Post-Game Talk: CAPS @ Meow's 7:30 PM

[Calicaps]

Yes except last season he sat him then sent him down to Hershey and he hadshoulder injury...he was actually playing pretty damn good when he sat him.

And it worked. Now he's having success as a top 4, arguably top 2 D

 

[Capitals40]

And it worked. Now he's having success as a top 4, arguably top 2 D

I will argue sending him down and getting a shoulder injury is not why he is successful. I dont think Trotz handles young talent properly....he evidentely values Wilson over guys like Schmidt.

 

[artilector]

A night to forget. I hope no one presses the panic button after that though. The other top teams have all had a few games like that, it was bound to happen. Let's move on and look ahead for the game vs TB.

Well, I'd say there's no particular reason to press it after THIS game. Because, honestly, IMO they've been somewhat comparably underwhelming in a large fraction of their games so far -- but soft schedule, talent, and Trotz's system/Holtby usually got them points anyway, even without really being in sync.

Gotta believe that they'll figure out the chemistry somehow; but right now, or rather, for now, it's not really there.

Part of the problem remains lack of team speed. There seem to be plenty of teams out there that generally move around faster than the Caps, which allows them to significantly negate any talent disparity. Hopefully (in a way) part of that is Caps' coasting through regular season... When they skate hard, they certainly look like a very different team.

But IMO the lineup still needs a lot of work. Pretty much all combinations of Ovi/Kuz/Backstrom/Oshie have been somewhat underwhelming. Oshie plays hard, but his skating/speed seems average or subpar, kind of like Backstrom. Ovi coasts a lot, the usual, and Kuz also tends to go to work in bursts. I feel like when these guys play together, it's hard for them to maintain a level of output high enough to consistently put (good) opponents on their heels. Maybe things will look different in playoffs... who knows...

I guess what I'm saying is -- the skilled guys are mostly not complementing each other particularly well so far, except for some highlight reel shifts by Kuz here and there. The best linemates for Kuz might be Chimera & Williams, and something like this might be true for each of Ovi/Backstrom/Oshie, as well.

Would be nice to try Chimera-Kuz-Williams, Mojo-Backstrom-Oshie, Ovi-Zubrus-Clark

 

[Alexander the Gr8]

Well, I'd say there's no particular reason to press it after THIS game. Because, honestly, IMO they've been somewhat comparably underwhelming in a large fraction of their games so far -- but soft schedule, talent, and Trotz's system/Holtby usually got them points anyway, even without really being in sync.

Gotta believe that they'll figure out the chemistry somehow; but right now, or rather, for now, it's not really there.

Part of the problem remains lack of team speed. There seem to be plenty of teams out there that generally move around faster than the Caps, which allows them to significantly negate any talent disparity. Hopefully (in a way) part of that is Caps' coasting through regular season... When they skate hard, they certainly look like a very different team.

But IMO the lineup still needs a lot of work. Pretty much all combinations of Ovi/Kuz/Backstrom/Oshie have been somewhat underwhelming. Oshie plays hard, but his skating/speed seems average or subpar, kind of like Backstrom. Ovi coasts a lot, the usual, and Kuz also tends to go to work in bursts. I feel like when these guys play together, it's hard for them to maintain a level of output high enough to consistently put (good) opponents on their heels. Maybe things will look different in playoffs... who knows...

I guess what I'm saying is -- the skilled guys are mostly not complementing each other particularly well so far, except for some highlight reel shifts by Kuz here and there. The best linemates for Kuz might be Chimera & Williams, and something like this might be true for each of Ovi/Backstrom/Oshie, as well.

Would be nice to try Chimera-Kuz-Williams, Mojo-Backstrom-Oshie, Ovi-Zubrus-Clark

I don't think there are many teams out there that move their feet more than us. As you saw in games during which we trail in the 3rd, the team is very fast when it plays with desperation. It is true that Chimera and Kuz have a very good connection together as we saw in the playoffs. We could try this lineup for the forwards:

8-19-77 (main scoring line)
25-92-14 (complimentary scoring line)
90-83-43 (fast checking line)
21-46-49 (4th line)

 

[troyerlaw]

A night to forget. I hope no one presses the panic button after that though. The other top teams have all had a few games like that, it was bound to happen. Let's move on and look ahead for the game vs TB.

Well, i don't think people will panic. But i do hope trotz will realize the team has looked stale for a few games now, even when they were able to eke out the points via Holtby or shootout or whatever.

I agree with the prior suggestions about flipping kuz and nicky.

I'd give others a chance at center point on the PP. Ovie seems less effective on PP this year with 74 as the final pass.

Where the hell is Orpik?

Trotz described it as a minor injury way back when. Like about 14 games ago.

Not that he looked all that good when he WAS healthy.

Ovie's stickhandling seems just atrocious lately. Grenade time when he receives it in neutral zone. Doesn't seem too confident in his game right now.

And kuz has cooled off.

And nicky doesn't seem right.

Laich, mojo, whatever. I've kind of given up on them.

Main boards debating the Wilson hit. (With beef invictus as chief prosecutor.) Didnt seem like a particularly egregious boarding to me. But if this is going to be a permanent thing with Wilson, where the refs & league automatically send him off after every other scrum, we ought to unload him. It takes away the one reliably effective part of his game -- hitting -- and it puts us on the PK, and the goal scoring never has materialized. I thought he'd develop toward a lucic or knuble type player. Now i'm starting to wonder.

Kuz with ovie. That's a start.

And drop a healthy-scratch, for once, on an untouchable. Like laich or mojo or freaking carlson. Talk about lack of focus. When i think about the short leash 88 was on last year and at the beginning of this year, and i compare it to some of the turnovers and brain farts and lazy passes which 74 has made, it seems like two radically different standards being applied.

Maybe try the Swedes together again. 90-19-65. I don't know. Just to switch something up. Feels stale as hell lately. Except for Holtby and Schmidt and Alzner, who, in my book, have been pretty damn steady.

 

[Calicaps]

Well, i don't think people will panic. But i do hope trotz will realize the team has looked stale for a few games now, even when they were able to eke out the points via Holtby or shootout or whatever.

I agree with the prior suggestions about flipping kuz and nicky.

I'd give others a chance at center point on the PP. Ovie seems less effective on PP this year with 74 as the final pass.

Where the hell is Orpik?

Trotz described it as a minor injury way back when. Like about 14 games ago.

Not that he looked all that good when he WAS healthy.

Ovie's stickhandling seems just atrocious lately. Grenade time when he receives it in neutral zone. Doesn't seem to confident in his game right now.

And kuz has cooled off.

And nicky doesn't seem right.

Laich, mojo, whatever. I've kind of given up on them.

Main boards debating the Wilson hit. (With beef invictus as chief prosecutor.) Didnt seem like a particularly egregious boarding to me. But if this is going to be a permanent thing with Wilson, where the refs & league automatically send him off after every other scrum, we ought to unload him. It takes away the one reliably effective part of his game -- hitting -- and it puts us on the PK, and the goal scoring never has materialized. I thought he'd develop toward a lucic or knuble type player. Now i'm starting to wonder.

Kuz with ovie. That's a start.

And drop a healthy-scratch, for once, on an untouchable. Like laich or mojo or freaking carlson. Talk about lack of focus. When i think about the short leash 88 was on last year and at the beginning of this year, and i compare it to some of the turnovers and brain farts and lazy passes which 74 has made, it seems like two radically different standards being applied.

Maybe try the Swedes together again. 90-19-65. I don't know. Just to switch something up. Feels stale as hell lately. Except for Holtby and Schmidt and Alzner, who, in my book, have been pretty damn steady.

RE: Orpik, see http://hfboards.mandatory.com/showpost.php?p=110510133&postcount=571

I think some guys are banged up, particularly 19 and 90.

As for Ovie, the PP has been his bread and butter, especially in recent years, and he's not getting the support (read passing) he needs. Try Niskanen or Orlov or even Schmidt (yeah, handedness, I know) but try stuff until a guy clicks. Once 8 get his one-timer going, the rest should follow. His physical game has been very on, which tells me he's mostly fine. Also he's top 10 league wide in +/-.

And yeah, shuffle the top 2 Cs.

Totally disagree on Wilson. The hit was not good but not egregious, IMO, and he still draws a lot penalties, has become a solid PKer, scored a few big goals, changes momentum usually for the better, and is just 21. Way too soon to throw in the towel. But the front office should be banging the unjust rep drum, even with the hit tonight,

I dunno about the press box, and surely not for 74. He's a net positive almost every game.

All in all, yeah, they got a bit stale toward the end of a long win streak, but I would be very wary of overreacting. They just got their assess handed to them by a weak team in an empty building in front of their fathers.

Notably it was their first loss by more than 1 goal in over a month, which is both impressive and very possibly just what the doctor ordered. It certainly should be more than enough to wake up a mature team. Let's see what happens next.

 

[troyerlaw]

Totally disagree on Wilson. The hit was not good but not egregious, IMO, and he still draws a lot penalties, has become a solid PKer, scored a few big goals, changes momentum usually for the better, and is just 21. Way too soon to throw in the towel. But the front office should be banging the unjust rep drum, even with the hit tonight,

I dunno about the press box, and surely not for 74. He's a net positive almost every game.

All in all, yeah, they got a bit stale toward the end of a long win streak, but I would be very wary of overreacting. They just got their assess handed to them by a weak team in an empty building in front of their fathers.

Notably it was their first loss by more than 1 goal in over a month, which is both impressive and very possibly just what the doctor ordered. It certainly should be more than enough to wake up a mature team. Let's see what happens next.

Yeah, you're right. I was just being grumpy. You're right about 43 and 74, and about not overreacting. I was being pissy about the loss. Anyway, flip 92 and 19. Start w/ that.

'night, all.

 

[Alexander the Gr8]

Hey at least 74 had a nice pass for the one timer towards the end of the game. If he can just replicate it again on PPs we're good.

 

[hb12xchamps]

This team is one of the best in the NHL. We lose a game and this board constantly panics. Are there areas that need to be improved? Yes, but I have no problem with the way the team has been playing. Every team lays an egg every so often.

On another note, I think whoever is our backup goalie is going to struggle at this point. Holtby is going to play close to 70 games which means the backup will probably get between 12-15 or so starts a year. It's tough for a goalie to come in and not be rusty after sitting the bench for almost a month.

 

[Devil Dancer]

Ovie's stickhandling seems just atrocious lately. Grenade time when he receives it in neutral zone. Doesn't seem to confident in his game right now.

Totally agree. By the eye test alone he looks like 65 point 2011-12 Ovie. He's still getting points though so I'm not panicking yet.

 

[Langway]

I don't think there are many teams out there that move their feet more than us. As you saw in games during which we trail in the 3rd, the team is very fast when it plays with desperation.

The Caps are fast in terms of their defensive gaps and structure when at their best but overall I wouldn't consider them particularly fast. They still don't truly play downhill in terms of attacking the danger areas of the ice and that's hard to overcome by any amount of explosive skating alone. Passing, anticipation, skating explosively through the neutral zone and doggedly trying to get interior rather than being guided to the perimeter are areas somewhat questionable against stingier defensive teams. They still come across as a team that thinks defense primarily and if they have that sorted out then everything will take care of itself. Until it doesn't, which is pretty much inevitable with that sort of approach.

 

[Alexander the Gr8]

Totally agree. By the eye test alone he looks like 65 point 2011-12 Ovie. He's still getting points though so I'm not panicking yet.

2012 Ovi had better hands than 2016 Ovi. Didn't score as much because the coach was a moron but he could stickhandle with the best of them. He could've scored 50 goals that season if he just had a coach willing to let him play his game.

 

[Blitzkrieg365]

Well, I'd say there's no particular reason to press it after THIS game. Because, honestly, IMO they've been somewhat comparably underwhelming in a large fraction of their games so far -- but soft schedule, talent, and Trotz's system/Holtby usually got them points anyway, even without really being in sync.

This. Everyone else seems optimistic but I've been worried for awhile now. I understand every team has some bad games but the caps have had more then a hand full now and many of them they've undeservingly won.

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

Any win is a deserved win in my books. If people are worrying after this start, were you guys pulling out the short rope and 3-legged chairs when this team performed much worse in past seasons? The hand wringing in Dec is mind boggling to this fan.

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

Btw, Ekblad is freaking good. WOW. Only 19 still.

 

[artilector]

Any win is a deserved win in my books. If people are worrying after this start, were you guys pulling out the short rope and 3-legged chairs when this team performed much worse in past seasons? The hand wringing in Dec is mind boggling to this fan.

Your drama meter is broken.

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

Your drama meter is broken.

Sorry man. Long season. I worry when they're fighting for the 8th playoff spot or come actual playoff time.

 

[Devil Dancer]

2012 Ovi had better hands than 2016 Ovi. Didn't score as much because the coach was a moron but he could stickhandle with the best of them. He could've scored 50 goals that season if he just had a coach willing to let him play his game.

Man, that's some hard core revisionist history. Ovie was terrible that year compared to his usual self, regardless of coaching. He spent the whole year shanking shots, flubbing passes and looking like ol' stone hands himself.

Sort of how he has looked the last few weeks.

 

[Calicaps]

Man, that's some hard core revisionist history. Ovie was terrible that year compared to his usual self, regardless of coaching. He spent the whole year shanking shots, flubbing passes and looking like ol' stone hands himself.

Sort of how he has looked the last few weeks.

He's currently 7th in goal-scoring, 5 off the lead, and 8th in +/-. If he hits his usual post-Xmas stride, no reason to think he doesn't add a 1/4 goal a game. I am not worried.

 

[Alexander the Gr8]

Man, that's some hard core revisionist history. Ovie was terrible that year compared to his usual self, regardless of coaching. He spent the whole year shanking shots, flubbing passes and looking like ol' stone hands himself.

Sort of how he has looked the last few weeks.

He is always shanking shots and flubbing passes, but saying he has stone hands is a massive exaggeration. He didn't have stone hands in 2012 and he doesn't have stone hands in 2015. His stick handling is not as good as it used to be but he can still dangle, as we've seen with his first of the season.

Don't worry, he's on pace for 44 goals and 78 pts and he hasn't had his annual 25 goals in 30 games hot streak. I'm not worried at all for #8.

 

[RandyHolt]

With Ovi setting the bar as high as he has, he definitely had stone hands in 2012, or whatever the time frame was.

He could not even enter the zone and make his cut inside without losing the puck. It seemed to go for half a year if not more.

It was very bizarre and the cause remains a mystery. I feel like consensus was that he had a wrist injury. But he was far from alone, as all of the young guns tanked.

 

[rh71]

huge Ovi fan but his puck possession has always been a problem ever since he stopped going end-to-end his first few years. He can't cycle in the corner and can no longer dance in a phone booth. Maybe he changed his curve, I don't know - but it's just better to let his teammates handle the puck and have him come late for a drive. I don't know why but he never worked that hard to build up his game, unfortunately. People claim his defense is his weakness, but he's always been the same there (not worse) - I just wish he improved his real weakness which is puck protection and board play. The line would have so many more chances instead of one-and-dones.

 

[Bladerunner]

He's currently 7th in goal-scoring, 5 off the lead, and 8th in +/-. If he hits his usual post-Xmas stride, no reason to think he doesn't add a 1/4 goal a game. I am not worried.

That puts a smile of my face as much as anything

We all know +/- is used, abused, and misunderstood by many fans. However the abuse Ovy got from his bad +/- of a few seasons ago makes his current rating look all the better. He's been mostly top 10 in that stat for some time now... Kuzy was briefly #1.

Hope Ovy can pick up the scoring a bit more soon. Mostly hope the team is relatively healthy and playing well in April !

 

[Raikkonen]

That puts a smile of my face as much as anything

We all know +/- is used, abused, and misunderstood by many fans. However the abuse Ovy got from his bad +/- of a few seasons ago makes his current rating look all the better. He's been mostly top 10 in that stat for some time now... Kuzy was briefly #1.

Hope Ovy can pick up the scoring a bit more soon. Mostly hope the team is relatively healthy and playing well in April !

Just a sign we have depth for top-3 players. A good 1st line with any C/RW.