ALITP Pt. 3 The Washington Capitals

Finally. You’d think that I’ve been tirelessly working to make this the best post possible.

You’d be wrong.

So the Caps are having a good year. They’re 47-23-7 for 101pts, good for the 2 seed in the Eastern Conference.

If the playoffs started today…the Caps would be playing the Rags. Realistically, they could see the Rags, the Habs, the Canes, the Pens, and the Panthers.

Although the Panthers have won 3 straight, no one has slipped far enough to allow them into the top 8.

Scroll to the Bottom if you don’t care.

Offense

Name	Points	+/-	shots	shooting%
Ovechkin	54g-47a-101pts	+12	487	11.1%
Backstrom	22g-60a-82pts	+15	168	13.1%
Semin	29g-43a-72pts	+25	201	14.1%
Green	30g-40a-70pts	+24	233	12.9%

Ovechkin is a big deal…but who doesn’t know that already. The guy is, for the most part, one-dimensional. He skates and shoots.

And takes cheap shots. Say what you want about Sid, you won’t see him pull one of those.

He might punch you in the sack though.

Semin led the league in scoring until he got hurt. His +25 is telling too. He plays responsible, 2-way hockey, and some would argue that he’s the most complete player on the Capitals.

Backstrom… This guy is a patient, playmaking center. He doesn’t shoot much though—but when your left wing has over 400 shots—do you need to?

Mike Green’s having a good season…and his 30 goals might not be a fluke. The guy can shoot the puck and knows when to join the rush.

Viktor Kozlov is 6’5, 235lbs. Did anyone realize that? Does he?

At this point there are  2 roads that it can take…

Let’s take the high road.

1 Olympics, 1 Gold Medal, 2 Happy Endings.

Defense

John Erskine, Mike Green, Milan Jurcina, Brian Pothier, Tom Poti, Jeff Schulz, and a man who knows a thing or two about having his name misspelled…Shaone Morrisonn.

Is this the defense you want for a run to the Cup?

Eh.

The Capitals are 19th in the league with 2.86ga/g.

The Penguins are 18th…But did the Caps go a month and a half without winning? No.

 

Goaltending

Name	Record	SO	Save%	GAA
Jose Theodore	30-16-5	2	.902	2.80
Simeon Varlamov	3-0-0	0	.939	1.74

Varlamov is going to be the #1 in a few years. But not yet.

For now…Jose Theodore, a talented goalie with a penchant for dramatic.  He’s had some problems with focus over the years.

Want to score on him? Go top shelf. This guy drops faster than the Caps will in the first round.

One of those goalies that’s a little too fast for his own good at times.

Finasteride, a banned steroid-masking agent, is marketed as Propecia; and it will help you grow a beautiful head of hair.

Special Teams

The Caps Power Play is No. 2 at 25.2%, good for 79 goals.

Ovechkin is #1 in PP points, 18g-25a-43p

Next biggest threats come from:
Nicklas Backstrom 14g-27a-41pts #3
and Mike Green 18g-19a-37pts

Subtract those 3 players; you still have 29 goals on the Power play.

The Caps Penalty Kill is #20 at 80.0%

They’re not really a shorthanded threat…Ovechkin doesn’t kill penalties.

The Caps have given up 10 shorthanded goals this season.

So What?

The Capitals have the most prolific goal scorer in the game today.

They also have a respectable goaltender, a defense led by high-scoring Mike Green, and a top notch offensive supporting cast.

The Capitals have:	The Penguins have:
8 players with 10+ 6 have 15+ 4 have 20+ 2 have 30+ 1 has 50+	12 players have 10+ 7 have 15+ 6 have 20+ 2 have 30+ 0 have 50+

More like an illusion of depth.

I’m picking them to lose in the first round. Again.

Why?

 

Go Pens.