The number one seed Washington Capitals were beaten 2-1 last night by eighth seed Montreal Canadiens in game seven of the Stanley Cup first round series and now how the rest of the offseason to ponder what could have been.
The Caps team that won the Presidents Trophy after collecting the most points in the regular season and were hyped as the top contender for the Cup in 2010 gave up a 3-1 series lead on the "Habs", an original six franchise that is probably the most decorated in league history but hasn't won hockey's biggest prize since 1993.
The Capitals were plagued in the postseason by star player Alexandre Semin's vanishing act (0 goals and 2 assists while leading the NHL in the playoffs with 44 shots), an ineffectual power play (1 for 33 in the series), and in the last three games, a brick wall of a goaltender by the name of Jaroslav Halak (131 saves on 134 shots in that span).
The Canadiens move on to play Capitals' rival Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Eastern Conference semi-finals. The Capitals will have to decide what direction to take the franchise in the offseason. Do they dismantle and overhaul the roster? Fire coach Bruce Boudreau?
In my opinion, they shouldn't do either of these things. These players are still young and have several great years of hockey ahead. Coach Boudreau has coached many of them up from the minor leagues as coach of the Hershey Bears so they already know his system and how to execute it. This team seems to have great chemistry and could probably use only minor tweaks to the roster at this point.
The first thing they must do is resign Nicklas Backstrom. The talented 22 year old Swedish center is a restricted free agent this offseason. The second thing General Manager George McPhee must do is find a defensive veteran leader in free agency. Adding a player like Scott Niedermayer or Sergei Gonchar, both of whom are available, could go a long way in helping to develop youngsters Mike Green and John Carlson. Finally, the team needs to figure out what their plan is for next year at the goalie position. They can resign free agent Jose Theodore but would probably be better off letting him go in order to free up salary cap space. If that's the case they can opt to bring in another free agent on the cheap or decide to rely on prospect Michal Neuvirth. Either way, Semyon Valamov should start next year.
It was a great year for the Washington Capitals with a tremendously disappointing finish for the team and fans. But after the initial pain wears away and the media frenzy over the next couple weeks quiets down, looking ahead to next season is going to seem pretty bright I think.
Showing posts with label hockey. Show all posts
Showing posts with label hockey. Show all posts
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Monday, April 12, 2010
Caps v Habs in Round 1 of Cup Playoffs
The Washington Capitols now know that the first stop on the road to the Stanley Cup is in Montreal. The number 1 seeded Caps will meed the eighth seeded Habs in a best of seven series in the first round of the NHL Playoffs.
Coach Bruce Boudreau and his squad have learned over the past two seasons what the playoffs are about. And after playing back-to-back seven game series last year, eventually going out at the hands of the eventual champion Pittsburgh Penguins, they know how important a good start is in order to stay fresh and have some gas in the tank in the later rounds. They will want to smother the Canadiens early.
First Round Schedule (Home Team, Date, Time, TV Network):
Game 1: @ Washington, Thu. 4/15, 7 p.m., TSN & Versus
Game 2: @ Washington, Sat. 4/17, 7 p.m., TSN & Versus
Game 3: @ Montreal, Mon. 4/19, 7 p.m., TSN
Game 4: @ Montreal, Wed. 4/21, 7 p.m., TSN
Game 5*: @ Washington, Fri 4/23, 7 p.m., TSN & Versus
Game 6*: @ Montreal, Mon. 4/26, 7 p.m., TSN & Versus
Game 7*: @ Washington, Wed. 4/28, TBD, TSN
* = if necessary
Coach Bruce Boudreau and his squad have learned over the past two seasons what the playoffs are about. And after playing back-to-back seven game series last year, eventually going out at the hands of the eventual champion Pittsburgh Penguins, they know how important a good start is in order to stay fresh and have some gas in the tank in the later rounds. They will want to smother the Canadiens early.
First Round Schedule (Home Team, Date, Time, TV Network):
Game 1: @ Washington, Thu. 4/15, 7 p.m., TSN & Versus
Game 2: @ Washington, Sat. 4/17, 7 p.m., TSN & Versus
Game 3: @ Montreal, Mon. 4/19, 7 p.m., TSN
Game 4: @ Montreal, Wed. 4/21, 7 p.m., TSN
Game 5*: @ Washington, Fri 4/23, 7 p.m., TSN & Versus
Game 6*: @ Montreal, Mon. 4/26, 7 p.m., TSN & Versus
Game 7*: @ Washington, Wed. 4/28, TBD, TSN
* = if necessary
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Caps Beat Pens in OT
The Washington Capitols beat rivals Pittsburgh Penguins in a shootout Wednesday night in the second overtime between the two teams at the Verizon Center this year. The club tie their record points total for a single season at 108.
Penguins forward Jordan Staal tied the game at three with 3:06 remaining in the third period. After the five minutes of 4-on-4 overtime hockey failed to produced a result for either team Pittsburgh then went up 2-0, off the sticks of Kris Letang and superstar Sidney Crosby, in the ensuing shootout.
Russian duo Alex Ovechkin and Alexander Semin deked Pens goalie Marc-Andre Fleury to net the goals that tied the affair before Mike Knuble scored his first career shootout goal giving the Caps their second straight win. He was 0-4 in the extra time situation before last night.
The excitment down the stretch was intense as the Caps overturned a 2-1 third period deficit due to a shorthanded goal by Semin and a deflected goal by Eric Fehr less than two minutes apart.
The game's three stars included Semin and Staal who were joined by Capitols goalie Jose Theodore who came away from the game with 39 saves in 65 minutes and a .929 save percentage. The game was Theodore's seventh straight win and also extended his regulation unbeaten streak to 19 games, going 17-0-2 in that span.
Washington now has a chance to clinch first place in the Eastern Conference with a New Jersey Devils loss to the New York Rangers in their meeting Thursday.
Scoring Summary:
1st:
None
2nd:
[Washington - 1:02] Knuble (26) A: Backstrom, Ovechkin
[Pittsburgh - 2:21] Talbot (2) A: Orpik, Adams
[Pittsburgh - 14:39 - PPG] Guerin (19) A: Crosby, Ponikarovsky
3rd:
[Washington - 5:36 - SHG] Semin (34) A: None
[Washington - 7:32] Fehr (21) A: Green, Belanger
[Pittsburgh - 16:54] Staal (21) A: Kunitz, Leopold
OT:
None
SO:
[Pittsburgh] Letang (Goal)
[Washington] Backstrom (Save)
[Pittsburgh] Crosby (Goal)
[Washington] Ovechkin (Goal)
[Pittsburgh] Guerin (Save)
[Washington] Semin (Goal)
[Pittsburgh] Kunitz (Save)
[Washington] Knuble (Goal)
Penguins forward Jordan Staal tied the game at three with 3:06 remaining in the third period. After the five minutes of 4-on-4 overtime hockey failed to produced a result for either team Pittsburgh then went up 2-0, off the sticks of Kris Letang and superstar Sidney Crosby, in the ensuing shootout.
Russian duo Alex Ovechkin and Alexander Semin deked Pens goalie Marc-Andre Fleury to net the goals that tied the affair before Mike Knuble scored his first career shootout goal giving the Caps their second straight win. He was 0-4 in the extra time situation before last night.
The excitment down the stretch was intense as the Caps overturned a 2-1 third period deficit due to a shorthanded goal by Semin and a deflected goal by Eric Fehr less than two minutes apart.
The game's three stars included Semin and Staal who were joined by Capitols goalie Jose Theodore who came away from the game with 39 saves in 65 minutes and a .929 save percentage. The game was Theodore's seventh straight win and also extended his regulation unbeaten streak to 19 games, going 17-0-2 in that span.
Washington now has a chance to clinch first place in the Eastern Conference with a New Jersey Devils loss to the New York Rangers in their meeting Thursday.
Scoring Summary:
1st:
None
2nd:
[Washington - 1:02] Knuble (26) A: Backstrom, Ovechkin
[Pittsburgh - 2:21] Talbot (2) A: Orpik, Adams
[Pittsburgh - 14:39 - PPG] Guerin (19) A: Crosby, Ponikarovsky
3rd:
[Washington - 5:36 - SHG] Semin (34) A: None
[Washington - 7:32] Fehr (21) A: Green, Belanger
[Pittsburgh - 16:54] Staal (21) A: Kunitz, Leopold
OT:
None
SO:
[Pittsburgh] Letang (Goal)
[Washington] Backstrom (Save)
[Pittsburgh] Crosby (Goal)
[Washington] Ovechkin (Goal)
[Pittsburgh] Guerin (Save)
[Washington] Semin (Goal)
[Pittsburgh] Kunitz (Save)
[Washington] Knuble (Goal)
Thursday, March 4, 2010
NHL Trade Deadline Wrap-Up
The annual swap-meet has come and gone, with the NHL trade deadline passing at 3 p.m. yesterday, March 3, 2010. The Washington Capitols made some moves to bolster their roster for their inevitable playoff run and my Buffalo Sabres wheeled a few deals as well. Overall, however, it was a relatively tame day when compared to years past, with most of the big splashes around the league coming before the Vancouver Olympics began.
The Capitols picked up a familiar face in defenseman Milan Jurcina, coming back from the Columbus Blue Jackets just 6 weeks after being traded away with former captain Chris Clark for Jason Chimera. The Caps were also talking to the Carolina Hurricanes much of day, acquiring right winger Scott Walker early in the day and later sending the rights of blue-liner Brian Pothier and minor-leaguer Oskar Osala in exchange for those of Joe Corvo, another veteran defenseman. Finally, Washington brought in center Eric Belanger from the Minnesota Wild, adding depth down the middle of the ice.
While the Capitols were expected to bring in a veteran, shutdown defenseman they instead ended up adding attack minded blue-liners to their already potent offensive roster while not sacrificing too much in the process, a few fringe players and late round draft picks aside.
My Buffalo Sabres, currently sitting comfortably in fifth place, ended up standing pat for the most part, although they did bring in forward and power-play threat Raffi Torres from the Columbus Blue Jackets, who immediately becomes the leading goalscorer on a defensive roster that boasts Olympics MVP goalie Ryan Miller. The Sabres sent oft-scratched defenseman Nathan Paetsch and a second round pick to Columbus in exchange. The acquisition of Torres made the services of underachieving Clark MacAurthur no longer necessary, and he was traded away to the Atlanta Thrashers for a third round draft pick next year.
The Sabres general manager Darcy Regier feels pretty comfortable with the players he currently has and a day that ends up with basically a swap of MacAurthur for Torres can be seen as a significant upgrade. While they didn’t add any depth, the front office feels that several youngsters at minor league affiliate Portland are close to contributing on the big stage.
Puck Daddy’s 2010 NHL Trade Deadline Report Cards
The two teams met last night in a hum-drum game in which Washington won 3-1. None of the new faces were in their sweaters just yet and many of the players that were on the ice still seemed to be on vacation after coming off the Olympic break. Mike Green scored the winning goal midway through the third period and the Sabres were finished off by an empty net goal scored by Boyd Gordon. Ryan Miller looked fresh, however, after getting a break against the Pittsburgh Penguins last night in a 2-1 loss in which Patrick Lalime played in goal.
With around 20 games remaining for both teams, the final stretch of the regular season begins and once they get their skates under them and the postseason looms closer things will get pretty exciting on the ice in these two cities.
By: David
The Capitols picked up a familiar face in defenseman Milan Jurcina, coming back from the Columbus Blue Jackets just 6 weeks after being traded away with former captain Chris Clark for Jason Chimera. The Caps were also talking to the Carolina Hurricanes much of day, acquiring right winger Scott Walker early in the day and later sending the rights of blue-liner Brian Pothier and minor-leaguer Oskar Osala in exchange for those of Joe Corvo, another veteran defenseman. Finally, Washington brought in center Eric Belanger from the Minnesota Wild, adding depth down the middle of the ice.
While the Capitols were expected to bring in a veteran, shutdown defenseman they instead ended up adding attack minded blue-liners to their already potent offensive roster while not sacrificing too much in the process, a few fringe players and late round draft picks aside.
My Buffalo Sabres, currently sitting comfortably in fifth place, ended up standing pat for the most part, although they did bring in forward and power-play threat Raffi Torres from the Columbus Blue Jackets, who immediately becomes the leading goalscorer on a defensive roster that boasts Olympics MVP goalie Ryan Miller. The Sabres sent oft-scratched defenseman Nathan Paetsch and a second round pick to Columbus in exchange. The acquisition of Torres made the services of underachieving Clark MacAurthur no longer necessary, and he was traded away to the Atlanta Thrashers for a third round draft pick next year.
The Sabres general manager Darcy Regier feels pretty comfortable with the players he currently has and a day that ends up with basically a swap of MacAurthur for Torres can be seen as a significant upgrade. While they didn’t add any depth, the front office feels that several youngsters at minor league affiliate Portland are close to contributing on the big stage.
Puck Daddy’s 2010 NHL Trade Deadline Report Cards
The two teams met last night in a hum-drum game in which Washington won 3-1. None of the new faces were in their sweaters just yet and many of the players that were on the ice still seemed to be on vacation after coming off the Olympic break. Mike Green scored the winning goal midway through the third period and the Sabres were finished off by an empty net goal scored by Boyd Gordon. Ryan Miller looked fresh, however, after getting a break against the Pittsburgh Penguins last night in a 2-1 loss in which Patrick Lalime played in goal.
With around 20 games remaining for both teams, the final stretch of the regular season begins and once they get their skates under them and the postseason looms closer things will get pretty exciting on the ice in these two cities.
By: David
Monday, March 1, 2010
USA Hockey Takes Silver from Olympics
In the men's hockey gold medal game on Sunday, the U.S. were beaten by Canada 3-2 in overtime. Sidney Crosby scored the game winner seven minutes into the extra period.
Canada took an early lead off the stick of Jonathan Toews in the first period and extended it to through Corey Perry in the second. The U.S., who had beaten Canada in the earlier group stage of the tournament, showed great resiliance as Ryan Kesler took a point back later in the second to bring the game to a score of 2-1 and Zach Parise tied the score at two with 24 seconds left in the third period to send the matchup into extra time.
Unfortunately, the Cinderella story ended as tournament MVP and American goalie Ryan Miller was beaten by "Sid the Kid" to seal the gold medal for the Canadians. The Americans, however, had a spectacular two week jouney in Vancouver.
They were an afterthought before the games began. USA general manager Brian Burke fielded the youngest team, averaging 26 years old, and had only 3 players, Chris Drury, Jamie Langdenbrunner, and Brian Rafalski, on the roster with previous Olympic experience.
Team USA and coach Ron Wilson can hold their heads high with pride after winning the silver medal in 2010. They can also hang their hats on the great performances of Miller (Tournament MVP, Best Goaltender, Tournament All-Star), Rafalski (Best Defenseman, Tournament All-Star), and Parise (Tournament All-Star).
Canada took an early lead off the stick of Jonathan Toews in the first period and extended it to through Corey Perry in the second. The U.S., who had beaten Canada in the earlier group stage of the tournament, showed great resiliance as Ryan Kesler took a point back later in the second to bring the game to a score of 2-1 and Zach Parise tied the score at two with 24 seconds left in the third period to send the matchup into extra time.
Unfortunately, the Cinderella story ended as tournament MVP and American goalie Ryan Miller was beaten by "Sid the Kid" to seal the gold medal for the Canadians. The Americans, however, had a spectacular two week jouney in Vancouver.
They were an afterthought before the games began. USA general manager Brian Burke fielded the youngest team, averaging 26 years old, and had only 3 players, Chris Drury, Jamie Langdenbrunner, and Brian Rafalski, on the roster with previous Olympic experience.
Team USA and coach Ron Wilson can hold their heads high with pride after winning the silver medal in 2010. They can also hang their hats on the great performances of Miller (Tournament MVP, Best Goaltender, Tournament All-Star), Rafalski (Best Defenseman, Tournament All-Star), and Parise (Tournament All-Star).
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Merry Christmas Canada!
In honor of both the Christmas season and the Buffalo Sabres beating the Toronto Maple Leafs last night I post this video; Bob and Doug McKenzie's 12 Days of Christmas. Happy Holidays Canadians!
Not to worry Caps fans, there's more for you tomorrow.
By: David
The Mike Webb Team: http://www.northernvirginiahouses.com/
Not to worry Caps fans, there's more for you tomorrow.
By: David
The Mike Webb Team: http://www.northernvirginiahouses.com/
Thursday, December 10, 2009
2010 NHL Winter Classic
There is a game at Fenway Park on New Years Day. However, the Boston Red Sox will not be on the field. It will be their athletic city brethren, the Boston Bruins, taking on the Philadelphia Flyers on an outdoor icerink in the third annual NHL Winter Classic Presented by Bridgestone.
The game, played as a regular season matchup for 2 points, will serve as the NHL's showcase of the year since there will be no NHL All-Star game due to the Winter Olympics in Vancouver.
The past Winter Classics were a huge success. The first, colloquially known as the "Ice Bowl", was played in 2008 between the Buffalo Sabres and Pittsburgh Penguins at Ralph Wilson Stadium in Orchard Park, NY and seen by 71,217 fans in attendance. The second, between the Chicago Blackhawks and the Detroit Red Wings, was played this past New Years Day at Wrigley Field.
These games are truly wonderful. Between the size of the crowds, the throwback uniforms, and the amazing visuals there is so much to love about the Winter Classic. Being an outdoor event, it harkens back to a simpler time for the old-timey traditionalists, which hockey has plenty of. But it's also something kids can get a kick out of; many children laugh at the tuque's worn by the goalies to keep their heads warm.
The ice-truck is on it's way to Fenway as I write this and construction on the rink will begin within the week. I can't wait to view the sights and hear the sounds of this years Winter Classic on New Years Day.
http://www.nhl.com/ice/eventhome.htm?location=/winterclassic/2010
The Mike Webb Team: http://www.northernvirginiahouses.com/
The game, played as a regular season matchup for 2 points, will serve as the NHL's showcase of the year since there will be no NHL All-Star game due to the Winter Olympics in Vancouver.
The past Winter Classics were a huge success. The first, colloquially known as the "Ice Bowl", was played in 2008 between the Buffalo Sabres and Pittsburgh Penguins at Ralph Wilson Stadium in Orchard Park, NY and seen by 71,217 fans in attendance. The second, between the Chicago Blackhawks and the Detroit Red Wings, was played this past New Years Day at Wrigley Field.
These games are truly wonderful. Between the size of the crowds, the throwback uniforms, and the amazing visuals there is so much to love about the Winter Classic. Being an outdoor event, it harkens back to a simpler time for the old-timey traditionalists, which hockey has plenty of. But it's also something kids can get a kick out of; many children laugh at the tuque's worn by the goalies to keep their heads warm.
The ice-truck is on it's way to Fenway as I write this and construction on the rink will begin within the week. I can't wait to view the sights and hear the sounds of this years Winter Classic on New Years Day.
http://www.nhl.com/ice/eventhome.htm?location=/winterclassic/2010
The Mike Webb Team: http://www.northernvirginiahouses.com/
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Ovi Out Again
Washington Capitols superstar Alexander Ovechkin has been suspended by the NHL for a knee-on-knee collision with Carolina Hurricane Tim Gleason that left the two time Hart Memorial Trophy winner limping off the ice Monday night. He was given a five minute major penalty for kneeing and a game misconduct by the referees.
Ovechkin, the Capitols goals and points leader, will miss the next two games against the Florida Panthers on Thursday night and the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday night. He is listed as day to day with a knee injury but is expected to be back for the December 7th game versus the Tampa Bay Lightning.
While this is the first suspension of his career it's Ovechkin's second game misconduct in the last three games. He recieved a five minute major and was ejected from last weeks game against the Buffalo Sabres for a boarding call on Patrick Kaleta. He also missed six games earlier this season with an upper body strain. In his first four seasons he had only missed two games due to injury.
Ovechkin has stated that there was no malicious intent behind the hit and that he's glad Gleason was not hurt too badly. However, controversy visited him during the playoffs last year following a knee-on-knee collision with Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Sergei Gonchar for which he suspiciously recieved no supplemental discipline by the league.
Capitols coach, Bruce Boudreau, concerned about the players health, has said "He plays pretty reckless...I don't want to see him getting hurt. Maybe he has to pick his spots a little bit better. It's something that will have to be addressed by us, I guess." Ovechkin has stated that he will not change the way he plays.
The Mike Webb Team: www.NorthernVirginiaHouses.com
Ovechkin, the Capitols goals and points leader, will miss the next two games against the Florida Panthers on Thursday night and the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday night. He is listed as day to day with a knee injury but is expected to be back for the December 7th game versus the Tampa Bay Lightning.
While this is the first suspension of his career it's Ovechkin's second game misconduct in the last three games. He recieved a five minute major and was ejected from last weeks game against the Buffalo Sabres for a boarding call on Patrick Kaleta. He also missed six games earlier this season with an upper body strain. In his first four seasons he had only missed two games due to injury.
Ovechkin has stated that there was no malicious intent behind the hit and that he's glad Gleason was not hurt too badly. However, controversy visited him during the playoffs last year following a knee-on-knee collision with Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Sergei Gonchar for which he suspiciously recieved no supplemental discipline by the league.
Capitols coach, Bruce Boudreau, concerned about the players health, has said "He plays pretty reckless...I don't want to see him getting hurt. Maybe he has to pick his spots a little bit better. It's something that will have to be addressed by us, I guess." Ovechkin has stated that he will not change the way he plays.
The Mike Webb Team: www.NorthernVirginiaHouses.com
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