GDT: Capitals @ Sabres | 10/1/14 | 7PM | CSN

[g00n]

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http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs...ome-caps-played-themselves-out-of-the-lineup/

Without specifying names, Trotz said no one helped himself in Buffalo except Dane Byers, whose positive contribution came with the first period winding down, Washington already behind 3-0. Byers tried to fight Sabres winger Marcus Foligno, who backed off, and wound up dropping the gloves versus Chris Stewart instead.

“When the game was getting out of hand, he was trying to change the game there,” Trotz said. “Got a lot of respect there.”

Aside from Byers, unlikely to make the roster anyway, Trotz received no clarity on the second-line center battle, chuckling and saying, “No, it’s all over the place right now.”

Ten minutes into the night Trotz called a timeout and told the Capitals to stabilize the game and quit giving pucks away at the blue line. After those errors continued, more turnovers turning into more Sabres odd-man rushes that rendered Holtby – and his shutout streak – helpless, Trotz had plenty of blunt words to share.

“Actually disappointed in a lot of guys tonight,” he said. “When some guys are not in the lineup, some guys have to step up. Some guys are fighting for jobs and needed to step up and they didn’t. That was the disappointing part. At the same time, we haven’t had anything where we’ve really got our game handed to us a little bit, if you will. Sometimes you need that a little bit. We can probably look at every game and say, ‘Hey, we could’ve won every one.’ It’s a clunker. This one’s over. It’s how you respond tomorrow.”

Good luck, BT.

 

[Blades of Steel]

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http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs...ome-caps-played-themselves-out-of-the-lineup/





Good luck, BT.

This alone makes me think we will be finding a 2C trade sooner than later.

 

[hb12xchamps]

The caps might not have to give up a 1st with all the depth they have, especially when Wilson and Orlov come back and are pushing for top minutes.

 

[Marshall]

One thing I did like that came out of last night - Trotz plainly stating that some players played themselves off the roster last night. No baloney, no "we'll have to look at the tape", just straight-up accountability.

 

[Capitlols]

such as our best player ever?

Yeah a generational talent versus all the other flame-outs.

 

[BobRouse]

Just preseason and one game so nothing to get too worked up about.

Kuznetsov didn't have a great game but did make some brilliant plays (perfect geometry pass springing Chimera on a breakaway...that he shot over the net is one example). He's probably better off at wing based on what I've seen in preseason.

MJ looked terrible but he was playing on the 4th line or will be. He maybe a healthy scratch based on his play this preseason and our depth.

Erskine looks done. He was a warrior over all his years here but he shouldn't get a sniff of a lineup spot. Hillen should fill in for Orlov quite easily over him. Altho on that Moulson goal he was clearly tripped so won't pin that one on him.

Burakovsky has to make the team. He has looked absolutely legit and stood out last night in a big way ...despite playing on the possession black hole line.

Laich doesn't look great and hasn't outside of a few flashes. Caps need him to step up.

 

[txpd]

I liked the attitude and straight forwardness of the post game comments from Trotz, but I would love to know in reality which player(s) he was leaning toward keeping that he now is going to cut.

How many of those guys play could that even describe. Most are either locked in or locked out. Bura and Brown are players that could go to Hershey and are not locked into the roster yet. Maybe Erskine.

Am I just being skeptical in thinking that was mostly a free comment?

 

[Langway]

Trotz also said some guys probably played their way out of the lineup for a while. Not off the roster, as he later alluded to, but out of the lineup. I have to believe that's Erskine but there's no reason why his contract necessitates keeping him. So long as they can get a LD <$925k that's an improvement over him (not hard to find on waivers soon enough) it should be done.

As for off the roster, Brown didn't play and Burakovsky was likely their best player. Carrick, Wey, Mitchell, Newbury, Conner and Wellman were the bubble/Hershey guys playing (along with Byers). Carrick & Wellman were sent down today and none of the rest were serious roster candidates. It shouldn't be on them to set the tone for the game anyway. I know it's preseason but your regulars largely can't be counted on to show up?

The mix up front remains off and it's not just uncertainty at the center position. The whole puck possession element isn't really there. If the plan this year is just to 'grind it out' they're not going to be much better 5-on-5 unless a lot of players suddenly become much more determined on the puck.

 

[txpd]

its hard to know what you are getting when half the team is playing at a time.

 

[BobRouse]

I know it's preseason but your regulars largely can't be counted on to show up?

The mix up front remains off and it's not just uncertainty at the center position. The whole puck possession element isn't really there. If the plan this year is just to 'grind it out' they're not going to be much better 5-on-5 unless a lot of players suddenly become much more determined on the puck.

I thought the 5-5 play was actually very good up until last night.

You do realize we were missing over $35 million in salary cap space last night right?

Our entire 1st line (on a top heavy team) and half our D.

We had 6-10 guys who probably are career AHL players in the lineup while Buffalo fielded their entire NHL team.

I think a step back is prudent here. They have been awfully good 5 on 5 outside of last night.

 

[Blades of Steel]

I thought the 5-5 play was actually very good up until last night.

You do realize we were missing over $35 million in salary cap space last night right?

Our entire 1st line (on a top heavy team) and half our D.

We had 6-10 guys who probably are career AHL players in the lineup while Buffalo fielded their entire NHL team.

I think a step back is prudent here. They have been awfully good 5 on 5 outside of last night.

I also feel like last night was more beneficial than not, it gave Trotz a clear view of what needs to be done, who isn't going to cut it, and made a lot of his decisions easier to make.

 

[RandyHolt]

How do posters that saw the game grade Carlson and Alzner last night?

 

[marcel snapshot]

Just preseason and one game so nothing to get too worked up about.

Kuznetsov didn't have a great game but did make some brilliant plays (perfect geometry pass springing Chimera on a breakaway...that he shot over the net is one example). He's probably better off at wing based on what I've seen in preseason.

MJ looked terrible but he was playing on the 4th line or will be. He maybe a healthy scratch based on his play this preseason and our depth.

Erskine looks done. He was a warrior over all his years here but he shouldn't get a sniff of a lineup spot. Hillen should fill in for Orlov quite easily over him. Altho on that Moulson goal he was clearly tripped so won't pin that one on him.

Burakovsky has to make the team. He has looked absolutely legit and stood out last night in a big way ...despite playing on the possession black hole line.

Laich doesn't look great and hasn't outside of a few flashes. Caps need him to step up.

Could only stomach about 1/2 the game, but yeah this.

MJ - really did not look good. Guy seemed to have no speed at all - did he pork up over the summer?

Kuz - didn't seem to know where to be like, ever.

Bura - lone offensive bright spot.

Laich - hard to watch. He can't be effective unless he's playing at a tempo that's equal to or higher than most of the other skaters on the ice - and he just doesn't seem capable of that.

Defensively - a lot like last year; forwards fail to possess puck in any meaningfully threatening way, opposition takes pill and enters the zone with impunity, as D guys wave their sticks ineffectively and forwards are on the wrong side of the guys they're supposed to check.

Just a hairball of a hockey performance. And that's the best case scenario - the worst is that's more emblematic of who we are than anyone wants to believe. Hopefully, some guys get cut today, so we see a bit more urgency from those that are staying.

 

[Langway]

They have been awfully good 5 on 5 outside of last night.

They've been awfully uneventful 5-on-5 overall. They've been slightly better than the opposition but never really dictating the game aside from slowing it down and playing it choppy. There's not much chemistry established up front overall. A certain amount of that is unavoidable in the preseason but it's not just the Hershey guys bogging them down. It hasn't been all that fundamentally different than past post-BB approaches thus far. How much credit is deserved defensively when you're playing conservative to begin with?

Granted, it's early and there's plenty of time for the coaching staff to polish up key areas. I'm sure they'll do a much better job of self-monitoring and self-improving than recent coaches but there's a way to go to and some real personnel weaknesses beyond center. On a fundamental level they're still a team that loves to take shortcuts so it's hard to respect their work ethic to begin with. Their identity remains the PP and that's still just about it. We'll see how much that changes with time.

 

[amjay13]

What a nice development Burakovsky has been. I didn't figure he'd be NHL ready for another year or two.

MJ90 has value in this league, is a decent player and I have no interest in watching him again this year. Now is the time to ship him.

Pretty amazing we are back at square one regarding the 2C situation. I realize 2Cs don't grow on trees but I'd guess 99% of the teams in the league know who their 2C is 6 days before the season starts. A trade would be the way to go if you are able to unload some of the extra forwards in the deal.

 

[AlexBrovechkin8]

How do posters that saw the game grade Carlson and Alzner last night?

Pretty poorly. Not good enough for what should be our top pair. Alzner looked better than Carlson.

 

[strungout]

Pretty poorly. Not good enough for what should be our top pair. Alzner looked better than Carlson.

Thats why Alzner will be with Niskanen and Carlson with Orpik. Hopefully.

 

[Blades of Steel]

I don't really remember, but doesn't Carlson usually start out pretty slow every season?

 

[Paxon]

Yoah, 1-6 against Buffalo

Yeah, our team sucks, but our roster (and system) last night was better than at any point last season, while you guys didn't bring several key players. On paper we should have carried play easily, not that I expected that score.

Burakovsky continues to look like a steal.

 

[RandyHolt]

Pretty poorly. Not good enough for what should be our top pair. Alzner looked better than Carlson.

I only watched about 20 minutes, but when I heard that Trotz was pissed, I had a feeling he wasn't talking about players without a contract, those obviously already ticketed for Hershey etc.

Trotz may have been complaining about Erskine, but Trotz may need to keep his expectations more reasonable if true. At his best Erskine is a 6/7, and it takes a while for ole John to get those rusty legs going every fall.

Meanwhile, Carlson and Alzner should be damn near close to being ready to assume top pairing duty. Maybe Trotz was aiming a little higher than Erskine or Wellman.

They seem meh to me. Sure its preseason, but Carlson specifically, PP aside, since he inked he looks rather uninspired most every game, preseason or post.

The trade talk always seems to be about Green and now even Nisky, but never Carlson. Is he truly untouchable, if for even a top flight 2C?

Posters will say "Yes, of course he is untouchable, but I wish his play said it more than fans do.

 

[BobRouse]

I have ZERO concerns about Carlson. He has started slow before and even stunk for an entire regular season. The guy steps up his game in a big way at times and especially in the playoffs.

I watched Scott Stevens at his age and he was prone to boneheaded plays and running around in his own zone too. Sign of a young dman is inconsistency.

RE: MJ - He definitely doesn't look the same as even last year. Fumbling pucks, not as fast and general ineffectiveness.

RE: Burakovsky - Absolutely has to be on the team.

RE: Laich - Had some flashes of his old self and flashes of last year. He hasn't been at full speed in a while so I'm sure there is some serious rust. At least thats what Im hoping.


Again last night was a preseason game with not even half a lineup. And even then sometimes the bounces just dont go your way....Chimera missing net on breakaway, sabres first goal off Carlson's leg right to their player, Sabres second goal accidental double deflection on fluttering puck, Burakovsky hitting post on breakway, Caps hitting post in 2nd period and bouncing off goalies leg and not going in, non call on Erskine getting tripped right in the highslot etc....just one of those games.

 

[Calicaps]

Just have to say, the coals are getting hot, and soon, I hope to grill up some tasty crow RE: Burakovsky. I was among the angry mob when he was selected so high.

So far, I'm delighted with his progress and glad it appears that I was very wrong.

 

[Raikkonen]

Too many mistakes from D. As I understand Trotz wants Dmen to be active and supportive so maybe our high priced defense will make RS games more watchable and less dramatic.

 

[Halpysback*]

Just have to say, the coals are getting hot, and soon, I hope to grill up some tasty crow RE: Burakovsky. I was among the angry mob when he was selected so high.

So far, I'm delighted with his progress and glad it appears that I was very wrong.

Yeah this may be the most wrong I was about a draft pick ever. Some fine crow there.

 

[AlexBrovechkin8]

Yeah this may be the most wrong I was about a draft pick ever. Some fine crow there.

Burakovsky looks like he is going to make (damn near) everyone very wrong about the pick. Dude just looks good.