Caps vs Flyers - 01/02/13

[ForzaItalia]

Neuvirth still.

This game likely would've been 4-1 if Neuvy was in net. Holtby is too inconsistent as of now. He played good, though.

I disagree. If Caps get out of this funk it'll be with Holtby in net and not Neuvirth.

 

[strungout]

 

[Langway]

Better...something to build off of potentially. The lines finally seem close to something that could be kept intact for a while (outside of Laich at 2LW and Johansson...somewhere). It's too bad they don't have a more dynamic 3C to create chances for Chimera/Ward. It was good to see Ovechkin play RW and still resemble something like his old self.

The Caps will go hot hand all year long with scheduled switches as needed. No way to call that one with much certainty, though in the long run Holtby should have the edge if he can stay consistent.

 

[JMUcapsfan07]

I tend to think Holtby will be the better goaltender in the long run but I haven't liked what I've seen of his rebound control so far.

 

[Cappy76]

Strung you're the glue with these post they need to continue good sir

 

[troyerlaw]

More ovie ribs wolski please

 

[BiPolar Caps]

Ugly elbow by Erskine on Simmonds. Only question is how many games he'll get. Still, Erskine played like a man possessed tonight. Erskine continues to play like this (once he returns from his "vacation"), I could see the Caps resigning him. Well the only question that remains is if it will be Poti or Hamrlik that gets the sweater against the Pens, my vote is for Poti.

 

[Carlzner]

Just got home from my game... Wow, we won? Not sure If I'm happy about that... delays a lot of things that should happen probably...

 

[Atlas]

We suck so bad we can't even win at the tank game.

Good game, guys. There's hope.

 

[Calicaps]

Better...something to build off of potentially. The lines finally seem close to something that could be kept intact for a while (outside of Laich at 2LW and Johansson...somewhere). It's too bad they don't have a more dynamic 3C to create chances for Chimera/Ward. It was good to see Ovechkin play RW and still resemble something like his old self.

The Caps will go hot hand all year long with scheduled switches as needed. No way to call that one with much certainty, though in the long run Holtby should have the edge if he can stay consistent.

Agree with all of this. And why not try Mojo as the 3C? He's got the wheels to go with Chimera and is responsible on D. He's clearly lost on the wing, so seems worth a try.

 

[Atlas]

Good job, with the Aussie GDT, too. Keep that goin'.

 

[Morgoth Bauglir]

Habs fans coming in peace just to know which goalie do you think is number 1 now Neuvirth or Holtby?

Holtby looked good tonight the 2 goals were unstoppable.

In the long run i think the caps should give Holtby a chance i haven't been impressed by Neuvirth's play since he is in the nhl.

Either way they'll be ok in goal: The problems the Caps have had at the start of this season hasn't been the fault of the goaltending. The first three or four games Hotby and Neuvirth were being hung out to dry by the defense corps.

 

[Dirtbag59]

Habs fans coming in peace just to know which goalie do you think is number 1 now Neuvirth or Holtby?

Holtby looked good tonight the 2 goals were unstoppable.

In the long run i think the caps should give Holtby a chance i haven't been impressed by Neuvirth's play since he is in the nhl.

Nuevy for now but I believe his ceiling has him stuck at no higher then a B+ when he's hot.

Holtby on the other hand might have the highest ceiling in the league among young goaltenders and when he's on he's a game changer, as high as an A grade when he's in the zone. He also doesn't melt in big games.

The problem is there are random times where he can look absolutely terrible. For example last year when he initially got a call up he gave up 5 goals to San Jose. Before his win against Philly he had a GAA of 5.03 and a save percentage of .863 for this season. He also struggled last year in Hershey yet somehow came back up in March and just established himself as the number 1 goalie.

So long story short if you're talking about the next week or two it's Nuevy, however by the end of the season if both guys are healthy I'd say theres a 90% chance Holtby will be the guy. Either way it's a good problem to have.

 

[Jacoby4HOF66]

Just finished watching the game on DVR, meh. Yay for the win, but they couldn't put away a team that looks to be in worse shape conditioning/chemistry wise as the Caps. OV showed some of his old **** side tonight, which is encouraging. Couple of good hits, pushing a Flyer defensemen into their goalie. Need more of that.

Erskine has to get at least 2 games for that chicken wing BS on Simmonds. First thing I thought of when I saw that was Bourque's hit on Nicky. Not cool. The Caps need more grit and give a ****, but within the rules. Disappointed in #4.

Good to see Holtby get some work, but then again the Flyers generated next to nothing in the consistency department on offense. Not saying the 2 goals were on Holtby, but the only time the Flyers threaten to score all game, they do. Not enough to push Neuvy out of the top spot right now.

Heres hoping the **** side of OV is back. Especially when/if he is on the ice with Crosby on Sunday. I miss watching OV make Crosby whine.

 

[Jacoby4HOF66]

Holtby on the other hand might have the highest ceiling in the league among young goaltenders and when he's on he's a game changer, as high as an A grade when he's in the zone. He also doesn't melt in big games.

His playoff run last year aside, where is the proof of this? My Hockey IQ isn't the highest, but I don't get where this "highest ceiling in the league amoung young goaltenders" comes from. Yes Holtby looked good in the playoffs, but how much did Hunters Magic Shell system contribute to that? And I don't recall reading or seeing Holtby dominate at the AHL level when he was the #1 in Hershey. If his ceiling is so high wouldn't he have been standing on his head at a level lower than the NHL?

Its been said on here that Varley was the most physically gifted of the 3 young goalies in the Caps system. I could actually see that when he played for the Caps. All I see from Holtby is a guy who handles the puck well and isn't afraid to do it whenever he wants. But between the pipes, I don't see what Varley showed glimpses of. Right now it seems to me Neuvy is as athletic as Holtby, and Neuvy's puck handling has improved noticeably over last year.

I favor Neuvy, but if Holtby locks down the #1 spot I won't be sad. But will that happen this year? Doesn't seem like a certainty to me at this point.

 

[Liberati0n*]

His playoff run last year aside, where is the proof of this? My Hockey IQ isn't the highest, but I don't get where this "highest ceiling in the league amoung young goaltenders" comes from. Yes Holtby looked good in the playoffs, but how much did Hunters Magic Shell system contribute to that? And I don't recall reading or seeing Holtby dominate at the AHL level when he was the #1 in Hershey. If his ceiling is so high wouldn't he have been standing on his head at a level lower than the NHL?

Its been said on here that Varley was the most physically gifted of the 3 young goalies in the Caps system. I could actually see that when he played for the Caps. All I see from Holtby is a guy who handles the puck well and isn't afraid to do it whenever he wants. But between the pipes, I don't see what Varley showed glimpses of. Right now it seems to me Neuvy is as athletic as Holtby, and Neuvy's puck handling has improved noticeably over last year.

I favor Neuvy, but if Holtby locks down the #1 spot I won't be sad. But will that happen this year? Doesn't seem like a certainty to me at this point.

I think it partly goes back to some comment from Prior like 3 years ago that Holtby had the best pure skills in the organization or something like that. The sexiness of his attitude / Kolzig resemblance also plays a big role. Holtby's pretty good, but definitely overrated around here. I think it's clear Varlamov is in another league than Holtby and Neuvirth, but keeping him wasn't an option...so whatever.

 

[Calicaps]

Just finished watching the game on DVR, meh. Yay for the win, but they couldn't put away a team that looks to be in worse shape conditioning/chemistry wise as the Caps. OV showed some of his old **** side tonight, which is encouraging. Couple of good hits, pushing a Flyer defensemen into their goalie. Need more of that.

Erskine has to get at least 2 games for that chicken wing BS on Simmonds. First thing I thought of when I saw that was Bourque's hit on Nicky. Not cool. The Caps need more grit and give a ****, but within the rules. Disappointed in #4.

Good to see Holtby get some work, but then again the Flyers generated next to nothing in the consistency department on offense. Not saying the 2 goals were on Holtby, but the only time the Flyers threaten to score all game, they do. Not enough to push Neuvy out of the top spot right now.

Heres hoping the **** side of OV is back. Especially when/if he is on the ice with Crosby on Sunday. I miss watching OV make Crosby whine.

Agree, meh. No killer instinct. Running around late in the 2nd. Still, 2 points and very nearly a 2-goal win. Plus, always nice to beat the Flyers.

FWIW I don't think Erskine intended the elbow, at least not to the face. He's never shown that propensity. Maybe he did, but I didn't see it that way.

 

[Dirtbag59]

His playoff run last year aside, where is the proof of this? My Hockey IQ isn't the highest, but I don't get where this "highest ceiling in the league amoung young goaltenders" comes from. Yes Holtby looked good in the playoffs, but how much did Hunters Magic Shell system contribute to that? And I don't recall reading or seeing Holtby dominate at the AHL level when he was the #1 in Hershey. If his ceiling is so high wouldn't he have been standing on his head at a level lower than the NHL?

Its been said on here that Varley was the most physically gifted of the 3 young goalies in the Caps system. I could actually see that when he played for the Caps. All I see from Holtby is a guy who handles the puck well and isn't afraid to do it whenever he wants. But between the pipes, I don't see what Varley showed glimpses of. Right now it seems to me Neuvy is as athletic as Holtby, and Neuvy's puck handling has improved noticeably over last year.

I favor Neuvy, but if Holtby locks down the #1 spot I won't be sad. But will that happen this year? Doesn't seem like a certainty to me at this point.

Don't dismiss the playoffs. To put it simply Holtby pretty much carried the team through the last postseason, and a .935 save percentage in the playoffs is incredible. Anytime a goalie can carry the team you know you have something special.

Nuevy performed admirably in the postseason before but that break down in the second round against Tampa especially when compared to the second round series vs the Rags last year, it's a night and day difference.

As for the shell, keep in mind the BB 2011 playoff run also featured a defensively oriented system. However the key for me is I saw Holtby step up more when the guys in front of him broke down then I saw from Nuevy the year before. Both can play well when you got guys blocking shots and forcing difficult angles, I worry more about what happens when you're the last line of defense and someone has a solid scoring chance.

As for my statement about him being possibly the most promising young goalie in the game I'm not alone as HF rankings only put Jacob Markstrom at 20 ahead of Holtby who was ranked 23rd overall. The next closet goalie is Andrey Vasilevskiy at 42.

Anyway at the end of the day it's a gut feeling but from I feel like I've seen enough of both of them where I feel good in saying both are good but Holtby has shown the potential to be great.

Actually you know what I don't even know why I went through the trouble of writing all of that. All I had to do was post this.

 

[Bananas]

God we could really use a goalie standing on his head around here...

...good win tho.

Let"s string a couple together. We're only a win streak away from relevance...

 

[kmart]

ao with 7 shots... not the worst sign

 

[RandyHolt]

Erskine made a bad pinch and I think threw up the elbow to get a piece of Simmonds to prevent a break / odd man the other way.

I don't think intent to injure was there but knowing the wild inconsistency of Shanahan, I expect more games for Erskine than Bourque got for Nick.

Mods letting posters name the thread on the mains "knock out" seems wrong.

 

[txpd]

tough room. most unimpressed with the win. some depressed in spite of the win. others depressed because of the win.

me? green looks great. his play in his own zone is really good and his offense is coming back strong. the passing last night was very nice. particularly the spinarama no look pass in the wheelhouse for an ov one timer. and the thread the needle cross ice pass for the brouwer goal.

brouwer with 3. ward with 4. ribeiro with another point. all good.
holtby was solid. best game of the year for him.

btw....too many people write off neuvirth. he's always the step child....beward. what was it that disco dan said during 24/7 about neuvirth? how'd turn out for him?
neuvirth has gone 4 rounds of playoffs and won in his career. 3 times. holtby and neuvirth are both 1-0 in the first round and 0-1 in the second round. i think the caps are in good shape at that position. for fantasy i would get them both

 

[swimmer77]

Good game by the Caps.

Ribeiro continues to impress.

Didn't like the Erksine hit.

Sarge had his minutes cut back a bit from the other night.

OV's best game.

Holtby looked sharp for sitting.

I'll be cautiously optimistic though since it's a win against another team in peril. I'll be more optimistic when the Caps rack up some wins against teams like the Pens, Bruins, Rangers, etc. The Caps gained nothing on Tampa Bay which means they continue to shoot for number 8 spot.

If Erskine doesn't get a suspension I'll be shocked. If he does then Poti comes in and Hamrlik is just waiting for the trade. That's how I see it ATM.

 

[Vladiator16*]

Good game by the Caps.

Ribeiro continues to impress.

Didn't like the Erksine hit.

Sarge had his minutes cut back a bit from the other night.

OV's best game.

Holtby looked sharp for sitting.

I'll be cautiously optimistic though since it's a win against another team in peril. I'll be more optimistic when the Caps rack up some wins against teams like the Pens, Bruins, Rangers, etc. The Caps gained nothing on Tampa Bay which means they continue to shoot for number 8 spot.

If Erskine doesn't get a suspension I'll be shocked. If he does then Poti comes in and Hamrlik is just waiting for the trade. That's how I see it ATM.

Agree on everything, but Erskines hit, i think it was more of a reaction, he saw a guy in the last moment and raised his arm, but it did look bad... Whatever, if he gets a game or two not a big deal, as long as he keeps playing the way he has, gives our team some teeth. Also, i would rather see Hammer then Nerd.

 

[txpd]

reflex reaction or purposeful, he's still going to get suspended