2016-17 Washington Capitals Thread - Thanks for Everything, Ovi. It's Time to Move on.. #Firesale

[Springfield]

12 minutes ago, skinsfan_1215 said:

 

First goal was 5 hole on a breakaway. He could have stopped it, but it wasn't bad goal. Second goal was on a two on one. Didn't have a chance on that one. Third goal was on a two on one. Was a softy.

 

See the trend though?

 

also: Pens had 11 shots on goal through 2 periods and beat the Caps 6-2

 

The trend is bad goaltending.  I don't care if it's 2 on 1's all night long.  You gotta do better

than 8 stops of 11.

 

There isn't a single game that Holtby has looked MVP worthy this postseason.

[SkinsHokieFan]

I can't think of any adjustment except start to play Hunter hockey. Which is everything this team hasn't done all year 

[BRAVEONTHEWARPATH93]

59 minutes ago, mammajamma said:

I'm still trying to figure out why shattenkirk has been so disappointing in the playoffs. I mean, there's still at least 2 games left to adjust, but he's made so many bad shots/passes/adjustments

He came from another loser organization in St Louis

 

all he knows is failure 

[TheGoodBits]

7 minutes ago, Springfield said:

 

The trend is bad goaltending.  I don't care if it's 2 on 1's all night long.  You gotta do better

than 8 stops of 11.

 

There isn't a single game that Holtby has looked MVP worthy this postseason.

 

I mean you can say that but it's not really true. He hasn't great but he hasn't been bad either. In the list of "players to blame" he's not at the top. I'm more interested in looking at the players who keep turning the puck over between the blue lines and creating these opportunities for the Pens to score.

[Springfield]

9 minutes ago, skinsfan_1215 said:

 

I mean you can say that but it's not really true. He hasn't great but he hasn't been bad either. In the list of "players to blame" he's not at the top. I'm more interested in looking at the players who keep turning the puck over between the blue lines and creating these opportunities for the Pens to score.

 

We have these opportunities too.

 

These leaky goals and bad rebound controls are killing us.  Now, I didn't see any goals against except the second Pitt goal.  I disagree that Holtby had no chance, I think he could have slid across and stopped it.  Those are big saves that we NEED.  Any team needs them.

 

 

Perhaps, a change of location will help this team and we go up and steal two in Pittsburgh.  Who knows.

[Hersh]

20 minutes ago, Springfield said:

 

The trend is bad goaltending.  I don't care if it's 2 on 1's all night long.  You gotta do better

than 8 stops of 11.

 

There isn't a single game that Holtby has looked MVP worthy this postseason.

The 3rd goal was a bad goal. Grubby's first goal was not too good either. 

 

Basically the entire team isn't playing well but I think the biggest issues are the defensive breakdowns. First Pens goal was all on Shattenkirk. 

2 minutes ago, Springfield said:

 

We have these opportunities too.

 

These leaky goals and bad rebound controls are killing us.  Now, I didn't see any goals against except the second Pitt goal.  I disagree that Holtby had no chance, I think he could have slid across and stopped it.  Those are big saves that we NEED.  Any team needs them.

 

 

Perhaps, a change of location will help this team and we go up and steal two in Pittsburgh.  Who knows.

The second goal Holtby was there. but it was just a great shot. Short side top shelf and Holtby had way cut down the angle. It illustrated a big difference tonight. Pens have secondary scoring in the playoffs and the Caps do not. 

[Springfield]

We had secondary scoring against Toronto.  The 2nd and 3rd lines have looked good from what I've seen.  Just need to put it together.

[ixcuincle]

There's three teams down 2-0. Anaheim also in our situation. 

 

The caps though are the least likely to survive. Maybe because of history and situation facing the best team in hockey right now. 

[Idaho fan]

Was at game tonight.   First time ever at verizon.  Kudos to the fans and overall experience.   From my point of view I think goalies had a bad game but Caps also just seemed to not get the breaks the pens did

 

im a Skins fan first and foremost.  The interesting thing for me after talking to several guys is just how jaded and tired they are from local let downs (especially Skins and Caps).  I live on other side of country so I don't see it first hand.   This town needs a winner.  Hopefully the caps can turn it around in pitt.  

[Hersh]

14 minutes ago, Springfield said:

We had secondary scoring against Toronto.  The 2nd and 3rd lines have looked good from what I've seen.  Just need to put it together.

3rd line is skating well, but only 2 Wilson goals to show for it. (3rd Wilson goal was with 4th line) Caps have 5 players that scored 12 or more goals in the regular season that haven't scored a goal. 

 

The top line has scored 10 goals, the rest of the forwards have 10 goals.

 

[Hersh]

2 hours ago, redskins59 said:

 

We can see why he typically seems to have negative plus/minus.

In 8 playoff games he is at -7. That is as bad as it gets.

[China]

All I can say is thank god I am on business travel and wasn't able to watch the game.

[BRAVEONTHEWARPATH93]

Heard all this hype about the 3rd line

 

they produced jack ****.

 

Burakovsky is playing like trash again in the playoffs 

[BRAVEONTHEWARPATH93]

 

 

The fact that this team has to have a players only meeting in May is so laughably embarrassing that I have no snarky comment lol.

 

get the **** outta here. The need for one alone is sad enough 

[DogofWar1]

2 minutes ago, BRAVEONTHEWARPATH93 said:

 

 

The fact that this team has to have a players only meeting in May is so laughably embarrassing that I have no snarky comment lol.

 

get the **** outta here. The need for one alone is sad enough 

Hey, if it works...

 

We need to win the next game.  Steal one in their house and maybe that momentum will carry.

 

It looks embarrassing now, to be having such a meeting, but the difference between "it was a sign the team was dysfunctional" and "it was a turning point that reinvigorated the team" is results.  And I'll take results however they can get them.

[capcrunch98]

Loser silver-lining talk ('cause that's all I got right now):

 

*We took the first 2 in ****sburgh in '96, and Pens won the next 4 (including the excruciating 4-OT Game 4).  So it can happen.

 

*We're still the more talented team.

 

*Fleury is due for a meltdown.  'Cause he's Fleury.

 

*Let's be honest - every longtime Caps fan knows that if we're ever going to win a Cup, not only will we have to go through Pittsburgh, but we'll have to repay them  by overcoming a 2-0 and/or 3-1 deficit the way they've stuck it to us over the years.

[JPG]

5 hours ago, Idaho fan said:

Was at game tonight.   First time ever at verizon.  Kudos to the fans and overall experience.   From my point of view I think goalies had a bad game but Caps also just seemed to not get the breaks the pens did

 

im a Skins fan first and foremost.  The interesting thing for me after talking to several guys is just how jaded and tired they are from local let downs (especially Skins and Caps).  I live on other side of country so I don't see it first hand.   This town needs a winner.  Hopefully the caps can turn it around in pitt.  

 

Its a good point. I have been wondering lately how much this loser mentality has an affect on anyone who becomes involved in it. 

I'm a pretty firm believer in thinking positive thinking creates positive results. So I wonder how much this has an affect. Just thinking about it right now because of what I read in the Nationals thread with there injury misfortunes and playoff losses. Then of course you have the redskins who turn any winner into a loser. Tough weekend for the O"s,Nats, and Caps. Hopefully one of these teams break the funk.

[DC9]

The last time that the Caps came back from a 2-0 deficit and won the series was the 2009 series against the Rags.

 

Then we immediately turned around and took a 2-0 lead against the Pens, and the Pens came back and won in 7.

 

It's certainly not unheard of, but last night was a "take their heart," type of game.  There is nothing you can look at and build off of those games.  It would be Red Sox 2004-esque if they came back and evened it up...

 

The Pens were scoring near post on Holtby last playoffs, they're doing it again this year.  The team in general isn't playing like the Caps because they aren't mentally tough.  They've already shut it down.  It's all of their faults.

[ixcuincle]

Nearly everyone left early last night, wouldn't blame them. By the end of the game it was mostly empty seats. Shameful performance by the home club. 

[Zazzaro703]

9 hours ago, c slag said:

Ovechkin seems to have disappeared 

It's not Ovie, it's the typical disappearing act from secondary scoring that happens every ****ing spring. I don't understand why we rolled with set lines all year and mixed them up for the playoffs moving Wilson to the 3rd line. It worked for 1 game against Toronto. That's not a knock against Wilson I actually think he has played alright for the most part but why the long term adjustment? Mojo has like 4 goals in his last 30+ playoff games. Kuzy should have 5-6 goals this playoffs but has one on an open net. None of these guys show up for the post season year after year. And Holtby is being Springtime Holtby letting in soft goals at the absolute worst of times. He could have saved 2 of those 3 goals, against the Pens we need elite goaltending and we just aren't getting it. 

 

I still think this team can win this series, it's not as bleak as a lot of you are making it out to be but it's def not a good situation. The chances are there, they just don't finish them and if it continues it SHOULD be an interesting offseason. The Capitals have outplayed the Pens both games but when the Pens get good chances, they score. It's that simple really. Crosby is playing like the best player in Hockey as well. I freaking loathe that guy but man is he skating at peak level. He is the best player on the ice through 2 games and it's not even close. It's a shame we didn't take advantage of last year when we held him to 2pts (2 assists) the entire 6 games.

 

Shattenkirk, what a joke. I guess he is already counting his millions and moving his stuff to New York where he wants to be. That 3rd pairing is awful, I think we might have to shorten the bench and not play them more than 3-4 minutes each. 

 

The Caps need to adjust their PP, holy smokes is Fleury selling out to stop the 1 timer across the ice. Ovie or whomever is over there just needs to send a one timer pass instead of shot back low to the other side for a tap in.

[skinsmarydu]

1 minute ago, Zazzaro703 said:

I still think this team can win this series, it's not as bleak as a lot of you are making it out to be but it's def not a good situation. The chances are there, they just don't finish them and if it continues it SHOULD be an interesting offseason. The Capitals have outplayed the Pens both games but when the Pens get good chances, they score. It's that simple really.

We've come out with blazing speed both games v. Pens.  We were both saying, "Holy cow, we're pushing 'em", but then...Crosby.  Hubby said, "I don't remember this guy from last year", same with Malkin...I'm like, "Dude, been tellin' you this for about a decade now..."  These 2 guys are the Mario/Jaromir of now. (Sorry, but as an investment, I'm hanging onto my 3 Jagr rookie cards, LOL).

It's going to take everything we can bring to beat 'em.  Look at how the entire team skates.  It was the same with Joe & Peter in the day...dudes could skate like crazy...make a turn, pass, turn again, move sideways, change sides of the ice and still score.  We can't do that.  We can't control feet and the puck at the same time...and that's HOCKEY.  Gotta skate better.

 

 

[TradeTheBeal!]

Penguins are now 6-1 in the playoffs with a aggregate score of 30-17.  They're just better than us...and everybody else, too.

 

That said...now we can play without pressure and expectation.  Play loose, have fun, get a couple breaks from the refs, steal a couple games and see what happens.

 

Caps in 7.

[Redskin4ever]

7 hours ago, China said:

All I can say is thank god I am on business travel and wasn't able to watch the game.

 

Yeah, I was out of town yesterday in a town I didn't even know existed. I had no cell service, which I didn't even know that was still possible. But anyway, I missed the whole game and seeing how it turned out, I'm glad I did.

[Hersh]

There really is no part of the Caps that has played at a really high level in the playoffs. The amount of defensive breakdowns in the first two games this series has been staggering. Guys on offense can't finish. Goaltending hasn't been good. Special teams haven't been good. I wouldn't say Trotz is getting outcoached per se but he's a defensive coach and the defense has been bad so....

 

The first line has been good but they have to get to another level. (I don't put any of this on Ovi) Btw, we are seeing how meaningless advanced stats are this series. 

 

It will I'll be interesting to see what happens game 3 personnel wise. Do the Caps play grubby? Personally I would sit Shattenkirk cause he has been flat out terrible. I thought it was a good trade when it happened but I was completely wrong about that. 

 

Lastly, I'm going to lay a lot of this at the feet of Management if the Caps don't come back. I'll wait until the off season for that. 

 

 

[skinsmarydu]

6 minutes ago, Hersh said:

It will I'll be interesting to see what happens game 3 personnel wise. Do the Caps play grubby? Personally I would sit Shattenkirk cause he has been flat out terrible. I thought it was a good trade when it happened but I was completely wrong about that.

They better.

And that's why I made a somewhat nasty post about Shattenkirk...he's absolutely sucked. 

And no defensemen are helping at goal.  None.  Both the Leafs and the Pens were crowding, blocking shots before they even got to the goalie(Andersen was phenomenal, I must admit).  We're nowhere close.