A Team with Two Identities
On Friday, the Caps lost to Carolina 6-2 and then turned around on Saturday and beat them 7-3. Obviously, the team finally got ticked off enough to come out and play a decent 60-minutes of hockey on Saturday, but lost again on Friday. The games count now if the Caps have any hopes of making the playoffs.
On Saturday, in addition to 2 goals from Semin and 1 from Ovie, the Caps got goals from Clark, Laich, Beech and Fehr. When the Caps have gone on winning streaks this year, they've had offense from a lot of players not just Semin and Ovie.
Mike Vogel's article on the Caps website here points to the reason the Caps are so inconsistent and struggling....goals against. This doesn't surprise me when I think about those 40+ shot games Olie has won this season. There's an interesting statistic at the end of the article that compares the NHL experience of the Caps current defense versus its last playoff appearance team in 2002-03. The 6 blue liners who will line up against Ottawa tomorrow have 791 games of experience versus 2,927 games for the blue liners that went to playoffs. So, back to my prior post, is this a 10-year rebuilding plan?
In Caps blogger world news...there are numerous bloggers out there writing about the Caps. One of the bloggers , Capital Prospect, feels like his territory is being invaded and that all the bloggers are out there trying to get press passes. Well, not me. I write about the Caps because I've been a fan since 1974 and it's one way to get my frustration out. Secondly, I like to write and have no time to do the kind of writing I want so the Caps blog is it for me. But, when I discovered this post, I was thrilled to see that On Frozen Blog linked to my blog. I will add my link back to that blog as it's a good one.
Caps play Ottawa again tomorrow. I have to agree with my boyfriend Jeff, it seems like they're in the same division.
Let's go Caps!
Labels: Carolina Hurricans, NHL, Ottawa Senators, Washington Capitals
posted by Caps Dreamer @ 8:11 PM
3 comments
3 Comments:
Experience is very important, but slightly overated, in my opinion, where defense is concerned. This is because the classical defensman, who would just cross-check the begeezus out of anyone in the crease is extinct. Modern D have to block shots and out-skate opponents for position.
My piano teacher used to tell me, "Practise dosen't make perfect. Perfect practise makes perfect." My meaning here is that 1000 games worth of experience kabonging guys in the crease is useless in the "New NHL".
Great blog, by the way.
Great point Steve! This is an entirely different NHL for defensemen these days. However, I still think there's something to be said for having good defensive instincts and that comes with experience. Take Mike Green for instance. He shows flashes of brilliance followed by stupid mistakes and I have to remember he's only 21. With experience, he has the potential to be a great d-man.
Thanks for reading & writing!
P.S. And, thanks for the compliment on the blog, too. You put a smile on my face.
Post a Comment
<< Home