencemen ending up playing goalie but that could not keep the Caps from scoring as Alex Ovechkin would eventually find the empty net at 19:-08, putting the game away for good. The Caps outshot the Bruins a whopping 39 to 18 for the game.  All I have to say is *PHEW*!   A great two first periods all but completely undone in the third by some lazy penalties and possibly some overconfidence, but the Caps were able to pull this one out. The Caps are now 6-1 on home ice, and have finally solved Tim Thomas and beaten the Bruins for the first time in 3 tries. Here are Bruce Boudreau's thoughts after the near meltdown turned win:

Thursday, November 4, 2010

This Time, Inconsistent Caps Find A Way. Caps 5-4 Maple Leafs (SO)

             photo credit: Susan Walsh - AP
The inconsistency that has haunted the Washington Capitals of late again made an appearance at Verizon Center last night. This time however, the Capitals found a way to over come that and came away from their game with the Toronto Maple Leafs with the full 2 standings points. This pulls the Capitals into a tie for the Southeast Division lead with Tampa Bay, and a 3 way tie for the league lead in points in the NHL with Tampa and  the Los Angeles Kings of the Western Conference. The Caps could not put together a solid 60 minutes of good hockey again last night, allowing the opposition to score first for the 9th time in 12 games. They also allowed Toronto to come back from a two goal deficit in the third period to take the lead. The Capitals played fairly well in the first in spite of allowing the early goal, and had a great second period, outscoring their visitors 3-0 and looking like they had this one in hand. The penalty killing also held off 4 Leafs power plays, and the Caps were outshooting the Leafs 20-12 until about the 18:00 mark of the 2nd. But, there was the problem; it was only the second period. The Capitals came out flat in the third, and Toronto took advantage,  exploding for 3 goals in just a 3:03 span to come from down 3-1 at the start of the frame to take a 4-3 lead by the 7:17 mark.

photo credit: Susan Walsh - AP
It looked the another Capitals let down was going to cost them another game, and another 2 points. However the Capitals power play has begun to improve, and that continued last night scoring twice in 3 chances getting two timely goals. The first was Washington's first goal of the game from Mike Green, and the second was just as timely by Alexander Semin at 4:14 of the third period to tie the game up, and ultimately for overtime. At least this time the Caps did not give away a point to a divisional rival. It is worth noting that after being absent for much of the season, the Caps power play seems to have finally found its grove and has now converted on 5 of 8 chances in the last 2 games. We hope that trend continues as the Caps are going to need it to come away from games like tonight's game with the full 2 points. In spite of having the man advantage for 2 of the 5 minutes of the over time period, the Caps could not finish off the Leafs in the extra stanza. What they could not get done in the over time period however, the Caps finished off in the shootout. Michael Neuvirth held off both Toronto shooters, while both Alex Ovechkin and Semin found the twin behind Maple Leafs net minder Jonas Gustavsson to give the Caps the shootout win in front of another sellout crowd at the Phone Booth.  The Capitals also got goals from Jason Chimera and Tomas Fleischmann. While victory is sweet, it will be short lived as the Capitals play host to the Boston Bruins on Friday night. As always, Caps bench boss Bruce Boudreau had plenty of thoughts on last nights performance, so here is his post game presser:

Sunday, October 31, 2010

Sleeping Giant Awakens: Caps Turn Saddledome Into House Of Horrors For Flames: Caps 7-2 Flames

AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Jeff McIntosh
Even after tinkering with the lines and reuniting the the high powered scoring trio of Ovechkin, Backstrom, and Semin, it once again, it looked like it was going to be a long night for the Washington Capitals and us Caps fans late last night. The Caps took on the Calgary Flames in a game that went well past midnight local time and it appeared as if it may not even be worth staying up so late to watch. Again the Caps allowed the first goal to the opposition, another early goal, this time only 44 seconds into the game, and were down 2-0 by the time the game was barely 11 minutes old. In the first period the Caps once again looked sloppy and lazy, and were lucky to find themselves down by only 2-1 by the end of the first period. Michael Neuvirth, as he very often has been, was once again the reason the Capitals still had a chance to win this game. Even though the Caps lone first period goal came from Nicklas Backstrom on the power play, the same old nagging questions kept entering into many peoples minds about the power play, the top line, Ovechkin, what was wrong..etc. They just seemed off. Not like the Capitals we had come to know over the past few seasons, especially last season.

The Caps came out to start the second period, and looked a bit more energized, composed, and skated with more of a purpose in their step. At just 1:54 the Caps would get a another chance to put the power play to work when the Flames took a bad penalty for too many men on the ice. Just 16 seconds later, the Caps would get the opportunity of the night. They finally took full advantage. Alexander Ovechkin exploded for two goals in just 12 seconds to put the Caps in the lead for the night. The Caps went on to explode for a whopping total of 6 goals in the second period, 7 unanswered in the game, effectively ending the game by the time the horn sounded after the first 40 minutes of play leading by a 7-2 margin which would hold to be the final score. Mike Green and Matt Bradley also scored a mere 13 seconds apart at 10:28 and 10:41 to really break the game wide open. Although Bradley's goal was more of a gift, since he actually didn't score the goal. Calgary defencemen Cory Sarich attempted to clear the puck from high in the slot, but in stead whipped a wrist shot into his own net. It was clear at this point that things were coming apart at the seems for the Flames.  The final Caps goal, and goal of the night came at 18:23 of the period with the Caps shorthanded. David Steckel was held, and hauled down on a breakaway by Flames defencemen Mark Giordano. The offcial raised his arm to make the call and after Steckel had slid  on his stomach almost into the goal, pointed to center ice signaling a penalty shot. It was David Steckel's first career penalty shot and he nailed it. All of the sudden, the Caps once again looked like the offencive juggernaut of last season that we all knew and loved. The Caps got goals from:
AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Jeff McIntosh

  • Nicklas Backstrom - 1 goal, 3 assists, 4pts.
  • Alex Ovechkin - 2 goals,  1 assist, 3 pts
  • Mike Green - 1 goal, 2 assists, 3pts
  • Matt Bradley - 1 goal, 1pt
  • Alexander Semin 1 goal, 1pt
  • David Steckel - 1 goal, 1pt

The Caps power play finally seemed to be clicking, scoring on 3 of 6 chances. They just seemed to be doing everything right, where up until the end of the first period last night the seemed to be doing not much of anything right. Perhaps it was that Boudreau opted for a team meeting to show them just how ugly of a game they had in Minnesota, or perhaps he let the team have it in the locker room between periods. Whatever it was, the Caps need to show the NHL more of it this year. This is only the third game this season where the Caps have won by more than one goal, and only the second where the Caps have scored 4 or more. That said, it was a dramatic improvement, and one that we hope will finally continue. The injury riddled Caps will get a much needed and deserved 3 day rest as they are off until next Wednesday night when the finally return home to Verizon Center to take on their second straight Canadian foe, the Toronto Maple Leafs.

For now, I'll leave you with Bruce Boudreau's post game presser for last night:

Monday, May 4, 2009

No Flu For You, On To Game Two. Erskine Possibly Out, Alzner Possibly in?





VS





So I wake up this morning and start my reading and what do I find? Tarik El-Bashir, of Washington Post fame, is reporting on his blog, Capitals Insider, that two top Capitals prospects with the Caps AHL affilate, the Hershey Bears had been held out from last nights Bears playoff game vs the Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins, Pittsburgh's AHL affiliate, due to an "illness". Hmmm... Flu? Worse... swine Flue? Oddly enough the two players in question are defencemen Karl Alzner (left top) and Tyler Sloan. (lower left) They just also happen to be the Bears top D paring. At the same time, we also learned that the Caps had recalled them both to the big club. It gets more interesting by the minute. Something was definitely amiss here. Why would the Caps recall two sick defencemen, and risk getting thier entire roster infected with the secret "illness" that was plaguing the two baby caps? was it worth the risk? Something was definately not right here. As we would later learn, it was all a big cover up. A ploy to throw off both the Bears and the Caps enemies. The baby Caps were never in fact "sick" with anything, and were on the ice practicing this morning at Kettler Capitals Iceplex in Arlington. Tyler Sloan told Bashir...

"I don't know anything right now. We've just been told that it's precautionary in case anything happens. I was going to rink for meetings, then went home for some rest and a nap and got a phone call saying, 'Stay home, you're sick. And your partner caught the flu."
The more menacing thing behind all of this was, why they were called up. As it turns out, they were called up largely as a precautionary measure. However, it is also now clear that John Erskine is "questionable" for tonights game 2 of the Caps Eastern Conference Semifinal series VS the Pittsburgh Penguins. Erskin did take a hard shot to the leg and limpped back to the bench during game one on Saturday. It is being reported that Erskin has some type of leg injury, and may need to rest for a game. The Caps are already without the services of defencemen Jeff Schultz, which has them with 6 healthy defencemen currently available. Capitals coach Bruce Boudreau told Tarik...

"We've only had six healthy defensemen up here and I think we were playing with fire if someone would go down in warm-up. We've got John banged up a little bit. He's going to try it and see if he can go. But we figured we take precautionary measures and call up a couple of guys just in case. If we had to go to one, they both know our systems as well as anyone."

So at least one of the baby Caps may likely get a shot at thier first NHL playoff game tonight against the Penguins. My guess, and hope, is that it will likely be Alzner. Alzner is a highly touted, big, speedy, and agile defencemen, and is considered by many to be the Capitals top prospect at the position. Alzner was drafted by the Caps in the 2007 NHL entry draft, 5th over all, and has had a great career thus far for Hershey. He has also gotten some NHL time under his belt with the Caps as well, appearing in 30 games for them over this past season, scoring 1 goal, getting 4 assists, and taking one penalty. His plus / minus rating was -1.

So that brings us to game 2. The series, and the matchup the whole world has uber hyped up and had been hoping for, Ovechkin vs Crosby, Caps vs Pens, resumes tonight @ 7PM on the Verizon Center ice. The Washington Capitals are looking to take full advantage of thier home ice and extend thier series lead to 2-0. If that is to happen, the Capitals MUST play a better game than they did in game one, where they were outshot, and were often out skated, out hustled, and also made many bad mistakes and givaways. David Steckel was quoted as saying regarding his goal, and the game...
"I think it was a wake-up call. We were getting our [butts] handed to us, pretty much. It was a joke. I don't know if it was because it was an afternoon, [but] we didn't come ready to play."
Pittsburgh is a dangerous team for sure, and it will only be a matter of time before a team that good takes advantage of the Capitals mistakes. Hopefully the Caps have identified where they could have improved from game one, and will take that to heart tonight and get on top of this game early, to stay. If they can do that, and Simeon Varlamov can continue his goaltending heroics, with the Caps getting scoring from all available sources, they should be just fine, and should once again come out on top.

LET'S GO CAPS ! ! !

Wednesday, February 6, 2008

Still No Back To Back Losses Under Boudreau - Capitals 4 | 3 Blue Jackets









4-3

Sometimes small tweaks can shake things up just enough. Tonight, Bruce Boudreau and the Washington Capitals with thier newly re-tooled 1st line, visited the Columbus Blue Jackets for the first time since 2003. Of note, Washington Capitals superstar, Alexander Ovechkin opened his NHL Scoring career back then against this very same club, scoring his first NHL Goal, (he scored 2 that night) in a 3-2 Capitals victory.

The Caps and Boudreau were hoping that inserting Eric Fehr into the 1st line with Ovechkin and Backstrom, and moving Kozlov down to center the second line, would generate more offence from parts of the linup other than Ovechkin and the 1st line. While Fehr did not factor into the scoring, the Caps did recive help from 2 different players tonight. Ovechkin had 2 goals, including the game winning overtime tally. Tom Poti, and Alexander Semin both had the other Caps scores. So alittle more production from places other than the first line. Progress, not perfection.

The Caps also showed some heart and character in overcoming some adversity tonight. The Caps were scored on short handed, when they had a two man advantage. The Caps have not given up a tow man advantage short handed goal since 1991 in a game VS the Philadelphia Flyers, which the Caps ended up winning 6-3. As luck would have it tonight, the Caps overcame that. The Caps also had to overcome a gift of a goal, with the assist going to referee Bill McCreary. McCreary failed to get out of the way when the Columbus rush turned up ice, and slammed into Capitals defender Shaone Morrisonn, leaving Rick Nash to skate in all alone on Brent Johnson for the easy score.

That took the air out of the Caps sails, but the Caps were not done just yet. They showed heart and character tonight, and tied the score back up on a hard shot from Tom Poti, which had to be reviewed because it went in and out of the net so fast, that play just continued as as if there was no score. The red light was never turned on, but upon the next stoppage in play the Caps called for the play to be reviewed. Sure enough, the puck went deep into the net and ringed around the metal back bar along the top so fast, it was barely visible with the naked eye. The score would remain tied through the rest of regulation.

Once again, in overtime our hero Alexander Ovechkin netted the game winner at 2:28 of the sudden death overtime period. Tom Poti also picked up an assist on that goal. These are the types of games that show just what a team is made of. Both teams faced some adversity tonight. Columbus lost thier starting netminder Pascal LeClaire late in the 2nd period after a collision in his crease. He suffered a neck injury and did not return, leaving back up goaltender Frederik Norrena to man the pipes the rest of the game. LeClaire's injury was not considered to be serious, however he will not travel with the Blue Jackets Wednesday when they leave for Phoneix and San Jose. Tonight it was the Caps who were the club that showed the character and heart in overcoming thier adversities, to pull out an important win with just 28 games remaining in the season.

Tuesday, February 5, 2008

Ovechkin Honoured as NHL's #1 Star for January, Caps And The Goose Egg Sandwich.

Washington Capitals superstar, Alexander Ovechkin was named the NHL's #1 star for the month of January. For the month, Ovechkin posted a league leading 22 points ( 13 goals, 9 assist) in 13 games played, and recorded a +9 rating. Rounding out the 3 stars for January were J.P. Dumont of the Nashville Predators as the #2 star, and Cristobal Huet of the Montreal Canadiens as the #3 star. Congratulations Alexander Ovechkin!

So what do goose eggs have to do with the Capitals you ask? Well, lets start back once again at last thanksgiving. Before tonights game VS the Columbus Blue Jackets, at Nation Wide Arena in Columbus, OH, the Caps have not lost back to back games since that time, which was when head coach Bruce Boudreau took over as bench boss. The numbers that Caps have put up since that time are in this blog's previous post, and they are fairly impressive. However, lately it seems the Caps have had a penchant for not showing up, and laying a big fat goose egg on the ice. In other words, they have been shut out, and it has been twice in thier last 3 games. They were shut out 1 week ago today in Montreal during the first game of a home and home series with the Canadiens, 4-0. Washington, and largely Ovechkin took care of business on the return leg at Verizon Center, winning that 2nd match up in 3 days, 5-4 in overtime, to finish out the month of January in fine fashion. Once again however, the Capitals decided not to show up, and laid yet another goose egg, this time at home, against division rival, and the Kovalchuk-less, Atlanta Thrashers, 2-0. The Thrashers are now tied for 1st place in the southeast division with that victory. A potential 4 point night for the Capitals in the SE division standings, wasted. At least the fans decided to show up for a change, with an announced crowd of 17,205. Not the kind of performance you want to put on with one of your larger crowds in attendance for the season.

Disturbing to the coach, and the fans, has been the Caps lack of scoring from anyone not named Alexander Ovechkin, or the 1st line. (Ovechkin, Kozlov, Backstrom) The Caps have been by and large a 1 dimensional, one line team, and that isn't going to get you too far. Just when the "P" word (playoffs) was just starting to maybe have some real signifigance in Washington once again, the Caps are forced to regroup, and take a long hard look at getting more of thier players involved in the offencive production. This prompted the Caps to recall Eric Fehr from thier AHL affiliate, the Hershey Bears. Fehr will be placed on the top line with Ovechkin and Backstrom, while Kozlov will be moved to center the 2nd line. As I settle in to watch the Caps play the Blue Jackets tonight, if this change will help or hurt, remains to be seen. More after the game...

Which team is the Capitals biggest threat in the Southeast division this season?