The Capitals played another excruciatingly mild game on Thursday night, this time on the road against the Carolina Hurricanes. They had the lead, but then they stopped pressing, and then they didn’t have a lead. If not for Eric Fehr, this would have been an awful night.
Jay Beagle scored on the rush early in the first, cleaning up Jason Chimera’s rebound. The second period went scoreless, but old pal Alex Semin scooped the puck to the top corner early in the third to tie the game. Eric Fehr forced a turnover late in rego and scored solo.
Caps beat Canes 2-1.
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Jason Chimera was the game’s best player in the first period, mostly by playing the opposite of his normal style. Chimera was carrying the puck and going right to the net, rather than dumping it in and grinding pointlessly in the corner. Beagle’s goal, which was terrific, owes a lot to Chimera skating on the rush and putting a shot on net.- In general, that’s a style of hockey we don’t see enough of out of the Caps. For all the chatter about “net-front presence,” Trotz’s tactics seem to prioritize territory over shot attempts. (Remind you of anyone?)
- Alex Semin took a bad penalty, Alex Semin scored a pretty goal. He is the worst, he is the best.
Jason Chimera was the game’s best player in the first period, mostly by playing the opposite of his normal style. Chimera was carrying the puck and going right to the net, rather than dumping it in and grinding pointlessly in the corner. Beagle’s goal, which was terrific, owes a lot to Chimera skating on the rush and putting a shot on net.https://twitter.com/TheHornGuy/status/540678601981456384
- Alex Ovechkin scored the GWG with five and change left in rego, but the official washed out the goal; he had blown the whistle before Ovi got the shot off anyway.
- The Caps had that 1-0 lead for exactly 41 minutes. That’s 41 minutes in which they did not deign to keep scoring. Safe is death, and the Caps are dead. Set the boys free, coach.
- The following people are responsible for the Capitals’ insufferable meekness on offense: everyone. I mean, of the Caps goals tonight, how many were the result of the team’s offensive plan? Zero. They were flukes and individual accomplishments, not indicators of Trotz’s goal-scoring system. Red alert.
- Eric Fehr is bacon bits.
- I loved loved loved the Canes pulling Khudobin with three minutes left in the game. That was a ton of pressure, and probably the right move. Isn’t weird how a dummy like Patrick Roy made that move acceptable?
Joe B suit of the night
I could take the Caps blowing games last season because they weren’t built to win. This season, however, the Caps have shown us how good they can be– among the best in the league. But instead of doing the things they can do best, they play this maddeningly medicore game.
They don’t pay to win; they play not to lose. And it’s hardly ever works. You could argue it didn’t work tonight. They’ve gotta make changes ASAP or else we’re gonna see more and more one-goal games and a 50/50 season— regardless of how good the Caps’ puck possession used to be.
Capitals, we love you. Please be better.