capcrunch98

Completely agree. Without a doubt closer is the weakest link on this team right now. At this point in Kimbrell's career, I don't see him fixing this.

Well, these last 2 games are one good way to help me forget about the Oakland series a few days ago.

Was watching the Stars-Knights game last night, and I saw Mantha was a healthy scratch for Vegas. Good on the Caps for getting something for him at the trade deadline; he wouldn't have made a difference in our series vs. NY and he'd be gone this summer with no return.

If someone told us back on Opening Night that Backstrom's career would be over by November, Kuzy would be crap, Ovi would have 8 goals at the All-Star break, and we'd be sellers at the trade deadline, all of us would've predicted a bottom 5 finish. Pretty amazing they make the postseason. But now that they're out, it's time to face the fact they're a fading team, with limited skill, and that's exactly what they looked like in 4 games against a better team. I'm expecting them to be pretty lousy the next 2 - 3 years (whether they plan to or not) and stockpile young talent. It'll be a while until we're back in the playoffs, but when we return we'll be a lot better built than we are now.

I just can't get too mad about us being down in this series. I've lived through all the blown 3-1 and 2-0 choke jobs, times when I really thought it was their year and they fall flat in the most heartbreaking ways. This time, we're a very average club with minimal talent who is just simply losing to a better team. I'm not happy about it, but I can live with it. All I ask is they go down swinging. Had the Caps delivered head shots like the hits Panarin and Rempe delivered, everyone from the Rangers fat grumpy coach, to their fairweather fanbase, to the annoying NY media would've been crying their eyes out, and the league would've stepped in. The Caps can and should make them answer for that. I'm not calling for a Dale Hunter -type blindside, but if Game 4 is over by the 3rd period, I am perfectly fine with some shots getting taken. This series has been way too easy for NY so far.

Cheap-shot artist, Rangers fans insist he's a tough guy but he routinely gets his lunch eaten by legit NHL fighters, has a skillset so limited he makes Ryan Reaves look like Sergei Fedorov, just looks like a douche. Should I continue? The fact the Caps let him score a goal may be the low point of this series for me so far.

As much as the loss sucks, I feel better now than after Game 1. The Rangers are the better team, but not by as much as a lot of people think. We looked really good for long stretches of this game. Can we win 4 of the next 5 against them? Probably not (unless Chucky channels his inner Jaro Halak, which so far he's been unable to do). But we can make this a series. I think a win on Friday could really get into the heads of the Rags. They're talented, but no championship team has ever had a worthless toolbag like Matt Rempe as their folk hero. They're mentally weak (as seen last year vs. Jersey). We just need to keep pushing them and stop giving them so many PPs.

I understand the frustration, but dude - it's one game.

0-4 on the power play. Minimal offensive pressure for most of the game. Giving up a goal to Matt Rempe, the biggest joke in hockey. That's no way to knock off a #1 seed. The good news is Game 1s usually don't mean much of anything. The Caps have learned that the hard way in years past. A win Tuesday night in Game 2 will steal home ice and put them right back in the series. But they're going to have to show a hell of a lot more than they showed today.

I know it's only April, but we needed that one.

Done. So we're in the 2nd WC slot with 2 games to go. Isles have all but wrapped up the 3rd seed in the Metro, so we're fighting for WC2 and a matchup with the Rangers. That's scary, but as Caps fans have learned the hard way over many years, anything is possible in the postseason and 1st round upsets happen all the time. We probably need a point vs. Boston on Monday, and obviously a win in Philly on Tuesday.

Still have a pulse through 80 games, and we live another day. Very pleasantly surprised.

Food at ballparks has really come a long way. Growing up, the options for me at Capital Centre and Memorial Stadium were stale nachos, plain hot dogs, and pizza that tasted like cardboard (Capital Centre had a local chain called Pizza Movers, if anybody remembers them). Now stadium food is so creative, I know a couple who goes to Camden Yards and Nats Park a couple times per year specifically for the grub.

Totally agree that this story doesn't pass the smell test. But when you live your life as a narcissist, murdering piece of **** like OJ did, having people line up to piss on your grave kinda goes with the territory.

Absolute terrible night for us. We lost a game we needed to win. The Isles overcome a 3rd period deficit and win. The Flyers snap an 8-game skid in an away game against the best team in the league (points-wise). The Pens win, but not before letting the Wings rally from a late 2-goal 3rd period deficit to get a point. We're officially in the "need to win out (or at the very least take 2 of our last 3, and get a point in the other), and also need some help on the scoreboard" category. Any regulation loss from this point forward ends our season. Not looking good with Tampa and Boston coming up. After 79 games, we are who our record says we are. They fought hard this year, but they're just not good enough.

Can't lose twice to Buffalo in 10 days and expect to make the playoffs. If this score holds, they're probably going to have to secure 5 out of 6 points their last 3 games. That's a tall order considering 2 of those games are against Boston and Tampa.

I agree, but they played themselves out of a good draft pick several months ago. So as a fan, it only makes sense for me to live in the moment and cheer for a playoff berth. There's a strong possibility this season is the last chance for Ovi, Oshie, and Carlson to make the postseason.

A piece of **** with cancer is still a piece of ****.

True. Honestly, if they make the postseason, they're going to get their asses handed to them by the Rangers or the Bruins. If they somehow manage the 3rd spot in the Metro, I could see them pushing Carolina to 6 or maybe 7 games, because they seem to match up well against them. At the same time, they've played themselves out of a good draft pick, so we may as well root for a playoff berth, even if it will amount to nothing more than a one and done.

17 shots against in the first period of the most important game of the season. I see they're going with the 'let's hope Charlie steals one for us' game plan. Yet again.

We may or may not make the playoffs next week. But tonight is basically a Game 7 for our season.

Jumping into high-end free agency. That 's one alternative to rebuilding the right way (i.e. taking your licks for a few years, and stocking up on high draft picks who will be under team control at reasonable salaries for a long time). And it's a risky alternative. Signing a guy like Reinhart, hoping his 50 - 60 goal season is sustainable (even though it's almost double his career high, and he won't be playing with half the talent in DC which he is in Florida). There's a chance it works out,, but there's a really big chance it won't. Don't get me wrong, I'd love for this team - which has almost zero secondary scoring - to add a weapon up front. I just don't think it would address all the other flaws we have.

The only way to truly replace those guys is to draft and develop them. They're not available on the waiver wire, or via mid-grade free agent signings, or via trade (unless you want to give up a lot in return). It's very rare that a team can effectively replace an entire aging core without sucking for a few years and rebuilding through several top #5 draft picks. And speaking of high draft picks, that really sucks that we're going to likely miss the playoffs, and not even have a top #10 first round pick to show for it. That's like your wife leaving you because she catches you having an online affair with someone, but you don't even get to bang the girl (I actually know a guy that happened to, btw). Crappy night to be a Caps fan.

Officiating sucked for sure, but the refs aren't to blame for us getting outshot 3-1. We were hanging on, trying to steal a win.

Well, they made it to the first week of April in a playoff spot, which is a lot better than most of us expected of them just a few months ago. But flirting with a hot girl at the bar for a few hours - making her laugh and buying her drinks - doesn't mean much if she just gives you her email address and then goes home with another guy at the end of the night. The Caps aren't out of it yet - a win tomorrow vs. Carolina and a win Sunday vs. a crappy Ottawa team would put them back in the drivers seat. But that hot girl at the bar is definitely starting to talk to other dudes.