Post-Game Talk: caps isles game 1

[Capsman]

If anyone cares to read:
http://alongtheboards.com/2015/04/capitals-vs-islanders-game-1-superlatives/

The point about the cycle fail was spot on and what I was talking about earlier. There is nobody to pass to off the cycle except for another cycler, especially with the strong side defensive forward going high. You would think that should open someone else up, no? Perhaps we do not like to pass it to someone even loosely covered in the slot because we don't trust where it goes from there. If we had quicker decision making a guy would not have to have 8 feet of free ice to receive a pass. There is no tic-tac-toe in our game unfortunately.

 

[marcel snapshot]

Another thing I've noticed this year that was borne out by last night - we suck when Niskanen does not play well. Other players can suck, and we can overcome it - but we almost invariably lose when that guy has a bad game.

 

[Midnight Judges]

I thought Trotz was badly out-coached. The Isles were reading and disrupting breakouts all night. The Caps had zero transition game and failed to take advantage any time the Isles were caught up ice. They were playing conservative all night - passing back to the d-man to get set, but nobody was ever open to make a clean zone entry.

And what was up with the line changes? That was a mess. I don't know why you would go through an 82 game season with somewhat established lines and then in the first playoff game start trying all sorts of nutty combinations. That seemed insane to me. The players had zero chemistry and some situations where players who are used to each other would predictably dump in, players were getting caught off sides.

Also Chimera should be benched for taking that penalty for two reasons: 1) because it was stupid and 2) because Chimera always plays better after a benching.

 

[BrooklynCapsFan]

And what was up with the line changes? That was a mess. I don't know why you would go through an 82 game season with somewhat established lines and then in the first playoff game start trying all sorts of nutty combinations. That seemed insane to me.

Washington is more or less incapable of winning a game where they don't score first. The line shuffling was pure panic.

 

[g00n]

We have seen all year that as soon as a team figures out how to stop the PP and another team tries to copy it, Trotz and Co. change the approach to thwart the PK. There are simply too many options. Blanketing Backstrom will work for one game, maybe one PP if the coaching staff doesn't recognize it. Next game there will be some new wrinkle that makes that strategy a liability.

There is only one way to stop this PP in a full series IF the players execute...and that is to do whatever it takes based on your team's strengths to not even let them set it up.

 

[Vladiator16*]

Washington is more or less incapable of winning a game where they don't score first. The line shuffling was pure panic.

That is such a disturbing stat i don't even know what to say... that really bothered me during the season... With a top scorer in the league this shouldn't be such a trend. Who is to blame for that? I remember (not under Oates) this team was never out, even if they down 2-3...
Is it Trotz?

 

[Stewie G]

We have seen all year that as soon as a team figures out how to stop the PP and another team tries to copy it, Trotz and Co. change the approach to thwart the PK. There are simply too many options. Blanketing Backstrom will work for one game, maybe one PP if the coaching staff doesn't recognize it. Next game there will be some new wrinkle that makes that strategy a liability.

There is only one way to stop this PP in a full series IF the players execute...and that is to do whatever it takes based on your team's strengths to not even let them set it up.

Someone mentioned it earlier, but I think we might have seen them try to use a mirror set up on a PP later in the game. Perhaps that was just coincedence, but it looked intentional. I'm no hockey strategist, so I don't know what impact that might have, but that would definitely be a new wrinkle.

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

Final thought - the most troubling part of last night was the way the Isles defended the first PP. Someone was stapled to Backstrom the entire time. Take away the pass from Backstrom to Green or Backstrom to the backdoor and you stop our PP.

It certainly looked intentional even though they abandoned it on the second PP when they were up a goal.

This was more troubling than anything for me last night. Islanders swarmed every puck carrier on the PP. 19 and pretty much everyone crumbled under that pressure. They lacked poise.

 

[tycoonheart]

We have seen all year that as soon as a team figures out how to stop the PP and another team tries to copy it, Trotz and Co. change the approach to thwart the PK. There are simply too many options. Blanketing Backstrom will work for one game, maybe one PP if the coaching staff doesn't recognize it. Next game there will be some new wrinkle that makes that strategy a liability.

There is only one way to stop this PP in a full series IF the players execute...and that is to do whatever it takes based on your team's strengths to not even let them set it up.

Its the playoffs, trotz and co shouldn't have to wait till the opposition does something to disrupt the PP. They should have had some strategy to counter it up their sleeve. Its a chess match woth the coaches, you dont ever only think of the next step. You have to go beyond So next game Trotz comes up with something to counter that pk, but Capuano shows us another look. What now?

 

[RandyHolt]

I too would like to think a veteran coach would already have a wrinkle for the PP ready for game 1. Open with it. Maybe it was the mirror with Brouwer down in MJs spot. But it was ugly. And it will remain ugly until we have precision passing coupled with creating a passing lane for the guy being pressured quickly by the....

Swarming Fishsticks

I am surprised by Barry's presumed panic line shuffle early in the game, and also seeing he started a bottom 6 lineup I don't think we have seen all year. Chimera at 4RW - he gets to feature that backhand at least

He should put GlennX at RW since he actually has a decent BH

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

I'm failing to see what this "core as constructed" has in common with previous iterations other than Ovechkin and Backstrom. This year's team was built around defense and goaltending.

He's not far off. Most of the top ice time guys have been here a long time. Only 2 and 44 out of the top 10 are new. I'm not saying I'm ready to proclaim them losers, but there's a large core of guys who have been here a long time and continue to fail. That's a completely fair assessment, not and indictment.

 

[BrooklynCapsFan]

He's not far off. Most of the top ice time guys have been here a long time. Only 2 and 44 out of the top 10 are new. I'm not saying I'm ready to proclaim them losers, but there's a large core of guys who have been here a long time and continue to fail. That's a completely fair assessment, not and indictment.

Please. We've surrounded the core with crap for ten years and then people blame them for failing?

Look at the supporting casts in St. Louis, Tampa, Chicago, LA (previously), Pittsburgh (previously), Boston (previously).

The third best forward in Washington the past few years would have trouble cracking the top 6 on contending teams. Our D has been a joke for 9 years of Ovechkin's career.

Ovie scored 14 points in a 2nd round loss. That's the most telling statistic of the Ovechkin era.

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

I think that's just it, a chunk of this team's core probably meets your definition of crap.

 

[BrooklynCapsFan]

I think that's just it, a chunk of this team's core probably meets your definition of crap.

I guess I should have clarified I only meant 8-19-74-70

 

[mrwarden]

I don't know fellas. One problem is that you can't have a team that lives by the PP in the playoffs. Whistles get swallowed on top of teams playing more disciplined.

Beyond that though, this is just a better, more talented team than the Isles, and if they lose this series, you do have to start to wonder if Ovie's just cursed here or something. Even Pavel Bure made a SCF.

 

[Langway]

Beyond that though, this is just a better, more talented team than the Isles, and if they lose this series, you do have to start to wonder if Ovie's just cursed here or something. Even Pavel Bure made a SCF.

This organizational/fanbase assessment hasn't been true for a few years now. Their relative possession stats don't confirm the assessment. The only area that they do outclass teams is, as you said, that PP which is static, predictable and on a theoretical level probably not something that can carry them in the playoffs even if they're handed enough opps.

The inexperience angle has certainly left the building. They are what they are and they are largely a dim-witted bunch. It's evident in their level of detail as an organization...their habits...their manner of speaking even. Off-handed comments show their level of sharpness, individually and collectively. It's not a bright bunch on whole. You could sort of see in Glencross's early body language that this team is just...off.

It's a long series and all that but what seemed like maybe a more varied route to Ws for Washington looks pretty questionable early on. They can't be anywhere near as slow and expect to win and esp. can't have Holtby giving up deflating early goals.

 

[NobodyBeatsTheWiz]

He's not far off. Most of the top ice time guys have been here a long time. Only 2 and 44 out of the top 10 are new. I'm not saying I'm ready to proclaim them losers, but there's a large core of guys who have been here a long time and continue to fail. That's a completely fair assessment, not and indictment.

Again, where is the consistent core other than 8 & 19? 52 is peripheral at this point. Certainly shouldn't be considered part of the current "core", as he's a 3rd pairing D and PP2 player. In relation to the previous playoff failures, those are the only ones to make sense to talk about.

I guess one could refer to 27 & 74 as well? But they have been properly built around, IMO, and have been consistently good in playoffs, last night notwithstanding.

 

[RandyHolt]

I thought the ice sucked. Of course for just us. But anyways, this confirms what i saw...

Wednesday night, Verizon Center had two glass repairs and the ice was horrible from the first puck drop. I am glad they keep the arena so warm in the spring. At least I didn’t feel cold at a hockey game.

 

[Stewie G]

This organizational/fanbase assessment hasn't been true for a few years now. Their relative possession stats don't confirm the assessment. The only area that they do outclass teams is, as you said, that PP which is static, predictable and on a theoretical level probably not something that can carry them in the playoffs even if they're handed enough opps.

The inexperience angle has certainly left the building. They are what they are and they are largely a dim-witted bunch. It's evident in their level of detail as an organization...their habits...their manner of speaking even. Off-handed comments show their level of sharpness, individually and collectively. It's not a bright bunch on whole. You could sort of see in Glencross's early body language that this team is just...off.

It's a long series and all that but what seemed like maybe a more varied route to Ws for Washington looks pretty questionable early on. They can't be anywhere near as slow and expect to win and esp. can't have Holtby giving up deflating early goals.

That is exactly what I consider their underdoing vs. Halak, Act I. Definitely not the strongest team mentally.

The team's play is very score dependent. They are much more likely to play their "heavy" game when they're tied/winning and they drift away from it when behind, at least until the clock is winding down.

Getting behind is bad enough for this bunch, but if it happens later in the game they've at least had a chance to PHYSICALITY the other team for a little while. An early goal is a dagger though, since they don't even get a chance to PHYSICALITY the opponent at all.

 

[Stewie G]

Again, where is the consistent core other than 8 & 19? 52 is peripheral at this point. Certainly shouldn't be considered part of the current "core", as he's a 3rd pairing D and PP2 player. In relation to the previous playoff failures, those are the only ones to make sense to talk about.

I guess one could refer to 27 & 74 as well? But they have been properly built around, IMO, and have been consistently good in playoffs, last night notwithstanding.

I feel like someone is being forgotten, but I can't quite put my finger on it.....

 

[g00n]

When this thread gets closer to 1,000 it will be locked and we move back to the series thread until a new GDT goes up. Consider moving convos to the series thread early.

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

Again, where is the consistent core other than 8 & 19? 52 is peripheral at this point. Certainly shouldn't be considered part of the current "core", as he's a 3rd pairing D and PP2 player. In relation to the previous playoff failures, those are the only ones to make sense to talk about.

I guess one could refer to 27 & 74 as well? But they have been properly built around, IMO, and have been consistently good in playoffs, last night notwithstanding.

It's hard for me to call anyone in the top 8-10 in ice time, NOT core. Green was 7th. Look at the top 10, most have been here a long time.

 

[Skrudland2Lomakin]

I don't know fellas. One problem is that you can't have a team that lives by the PP in the playoffs. Whistles get swallowed on top of teams playing more disciplined.

Beyond that though, this is just a better, more talented team than the Isles, and if they lose this series, you do have to start to wonder if Ovie's just cursed here or something. Even Pavel Bure made a SCF.

Anyone want to CC Jason Chimera on this memo.

 

[mdtex95]

I have to vent.

I am a Capitals fan. Born and raised in Maryland. My first game was at the old Capital Center, January 1, 1992 against the New York Islanders

I have been watching this organization come up short for 23 years. I watched every game as a kid on HTS. Lived through the Peter Bondra trade. Watched Joe Juneau bobble a penalty shot in overtime. US Air Arena demolition. The move to China Town. The black and bronze years. There was a time you could hear a pin drop inside MCI Center (Verizon).

Then, Ovechkin. The draft. The Russian influx. Alex Semin. Varlamov.

Fast forward to Ovechkin being handed the captaincy.

Bottom line is, this organization doesn't have any winners. There is no history of champions in this organizations fiber. A history of almosts, mistakes, and bad trades.

Holtby has zero playoff confidence. Ovi is a great goal scorer, but will never be half the dressing room leader as Toews or Crosby.

This team has no killer instinct. The Islanders smell blood in the water, and they're circling.

If the Caps lose game 2 at home, the Isles will finish them in 4 at Nassau. More of the same regular season greatness, same old playoff fizzle.

 

[Stewie G]

It's pretty neat that you have access to 3 dfferent NHL locker rooms!