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2023-24 Washington Capitals Thread

ixcuincle

By ixcuincle
in The Tailgate

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mammajamma

mammajamma

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Posted
3 minutes ago, GoDeep81 said:

Bummer we don't have anyone to cover Verhaeghe. They've completely shut down Ovie. Almost lights out time.  

they made some great adjustments to us this game. gotta give them credit. will be interesting if we can adjust at all on friday. putting it all on lavi to work his playoff magic

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ixcuincle

ixcuincle

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Spent most of the day at the Nats game with occasional phone updates, they said on the radio I was listening to that it was 1-0 Caps and then 3-0 which made me happy. Then I checked my phone and it was 3-3 at intermission. Then I decided I might as well go to the bar nearby to watch the final minutes. As I was heading down I saw it was 4-3 on my phone. Then I witnessed the 5th at the bar. I was very disappointed.

 

The Caps didn't have much expectations during this series. They lost their last few games which saw them pass up a chance to face a young Rangers squad and instead take on the Panthers, a team that had won the President's Trophy. The game 1 win gave Caps fans some hope, as well as game 3. And parts of game 4 looked promising. At the end of the day, the Caps had multiple opportunities to go up 3-1. In an alternate "multiverse" perhaps the Caps won in 5 or lead 3-2. In an alternate "multiverse" the Caps hit that empty netter, it's a 3-1 series, and in this multiverse the Caps hold on to that 3-0 lead and Florida is stunned.

 

But we live in reality. And this reality is that the Caps had 2 [b]prime opportunities[/b] to "take command" of this series. And in both opportunities, they whiffed, completely.

 

The series is not over. Plenty of teams have rallied from 3-2 to win. The Caps doing this would not be the first time or the last time it happened (in fact the last time it happened was against another Florida team...that was up 3-2, with fans despondent about another collapse.) That said, that team found the ability to dig deep down and rally. In that game 6 which I attended in person the Caps took command, evened the series up in front of a grateful home crowd, and finished the job in 7 in Tampa. The issue is I don't know if this team has that kind of mindset or mentality. That mindset separates the successful playoff participants from the unsuccessful playoff participants.

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capcrunch98

capcrunch98

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What a gut punch.  I was fine with the Game 4 loss (not happy, but understood that it happens), but just no excuse for last night.  As others have said, leave it to the Caps to choke in a series they weren't even favored to win.

 

They could still win the series.  They lost 3 in a row to Tampa in 2018 and came back to win games 6 and 7.  And that Tampa team was better than this Florida team.  But the 2018 Caps club was better than this year's Caps team, so maybe it's a wash.

 

Anyways, if they lose this series after looking like the better team for so much of it, I think it's a certainty (for me, at least) that the Stanley Cup champion Caps of the Rock the Red/OVI era died in Game 7 against Carolina in 2019.  Ever since then, they've had enough talent to put together some good regular seasons, but at gut-check time in the playoffs they've completely fallen flat, and they're continuing that trend now.

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86 Snyder

86 Snyder

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13 hours ago, Renegade7 said:

 

I really wanted to believe we slayed all our demons the year we won the cup.  But we didn't, neither did the Nats.

 

Which part?

 

Letting him stay until he retires or being surprised any superstar would stay in DC this long?

 

If he says something like he wants to leave, that's one thing, but I wouldn't support being the party to make the first move, for what?


You just kind of made it seem like he’s an old horse you’re willing to let eat your grass until he finally dies lol.  He’s still a force and we’re lucky to have him.  Clearly not 100% right now but he’s still a guy that can lead a cup chase with better support.  


Backstrom and Carlson are the guys that are killing the Caps chances with their huge contracts and terrible play (sorry Nicky).

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Renegade7

Renegade7

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Just now, 86 Snyder said:


You just kind of made it seem like he’s an old horse you’re willing to let eat your grass until he finally dies lol.  He’s still a force and we’re lucky to have him.  Clearly not 100% right now but he’s still a guy that can lead a cup chase with better support.  


Backstrom and Carlson are the guys that are killing the Caps chances with their huge contracts and terrible play (sorry Nicky).

 

Gotcha, and to be clear, I saw he got another 50 goal season this year, so not insinuating that production isn't there at all.

 

I remember being bothered when folks were throwing out the idea of trading him because of him not being a great defensive player, then later a thread was made on best DC athlete to explain how being a great two way player isn't expected from the best hockey player like it is the best basketball player.

 

TL;TD: Ovi does his job and does it well, no need to fix what ain't broken.  That's not what's broken here.

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NoVaSkins21

NoVaSkins21

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They hay day of the Ovie era were the years leading up to the 2018 Stanley Cup.  This team is a shell of those teams.  There's a reason why they are the #8 seed/2nd WC team.  They are not that good.  There are a number of positions including goaltender, defenseman that will need to be addressed before they can considered to be a contender again.

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capcrunch98

capcrunch98

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51 minutes ago, NoVaSkins21 said:

They hay day of the Ovie era were the years leading up to the 2018 Stanley Cup.  This team is a shell of those teams.  There's a reason why they are the #8 seed/2nd WC team.  They are not that good.  There are a number of positions including goaltender, defenseman that will need to be addressed before they can considered to be a contender again.

 

Yup, those teams - especially the 2009/10 and 2015/16 clubs were unbelievable and it's likely we'll never see a Caps group that talented for a really, really long time.  The 2018 Cup run will always be cherished, but it's bittersweet when you consider this team left a few other Cups on the table over the past 12 years.  

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capcrunch98

capcrunch98

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Posted (edited)
15 hours ago, Renegade7 said:

 

I really wanted to believe we slayed all our demons the year we won the cup.  But we didn't, neither did the Nats.

 

 

We were a great team in 2018, and we deserved the Cup.  You can't fluke your way to 16 wins in the NHL postseason.  But yeah, the inherent problems with this team - namely an inability to play a full 60 minute game and unable to step up during gut-check time - haunted them before 2018 and remain with us to this day.  I think it was just a case of this team being so talented for so long, even the hockey gods couldn't prevent them from finally catching fire one spring and riding it to a title.

 

But with an aging core, inconsistent goaltending, and the Rierden mistake, it's no surprise we haven't come close since. 

Edited by capcrunch98
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Warhead36

Warhead36

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30 minutes ago, capcrunch98 said:

 

Yup, those teams - especially the 2009/10 and 2015/16 clubs were unbelievable and it's likely we'll never see a Caps group that talented for a really, really long time.  The 2018 Cup run will always be cherished, but it's bittersweet when you consider this team left a few other Cups on the table over the past 12 years.  

Agreed.

 

We should have at least made it to the SCF in 2010 and either 2016 or 2017(I'll give you Pens in 2016 were a juggernaut, but we should have beaten them in 17).

 

Then in 15 remember we were up 3-1 on the Rangers and had them basically beat in Game 5 only to blow it.

 

I'll never forget 2018 but the 2010s Caps should have been an 80s Redskins like dynasty with multiple championships and more deep playoff runs. And its really not an indictment on anyone, we had good players, good coaches(other than Oates)and good FO people. We were just legitimately the least lucky franchise in sports in a sport where luck is a big time determinant in post season success.

Edited by Warhead36
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Captain James

Captain James

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9 minutes ago, mammajamma said:

Guess Ovi saw the criticism about him sleepwalking through the last game. Geez, some of these hits..

If he's not gonna get goals, then moar hits pleez! Loving it

 

Still sucks that we can't even breathe easy if we get a ridiculous lead again...

Edited by Captain James
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