Author Topic: GDT#72 Capitals @ Lightning 7:00pm Sat Mar 16, 2019 NBCSWA, NHLN, SUN  (Read 11911 times)

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Re: GDT#72 Capitals @ Lightning 7:00pm Sat Mar 16, 2019 NBCSWA, NHLN, SUN
« Reply #80 on: Sunday March 17, 2019, 09:17:42 AM Eastern »
I wasn't happy with the game last night. Tampa is playing for pride at this point, and they clearly showed more of it last night. The sequence that led to the empty netter was the epitome of the evening. That play should have been icing but the Caps let themselves get out skated.


Having said that, the Caps are exactly were they were at this time last year. But this year I'd say they have to finish first in their division. That would let shitsburgh and the islanders play each other in the round.
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Offline Mickstix

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Re: GDT#72 Capitals @ Lightning 7:00pm Sat Mar 16, 2019 NBCSWA, NHLN, SUN
« Reply #81 on: Sunday March 17, 2019, 09:25:11 AM Eastern »
You really can't account for shit bounces (orlov) or subpar goaltending, but the  :poop: faceoff deal is now becoming my #1 concern.. I don't know how many GA's or Non GF's they account for, but they account for some.. Mainly on the PP/PK and not wasting/giving 30+ seconds of extra zone time for each lost draw.. It'll definitely show up when we play better (ie: playoff) caliber teams. Seems like there should be some drills or something they could do/practice to get better at it, but Ive seen no improvement? And we suck at it..  :uh-huh:

Offline DC_1908

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Re: GDT#72 Capitals @ Lightning 7:00pm Sat Mar 16, 2019 NBCSWA, NHLN, SUN
« Reply #82 on: Sunday March 17, 2019, 10:22:01 AM Eastern »
What does TR do with Kuzy - lackadaisical play and dumbass penalties.  Don’t know where his mind is soemmetimes.
Nothing. He has 45 assists and Ovie has 48 goals.


I really can’t think of any other “1st Line Center” on a defending or even serious Cup contending team that would keep his spot/moved to wing with  <40% FO and the continued issues you mentioned above.

Offline Beaglefan2

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Re: GDT#72 Capitals @ Lightning 7:00pm Sat Mar 16, 2019 NBCSWA, NHLN, SUN
« Reply #83 on: Sunday March 17, 2019, 04:29:40 PM Eastern »
You really can't account for shit bounces (orlov) or subpar goaltending, but the  :poop: faceoff deal is now becoming my #1 concern.. I don't know how many GA's or Non GF's they account for, but they account for some.. Mainly on the PP/PK and not wasting/giving 30+ seconds of extra zone time for each lost draw.. It'll definitely show up when we play better (ie: playoff) caliber teams. Seems like there should be some drills or something they could do/practice to get better at it, but Ive seen no improvement? And we suck at it..  :uh-huh:



Agree.  I don't know what they can do about it at this stage.  I bet if they gave guys $1000 per faceoff won, that our percentage would go up significantly!  Too many of our guys have a casual faceoff style where they pretty much stand up and then just throw then just kinda put their stick in there.  Backstrom does it all the time and he is probably our best of the worst.  Kuzy does it too.  It just looks like they are giving it away.  Beagle would get down, hunch over and look like he was ready to pounce - we need some of that.

Offline BlackIce

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Re: GDT#72 Capitals @ Lightning 7:00pm Sat Mar 16, 2019 NBCSWA, NHLN, SUN
« Reply #84 on: Sunday March 17, 2019, 04:33:16 PM Eastern »
You really can't account for shit bounces (orlov) or subpar goaltending, but the  :poop: faceoff deal is now becoming my #1 concern.. I don't know how many GA's or Non GF's they account for, but they account for some.. Mainly on the PP/PK and not wasting/giving 30+ seconds of extra zone time for each lost draw.. It'll definitely show up when we play better (ie: playoff) caliber teams. Seems like there should be some drills or something they could do/practice to get better at it, but Ive seen no improvement? And we suck at it..  :uh-huh:




A little late to the party, aren't you?  I've been harping on this all year (to the point that some have probably found it annoying), after it was obvious that the organization wasn't going to replace Beagle's skill set.  They pretty much replaced his PK work with Hagelin, but they weren't able to address the face-off situation.  When Beagle was here, it was SOP that he was out there for face-offs in the defensive zone during penalties and in tight situations at the end of games.  This team has NO ONE it can really count on to be consistently competitive in the face-off circle at crucial times.


And it isn't just WINNING face-offs that is the issue.  Even the best face-off men are generally between 55 and 60 percent successful, which means for every 3, 4 or 5 face-offs they win, they lose 2, 3, or 4.  It isn't just winning face-offs, IT'S HOW YOU LOSE THE ONES YOU LOSE.  Beagle was always a fighter on face-offs, which means that even if he eventually lost it and the opponent was able to work the puck back toward the blue line, usually the guys defending in the slot were able to work their way through the picks that are routinely set by the other team and get back in the face of the puck receiver, so that the face-off win was not a clear, immediate, and dangerous advantage.  Watching a guy like Kuzy routinely lose face-offs clean, causing the Caps to scramble and often resulting in clear shots or dangerous setups for the opposition , makes one appreciate how valuable a guy like Beagle was to this team.


That being said, I can certainly understand the difficulty the Caps were in trying to resign Beagle (which I don't think they ever seriously tried to do) and  that they probably DIDN'T want to sign him for anything like the $3 million AAV he eventually got as a 33 year old.  It's very easy for a guy like Beagle, who never had great physical tools other than a great motor, to lose the critical step that changes him from a valuable mucker to a not-sufficiently-competitive player who hurts you too much other than in the face-off circle to be worth even a mid-size contract.  The problem is, the organization never looked to replace that skill; and you are right, it could absolutely kill them this season.


And I think you're right, the greater relative difficulty that the Caps are having on the PP is, I think, mostly due, not to the way their setup play functions, but rather, to the loss of zone time they suffer from losing face-offs and having the opposition in position to clear the puck more often.  And secondarily, they are hurt by ANOTHER skill that they never replaced.   That was MJ's skill in re-entering the zone and initiating their setup scheme.  It seems to me that the team is having to repeatedly chase the puck back in their own zone more this season on the PP after misfiring entries, which also reduces time to work their setup.

Offline Beaglefan2

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Re: GDT#72 Capitals @ Lightning 7:00pm Sat Mar 16, 2019 NBCSWA, NHLN, SUN
« Reply #85 on: Sunday March 17, 2019, 04:33:55 PM Eastern »
Nothing. He has 45 assists and Ovie has 48 goals.


I really can’t think of any other “1st Line Center” on a defending or even serious Cup contending team that would keep his spot/moved to wing with  <40% FO and the continued issues you mentioned above.



Yes, Kuzy can generate assists and some of them are incredible. I think the issue is that he has the ability to do so much more.  He can literally take over games and dominate and he can do it for multiple games in a row.  We have seen him play games where he made the other team look like they were standing still and you would swear he was the top player in the league.  He had a few games like that earlier in the year - lets just hope that he gets it back for the playoffs.




Offline Beaglefan2

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Re: GDT#72 Capitals @ Lightning 7:00pm Sat Mar 16, 2019 NBCSWA, NHLN, SUN
« Reply #86 on: Sunday March 17, 2019, 04:40:04 PM Eastern »
Did anyone else notice how smart TB was on their penalty kills?  There were several times that they played keep-away and killed a bunch of time.  They were smart enough (and well coached) so they realize that when they have plenty of open ice that they can actually pass it backward and make us chase them before they send it down the ice.  It has been a lost art in the NHL for a while and I would like to see the Caps get smarter on the PK.

Offline BlackIce

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Re: GDT#72 Capitals @ Lightning 7:00pm Sat Mar 16, 2019 NBCSWA, NHLN, SUN
« Reply #87 on: Sunday March 17, 2019, 04:48:02 PM Eastern »

Yes, Kuzy can generate assists and some of them are incredible. I think the issue is that he has the ability to do so much more.  He can literally take over games and dominate and he can do it for multiple games in a row.  We have seen him play games where he made the other team look like they were standing still and you would swear he was the top player in the league.  He had a few games like that earlier in the year - lets just hope that he gets it back for the playoffs.




Kuzy has said in interviews this season, in almost exactly the words, that he tries things in the regular season he wouldn't in the playoffs, and he isn't able to concentrate consistently in the same way as when the season is on the line in every game, every shift.  Like it or not, that is part of his person:  He is laid back and prone to concentration lapses that can look pretty egregious.  That is disappointing, but it is also cause for hope, because it DOES suggest that he has another gear he can engage when the playoffs begin, AND he understands that he needs to engage that higher gear.

Offline BlackIce

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Re: GDT#72 Capitals @ Lightning 7:00pm Sat Mar 16, 2019 NBCSWA, NHLN, SUN
« Reply #88 on: Sunday March 17, 2019, 09:29:43 PM Eastern »
Did anyone else notice how smart TB was on their penalty kills?  There were several times that they played keep-away and killed a bunch of time.  They were smart enough (and well coached) so they realize that when they have plenty of open ice that they can actually pass it backward and make us chase them before they send it down the ice.  It has been a lost art in the NHL for a while and I would like to see the Caps get smarter on the PK.




Eh, Winnipeg did it to us a couple of times in our last home game.  Teams do it when they have the chance.  But you'd better make sure if you send the puck into your own zone that you can get it out when the pressure starts coming. 

Offline DC_1908

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Re: GDT#72 Capitals @ Lightning 7:00pm Sat Mar 16, 2019 NBCSWA, NHLN, SUN
« Reply #89 on: Sunday March 17, 2019, 09:41:45 PM Eastern »

Yes, Kuzy can generate assists and some of them are incredible. I think the issue is that he has the ability to do so much more.  He can literally take over games and dominate and he can do it for multiple games in a row.  We have seen him play games where he made the other team look like they were standing still and you would swear he was the top player in the league.  He had a few games like that earlier in the year - lets just hope that he gets it back for the playoffs.
Sure, but on most teams contending, let alone defending a championship that just isn NOT good enough, and rightfully so.  Regardless, the best player in the league is not a center with <40% faceoffs, doesn’t play PK, and still doesn’t score 30 goals, not just a pretty skater I’m a league that handcuffs defenseman.

Even at his best, he isn’t Bergeron, Towes, Kopitar, and certainly not Nick by longshot.

Whether or not he will develop into an elite player or not remains to be seen, but he has long way to go.  He may be on Ovies line, but as long as Nicks here, he will be The Caps #2 at best.
 In the mean time, he simply needs to be better and not just think he can be.
« Last Edit: Monday March 18, 2019, 10:08:43 AM Eastern by DC_1908 »

Offline DC_1908

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Re: GDT#72 Capitals @ Lightning 7:00pm Sat Mar 16, 2019 NBCSWA, NHLN, SUN
« Reply #90 on: Sunday March 17, 2019, 09:46:33 PM Eastern »



Kuzy has said in interviews this season, in almost exactly the words, that he tries things in the regular season he wouldn't in the playoffs, and he isn't able to concentrate consistently in the same way as when the season is on the line in every game, every shift.  Like it or not, that is part of his person:  He is laid back and prone to concentration lapses that can look pretty egregious.  That is disappointing, but it is also cause for hope, because it DOES suggest that he has another gear he can engage when the playoffs begin, AND he understands that he needs to engage that higher gear.
And suggests hell listen to a PR coach, not to mention reeks of overconfidence.  Particularly after 66 games of being a defending Stanley Cup Champion. 

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Re: GDT#72 Capitals @ Lightning 7:00pm Sat Mar 16, 2019 NBCSWA, NHLN, SUN
« Reply #91 on: Monday March 18, 2019, 09:06:28 AM Eastern »
I thought the Caps effort was better than the score.  The bad bounce of Orlov was a killer, and just that... a bad bounce.  Holtby wasn't stellar, not even great.  He did make some really good saves throughout the game, but also some fairly soft goals.  The play on Jensen...meh, he lost his footing and Holtby probably should have played that better.  I am not all that distraught over the outcome.  Yes, disappointing and our effort could have been better, but when you add up the bad bounces, the bullshit penalties, and the less than stellar goaltending, you are going to lose to the best team on the planet.  Not the Caps very best effort (which is a typical complaint), but I think the Caps showed they could hang with this team.  They need to get a few more things clicking (Kuzy needs to show up and Holtby needs to play better), but overall, I think we could hang with them.
I was surprised we were even in it after it was 2-0 in the first.  This game really could have gone either way when it was 2-1.  Caps were in it for most of the game.  Take away the one bad bounce off Orlov and this could have really been a game.


No, I am not satisfied with losing, and just being okay with not 100% effort, but I think Tampa is a better team, so I am not all that surprised or overly disappointed.  When things go their way, they are going to win.  I thought Tampa was the better team last year too, but we see what that got them.
I don't think the Caps are truly a SC dominating team, but I don't think they were last year either.  I think they came together at the right time, got fortunate bounces that altered series, managed to overcome much adversity and win key games, getting help from unexpected heroes, and had some stellar goaltending.  That's what it takes.  Caps played really well in the playoffs last year, but they also narrowly skated by several series that could have easily gone either way.  I honestly think if the Caps play at their best they can beat anybody, but I also think they do not get by Tampa this year.  Please Caps, prove me wrong.  I do seem to recall that nearly record setting President's cup winning teams have been beaten in the playoffs before  ;)


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