Maybe my standards are just artificially low because the Caps have been going through a prolonged rough patch. However, while there is certainly more work to be done - it seems like the Caps have an extra bounce in their stride again. It looks like they have that energy and confidence they were lacking - at least there is a lot more of it there than any time of recent memory. It looks like game-by-game, Dale Hunter's system is starting to sink in. There are indeed signs of life from the boys in red.
While Neuvy looked relatively good given how he's been playing, I thought he should have had Ottawa's first goal. I also don't like the fact that the game went to OT. The Caps should have closed this out in regulation. But, obviously, if it's going to go to OT - it might as well end the way it did :). Our PP needs to get back on track if we are truly going to be an elite team - and right now it is just heinous. I thought given the amount of pressure we put on Craig Anderson - our ability to finish chances is still lacking. Of course, having chances to not convert on is a huge step forward from simply not having any scoring chances.
All that said, much, much better. Backstrom's goal was a sick wrister. Brouwer's goal came from a beautiful chain of passes (Ovi and Wideman get the assists). And, Brooks Laich's goal was just blazing speed from him as well as Jason Chimera. For a "defensive system", there was certainly a lot of offensive pressure and offensive beauty generated by the Caps. That alleviates a big concern of mine (which I address in my last post). The Caps had 35 shots on goal, many of them high quality. A little more confidence from their finishers - and this very well could have been a 4-1 or 5-2 decisive win. Good thing the Caps have a chance to pull that feat off vs. Ottawa on Wednesday in Ontario.......
The Caps also never trailed in this game. That only happened one time during the month of November (4-3 OT win vs. Winnipeg on 11/23/11 -- ok, they never trailed New Jersey at home on 11/12 until they lost the shootout -- call that what you want). The Caps only committed one penalty and it was in the first period (a very blatant slash by Jason Chimera on Daniel Alfredsson). Jeff Halpern was 7 for 8 from the faceoff dot. Only one Capital was a - in the +/- category (John Carlson, -1). Alex Ovechkin had a respectable 4 shots on goal, including one breakaway (Laich had 6 SOG and Chimera had 5). In addition to scoring the team's second goal, Troy Brouwer led the Caps with 6 hits.
Many other bloggers/analysts have pointed out the shorter shift lengths for the Caps - especially on the penalty kill. The penalty kill looked good (as did the Capitals' ability to not need many penalty kills). So, I guess the special teams area of improvement would be the dreaded power play.
Long story short - a shitload of progress tonight. The Caps still need to get back to work. They have still been playing poorly more often than they have played well.
But, they have something to build on and Huntsy has his first win as an NHL coach. Let's roll the dice and see what it gets us on Monday night - with the big tilt vs. the SE Division's leading team, the Washington Capitals alumni club of South Florida......I mean the Florida Panthers.
Sunday, December 4, 2011
Saturday, December 3, 2011
Patience (aka "Rebuilding the Rebuild")
Well, there certainly have been better days in Capsville. Of course, when being honest with oneself - those better days were never that much better. Nevertheless, things aren't going so well.
If the season were to end right this second - the Capitals would not make the playoffs. Granted, they are the #9 seed and have 1-game in hand on the #8 seed, the Ottawa Senators (with 58 games left to play in the season and only trailing by 1-standings point). But, they are on the outside looking in during a season in which the playoffs are supposed to be assumed.
The Caps are about to play said Ottawa Senators tonight in an attempt to get Dale Hunter his first win as the Caps' head coach. It would also snap a 4-game losing streak (the first two of which, cost Bruce Boudreau his job).
In fact, the Caps have lost 8 of the last 10 games and are unrecognizable from the big swinging dicks that started the season 7-0 and beat the Detroit Red Wings 7-1.
You could argue til the cows come home about when this started. George McPhee said he noticed stuff during training camp. Some people (namely, Mike Milbury, Canadians, and people who jerk off to Sidney Crosby (with a lot of overlap between those categories)) would lead you to believe the Ovechkin-era Caps have always been overrated.
Maybe the Montreal series should have been a red flag. Or the Tampa series. Or the way they got outplayed in Vancouver - or gave away the game on Long Island - or got throttled by Dallas. Maybe the wins against Pittsburgh and Tampa earlier this season were lucky. Maybe the Caps are fine and it is just a matter of getting Mike Green healthy again. Ok, scratch that last thought. The Caps are not fine.
If there is one thing that we can all agree upon, it is the Caps are NOT fine. Bruce Boudreau did magical things for this team from 2007 until this week (just not THE magical thing). But, George McPhee was spot-on when he said that Boudreau's tank was emptied.
The problem is - that really is all we know. Yeah, it was time for a change. But, to what? We've eliminated one variable, but must now focus on the rest of the variables.
Alex Ovechkin has 8 goals in 24 games. Alex Semin has 5 goals in 23 games. Ovechkin isn't even on pace for 30 goals. Semin isn't even on pace for 20 goals.
Meanwhile, Dale Hunter's strategy will focus on defense - which will, in theory, lead to more offense. It does not, however, focus on letting freewheeling Russian pimps be freewheeling Russian pimps.
It is hard to say how I feel about that. My gut instinct would be that you need to take the chains off Ovechkin and Semin - that Caps fans have bought a bunch of bullshit produced by Caps-haters (the BS being that Ovi and Semin are cancers).
But, the truth is, as much as I hate the stupid stereotype that Russians have bad attitudes (see, Detroit Red Wings and the "Russian Five") - I think Ovechkin and Semin have become predictable.
I think the league has figured out Ovechkin and Semin and while these two may care - I don't see them doing what is necessary to become less predictable.
We will see flashes of brilliance from Ovechkin and Semin - for sure. But, the frequency and brightness of these flashes will be reduced over time if things stay constant.
I don't care if they care. I care if they work at mixing up their skill-set.
Until they do, it kind of takes care of any plan that involves having the Caps become more run-and-gun. But, then, if the Caps are going to prioritize defense - will that leave room for Ovi and Semin?
I don't know if I buy the whole "defense leads to offense" strategy. If the goal is to win every game 2 to 1 or 1 to 0 - that's fine.
My only real vested interest is in seeing the Caps score at least 1 more goal than the other team 16 times during the playoffs. That leaves a lot of room for being boring - and that's ok.
But, as many have noted, the high-flying show is on hiatus. There will be no 5 to 1 victories in the near future - I do not believe. Dale Hunter might believe that, I do not.
Ovechkin and Semin will not have the chance to run-and-gun - even if they could still do it. And I don't know if Alex Ovechkin and Alex Semin will fit in with the high-flying show on hiatus.
That's not to say they will play horribly. But, they'll be very expensive pieces to the boring show. And, with the Caps at the salary cap - does that mean they will be dealt to free up some space?
That would not be terribly shocking for Semin - I think this is his last season as a Cap regardless - it's just a matter of whether or not he's dealt before the deadline. I don't see them re-signing him in the offseason.
Obviously, it would be huge news if Ovechkin is dealt. Mike Milbury and all of Canada would rejoice that they were right all along.
It would be a telltale sign that the once promising rebuild failed. We might not have to start from scratch - as we did with the Jagr firesale - but it would be equally discouraging.
I can't imagine the impact on the fanbase that trading Ovechkin would have. Attendance would certainly suffer. Die-hard fans would point to the number of times Ted Leonsis has asked for patience - only to then ask for more patience.
Frustration would boil over - even if it happened to be the right thing to do. Even if trading Oveckin simply meant the Caps were self-aware and on track to implement their defensive strategy - trading Ovechkin would be horrible.
Thankfully for Ovechkin and Semin, the entire team is playing like shit. So, it's hard to pin all of this on them. The goaltending has been shit and the defense has been shit too.
Jason Chimera is one of a few bright spots on this team. But, with everyone else needing a swift kick in the ass - Alex Ovechkin and Alex Semin must be given a chance to fit into Dale Hunter's system.
Dale Hunter must be given time to implement his strategy. Two 2 to 1 losses do not a bad coach make. The good news is that there is plenty of time to turn this around.
The problem is that I have no idea whether or not Dale Hunter's approach will work - or if the right pieces are there to make it work. I just know that Bruce Boudreau's approach stopped working.
I still want to believe in Alex Ovechkin. I still want to believe in Alex Semin. I still want to believe in the Caps. I want to believe in Dale Hunter as a coach in the NHL (and George McPhee and Ted Leonsis for that matter).
I just don't know if Ovechkin, Semin, and Hunter will co-exist on the Caps. And I don't know if the Caps will do what is necessary to align their strategy and their personnel.
Until then, without blaming a specific person, there could be more dysfunction and underachievement.......
If the season were to end right this second - the Capitals would not make the playoffs. Granted, they are the #9 seed and have 1-game in hand on the #8 seed, the Ottawa Senators (with 58 games left to play in the season and only trailing by 1-standings point). But, they are on the outside looking in during a season in which the playoffs are supposed to be assumed.
The Caps are about to play said Ottawa Senators tonight in an attempt to get Dale Hunter his first win as the Caps' head coach. It would also snap a 4-game losing streak (the first two of which, cost Bruce Boudreau his job).
In fact, the Caps have lost 8 of the last 10 games and are unrecognizable from the big swinging dicks that started the season 7-0 and beat the Detroit Red Wings 7-1.
You could argue til the cows come home about when this started. George McPhee said he noticed stuff during training camp. Some people (namely, Mike Milbury, Canadians, and people who jerk off to Sidney Crosby (with a lot of overlap between those categories)) would lead you to believe the Ovechkin-era Caps have always been overrated.
Maybe the Montreal series should have been a red flag. Or the Tampa series. Or the way they got outplayed in Vancouver - or gave away the game on Long Island - or got throttled by Dallas. Maybe the wins against Pittsburgh and Tampa earlier this season were lucky. Maybe the Caps are fine and it is just a matter of getting Mike Green healthy again. Ok, scratch that last thought. The Caps are not fine.
If there is one thing that we can all agree upon, it is the Caps are NOT fine. Bruce Boudreau did magical things for this team from 2007 until this week (just not THE magical thing). But, George McPhee was spot-on when he said that Boudreau's tank was emptied.
The problem is - that really is all we know. Yeah, it was time for a change. But, to what? We've eliminated one variable, but must now focus on the rest of the variables.
Alex Ovechkin has 8 goals in 24 games. Alex Semin has 5 goals in 23 games. Ovechkin isn't even on pace for 30 goals. Semin isn't even on pace for 20 goals.
Meanwhile, Dale Hunter's strategy will focus on defense - which will, in theory, lead to more offense. It does not, however, focus on letting freewheeling Russian pimps be freewheeling Russian pimps.
It is hard to say how I feel about that. My gut instinct would be that you need to take the chains off Ovechkin and Semin - that Caps fans have bought a bunch of bullshit produced by Caps-haters (the BS being that Ovi and Semin are cancers).
But, the truth is, as much as I hate the stupid stereotype that Russians have bad attitudes (see, Detroit Red Wings and the "Russian Five") - I think Ovechkin and Semin have become predictable.
I think the league has figured out Ovechkin and Semin and while these two may care - I don't see them doing what is necessary to become less predictable.
We will see flashes of brilliance from Ovechkin and Semin - for sure. But, the frequency and brightness of these flashes will be reduced over time if things stay constant.
I don't care if they care. I care if they work at mixing up their skill-set.
Until they do, it kind of takes care of any plan that involves having the Caps become more run-and-gun. But, then, if the Caps are going to prioritize defense - will that leave room for Ovi and Semin?
I don't know if I buy the whole "defense leads to offense" strategy. If the goal is to win every game 2 to 1 or 1 to 0 - that's fine.
My only real vested interest is in seeing the Caps score at least 1 more goal than the other team 16 times during the playoffs. That leaves a lot of room for being boring - and that's ok.
But, as many have noted, the high-flying show is on hiatus. There will be no 5 to 1 victories in the near future - I do not believe. Dale Hunter might believe that, I do not.
Ovechkin and Semin will not have the chance to run-and-gun - even if they could still do it. And I don't know if Alex Ovechkin and Alex Semin will fit in with the high-flying show on hiatus.
That's not to say they will play horribly. But, they'll be very expensive pieces to the boring show. And, with the Caps at the salary cap - does that mean they will be dealt to free up some space?
That would not be terribly shocking for Semin - I think this is his last season as a Cap regardless - it's just a matter of whether or not he's dealt before the deadline. I don't see them re-signing him in the offseason.
Obviously, it would be huge news if Ovechkin is dealt. Mike Milbury and all of Canada would rejoice that they were right all along.
It would be a telltale sign that the once promising rebuild failed. We might not have to start from scratch - as we did with the Jagr firesale - but it would be equally discouraging.
I can't imagine the impact on the fanbase that trading Ovechkin would have. Attendance would certainly suffer. Die-hard fans would point to the number of times Ted Leonsis has asked for patience - only to then ask for more patience.
Frustration would boil over - even if it happened to be the right thing to do. Even if trading Oveckin simply meant the Caps were self-aware and on track to implement their defensive strategy - trading Ovechkin would be horrible.
Thankfully for Ovechkin and Semin, the entire team is playing like shit. So, it's hard to pin all of this on them. The goaltending has been shit and the defense has been shit too.
Jason Chimera is one of a few bright spots on this team. But, with everyone else needing a swift kick in the ass - Alex Ovechkin and Alex Semin must be given a chance to fit into Dale Hunter's system.
Dale Hunter must be given time to implement his strategy. Two 2 to 1 losses do not a bad coach make. The good news is that there is plenty of time to turn this around.
The problem is that I have no idea whether or not Dale Hunter's approach will work - or if the right pieces are there to make it work. I just know that Bruce Boudreau's approach stopped working.
I still want to believe in Alex Ovechkin. I still want to believe in Alex Semin. I still want to believe in the Caps. I want to believe in Dale Hunter as a coach in the NHL (and George McPhee and Ted Leonsis for that matter).
I just don't know if Ovechkin, Semin, and Hunter will co-exist on the Caps. And I don't know if the Caps will do what is necessary to align their strategy and their personnel.
Until then, without blaming a specific person, there could be more dysfunction and underachievement.......
Back on the Saddle
It has been more than three months since my last post. Seemingly life has gotten in the way of hockey (and that is UNACCEPTABLE). My period of unemployment came to an end and I changed towns again - a recurring theme in my life since leaving DC in 2008. However, this time - there is no planned move on the horizon.
While having income again is a good thing (namely, because income can be used to purchase the NHL Center Ice package) - it leads to non-hockey responsibility. Getting to know a new town and a new corporation has been my focus. It's amazing that some companies expect you to talk about their primary line of business all day instead of hockey. The nerve!!!!!!
I have been able to watch Caps games, mind you. I've seen them all this season (7-0 seems like a decade ago!). However, when I've been watching them I've been doing so less critically than an aspiring blogger should. By the time I would get around to watching the game - my brain was interested in shutting off.
To be sure, if you want to make a living in this business - you have to do your research and look at the stats. You can't just say "Roman Hamrlik played like shit" (even though sometimes it is painfully obvious). You have to look at his +/-. You have to know +/- is a BS statistic. You have to look at Corsi numbers and analyze the even-strength chances Hamrlik has given up per 60-minutes. You should know his defensive pairings and which opponents he is matching up with.
Somewhere between my transition, a lack of confidence, not knowing what this blog's niche is, and the underrated beauty of just saying "Roman Hamrlik played like shit" without having to defend your position with stats - this blog fell off the map.
The truth is, I still don't know what this blog will be. I'd love to make a habit of regular interviews. I thought the Mike Fornes interview was an overwhelming success. Even as of last week, someone has found it on the net and commented on it.
But, that's the problem. It seems like that interview accomplished everything I wanted my blog to accomplish. It seems like there is nowhere to go but down.
Speaking with Mike Fornes encapsulated everything that following the Caps as a kid meant to me. Each subsequent post has seemed "a little off".
The truth is, I'm not Neil Greenberg. I'm not going to be the guy who adds to the "Moneypuck" discussion. And, I'm not anywhere near the superfan that JP over at Japers' Rink is (or anyone on that blog, for that matter).
But, something keeps me watching the Caps game in and game out - no matter where life takes me. And something gets me back on the laptop every now and then. I played when I was younger. I even officiated for a bit. There was also the idea that ran through my head, which was to be a hockey announcer.
I'd like to think I have something to add to the blogosphere. I'm not yet sure what that is, though. So, I keep plowing through the experimental stage of this blog - hoping it leads the blog to "the next level" (whatever that is!) - as opposed to having the blog fade into oblivion.
We will see. I don't know if I'm in this to clear my head, to get readers, or to somehow have my opinion validated as a "quasi-expert" (maybe all three????).
It's kind of like the answer to our burning question of burning questions: "Will the Caps ever win the Stanley Cup?" ----
Only time will tell.
While having income again is a good thing (namely, because income can be used to purchase the NHL Center Ice package) - it leads to non-hockey responsibility. Getting to know a new town and a new corporation has been my focus. It's amazing that some companies expect you to talk about their primary line of business all day instead of hockey. The nerve!!!!!!
I have been able to watch Caps games, mind you. I've seen them all this season (7-0 seems like a decade ago!). However, when I've been watching them I've been doing so less critically than an aspiring blogger should. By the time I would get around to watching the game - my brain was interested in shutting off.
To be sure, if you want to make a living in this business - you have to do your research and look at the stats. You can't just say "Roman Hamrlik played like shit" (even though sometimes it is painfully obvious). You have to look at his +/-. You have to know +/- is a BS statistic. You have to look at Corsi numbers and analyze the even-strength chances Hamrlik has given up per 60-minutes. You should know his defensive pairings and which opponents he is matching up with.
Somewhere between my transition, a lack of confidence, not knowing what this blog's niche is, and the underrated beauty of just saying "Roman Hamrlik played like shit" without having to defend your position with stats - this blog fell off the map.
The truth is, I still don't know what this blog will be. I'd love to make a habit of regular interviews. I thought the Mike Fornes interview was an overwhelming success. Even as of last week, someone has found it on the net and commented on it.
But, that's the problem. It seems like that interview accomplished everything I wanted my blog to accomplish. It seems like there is nowhere to go but down.
Speaking with Mike Fornes encapsulated everything that following the Caps as a kid meant to me. Each subsequent post has seemed "a little off".
The truth is, I'm not Neil Greenberg. I'm not going to be the guy who adds to the "Moneypuck" discussion. And, I'm not anywhere near the superfan that JP over at Japers' Rink is (or anyone on that blog, for that matter).
But, something keeps me watching the Caps game in and game out - no matter where life takes me. And something gets me back on the laptop every now and then. I played when I was younger. I even officiated for a bit. There was also the idea that ran through my head, which was to be a hockey announcer.
I'd like to think I have something to add to the blogosphere. I'm not yet sure what that is, though. So, I keep plowing through the experimental stage of this blog - hoping it leads the blog to "the next level" (whatever that is!) - as opposed to having the blog fade into oblivion.
We will see. I don't know if I'm in this to clear my head, to get readers, or to somehow have my opinion validated as a "quasi-expert" (maybe all three????).
It's kind of like the answer to our burning question of burning questions: "Will the Caps ever win the Stanley Cup?" ----
Only time will tell.
Thursday, September 1, 2011
The Hockey World Mourns.....Again
Ok......this is one tragic summer in the hockey world. First Derek Boogaard. Then Rick Rypien. Now Wade Belak. I say this with all sincerity....
WHAT THE FUCK?
It is incredibly tough to face the possibility that such a beautiful game - the same game that we all worship for its speed, toughness, athleticism, excitement, and FUN - the same game that helps us perpetually feel like a kid - could torment its players so much.
We must first acknowledge that it might all be a horrible coincidence. Derek Boogaard and Rick Rypien died from different causes. We do not know the official cause of Wade Belak's death.
There are, I'm sure, statisticians or economists or cultural anthropologists (or whoever) that can argue that these three tragic deaths had nothing (or very little) to do with their time on an ice rink.
Maybe the spike in deaths for hockey players 35 and under is in-line with the spike in deaths for the entire population of people 35 and under.....
Seriously, though, who cares?
The fact remains, all three were hockey players. All three were fighters. All three died this summer.
Even if it turns out to not be necessary, better safe than sorry. Now is as good a time as any to have a deep, introspective look at the lives of hockey players.
How widespread of a problem are painkillers? Are they over-prescribed? Do teammates pass them around to other teammates? Do players know not to mix them with alcohol?
How widespread of a problem is depression? Do players have access to counseling? Are they even aware how to spot depression in themselves? Is there a stigma about getting help for depression?
How widespread of a problem is retirement-related depression? Do players feel like they are abandoned by the NHL once their playing days are over? Can they find a "2nd life" and are they equipped for it?
What about fighting? Is there long-term damage to the brain? Does that impact a player's mental health? Do they simply develop a guilty conscience and depression regarding having to beat people up for a living?
What about alcoholism, drug abuse, spousal abuse, you name it?
I could go on and on and on. The point is, if I'm Gary Bettman or part of the NHL-brass, I'm making damn sure that behavioral health systems are updated, robust, made available to all players, and players know it.
And I wouldn't even stop at the NHL-level. I would go all the way down to juniors.
One could argue that if somebody grows up depressed, starting to get counseling when they hit the NHL is too late. The counseling needs to be made available from the beginning.
If it means supporting community-wide mental health programs (as opposed to just ones for hockey players) so be it.
If it means getting rid of fighting, then it means getting rid of fighting.
If it means partnering with Dr. Phil and Dr. Drew - then that's what it means.
If I'm Gary Bettman - this is priority #1. Whatever is #2 is a distant #2 at best.
Three lives is three too many. I'm sick of this shit. The game is too beautiful.
When I think of hobbies that will keep me engaged as a senior citizen - continuing to watch hockey games is at the top of the list.
Hockey is supposed to give people reasons to live, not reasons to die.
Gary Bettman and the NHL: Fix this shit. NOW.
WHAT THE FUCK?
It is incredibly tough to face the possibility that such a beautiful game - the same game that we all worship for its speed, toughness, athleticism, excitement, and FUN - the same game that helps us perpetually feel like a kid - could torment its players so much.
We must first acknowledge that it might all be a horrible coincidence. Derek Boogaard and Rick Rypien died from different causes. We do not know the official cause of Wade Belak's death.
There are, I'm sure, statisticians or economists or cultural anthropologists (or whoever) that can argue that these three tragic deaths had nothing (or very little) to do with their time on an ice rink.
Maybe the spike in deaths for hockey players 35 and under is in-line with the spike in deaths for the entire population of people 35 and under.....
Seriously, though, who cares?
The fact remains, all three were hockey players. All three were fighters. All three died this summer.
Even if it turns out to not be necessary, better safe than sorry. Now is as good a time as any to have a deep, introspective look at the lives of hockey players.
How widespread of a problem are painkillers? Are they over-prescribed? Do teammates pass them around to other teammates? Do players know not to mix them with alcohol?
How widespread of a problem is depression? Do players have access to counseling? Are they even aware how to spot depression in themselves? Is there a stigma about getting help for depression?
How widespread of a problem is retirement-related depression? Do players feel like they are abandoned by the NHL once their playing days are over? Can they find a "2nd life" and are they equipped for it?
What about fighting? Is there long-term damage to the brain? Does that impact a player's mental health? Do they simply develop a guilty conscience and depression regarding having to beat people up for a living?
What about alcoholism, drug abuse, spousal abuse, you name it?
I could go on and on and on. The point is, if I'm Gary Bettman or part of the NHL-brass, I'm making damn sure that behavioral health systems are updated, robust, made available to all players, and players know it.
And I wouldn't even stop at the NHL-level. I would go all the way down to juniors.
One could argue that if somebody grows up depressed, starting to get counseling when they hit the NHL is too late. The counseling needs to be made available from the beginning.
If it means supporting community-wide mental health programs (as opposed to just ones for hockey players) so be it.
If it means getting rid of fighting, then it means getting rid of fighting.
If it means partnering with Dr. Phil and Dr. Drew - then that's what it means.
If I'm Gary Bettman - this is priority #1. Whatever is #2 is a distant #2 at best.
Three lives is three too many. I'm sick of this shit. The game is too beautiful.
When I think of hobbies that will keep me engaged as a senior citizen - continuing to watch hockey games is at the top of the list.
Hockey is supposed to give people reasons to live, not reasons to die.
Gary Bettman and the NHL: Fix this shit. NOW.
The Journalism of Suicide
The Toronto Sun is reporting that recently retired NHL player Wade Belak took his own life. Like with WBAL and the recent death/suicide of former Orioles pitcher Mike Flanagan, there are multiple (but anonymous) sources cited by the media outlet.
Some have accused the media outlets in both Flanagan's and Belak's cases as being speculative. Maybe perhaps in the name of breaking a story, the media outlets were liberal in assessing the reliability of the sources.
After all, the sources were not named. Is this the coroner's right-hand-man? Or is this source someone who has simply watched every season of C.S.I.?
Further, there is no mention as to how these sources know it was a suicide. Can these sources articulate how to tell the difference between a real suicide and a homicide/staged suicide?
Maybe these sources do. Maybe they don't. The problem is that none of this information is presented by the media outlets.
We just know that there are sources and we are supposed to just have faith that these sources are credible.
I happen to have a degree in journalism. So, I still have faith that journalists know that being wrong about a cause of death will screw their careers big time. Thus, journalists try very hard not to be wrong about deaths.
I trust when they say "sources" that they have been properly verified and are not armchair coroners found in the local pub.
But I respect the fact that not everyone sees it that way. And I respect the fact that as it appears in the media publications, there is a lot left to be desired.
More information than "sources say" should be given on a subject matter like this.
Maybe even, journalists should simply wait until the official autopsy results are released. I don't think that will ever happen - but it is at least something to think about.
In the case of Mike Flanagan - his cause of death was later officially ruled a suicide. As for Wade Belak, I imagine the same will happen.
Most likely, the Toronto Sun's sources are close enough to the investigation to know what they are talking about. Most likely, there are no signs of a staged suicide and the sources can be confident of this.
But of course, I don't know for certain. All I can do is make my best guess.
Do Wade Belak's and Mike Flanagan's friends, family, and former teammates deserve more than that?
One could certainly argue that they do.........
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Part 2: Walton Gets the Call
This column will most likely be much shorter than my rant about Steve Kolbe. That is because I am filled with negativity as a human being and well, I don't have many mean things to say about John Walton. By all accounts he is a guy who worked his ass off in the AHL and did a great job with the Hershey Bears. So his call to the NHL is, if anything, long overdue. I do give myself the right to nitpick as I will shortly do. But I'm sure when John Walton got a call from Bruce Boudreau that he was now the Caps radio guy, he felt like Harold and Kumar did when they finally made it to White Castle (and NPH paid them back for messing up Harold's BMW). In fact, what would make this complete is if John Walton actually downed 50 cheeseburger sliders to celebrate his job with the Caps. He probably found a more profound way to celebrate, but such is life.....
Let's be clear: John Walton belongs in the NHL and he is undeniably an upgrade over Steve Kolbe. But I am still curious as to how his tenure in DC will go. Will he be regarded as a "good" NHL announcer or a "great" NHL announcer? His job should be safe either way because 1) Ted Leonsis doesn't seem interested in a widespread search for the position (sticking to his "build from within" strategy) and 2) John Walton blogs and tweets which I think in Ted Leonsis' mind is what got Walton the job. I personally still believe in the value of a "great" radio announcer (irrespective of their social media skills), but I have to admit that I am part of a dying breed - that from a revenue perspective "good" is good enough on the radio these days. It's a shame, but times change -- and social media is probably more important to an owner's brand than radio.
That said, let's see how Caps fans react to Walton's call (the bulk of the fan base, which probably has not listened to him in Hershey). I personally have listened to his calls in Hershey periodically. For a short while, I interned with another AHL team and cut highlights from Hershey broadcasts. But, I can't claim to be a Hershey die-hard. So it's not like I listened to him day-in and day-out. I do have my general impressions from his broadcasts.
1) Technically speaking, John Walton can describe the action 100x better than Steve Kolbe and is very good at an absolute level. This is probably his greatest strength - and a good one to have. I appreciate the fact that not once in my time listening to him have I said "How the hell did the puck get from point A to point B?". God willing I will have TV access to many of the Caps games this year, but when I need to listen to the radio I know I won't need a translator or feel like I'm missing out. John Walton keeps you focused on the in-game action.
2) He is honest. The one trend that has gone under the radar while owners worry about their announcers' social media skills - is that most owners view announcers as part of the PR department (see Redskins and Larry Michael). I've heard John Walton bluntly call out Hershey Bears players for sloppy play or soft goals allowed. That is what gets you my respect. This isn't a frickin' job interview. It's not your job as an announcer to sell tickets (well sometimes it is, but that's another story). If it's a team weakness, please don't spin it or minimize it - tell it like it is. My understanding of John Walton is he does exactly that.
I hope to God that John Walton doesn't compromise his point of view for the sake of Ted Leonsis or the organization. The Caps will never look as bad as the Redskins - so in a relative sense they aren't guilty as all hell. But make no mistake about it, the Caps prioritize having a strong PR arm. And say what you want to about Mike Vogel's writing ability, but from what I've seen he generally stays on the side of not being critical of the team. I never heard Steve Kolbe be as obnoxiously pro-team as Larry Michael, but I never heard Steve Kolbe call out the team either. John Walton will hopefully continue to tell it like it is. At least I'd respect that.
3) John Walton is seemingly more social than Steve Kolbe. This isn't about blogging or tweeting. This isn't a popularity contest or being a part of the cool kids club. But, it is about knowing the players and being able to share qualitative insights during the broadcast (not robotic stats). Stats play a role and can't be ignored, but I think John Walton will do a much better job of talking about a specific player's development in Hershey, their approach in practice, or anecdotes from the road. This should make the broadcast much more entertaining than a Kolbe broadcast.
4) On the downside, my opinion is that John Walton's voice is just "ok". It is a little gravelly to me. Again, I would take John Walton's voice over Steve Kolbe's any day of the week. But in an absolute sense, I wonder if Caps fans who are new to him will warm to him in this regard. There is a parallel between John Walton's voice and Chuck Kaiton's voice (Carolina Hurricanes) and Chuck Kaiton seems to have his die-hard fans. But that type of voice can go either way. So let's see if Caps fans say "John Walton's voice is better than Steve Kolbe's voice" or if they say "John Walton has a good voice".
5) I am unsure about John Walton's vocabulary - it might be a little too plain. Again, neutral is better than bad. It's not like the guy can't speak English. I'm just saying this might be a missed opportunity for differentiation. His signature call of "Good Morning, Good Afternoon, and Good Night" is again - just "ok" in my book. Not to beat a dead horse, but after years of Steve Kolbe - just "ok" is much preferred to "I wish I could stab my ears out". I don't want Bob Costas calling my games either, mind you. Not every game needs to remind you of the maudlin time your dad whisked you away on the New York subway to see the illustrious Mickey Mantle for your 7th birthday (hey, I tried!). But maybe John Walton could use a little more of that?
6) I also wonder if John Walton enjoyed a psychological lift from the Bears' performance. I mean, the Hershey Bears won 3 Calder Cups while John Walton announced for the team. Let's see if fans hold him in high regard with the Caps continually shitting the bed in the playoffs! I mean, I don't have the study in front of me, but there has to be some correlation between a team's performance and how announcers are viewed.
One announcer who pimps it out? Dave Jageler! Yes, the Nats are up-and-coming, but they still suck. Yet, Dave Jageler is the man! Let's see if John Walton can win over Caps fans despite the Caps underachieving in the playoffs**
**The Caps are of course free to make this a non-issue by winning the Stanley Cup, but I don't want to become the Chief Executive Officer of Fantasy-Land just yet......
Well, so it is. John Walton gets his call to the big leagues. Bravo to him. Do you know him better than me? Chime in! Like I said, I'm not a John Walton expert just yet - just sharing some general impressions.
Let's see if he's "good" or "great" at the NHL level. I'm pulling for him, though. It's been a long time since I've enjoyed listening to a Caps radio broadcast. I don't know what I'll do with myself this season!
Let's be clear: John Walton belongs in the NHL and he is undeniably an upgrade over Steve Kolbe. But I am still curious as to how his tenure in DC will go. Will he be regarded as a "good" NHL announcer or a "great" NHL announcer? His job should be safe either way because 1) Ted Leonsis doesn't seem interested in a widespread search for the position (sticking to his "build from within" strategy) and 2) John Walton blogs and tweets which I think in Ted Leonsis' mind is what got Walton the job. I personally still believe in the value of a "great" radio announcer (irrespective of their social media skills), but I have to admit that I am part of a dying breed - that from a revenue perspective "good" is good enough on the radio these days. It's a shame, but times change -- and social media is probably more important to an owner's brand than radio.
That said, let's see how Caps fans react to Walton's call (the bulk of the fan base, which probably has not listened to him in Hershey). I personally have listened to his calls in Hershey periodically. For a short while, I interned with another AHL team and cut highlights from Hershey broadcasts. But, I can't claim to be a Hershey die-hard. So it's not like I listened to him day-in and day-out. I do have my general impressions from his broadcasts.
1) Technically speaking, John Walton can describe the action 100x better than Steve Kolbe and is very good at an absolute level. This is probably his greatest strength - and a good one to have. I appreciate the fact that not once in my time listening to him have I said "How the hell did the puck get from point A to point B?". God willing I will have TV access to many of the Caps games this year, but when I need to listen to the radio I know I won't need a translator or feel like I'm missing out. John Walton keeps you focused on the in-game action.
2) He is honest. The one trend that has gone under the radar while owners worry about their announcers' social media skills - is that most owners view announcers as part of the PR department (see Redskins and Larry Michael). I've heard John Walton bluntly call out Hershey Bears players for sloppy play or soft goals allowed. That is what gets you my respect. This isn't a frickin' job interview. It's not your job as an announcer to sell tickets (well sometimes it is, but that's another story). If it's a team weakness, please don't spin it or minimize it - tell it like it is. My understanding of John Walton is he does exactly that.
I hope to God that John Walton doesn't compromise his point of view for the sake of Ted Leonsis or the organization. The Caps will never look as bad as the Redskins - so in a relative sense they aren't guilty as all hell. But make no mistake about it, the Caps prioritize having a strong PR arm. And say what you want to about Mike Vogel's writing ability, but from what I've seen he generally stays on the side of not being critical of the team. I never heard Steve Kolbe be as obnoxiously pro-team as Larry Michael, but I never heard Steve Kolbe call out the team either. John Walton will hopefully continue to tell it like it is. At least I'd respect that.
3) John Walton is seemingly more social than Steve Kolbe. This isn't about blogging or tweeting. This isn't a popularity contest or being a part of the cool kids club. But, it is about knowing the players and being able to share qualitative insights during the broadcast (not robotic stats). Stats play a role and can't be ignored, but I think John Walton will do a much better job of talking about a specific player's development in Hershey, their approach in practice, or anecdotes from the road. This should make the broadcast much more entertaining than a Kolbe broadcast.
4) On the downside, my opinion is that John Walton's voice is just "ok". It is a little gravelly to me. Again, I would take John Walton's voice over Steve Kolbe's any day of the week. But in an absolute sense, I wonder if Caps fans who are new to him will warm to him in this regard. There is a parallel between John Walton's voice and Chuck Kaiton's voice (Carolina Hurricanes) and Chuck Kaiton seems to have his die-hard fans. But that type of voice can go either way. So let's see if Caps fans say "John Walton's voice is better than Steve Kolbe's voice" or if they say "John Walton has a good voice".
5) I am unsure about John Walton's vocabulary - it might be a little too plain. Again, neutral is better than bad. It's not like the guy can't speak English. I'm just saying this might be a missed opportunity for differentiation. His signature call of "Good Morning, Good Afternoon, and Good Night" is again - just "ok" in my book. Not to beat a dead horse, but after years of Steve Kolbe - just "ok" is much preferred to "I wish I could stab my ears out". I don't want Bob Costas calling my games either, mind you. Not every game needs to remind you of the maudlin time your dad whisked you away on the New York subway to see the illustrious Mickey Mantle for your 7th birthday (hey, I tried!). But maybe John Walton could use a little more of that?
6) I also wonder if John Walton enjoyed a psychological lift from the Bears' performance. I mean, the Hershey Bears won 3 Calder Cups while John Walton announced for the team. Let's see if fans hold him in high regard with the Caps continually shitting the bed in the playoffs! I mean, I don't have the study in front of me, but there has to be some correlation between a team's performance and how announcers are viewed.
One announcer who pimps it out? Dave Jageler! Yes, the Nats are up-and-coming, but they still suck. Yet, Dave Jageler is the man! Let's see if John Walton can win over Caps fans despite the Caps underachieving in the playoffs**
**The Caps are of course free to make this a non-issue by winning the Stanley Cup, but I don't want to become the Chief Executive Officer of Fantasy-Land just yet......
Well, so it is. John Walton gets his call to the big leagues. Bravo to him. Do you know him better than me? Chime in! Like I said, I'm not a John Walton expert just yet - just sharing some general impressions.
Let's see if he's "good" or "great" at the NHL level. I'm pulling for him, though. It's been a long time since I've enjoyed listening to a Caps radio broadcast. I don't know what I'll do with myself this season!
Thursday, August 11, 2011
Part 1: Kolbe Gets Canned
I will try to be sensitive throughout this post. When someone loses a job, it is no laughing matter. Heck, right now I know firsthand what it is like to be unemployed. It is certainly not fun. So the goal of this column is not to kick Steve Kolbe while he is down. I imagine the man is a bit shell-shocked by what happened to him.
That being said, I've been waiting for his departure since well, 1997. I never was a fan of his. While he has steadily improved during his time in Washington - I'm of the opinion that his play-by-play skills merely went from God-awful to barely tolerable.
First, let's be clear: his voice is horrible. Even when he is just making his baseline call it is annoying. But then, when he gets excited or screams? It is ear splitting! And he seems to enjoy "burying the needle" as they say. That is never a good idea in the announcing world - and that gets raised to the 10th power when you have Kolbe's voice. So most memorable moments for the Caps over the past 13 or so seasons have been paired with grating radio calls. If you want an example - find his call from when the Caps beat the Rangers in 2009 playoffs (end of Game 7) - and that's an IMPROVED Kolbe......if you really want to punish your ears - go find his call of Joe Juneau's goal in 1998 vs. Buffalo.....
Second, he sounds rehearsed and canned. This has various implications. a) He uses an overabundance of statistics. Some of these are insightful, most of them just fill air time. Probably not his intention, but it came across like he was coasting through parts of the broadcast. He could cut back on the stats and be more conversational (home games) or provide more insight into game strategy (road games) to signal that he knows what is going on. Kolbe turned a strength (i.e., preparation) into a weakness (i.e., sounding rehearsed) and that hurt his credibility in my opinion. b) His signature phrases are delivered awkwardly - and frankly they suck (I'm sorry, but the "cat in the hat" is just moronic). Whether it is a one-off saying or a signature phrase, it has to be delivered with "oomph". When Kolbe wasn't "burying the needle" he was sounding robotic. There was never a solid in-between. c) he just wasn't funny or engaging. now this is a tough one because most sportscasters flood the broadcast with cheesy, douchy humor. You don't want to turn your broadcast into Sportscenter. And Kolbe should be applauded for not doing so. But, his broadcasts were too dry. Again, no sweetspot.
So, if his voice his horrible and he wasn't engaging - was he at least a good at keeping up with the play? Well, that brings me to my third critique of Steve Kolbe:
He was not good at "painting a picture" or describing the action. He often had trouble keeping up with the play (or, he was too busy unloading statistics). I remember one time in 2009 I was listening to a broadcast. I wish I could find the clip but you'll just have to take my word. He literally went from a Jose Theodore save (Caps goalie at the time) to a Washington Capitals goal. There was zero explanation as to how the puck went from one end of the ice to the other. And certainly, if you are watching the play develop you know not to spend too much time fawning over the save because you have to describe a potential goal-in-process. That's just bad all around. And you can't blame the speed of the game on that call. In general though, it seemed like Steve Kolbe was a "minimalist" when describing the action. He either couldn't keep up or didn't feel the need to describe what was going on. Maybe if what he said was interesting he could have gotten away with it. But really, he should have been better at, and done more of, in-game calling. He wasn't the TV guy, he was the radio guy. We needed more from him.
In Summary:
Bad voice, not engaging, not able to describe the play = time to go........
While I am totally in favor of Steve Kolbe being shown the door, that doesn't mean I'm not scratching my head at this decision - or that I don't wish him the best.
I mean, I've thought he's been bad from Day 1. But, the Caps seem to have loved him. The timing of his departure is arbitrary at best. They let him hit the 1,000 game milestone and then they can him? What possibly did he do to get fired? I mean for God's sake, there are enough social media wannabees clogging up Twitter's site (me included!). I know Ted Leonsis is all about social media, but if this is because Steve Kolbe didn't tweet then that's fucking stupid. That's one of the things I respected about Steve Kolbe. Steve recently joined Twitter - perhaps as an effort to save his job, but really he shouldn't have needed to do so. I don't need my play-by-play person to blog or tweet. I need him to call the fucking hockey game!!!! Is that asking too much? Business owners want hockey announcers to be versatile. Screw that! Play-by-play is a unique craft. If you're good at that, you're good enough for me. Augmenting your brand through social media only hides your deficiencies as an announcer.
Then there is the issue of how the Caps handled the job posting and notifying Steve Kolbe. I'll say this much, if you're going to fire someone - be an adult about it and fire them. That seemed like the plan all along. But what did the Caps do? They made Steve Kolbe apply to HIS OWN JOB that wouldn't be his job anymore rather than telling him from the beginning that he wasn't coming back. I'm sorry, that's fucking dick - whether they told him this week that John Walton got the job or sent him a text or didn't tell him anything. Don't tell me Steve Kolbe had a legitimate chance of keeping the job. The fix was in all along. You can't give the guy a proper sendoff? Tell him why he is being let go? Thank him for his years of service? I mean, for all we know Steve Kolbe would have done what you asked him to do. And if it's because he sucked then be an adult and tell him that! As an aside, if this has anything to do with HR policies - then you have the wrong HR policies in place!!! Really, someone in the Caps organization seemingly fucked this up big time......
I am torn as to whether or not to feel sorry for Steve Kolbe, though. On one hand - he did nothing to deserve a classless exit. Like I said at the very top of this post, he is probably shell-shocked. Valued employee one day. Piece of shit the next. Seemingly no real warning as to the change. Yeah, it sucks. And I truly do feel sorry for him. It makes me wonder if the Caps front-office is douchier than they are given credit for. Because this is a shitty way to treat people.
But it's still business. As I know from personal experience - whether you are told you didn't get the job from a classy HR professional (and why) or if you just get cut off from a company that woos you and eagerly interviews you but then ignores you - the fact remains that you didn't get the job - and that's really what sucks. Steve Kolbe got to experience his dream job - something many of us won't get to say. He got 1,000+ more games in the NHL than he deserved. And he got to the NHL without really hacking it out in the AHL (only some time in Portland). His time in Washington was a gift. No matter how shitty the exit, Steve Kolbe has no right to be anything other than thankful.
In closing, I'll throw this out: I recognize I've been hard on Steve Kolbe's abilities. By all accounts, people say he was a class act - a good guy. That should mean something. A lot of play-by-play guys are arrogant pieces of shit - pure assholes (yes, even the ones that sound humble on the air). If you knew them in real life, you'd be astonished and nauseous all at once. The fact that Steve Kolbe has other interests (archery, fishing, drums), lost so much weight, and was respected by his peers is beyond commendable. Character might not let you keep the job, but it still stands for something. Wherever he winds up, I wish him the best. He seems like an interesting guy - someone whose off-air demeanor should be emulated by a lot of people. Hopefully he lands on his feet and finds happiness in the next chapter in his life.
That being said, I've been waiting for his departure since well, 1997. I never was a fan of his. While he has steadily improved during his time in Washington - I'm of the opinion that his play-by-play skills merely went from God-awful to barely tolerable.
First, let's be clear: his voice is horrible. Even when he is just making his baseline call it is annoying. But then, when he gets excited or screams? It is ear splitting! And he seems to enjoy "burying the needle" as they say. That is never a good idea in the announcing world - and that gets raised to the 10th power when you have Kolbe's voice. So most memorable moments for the Caps over the past 13 or so seasons have been paired with grating radio calls. If you want an example - find his call from when the Caps beat the Rangers in 2009 playoffs (end of Game 7) - and that's an IMPROVED Kolbe......if you really want to punish your ears - go find his call of Joe Juneau's goal in 1998 vs. Buffalo.....
Second, he sounds rehearsed and canned. This has various implications. a) He uses an overabundance of statistics. Some of these are insightful, most of them just fill air time. Probably not his intention, but it came across like he was coasting through parts of the broadcast. He could cut back on the stats and be more conversational (home games) or provide more insight into game strategy (road games) to signal that he knows what is going on. Kolbe turned a strength (i.e., preparation) into a weakness (i.e., sounding rehearsed) and that hurt his credibility in my opinion. b) His signature phrases are delivered awkwardly - and frankly they suck (I'm sorry, but the "cat in the hat" is just moronic). Whether it is a one-off saying or a signature phrase, it has to be delivered with "oomph". When Kolbe wasn't "burying the needle" he was sounding robotic. There was never a solid in-between. c) he just wasn't funny or engaging. now this is a tough one because most sportscasters flood the broadcast with cheesy, douchy humor. You don't want to turn your broadcast into Sportscenter. And Kolbe should be applauded for not doing so. But, his broadcasts were too dry. Again, no sweetspot.
So, if his voice his horrible and he wasn't engaging - was he at least a good at keeping up with the play? Well, that brings me to my third critique of Steve Kolbe:
He was not good at "painting a picture" or describing the action. He often had trouble keeping up with the play (or, he was too busy unloading statistics). I remember one time in 2009 I was listening to a broadcast. I wish I could find the clip but you'll just have to take my word. He literally went from a Jose Theodore save (Caps goalie at the time) to a Washington Capitals goal. There was zero explanation as to how the puck went from one end of the ice to the other. And certainly, if you are watching the play develop you know not to spend too much time fawning over the save because you have to describe a potential goal-in-process. That's just bad all around. And you can't blame the speed of the game on that call. In general though, it seemed like Steve Kolbe was a "minimalist" when describing the action. He either couldn't keep up or didn't feel the need to describe what was going on. Maybe if what he said was interesting he could have gotten away with it. But really, he should have been better at, and done more of, in-game calling. He wasn't the TV guy, he was the radio guy. We needed more from him.
In Summary:
Bad voice, not engaging, not able to describe the play = time to go........
While I am totally in favor of Steve Kolbe being shown the door, that doesn't mean I'm not scratching my head at this decision - or that I don't wish him the best.
I mean, I've thought he's been bad from Day 1. But, the Caps seem to have loved him. The timing of his departure is arbitrary at best. They let him hit the 1,000 game milestone and then they can him? What possibly did he do to get fired? I mean for God's sake, there are enough social media wannabees clogging up Twitter's site (me included!). I know Ted Leonsis is all about social media, but if this is because Steve Kolbe didn't tweet then that's fucking stupid. That's one of the things I respected about Steve Kolbe. Steve recently joined Twitter - perhaps as an effort to save his job, but really he shouldn't have needed to do so. I don't need my play-by-play person to blog or tweet. I need him to call the fucking hockey game!!!! Is that asking too much? Business owners want hockey announcers to be versatile. Screw that! Play-by-play is a unique craft. If you're good at that, you're good enough for me. Augmenting your brand through social media only hides your deficiencies as an announcer.
Then there is the issue of how the Caps handled the job posting and notifying Steve Kolbe. I'll say this much, if you're going to fire someone - be an adult about it and fire them. That seemed like the plan all along. But what did the Caps do? They made Steve Kolbe apply to HIS OWN JOB that wouldn't be his job anymore rather than telling him from the beginning that he wasn't coming back. I'm sorry, that's fucking dick - whether they told him this week that John Walton got the job or sent him a text or didn't tell him anything. Don't tell me Steve Kolbe had a legitimate chance of keeping the job. The fix was in all along. You can't give the guy a proper sendoff? Tell him why he is being let go? Thank him for his years of service? I mean, for all we know Steve Kolbe would have done what you asked him to do. And if it's because he sucked then be an adult and tell him that! As an aside, if this has anything to do with HR policies - then you have the wrong HR policies in place!!! Really, someone in the Caps organization seemingly fucked this up big time......
I am torn as to whether or not to feel sorry for Steve Kolbe, though. On one hand - he did nothing to deserve a classless exit. Like I said at the very top of this post, he is probably shell-shocked. Valued employee one day. Piece of shit the next. Seemingly no real warning as to the change. Yeah, it sucks. And I truly do feel sorry for him. It makes me wonder if the Caps front-office is douchier than they are given credit for. Because this is a shitty way to treat people.
But it's still business. As I know from personal experience - whether you are told you didn't get the job from a classy HR professional (and why) or if you just get cut off from a company that woos you and eagerly interviews you but then ignores you - the fact remains that you didn't get the job - and that's really what sucks. Steve Kolbe got to experience his dream job - something many of us won't get to say. He got 1,000+ more games in the NHL than he deserved. And he got to the NHL without really hacking it out in the AHL (only some time in Portland). His time in Washington was a gift. No matter how shitty the exit, Steve Kolbe has no right to be anything other than thankful.
In closing, I'll throw this out: I recognize I've been hard on Steve Kolbe's abilities. By all accounts, people say he was a class act - a good guy. That should mean something. A lot of play-by-play guys are arrogant pieces of shit - pure assholes (yes, even the ones that sound humble on the air). If you knew them in real life, you'd be astonished and nauseous all at once. The fact that Steve Kolbe has other interests (archery, fishing, drums), lost so much weight, and was respected by his peers is beyond commendable. Character might not let you keep the job, but it still stands for something. Wherever he winds up, I wish him the best. He seems like an interesting guy - someone whose off-air demeanor should be emulated by a lot of people. Hopefully he lands on his feet and finds happiness in the next chapter in his life.
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
Brouwer Signs - Alzner Next - Then What?
As George McPhee continues his business process redesign of the Washington Capitals, another domino fell on Wednesday. RFA Troy Brouwer signed a 2-year deal with the Caps at $2.35M per year.
But there is no rest for the weary George McPhee. And there certainly is no end in sight for the over analyzing I am doing about the Caps' capology.
With Brouwer signed, Capgeek now has the Caps at a full 23-man roster. The wonderful site also says that the Caps are roughly $1.8M above the salary cap.
But Tom Poti is on the roster. And, again, he is all but LTIR'd. He has to be. So you take his $2.875M out of the equation and all of a sudden the Caps are about $1M under.
Of course, Karl Alzner still needs to be signed. If you look back to my last post, I have him pegged at the $2M to $2.3M range.
Now, I was a little high with my $3M guess for Brouwer. Hopefully, I am a little high on my Alzner assumption as well.
The point is this: any money given to Karl Alzner that exceeds $1M will put the Washington Capitals above the salary cap. And, in theory, once he is signed and Poti is LTIR'd, the Caps are at their "ideal roster".
So unless George McPhee signs Alzner for under $1M (highly doubtful) - someone needs to go. And is there anyone who can "go" and shed enough salary without significantly altering the quality of the roster?
I go through some of this in my last post, but if you get rid of a guy like Semin who has a large contract, you are significantly reducing the offensive talent.
And if you get rid of a less expensive guy like Chimera or Fehr (who aren't as talented as Semin) - you still have to replace them on the roster. So there is only a minor net cap savings in the end if you move one of these guys.
Further, it is one thing for George McPhee to get the Caps under the cap by the time the season rolls around.
But is it healthy to be right at the salary cap - or does there need to be a buffer (say, $5M) between the Caps' payroll and the salary cap in case they need to make a move during the season?
Only time will tell. But, I fear that if the Caps are just at the salary cap and then someone like Semin (if still on team), Ward, or Laich is proven unworthy of their contract - the Caps are up a creek without a paddle.
These guys become virtually untradeable. Only one of those three guys are on a short term contract. Can you seriously see the Caps burying Joel Ward (fresh off signing a 4-year deal) or Brooks Laich (6-year deal) in Hershey?
And if you bury Semin in Hershey for the season - then you've got to use a high draft pick to get some talent back. Because Semin may have issues, but you can't just drop his ass off the roster and have the Caps be the same team......
Anyway, we'll just wait and see what happens with Alzner and the subsequent fallout. But I have a feeling things could get very, very dicey once we know what Alzner is making this season.
Either the Caps will have to say goodbye to someone who they'd prefer not to - or they'll be right at the salary cap with little-to-no margin for error.
Who says that the summer isn't interesting?
But there is no rest for the weary George McPhee. And there certainly is no end in sight for the over analyzing I am doing about the Caps' capology.
With Brouwer signed, Capgeek now has the Caps at a full 23-man roster. The wonderful site also says that the Caps are roughly $1.8M above the salary cap.
But Tom Poti is on the roster. And, again, he is all but LTIR'd. He has to be. So you take his $2.875M out of the equation and all of a sudden the Caps are about $1M under.
Of course, Karl Alzner still needs to be signed. If you look back to my last post, I have him pegged at the $2M to $2.3M range.
Now, I was a little high with my $3M guess for Brouwer. Hopefully, I am a little high on my Alzner assumption as well.
The point is this: any money given to Karl Alzner that exceeds $1M will put the Washington Capitals above the salary cap. And, in theory, once he is signed and Poti is LTIR'd, the Caps are at their "ideal roster".
So unless George McPhee signs Alzner for under $1M (highly doubtful) - someone needs to go. And is there anyone who can "go" and shed enough salary without significantly altering the quality of the roster?
I go through some of this in my last post, but if you get rid of a guy like Semin who has a large contract, you are significantly reducing the offensive talent.
And if you get rid of a less expensive guy like Chimera or Fehr (who aren't as talented as Semin) - you still have to replace them on the roster. So there is only a minor net cap savings in the end if you move one of these guys.
Further, it is one thing for George McPhee to get the Caps under the cap by the time the season rolls around.
But is it healthy to be right at the salary cap - or does there need to be a buffer (say, $5M) between the Caps' payroll and the salary cap in case they need to make a move during the season?
Only time will tell. But, I fear that if the Caps are just at the salary cap and then someone like Semin (if still on team), Ward, or Laich is proven unworthy of their contract - the Caps are up a creek without a paddle.
These guys become virtually untradeable. Only one of those three guys are on a short term contract. Can you seriously see the Caps burying Joel Ward (fresh off signing a 4-year deal) or Brooks Laich (6-year deal) in Hershey?
And if you bury Semin in Hershey for the season - then you've got to use a high draft pick to get some talent back. Because Semin may have issues, but you can't just drop his ass off the roster and have the Caps be the same team......
Anyway, we'll just wait and see what happens with Alzner and the subsequent fallout. But I have a feeling things could get very, very dicey once we know what Alzner is making this season.
Either the Caps will have to say goodbye to someone who they'd prefer not to - or they'll be right at the salary cap with little-to-no margin for error.
Who says that the summer isn't interesting?
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Summer Thoughts
Yesterday was July 4th, our country's 235th birthday. And it was two months ago yesterday that the Caps' 2010-2011 season ended. The Lightning swept the Caps. Just as the Caps breezed through (kind of) the Rangers in 5 games and fans started to think that maybe this playoff season would be different - it wasn't.
So the Caps hit the golf course early (or "on-schedule" depending on your opinion) and the Boston Bruins did what we wanted to do. I personally think it would have been much more fun to read about Alex Ovechkin and Brooks Laich splitting a $100,000 bottle of Ace of Spades champagne, but whatever.
One thing is for certain: this isn't the summer of 2010. I don't think anybody will catch George McPhee saying "I don't want 5 off days to ruin our plan" this summer. As we all know, he has been quite busy thus far. Holy shit has he been busy.
And the consensus is (rightfully so) that George McPhee has done a helluva job thus far -- especially in net. But seemingly some fans have gotten carried away and are already beginning to mutter the "c-word" (no, not that one ladies). I meant "contender". Or maybe even "Cup".
As good of a job George McPhee has done thus far, it is wayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy too early to start saying shit like "This is the year".
Has George McPhee pulled off some A+ moves this summer? Yes. Without question. Is the team better? Yes. Absolutely.
But are we going to dominate this year? I would argue that remains to be seen. Here are some concerns:
* When all is said-and-done this summer, the Capitals will most likely either be at-the-cap or barely below it. That leaves very little margin for error in George McPhee's moves. He will have a hard time addressing any problems uncovered during the regular season.
* While I like our top-7 defensemen very much (sub Alzner for Poti), it starts to get murky once you hit defenseman #8 (Sean Collins). One injury come playoff time and that could screw-up everything. See Dennis Wideman this past year. Just a gut feeling, but I get scared when I think about just having 6 of our 7 top d-men healthy. Something about being able to rest capable d-men on occasion makes me comfortable. Maybe this is a common concern among NHL teams, but it still applies to the Caps......
* Ultimately, what we are changing with our forwards is "character" and "leadership". That makes sense to some degree. And many would like to believe that is a damning indictment of just Alexander Semin. But Semin isn't the captain and he's not the coach. You get my drift?
* When we start publicly blabbing about what system we think will win us a Stanley Cup, we look amateurish and predictable. Honestly, when it comes to systems, I don't think we have a frickin' clue what we are doing. One minute we are offensive, the next minute we are defensive. Guess what? Neither worked.
* So that leaves our coach, Bruce Boudreau, and our top offensive talent of Alex Ovechkin, Nick Backstrom, and Alex Semin. There is still some disconnect there. God forbid, we have the wrong "top-talent". Or maybe the "top-talent" isn't being harnessed properly. This all needs to be figured out if we are going to have any shot at a Cup. And I think it is a little more complicated than trading Alex Semin. My biggest fear is that if it is the coach, we won't know until another catastrophic, early playoff exit. And if we don't get our coaching/top-talent/system situation figured out til next summer - that does us no good.
* Mike Knuble is old! And he had an o-k season last time around. While there is no long-term exposure to him, I don't know how productive he will be this season as a top-6 forward.
* The Brooks Laich deal and the Joel Ward deal could go either way. Only time will tell if these were savvy moves or if GMGM grossly overpaid for them. In many ways this depends on the coach/system/top-talent issue I talked about earlier. I like both Laich/Ward, but again, that only gets you so far......
* Tomas Vokoun is ultimatey unproven in the playoffs. While a helluva pickup, we really don't know if he has playoff "nerves of steel". I would like to think he does. We really just don't know.
Where we are and Where we are going:
* According to Capgeek, we have $544,872 of cap space with a roster of 22 people. We need to shift a couple people around and add a 23rd person to get a more accurate reading.
* Goaltending is fine - in many ways. But specifically, I mean that it is accurate on capgeek. Vokoun and Neuvirth are our guys.
* On D: Swap out Poti with Alzner. Add Sean Collins.
* The 23rd person on our team (for my calculations) will be defenseman #8, Sean Collins. Tom Poti is LTIR'd. I would argue we can re-sign Karl Alzner and add Sean Collins ($525,000) for the price of Tom Poti ($2.875M).
* So, on defense, while the people change a bit, generally speaking, we are talking no net change in cap space allotment.
* On O: Take out D.J. King and Jay Beagle. Add Troy Brouwer. And for now, add Mattias Sjogren.
* The 13th forward might wind up being Beagle or Cody Eakin. But, Sjogren has the highest salary ($900k) so I'll use him.
* Initial money available = $544,872 cap space + 637,500 King + 512,500 Beagle = $1,694,872
* Subracting 900k Sjogren = $794,872 available to sign Troy Brouwer
* That's obviously not going to happen. So, assuming $3M for Troy Brouwer, we'll be over the cap by $2.2M or so. Hopefully, Brouwer is signed for a little less than that? We shall see.....
Who gets shipped:
* Semin is most likely candidate. But you can't just trade him for picks. There goes the talent. You have to get some decent, immediate talent ($3M in salary) in return for Semin.
* Any salary picked up from incoming player will obviously eat at the cap savings. So, in a good trade, you are probably only saving 3.5M in cap space by trading Semin.
* Even if the Caps trade Semin, they'll still probably be "right at the cap" or ~$1M under it. Is that really where we want to be heading into the season?
* So then what? Trade Mike Green? Chimera? Fehr? Knuble? How close to the cap is McPhee willing to be during the regular season? At what point does it affect the quality of our current roster?
* And, of course, this all assumes Semin is tradeable. What if no team wants him? How the hell are we going to shed salary then?
* We shall see, but my point is that the Caps "cap situation" is a bit more dicey than I would have originally thought.
In summary:
I like what McPhee has done thus far. The moves have either made the team grittier or more talented. The team is better than when it got its ass-whooped by Tampa Bay in the 2nd round.
But, there is still some more juggling to do. And I would argue that it is the upcoming trade and juggling (not what has already been done) that will determine whether or not McPhee had a successful summer.
I am excited for the upcoming season. It is filled with lots of potential and promise. But then again, aren't they all at this time of year?
We'll see what happens. Get excited. But don't go planning any parades just yet. Long way to go......
So the Caps hit the golf course early (or "on-schedule" depending on your opinion) and the Boston Bruins did what we wanted to do. I personally think it would have been much more fun to read about Alex Ovechkin and Brooks Laich splitting a $100,000 bottle of Ace of Spades champagne, but whatever.
One thing is for certain: this isn't the summer of 2010. I don't think anybody will catch George McPhee saying "I don't want 5 off days to ruin our plan" this summer. As we all know, he has been quite busy thus far. Holy shit has he been busy.
And the consensus is (rightfully so) that George McPhee has done a helluva job thus far -- especially in net. But seemingly some fans have gotten carried away and are already beginning to mutter the "c-word" (no, not that one ladies). I meant "contender". Or maybe even "Cup".
As good of a job George McPhee has done thus far, it is wayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy too early to start saying shit like "This is the year".
Has George McPhee pulled off some A+ moves this summer? Yes. Without question. Is the team better? Yes. Absolutely.
But are we going to dominate this year? I would argue that remains to be seen. Here are some concerns:
* When all is said-and-done this summer, the Capitals will most likely either be at-the-cap or barely below it. That leaves very little margin for error in George McPhee's moves. He will have a hard time addressing any problems uncovered during the regular season.
* While I like our top-7 defensemen very much (sub Alzner for Poti), it starts to get murky once you hit defenseman #8 (Sean Collins). One injury come playoff time and that could screw-up everything. See Dennis Wideman this past year. Just a gut feeling, but I get scared when I think about just having 6 of our 7 top d-men healthy. Something about being able to rest capable d-men on occasion makes me comfortable. Maybe this is a common concern among NHL teams, but it still applies to the Caps......
* Ultimately, what we are changing with our forwards is "character" and "leadership". That makes sense to some degree. And many would like to believe that is a damning indictment of just Alexander Semin. But Semin isn't the captain and he's not the coach. You get my drift?
* When we start publicly blabbing about what system we think will win us a Stanley Cup, we look amateurish and predictable. Honestly, when it comes to systems, I don't think we have a frickin' clue what we are doing. One minute we are offensive, the next minute we are defensive. Guess what? Neither worked.
* So that leaves our coach, Bruce Boudreau, and our top offensive talent of Alex Ovechkin, Nick Backstrom, and Alex Semin. There is still some disconnect there. God forbid, we have the wrong "top-talent". Or maybe the "top-talent" isn't being harnessed properly. This all needs to be figured out if we are going to have any shot at a Cup. And I think it is a little more complicated than trading Alex Semin. My biggest fear is that if it is the coach, we won't know until another catastrophic, early playoff exit. And if we don't get our coaching/top-talent/system situation figured out til next summer - that does us no good.
* Mike Knuble is old! And he had an o-k season last time around. While there is no long-term exposure to him, I don't know how productive he will be this season as a top-6 forward.
* The Brooks Laich deal and the Joel Ward deal could go either way. Only time will tell if these were savvy moves or if GMGM grossly overpaid for them. In many ways this depends on the coach/system/top-talent issue I talked about earlier. I like both Laich/Ward, but again, that only gets you so far......
* Tomas Vokoun is ultimatey unproven in the playoffs. While a helluva pickup, we really don't know if he has playoff "nerves of steel". I would like to think he does. We really just don't know.
Where we are and Where we are going:
* According to Capgeek, we have $544,872 of cap space with a roster of 22 people. We need to shift a couple people around and add a 23rd person to get a more accurate reading.
Goaltending and Defense:
* Goaltending is fine - in many ways. But specifically, I mean that it is accurate on capgeek. Vokoun and Neuvirth are our guys.
* On D: Swap out Poti with Alzner. Add Sean Collins.
* The 23rd person on our team (for my calculations) will be defenseman #8, Sean Collins. Tom Poti is LTIR'd. I would argue we can re-sign Karl Alzner and add Sean Collins ($525,000) for the price of Tom Poti ($2.875M).
* So, on defense, while the people change a bit, generally speaking, we are talking no net change in cap space allotment.
Offense:
* On O: Take out D.J. King and Jay Beagle. Add Troy Brouwer. And for now, add Mattias Sjogren.
* The 13th forward might wind up being Beagle or Cody Eakin. But, Sjogren has the highest salary ($900k) so I'll use him.
* Initial money available = $544,872 cap space + 637,500 King + 512,500 Beagle = $1,694,872
* Subracting 900k Sjogren = $794,872 available to sign Troy Brouwer
* That's obviously not going to happen. So, assuming $3M for Troy Brouwer, we'll be over the cap by $2.2M or so. Hopefully, Brouwer is signed for a little less than that? We shall see.....
Who gets shipped:
* Semin is most likely candidate. But you can't just trade him for picks. There goes the talent. You have to get some decent, immediate talent ($3M in salary) in return for Semin.
* Any salary picked up from incoming player will obviously eat at the cap savings. So, in a good trade, you are probably only saving 3.5M in cap space by trading Semin.
* Even if the Caps trade Semin, they'll still probably be "right at the cap" or ~$1M under it. Is that really where we want to be heading into the season?
* So then what? Trade Mike Green? Chimera? Fehr? Knuble? How close to the cap is McPhee willing to be during the regular season? At what point does it affect the quality of our current roster?
* And, of course, this all assumes Semin is tradeable. What if no team wants him? How the hell are we going to shed salary then?
* We shall see, but my point is that the Caps "cap situation" is a bit more dicey than I would have originally thought.
In summary:
I like what McPhee has done thus far. The moves have either made the team grittier or more talented. The team is better than when it got its ass-whooped by Tampa Bay in the 2nd round.
But, there is still some more juggling to do. And I would argue that it is the upcoming trade and juggling (not what has already been done) that will determine whether or not McPhee had a successful summer.
I am excited for the upcoming season. It is filled with lots of potential and promise. But then again, aren't they all at this time of year?
We'll see what happens. Get excited. But don't go planning any parades just yet. Long way to go......
Friday, May 6, 2011
Season Wrap-Up
So it is. My first few months of blogging have come to an end. I'm glad I did this - as starting a blog has helped me keep in better touch with the team from far away. It has also satisfied some of my journalism cravings.
The highlight of this experience has clearly been my two interviews (Mike Fornes and Charlie Skjodt/Brad Lutsch). Absolutely great to pretend for a few hours at a time that I am a member of the media.
I probably won't add any posts during the summer - as whatever awards/draft/free agency/development camp news there is can be handled by others.
Further, from a personal standpoint, I will be moving and also planning to start a new job. So it is a time of transition for the Caps Degenerate.
But, next season I will hopefully be able to blog more frequently and in a more detailed fashion. By fall, the transition period will have ended and I will likely be able to focus on this blog consistently.
Thank you very much for reading. May we, one day, find out what it feels like to see the Caps win the Stanley Cup.
Oh, and if you happen to have any suggestions for what to include in this blog next season - please email me.
Capsdegenerate at gmail dot com
Oh, and if you happen to have any suggestions for what to include in this blog next season - please email me.
Capsdegenerate at gmail dot com
Thursday, May 5, 2011
All too Familiar Feeling
In 2003, when Tampa Bay beat the Caps in 6 games, Ted Leonsis said that Tampa was the better team. I always disagreed with that.
And I disagree with the theory that Tampa was the better team in 2011. I will never think that they had more talent than us.
But, in 2003 and 2011 - Tampa proved to be a damn good team that wanted it more.
And they executed while the Caps didn't. And one could argue Tampa out-coached the Caps too.
The Caps progress in the playoffs has stagnated while Tampa somehow seems like they are on the up-and-up for the second time in the past 10 years.
Any way you slice it, the Caps are done like dinner far too early.
Again.
We now get to watch the rest of the playoffs while coming to grips with the fact that, no, this isn't the year.
We'll get to see another team skate around with that Stanley Cup thing we've been chasing since the beginning of time.
How messed up would it be if while all of this self-promotion in DC was going on, the Lightning won the Cup in 2004 - blew their team up - and won the Cup again before Washington got a whiff of Lord Stanley?
The Caps face a summer of what should be drastic change. We can analyze who stays and who goes later. For now, just time to soak in that all too familiar anticlimactic feeling of an early playoff exit.
And unlike the past 3 playoff exits, there are no more excuses. There are no alternative explanations.
The system - as we know it - is broken.
No spin. No talk about how long it took Gretzky to win a Stanley Cup. No asking for more time. The new iteration of the Caps just isn't getting it done in the playoffs.
It sucks. But it is time to stop defending them and face some harsh truths.
Not fun.
Yet, watching the Caps get eliminated never is........
And I disagree with the theory that Tampa was the better team in 2011. I will never think that they had more talent than us.
But, in 2003 and 2011 - Tampa proved to be a damn good team that wanted it more.
And they executed while the Caps didn't. And one could argue Tampa out-coached the Caps too.
The Caps progress in the playoffs has stagnated while Tampa somehow seems like they are on the up-and-up for the second time in the past 10 years.
Any way you slice it, the Caps are done like dinner far too early.
Again.
We now get to watch the rest of the playoffs while coming to grips with the fact that, no, this isn't the year.
We'll get to see another team skate around with that Stanley Cup thing we've been chasing since the beginning of time.
How messed up would it be if while all of this self-promotion in DC was going on, the Lightning won the Cup in 2004 - blew their team up - and won the Cup again before Washington got a whiff of Lord Stanley?
The Caps face a summer of what should be drastic change. We can analyze who stays and who goes later. For now, just time to soak in that all too familiar anticlimactic feeling of an early playoff exit.
And unlike the past 3 playoff exits, there are no more excuses. There are no alternative explanations.
The system - as we know it - is broken.
No spin. No talk about how long it took Gretzky to win a Stanley Cup. No asking for more time. The new iteration of the Caps just isn't getting it done in the playoffs.
It sucks. But it is time to stop defending them and face some harsh truths.
Not fun.
Yet, watching the Caps get eliminated never is........
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
No Joy in Capsville
Well, sometimes death comes in an annoying manner and it sets you off into a depression. That's what happened last year with Montreal. I couldn't even explain that 1st round exit.
But after watching Game 3 vs. Tampa tonight - I am at peace with the end of the season. You add it up and this is Tampa's series.
Tampa has enough defense and goaltending to keep the Caps at bay. They have a lot of talent on offense. And whatever questions are left, the Caps shoot themselves in the foot to remove any doubt.
The Caps led 3 to 2 after the 2nd period. And all they needed to do was play 20 more minutes of hockey to get back in the series.
They obviously did not want to do that. No ref issues. No dirty play from Tampa. No nothing. Just the Caps laying an egg when they needed to play hockey the most.
The sad thing is, I have to go back on my last post. I think Bruce Boudreau is done. He is a regular season genius.
But, if there is a guy who didn't get it done in his 4 playoffs with the Caps - he is it. Too much talent to just make the 2nd round twice.
The Caps continue to piss on their window of opportunity. They will soon face issues with losing free agents and determining if there are any "young guns" that need to be traded.
What is that magic system that will get the Caps to the promised land? It seems as hard to find as that pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.
So, yes, tomorrow I will wake up and hope for a miracle. I will watch Game 4 and root for the Caps. That's just what I do.
And there is still that 2% chance that this post will become a quasi-collector's item. After we go on to win the Cup, we will just laugh at how we felt when the Caps were down 3 to 0 to Tampa.
Like any Texas Hold'em degenerate clinging to one out to the river - there is always hope. You're not dead until you are drawing dead.
But really, the straight flush never hits. It certainly won't hit the Capitals. Not Wednesday night. Not this series.
One more hockey game before some very tough questions hit this franchise. This promises to be a very depressing off-season for the Caps.
The media is getting behind the Caps. The fans are getting behind the Caps. The league is getting behind the Caps.
They just aren't getting it done.
It's not Mike Wilbon's fault. It's not Tony Kornheiser's fault. It's not ESPN's fault. It's not Scott Burnside's fault. Or Mike Milbury's fault. It's not Sidney Crosby's fault. It's not Canada's fault. It's not the Southeast Division's fault.
It's the team's fault.
At least I'll be clean-shaven and have a fresh haircut to deal with whatever fallout comes after Game 4.
But after watching Game 3 vs. Tampa tonight - I am at peace with the end of the season. You add it up and this is Tampa's series.
Tampa has enough defense and goaltending to keep the Caps at bay. They have a lot of talent on offense. And whatever questions are left, the Caps shoot themselves in the foot to remove any doubt.
The Caps led 3 to 2 after the 2nd period. And all they needed to do was play 20 more minutes of hockey to get back in the series.
They obviously did not want to do that. No ref issues. No dirty play from Tampa. No nothing. Just the Caps laying an egg when they needed to play hockey the most.
The sad thing is, I have to go back on my last post. I think Bruce Boudreau is done. He is a regular season genius.
But, if there is a guy who didn't get it done in his 4 playoffs with the Caps - he is it. Too much talent to just make the 2nd round twice.
The Caps continue to piss on their window of opportunity. They will soon face issues with losing free agents and determining if there are any "young guns" that need to be traded.
What is that magic system that will get the Caps to the promised land? It seems as hard to find as that pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.
So, yes, tomorrow I will wake up and hope for a miracle. I will watch Game 4 and root for the Caps. That's just what I do.
And there is still that 2% chance that this post will become a quasi-collector's item. After we go on to win the Cup, we will just laugh at how we felt when the Caps were down 3 to 0 to Tampa.
Like any Texas Hold'em degenerate clinging to one out to the river - there is always hope. You're not dead until you are drawing dead.
But really, the straight flush never hits. It certainly won't hit the Capitals. Not Wednesday night. Not this series.
One more hockey game before some very tough questions hit this franchise. This promises to be a very depressing off-season for the Caps.
The media is getting behind the Caps. The fans are getting behind the Caps. The league is getting behind the Caps.
They just aren't getting it done.
It's not Mike Wilbon's fault. It's not Tony Kornheiser's fault. It's not ESPN's fault. It's not Scott Burnside's fault. Or Mike Milbury's fault. It's not Sidney Crosby's fault. It's not Canada's fault. It's not the Southeast Division's fault.
It's the team's fault.
At least I'll be clean-shaven and have a fresh haircut to deal with whatever fallout comes after Game 4.
Monday, May 2, 2011
Margin of Error Exhausted vs. Tampa
This has been a busy week for the Caps Degenerate from a personal standpoint.
It has also apparently been a busy night for our country, with President Obama announcing the death of Osama bin Laden.
So, blogging has taken a backseat over the last few days.
That said, the hockey has continued. I'm still a little upset they didn't postpone the games and make sure I was ready to go :). I keed, I keed.
As we all know, the Caps lost Games 1 and 2 at home to Tampa Bay. The season could be over by Wednesday.
Then again, in 2003, the Caps won Games 1 and 2 against Tampa Bay on the road -- only to drop the next four and lose the series.
So, maybe this weekend just sets up some Triple-OT goal the Caps will score in Game 6 to end the series. You never know, right?
Thus we try and explain the mood that I'm in following the pair of losses handed to us by the Lightning.
I obviously hate losing. The Caps have taken stretches of each game off -- and that is unacceptable. And our power play sucks. I mean, it's just horrendous.
I honestly think the Caps would be better off declining the man-advantage whenever a penalty is called on the Lightning. Can they do that? They should!
You also have to give credit where credit is due. The Lightning have established a maddeningly smart pattern of playing just enough defense and getting (much more than enough) goaltending to keep the Caps from opening the scoring floodgates.
Then, they come down the ice - and they use their finishers to finish. I don't think Neuvy is playing all that bad.
But, Tampa is getting goals from their goal scorers -- or the Capitals defensemen. And they are scoring with less effort than the Caps.
At the end of the day, that makes a huge difference. Tampa is capitalizing on its chances, Washington is not.
So, there is some luck involved - and there are some tangible reasons why the Lightning are up on the Caps 2 games to 0.
I think the good news is that without question -- the Caps are the better team in this series. And if they tighten up their game a little bit and finish their chances, they very well could win this series in 6 games.
The Caps still should win the series in 6, in my humble opinion. But, emphasis on "should" (not "will").
The Caps also very well could be telling the starter at the first tee on Thursday morning that they were clearly a better team than Tampa.
Where does that get the franchise?
My friend, who was kind enough to let me watch on his HDTV, asked me if Bruce Boudreau gets shitcanned if the Caps lose this series.
I said probably not. I don't think there is any shame in losing to this Tampa team. I think Stevie Y. is a genius and the Lightning are going to be contenders for years to come -- including this year.
But really, the window is closing. The Caps reign over the SE division is coming to a close (see Tampa). And so far, all this reign has gotten the Caps is two trips to the second round.
Maybe this year is better than last year. But, it's still not enough.
Which is why the Caps have to get back in this series before it actually is over.
Whatever urgency the team has played with needs to be quadrupled. Fuck next year. Fuck thinking long-term. Now's the fucking time.
The Caps have to act like the world ends in July and this is their last chance to win the Stanley Cup. They need to kick the shit out of Tampa in Game 3.
Not just win. Send a powerful message.
This series is by no means over yet. The Caps can and should win the series in 6.
But will the Caps make it happen?
It has also apparently been a busy night for our country, with President Obama announcing the death of Osama bin Laden.
So, blogging has taken a backseat over the last few days.
That said, the hockey has continued. I'm still a little upset they didn't postpone the games and make sure I was ready to go :). I keed, I keed.
As we all know, the Caps lost Games 1 and 2 at home to Tampa Bay. The season could be over by Wednesday.
Then again, in 2003, the Caps won Games 1 and 2 against Tampa Bay on the road -- only to drop the next four and lose the series.
So, maybe this weekend just sets up some Triple-OT goal the Caps will score in Game 6 to end the series. You never know, right?
Thus we try and explain the mood that I'm in following the pair of losses handed to us by the Lightning.
I obviously hate losing. The Caps have taken stretches of each game off -- and that is unacceptable. And our power play sucks. I mean, it's just horrendous.
I honestly think the Caps would be better off declining the man-advantage whenever a penalty is called on the Lightning. Can they do that? They should!
You also have to give credit where credit is due. The Lightning have established a maddeningly smart pattern of playing just enough defense and getting (much more than enough) goaltending to keep the Caps from opening the scoring floodgates.
Then, they come down the ice - and they use their finishers to finish. I don't think Neuvy is playing all that bad.
But, Tampa is getting goals from their goal scorers -- or the Capitals defensemen. And they are scoring with less effort than the Caps.
At the end of the day, that makes a huge difference. Tampa is capitalizing on its chances, Washington is not.
So, there is some luck involved - and there are some tangible reasons why the Lightning are up on the Caps 2 games to 0.
I think the good news is that without question -- the Caps are the better team in this series. And if they tighten up their game a little bit and finish their chances, they very well could win this series in 6 games.
The Caps still should win the series in 6, in my humble opinion. But, emphasis on "should" (not "will").
The Caps also very well could be telling the starter at the first tee on Thursday morning that they were clearly a better team than Tampa.
Where does that get the franchise?
My friend, who was kind enough to let me watch on his HDTV, asked me if Bruce Boudreau gets shitcanned if the Caps lose this series.
I said probably not. I don't think there is any shame in losing to this Tampa team. I think Stevie Y. is a genius and the Lightning are going to be contenders for years to come -- including this year.
But really, the window is closing. The Caps reign over the SE division is coming to a close (see Tampa). And so far, all this reign has gotten the Caps is two trips to the second round.
Maybe this year is better than last year. But, it's still not enough.
Which is why the Caps have to get back in this series before it actually is over.
Whatever urgency the team has played with needs to be quadrupled. Fuck next year. Fuck thinking long-term. Now's the fucking time.
The Caps have to act like the world ends in July and this is their last chance to win the Stanley Cup. They need to kick the shit out of Tampa in Game 3.
Not just win. Send a powerful message.
This series is by no means over yet. The Caps can and should win the series in 6.
But will the Caps make it happen?
Sunday, April 24, 2011
Game 5 = Cloud 9
After Jason Chimera scored his double OT goal in Game 4, I wanted to think the series was over. Sure, there was the Caps' history of choking away 3-1 leads.
But, really, New York was broken. Right?
Then I decided to turn on the Lightning/Penguins game at noon as a preview to the Rangers/Caps game. I was feeling good. I was also fully expecting Pittsburgh to close out Tampa Bay.
Pittsburgh, as you know, took a 3-1 series lead over Tampa Bay the same night that the Caps went up 3 to 1 on the Rangers. Also, in 2 OT.
Well, let's just say Pittsburgh did not close out Tampa Bay. Tampa Bay kicked the shit out of Pittsburgh 8-2. Their series continues.
And all of a sudden I had doubt. Maybe momentum means nothing. Maybe I was going to go from this really content, relaxed state of being to feeling like Armageddon was upon us again.
Sure, I was used to it. I am a Caps fan after all. But not again. Really? Could the Caps have a chance to go for the jugular and lay another fucking egg?
I mean, the mighty Penguins just did. And, FSN Pittsburgh showed that the Penguins are "a lot and one" in series that they have a 3-1 lead. The Caps were 2-4 in such series going into today's game.
Thankfully, the Caps did not lay an egg. Seemingly, the only point of criticism you could put on them is that they did not play a perfect-perfect game.
Finally though, the Caps showed me they wanted the series. It was by far their most complete effort of the series. Even better than the Game 2, 2-0 win.
They indeed, went for New York's jugular and got it. They didn't fuck around. The game was never really in question. From start to finish, the Caps ran the show.
Thank God!
Washington picks up its 2nd-ever series win after holding a 2-0 series lead. They are now 3-4 when having a 3-1 series lead.
Baby steps, right?
This is quite the welcome change from the utter despair I felt last season after the Caps dropped Game 7 to Montreal. Or, two years ago, when the Penguins demolished the Caps in Game 7.
Or, three years ago when I personally witnessed Joffrey Lupul's Game 7 winner for the Flyers.
And so on and so on.
Even the 2009 series win vs. the Rangers had this weird feeling to it. Why did the Caps go down 3 to 1? Why did it take 7 games? Why did they come out flat in Game 7?
There will be reality checks to be had. The Caps will have to get back to business, to be sure. If you don't think the Caps can improve from this series, think again.
There are 12 more wins to go. The team is only 1/4 of the way to its ultimate goal.
And really, you can't pretend that getting out of the 1st round for the 2nd time since 1998 is akin to winning the Stanley Cup.
The last time it took fewer than 7 games for the Caps to close out a series was against Buffalo in 1998.
Since that series, the Detroit Red Wings have won 16 playoff series in less than 7 games. They have appeared in the Stanley Cup Final 4 times, winning 3 Stanley Cups (including against us in '98).
So, there is more work to be done before we have an impressive playoff resume.
But, in the series that matters most - the one that was most recent - the Caps did have an impressive resume.
Perfect or not, the Caps effort in this series got the job done quickly. It took 5 games + roughly 3 overtime periods. There was only 1 loss.
Only the Detroit Red Wings won their series faster. The Caps have time to rest their bodies. Us fans have time to rest our minds.
There is plenty more emotional trauma to be had. More Mylanta to be consumed. And in the end, we might not be satisfied with the Caps' run for this playoff season.
Who knows what the 2nd round will bring us....
Which team will the Caps play? How will the Caps perform? Will it negate the great feeling of beating the Rangers? Will it take the Caps to the team's 3rd ever conference final?
These are indeed questions to which we need answers.
But not yet.
There are a few days to take another deep breath. To relish in beating a team that beat us 7-0 and 6-0 in the regular season. A team that supposedly was our worst nightmare 1st round matchup.
This series could have gone many ways. Yet, it went our way.
Enjoy the thrill of victory, Caps fans.
See you in the 2nd-round!
But, really, New York was broken. Right?
Then I decided to turn on the Lightning/Penguins game at noon as a preview to the Rangers/Caps game. I was feeling good. I was also fully expecting Pittsburgh to close out Tampa Bay.
Pittsburgh, as you know, took a 3-1 series lead over Tampa Bay the same night that the Caps went up 3 to 1 on the Rangers. Also, in 2 OT.
Well, let's just say Pittsburgh did not close out Tampa Bay. Tampa Bay kicked the shit out of Pittsburgh 8-2. Their series continues.
And all of a sudden I had doubt. Maybe momentum means nothing. Maybe I was going to go from this really content, relaxed state of being to feeling like Armageddon was upon us again.
Sure, I was used to it. I am a Caps fan after all. But not again. Really? Could the Caps have a chance to go for the jugular and lay another fucking egg?
I mean, the mighty Penguins just did. And, FSN Pittsburgh showed that the Penguins are "a lot and one" in series that they have a 3-1 lead. The Caps were 2-4 in such series going into today's game.
Thankfully, the Caps did not lay an egg. Seemingly, the only point of criticism you could put on them is that they did not play a perfect-perfect game.
Finally though, the Caps showed me they wanted the series. It was by far their most complete effort of the series. Even better than the Game 2, 2-0 win.
They indeed, went for New York's jugular and got it. They didn't fuck around. The game was never really in question. From start to finish, the Caps ran the show.
Thank God!
Washington picks up its 2nd-ever series win after holding a 2-0 series lead. They are now 3-4 when having a 3-1 series lead.
Baby steps, right?
This is quite the welcome change from the utter despair I felt last season after the Caps dropped Game 7 to Montreal. Or, two years ago, when the Penguins demolished the Caps in Game 7.
Or, three years ago when I personally witnessed Joffrey Lupul's Game 7 winner for the Flyers.
And so on and so on.
Even the 2009 series win vs. the Rangers had this weird feeling to it. Why did the Caps go down 3 to 1? Why did it take 7 games? Why did they come out flat in Game 7?
There will be reality checks to be had. The Caps will have to get back to business, to be sure. If you don't think the Caps can improve from this series, think again.
There are 12 more wins to go. The team is only 1/4 of the way to its ultimate goal.
And really, you can't pretend that getting out of the 1st round for the 2nd time since 1998 is akin to winning the Stanley Cup.
The last time it took fewer than 7 games for the Caps to close out a series was against Buffalo in 1998.
Since that series, the Detroit Red Wings have won 16 playoff series in less than 7 games. They have appeared in the Stanley Cup Final 4 times, winning 3 Stanley Cups (including against us in '98).
So, there is more work to be done before we have an impressive playoff resume.
But, in the series that matters most - the one that was most recent - the Caps did have an impressive resume.
Perfect or not, the Caps effort in this series got the job done quickly. It took 5 games + roughly 3 overtime periods. There was only 1 loss.
Only the Detroit Red Wings won their series faster. The Caps have time to rest their bodies. Us fans have time to rest our minds.
There is plenty more emotional trauma to be had. More Mylanta to be consumed. And in the end, we might not be satisfied with the Caps' run for this playoff season.
Who knows what the 2nd round will bring us....
Which team will the Caps play? How will the Caps perform? Will it negate the great feeling of beating the Rangers? Will it take the Caps to the team's 3rd ever conference final?
These are indeed questions to which we need answers.
But not yet.
There are a few days to take another deep breath. To relish in beating a team that beat us 7-0 and 6-0 in the regular season. A team that supposedly was our worst nightmare 1st round matchup.
This series could have gone many ways. Yet, it went our way.
Enjoy the thrill of victory, Caps fans.
See you in the 2nd-round!
Thursday, April 21, 2011
Holy Shit! Game 4 to the Caps!
This is the problem when you have to watch at a sports bar - no laptop with you. Absolutely no way to describe how many different thoughts I've had about the Capitals since 7 p.m.
(UPDATE: Big thanks/stick tap to the Peerless Prognosticator for confirming that it is the Capitals 3rd ever multiple OT playoff win. 1985 vs. NYI and 1998 vs. Boston. For some reason I didn't remember Bellows' goal being in the 2nd OT, but it most certainly was. Good omen? Hopefully!)
Next season, you will get my real-time stream of consciousness.....until then......just know this:
I was ready to write a scathing article about the lack of character the team had when it was 3-0 Rangers. And I'm still kind of pissed off that the team hasn't learned to play a full 60 minutes.
I'm spent. Good Lord am I spent after watching that game!
I was ready to write a scathing article about the lack of character the team had when it was 3-0 Rangers. And I'm still kind of pissed off that the team hasn't learned to play a full 60 minutes.
Of course, you know what happened in the 3rd period and the 2nd OT.
Holy Shit indeed!
Give credit where it is due. The Caps came back in spectacular fashion tonight. And like many, I'll take this uneven performance and 3-1 series lead over a hard-fought loss and a 2-2 series.
I have to go to bed so I can't fact check, but I'm pretty sure this is the franchise's first-ever multiple OT playoff game win. Crazy, huh?
(UPDATE: Big thanks/stick tap to the Peerless Prognosticator for confirming that it is the Capitals 3rd ever multiple OT playoff win. 1985 vs. NYI and 1998 vs. Boston. For some reason I didn't remember Bellows' goal being in the 2nd OT, but it most certainly was. Good omen? Hopefully!)
Like I've mentioned before, I'll take the emotional abuse the Caps give us in tight games over the easy way out and early exits.
But, emotional abuse it is. The Caps are like a manipulative girlfriend. They treat you like garbage in critical times. And every time you are ready to leave, they do just enough to get you to stay.
So I stay. I take this 3-1 series lead and a big sigh of relief into the next day. And I get ready for the next round of emotional trauma the Caps will inflict on us this Saturday.
Because as well all know, this series is not over yet.
God willing though, the Caps will just kick the shit out of the Rangers in Game 5 and close out the series on Saturday.
Time to chug another bottle of Mylanta and go to bed. Enjoy the win. Someone buy Jason Chimera -- and any other Capitals player you see fit -- a beer.
See you for Game 5!
Monday, April 18, 2011
Here We Go Again
Sunday morning when reading the Washington Post and Katie Carrera's preview of Game 3, I had a Harry Doyle moment. Harry Doyle, as you may recall, was Bob Uecker's character in the movie Major League.
I know that when it comes to hockey playoffs, history is not on the Caps' side. If they are the underdog, they seldom pull off the upset. If they are the favorite, well, they seldom do as they are supposed to do.
But I never really paid attention to records or statistics. I just have a general feeling of trepidation when putting "Capitals" and "playoffs" in the same sentence.
I know, generally speaking, that a 3-1 series lead or 2-0 series lead isn't safe in DC.
But, one thing Ms. Carrera poignantly called attention to in her preview is that in the 5 total seven-game series in which the Capitals have held a 2-0 lead,
the Caps are 1-4.
"That's all we got? Is one goddamn series win?"
While the league's historical rate for closing out 2-0 leads is 86.6% (266/301 - WaPo), the Caps are lagging that slightly with their 20% success rate.
Ain't that some shit.
I mean, I remember 1998 vs. Ottawa. Hell, I was at Game 2! I had just returned from college and an old teammate invited me to the game. Boy, we stomped the Senators that night!
If I had known at the time that I would be witness to the Caps only 2-0 series lead that would result in a series win - I would have done something memorable.
I was under 21 and the "Phone Booth" isn't a college bar, so I wouldn't have gotten drunk. And I probably wouldn't have set anything on fire. That would be arson.
But I would have done something, dammit!
13 years later, we try for that lofty goal of converting on a 2-0 series lead (in 7-gm series) for the 2nd time in franchise history.
And we have encountered our first setback. The Caps will not win 16 straight en route to their first Stanley Cup. There will be no sweep of the New York Rangers (would have been franchise's first sweep in a 7-game series).
The Rangers didn't seem to do anything different. Maybe there were a few more pronounced porn 'staches. Also, instead of Sean Avery being a pest, Sean Avery and Brandon Prust were pests.
Neuvy seemed a bit rattled though. I thought he would have just ignored. He has ice in his veins, right?
The Caps never had the lead. OT seemed likely, but Brandon Dubinsky had something to say about that.
So rather than rest comfortably for the next three days, I live in fear. You see, in playoff hockey, the result clouds the game.
Maybe today wasn't a New York Rangers blow out. Maybe the Caps came out a little flat and a little sloppy, but responded and played a decent enough game. They still could have won.
But they lost. So it feels like Armageddon is upon us.
And now you have to look back at Games 1 and 2 and say those games were pretty close as well. So maybe the Caps were fortunate to win those games.
But they won those games. So it felt like the Stanley Cup was coming to DC.
Thus the series stands 2 games to 1 in favor of DC. I would like to think that Game 3 will serve as the proper wake-up call.
The Caps will become hungry again. They will take no shit from the Rangers on Wednesday night. Game 4 will be much more smooth for DC.
I mean seriously, if the Caps can't get motivated to kill the Rangers in Game 4, then what business do we have talking about the Stanley Cup?
Rather than let an inferior team with inferior tricks succeed against DC, the Caps will calmly remind the hockey world that John Tortorella is a one trick pony, Sean Avery is a douche, and New York as a whole is overrated.
I see no reason why this won't be the case. I have faith in my team. I have faith in Neuvy.
And after Game 4 is done, the Caps should have a stranglehold on the series with a commanding 3 games to 1 lead.
Of course, by my count, the Caps are 2-4 (in series outcomes) in which they have held a 3 games to 1 lead.
The ONLY two series in franchise history that the Caps have converted a 3-1 series lead into a series win took place in 1998 (vs. Ottawa and Buffalo).
I guess the bright side is that when the Caps get off their rear ends and decide to do something with the series leads, they go far in the playoffs.
But really. As we all know, the only 3 games to 1 series lead this iteration of the Caps has seen, it pissed away to Montreal last year.
Shit.
Speaking of Major League, I'm going to make like I'm GM Charlie Donovan meeting with Owner Rachel Phelps and go chug some Mylanta straight out of the bottle.
Someone please remind me that past performance is not a predictor of future behavior?
I know that when it comes to hockey playoffs, history is not on the Caps' side. If they are the underdog, they seldom pull off the upset. If they are the favorite, well, they seldom do as they are supposed to do.
But I never really paid attention to records or statistics. I just have a general feeling of trepidation when putting "Capitals" and "playoffs" in the same sentence.
I know, generally speaking, that a 3-1 series lead or 2-0 series lead isn't safe in DC.
But, one thing Ms. Carrera poignantly called attention to in her preview is that in the 5 total seven-game series in which the Capitals have held a 2-0 lead,
the Caps are 1-4.
"That's all we got? Is one goddamn series win?"
While the league's historical rate for closing out 2-0 leads is 86.6% (266/301 - WaPo), the Caps are lagging that slightly with their 20% success rate.
Ain't that some shit.
I mean, I remember 1998 vs. Ottawa. Hell, I was at Game 2! I had just returned from college and an old teammate invited me to the game. Boy, we stomped the Senators that night!
If I had known at the time that I would be witness to the Caps only 2-0 series lead that would result in a series win - I would have done something memorable.
I was under 21 and the "Phone Booth" isn't a college bar, so I wouldn't have gotten drunk. And I probably wouldn't have set anything on fire. That would be arson.
But I would have done something, dammit!
13 years later, we try for that lofty goal of converting on a 2-0 series lead (in 7-gm series) for the 2nd time in franchise history.
And we have encountered our first setback. The Caps will not win 16 straight en route to their first Stanley Cup. There will be no sweep of the New York Rangers (would have been franchise's first sweep in a 7-game series).
The Rangers didn't seem to do anything different. Maybe there were a few more pronounced porn 'staches. Also, instead of Sean Avery being a pest, Sean Avery and Brandon Prust were pests.
Neuvy seemed a bit rattled though. I thought he would have just ignored. He has ice in his veins, right?
The Caps never had the lead. OT seemed likely, but Brandon Dubinsky had something to say about that.
So rather than rest comfortably for the next three days, I live in fear. You see, in playoff hockey, the result clouds the game.
Maybe today wasn't a New York Rangers blow out. Maybe the Caps came out a little flat and a little sloppy, but responded and played a decent enough game. They still could have won.
But they lost. So it feels like Armageddon is upon us.
And now you have to look back at Games 1 and 2 and say those games were pretty close as well. So maybe the Caps were fortunate to win those games.
But they won those games. So it felt like the Stanley Cup was coming to DC.
Thus the series stands 2 games to 1 in favor of DC. I would like to think that Game 3 will serve as the proper wake-up call.
The Caps will become hungry again. They will take no shit from the Rangers on Wednesday night. Game 4 will be much more smooth for DC.
I mean seriously, if the Caps can't get motivated to kill the Rangers in Game 4, then what business do we have talking about the Stanley Cup?
Rather than let an inferior team with inferior tricks succeed against DC, the Caps will calmly remind the hockey world that John Tortorella is a one trick pony, Sean Avery is a douche, and New York as a whole is overrated.
I see no reason why this won't be the case. I have faith in my team. I have faith in Neuvy.
And after Game 4 is done, the Caps should have a stranglehold on the series with a commanding 3 games to 1 lead.
Of course, by my count, the Caps are 2-4 (in series outcomes) in which they have held a 3 games to 1 lead.
The ONLY two series in franchise history that the Caps have converted a 3-1 series lead into a series win took place in 1998 (vs. Ottawa and Buffalo).
I guess the bright side is that when the Caps get off their rear ends and decide to do something with the series leads, they go far in the playoffs.
But really. As we all know, the only 3 games to 1 series lead this iteration of the Caps has seen, it pissed away to Montreal last year.
Shit.
Speaking of Major League, I'm going to make like I'm GM Charlie Donovan meeting with Owner Rachel Phelps and go chug some Mylanta straight out of the bottle.
Someone please remind me that past performance is not a predictor of future behavior?
Thursday, April 14, 2011
Phew!
I think the quote of the night comes from my friend, who is a Blackhawks fan:
"The Capitals are the most tortured franchise when it comes to the playoffs and how the team finds ways to lose. You're going to complain about how they won this game?"
What are you waiting for???????? It's the playoffs!!!!!! Now's the time!!!!!!!!
"The Capitals are the most tortured franchise when it comes to the playoffs and how the team finds ways to lose. You're going to complain about how they won this game?"
Well, kind of. Nice response via Ovechkin's equalizer. What a blast by Semin! And the Caps, for the most part, had a solid defensive game. Neuvy indeed matched Hank in net.
But, something just didn't seem right. The way they started flat in the third period is inexcusable. The fact that the power play is still inept bothers me to no end.
Yes, in fairness, the Rangers were 0 for 2 on the PP as well. But talk about DC missing a chance to take a solid lead in the first period........
The fact that the 1-seed had to come back to force overtime to win this game against an 8-seed.
Even though the Caps won, it was eerily familiar to last year's Game 1 vs. Montreal.
They need to step it up. If the Caps play full-throttle then they can win the remaining games by a score of 4 to 1, or something to that effect.
And maybe that's the thing. I don't feel that the Caps played full-throttle tonight.
What are you waiting for???????? It's the playoffs!!!!!! Now's the time!!!!!!!!
This series does NOT need to be close!
I'll take the win. A win is a win is a win. But, I'm still not convinced the Caps want to go deep this year.
After all this franchise has been through, that scares me.
I hope I'm dead wrong.
And I hope the Caps show me something more in Game 2.
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Let the Games Begin!
It is go-time. It is officially the day that Game 1 will be played. Bring on the Rangers!
Yes, that lowly, 8th-seeded Rangers team - aka - the team that took 3 of 4 games from DC during the regular season.
And let's not get into the score of two of those games.
I will say however, that I am glad the Rangers beat the Caps 6 to 0. That game was right before the trade deadline.
It was a reminder to George McPhee that he couldn't stand pat.
I don't know what he was thinking or when, but he certainly could not have gotten away with doing nothing after that game.
(As an aside, that is the opposite of what happened in 1994, but I digress)
Hopefully, the power play will come to life as a result of the offense coming to life.
Funny how things go in life. As an "old school" Caps fan, I am supposed to favor match ups with former Patrick Division teams.
But the Rangers were so 2 years ago. And I kind of wanted to see what it would be like to face the Hurricanes in the playoffs.
Alas, the Hurricanes had their chance and couldn't get it done. The Rangers did.
And so we play the Rangers.
Looking back to two years ago it seems that many people remember that the Caps won the series against the Rangers before losing to the Penguins in round 2.
(As an aside, that is the opposite of what happened in 1994, but I digress)
Many people remember Sergei Fedorov's goal 3/4 of the way through the 3rd period of Game 7. They remember that the Caps won the game 2 to 1.
What is sometimes swept under the rug is that the Caps went down in the series 3 games to 1. Included in that was dropping Games 1 and 2 at home.
The Caps were the 2-seed. The Rangers were the 7-seed. Yes, the Caps won, and got the franchise's first (and only) playoff win since 1998.
But, that series was disproportionately too close for comfort. And while the Caps showed up in Games 5 and 6 to force a Game 7 -- they came out flat as a pancake in Game 7.
Let's remember that it was the Rangers that scored first in Game 7. And quite frankly, Alexander Semin's equalizer was a fluke.
It was damn near 2-full periods later when Sergei Fedorov won it for DC. There was a lot of jubilation in DC, to be sure.
But in my mind, it was mainly relief.
Had the Caps not won that game and followed 2009 with the same 2010 loss to Montreal, Bruce Boudreau would have been fired last summer.
No question about it.
But as in life, the hockey playoffs are a game of inches. The Caps did win. The 3-1 deficit quickly became a distant memory.
And further, the Caps put on a hell of a show against the Penguins.
I know. The Caps blew a 2-0 series lead. Again.
The Caps laid a big egg in Game 7. And lost to Pittsburgh - AGAIN.
But, in totality, I take that series against the Penguins over the series against the Rangers any day of the week.
Of course, the Caps took their learnings from 2009 and learned in 2010 that they weren't suited for the 2nd- round. But, let's pretend that never happened.
****************************************
Fast forward to now. What does this all mean?
As much as I think that John Tortorella's "the pressure is on them" approach is worn-out, he obviously gets results from his teams.
The Rangers are confident. And they will get a leadership boost from the return of Chris Drury. They have shown an ability to defensively handle the Capitals too.
But rather than clamping down in a defensive shell, if the Caps are to win this series, they have to overcome the Rangers defense and light the lamp.
For some reason, I'm not worried about Henrik Lundqvist. I get it, 11 shutouts.
But, I think the Caps have an ability to break him.
Not just in the form of crashing the net. But on first chance shots as well. Let's not forget that Ovi has a rocket. And so does Semin - who performed well against the Rangers in 2009.
Yes, the Caps need to create screens and crash the net for rebounds. But they need to wear out King Hank's glove hand from minute 1 -- and open up the top shelf.
The offense is at full-force right now. Everybody is healthy. And if they aren't so predictable and lazy as they are when they are playing bad hockey, they should be fine.
Move the puck around. Keep the Rangers on their toes. Keep Hank moving laterally - get the open shot.
And they should get the puck in the net.
Skate down the middle. Shoot from the blue line with nobody else in the zone. And you've basically just created a turnover.
Stick Green and Arnott on the points for the power-play. Hopefully that will work enough magic to keep the Rangers from feeling they can take penalties whenever they want.
Neuvy will be fine. I'm not worried about him. He's a cocky little SOB. And he knows Varly and Holtby are waiting in the wings.
Something tells me he's a gamer. Maybe the 14 playoff series he's won in North America. I don't know. But I think Neuvy will wind up matching Lundqvist's performance - if not bettering him.
I'm not worried about the Rangers offense. As long as the Caps stay healthy on defense, they should be able to handle the Rangers attack. Especially with Ryan Callahan out.
Wideman will be out. Let's see how Green performs defensively? He stepped up his defensive game in the regular season, but let's see if he can get it done in the playoffs.
Fair or unfair, the last Caps/Rangers playoff memory of Jeff Schultz is from 2009 when Brandon Dubinsky broke his ankles and won Game 1. But Schultz has stabilized since. He should be ok.
Erskine did a marvelous job of handling Sean Avery in 2009. I think he is underrated as all get-out.
Hannan is a rugged defenseman. And hopefully the Carlzner wonder-boys will be a solid pairing.
But if one person gets injured, there really is no depth. Tom Poti isn't ready to return. Then it's on to Tyler Sloan, Brian Fahey, or Sean Collins.
Overall, the D should get it done, if healthy.
As long as the offense steps up - we should be ok. We are deep in goal. Our penalty kill should be fine.
Hopefully, the power play will come to life as a result of the offense coming to life.
Long story short, the Caps control their own destiny. They either want it and come out with intensity - or they suffer a fate more embarrassing than that of last season.
It's game time. People have every right to question the Capitals' playoff toughness.
The Caps have 1 playoff series win since 1998 - and it relied a little too much on luck for my taste.
They either want to do something about that or they don't. They are either pissed off and ready to re-write history or they are confined to self-fulfilling prophecies.
It's up to them. Now's the time.
Show us what you're made of, Caps......
My Last Caps vs. Rangers Playoff Game
So it is. The New York Rangers. The classiest organization in the league. The team that plays in the greatest city in the world.
And in the greatest arena in the world. And has the best fans ever. So they say.
The last time I was at a Caps/Rangers playoff game I was in high school. To be precise, the date was May 7, 1994. It was Game 4 of the second round.
Interestingly enough, in the first round the Caps beat the Pittsburgh Penguins in 6 games.
It was the first/last/only time the Caps have beaten the Penguins in the playoffs. Vomit.
And heading into this fateful Saturday night in Landover, the Caps trailed the Rangers 3 games to 0. Lots of annoying Rangers fans at the Capital Centre.
Pretty sure I saw a few brooms there, too.
I had a feeling the series was already over. I just didn't want it to end on my watch. I shouldn't be into consolation prizes.
But I was young. And I can't stand New York sports fans.
All I wanted was to not witness the Caps' elimination. To not have to deal with New Yorkers being New Yorkers.
To provide them with a little unhappiness and me with a peaceful ride home.
Showing a somewhat surprising refusal to die, the Caps actually came to play that night.
For some reason I remember the Caps only allowing a goal en route to a near shutout.
Todd Krygier had 2 goals for DC. Joe Juneau one goal. Jason Woolley the other.
In reality, the final was 4 to 2 in favor of the Caps. Regardless, the Caps won and it wasn't really close.
I had earned a temporary reprieve and that peaceful ride home I so desired.
A lot of Caps fans chanted the then-popular "19-40!" in response to winning the game.
Probably a bit over the top for a fan base that was still 1 game away from elimination and had no control over the series.
But that was indeed the last time the Rangers had won the Stanley Cup at the time and I guess you have to celebrate the victories in life, right?
Well, in a "brought to you by 'touche'" moment - some Rangers fans responded with "19-Never" on the way out of the arena.
Clever, I'll give them that.
What pains me is that one of those chants quickly became outdated and the other one is still current.
See, it was two nights later in New York when reality would set in. There would be no precursor to the 2010 Flyers comeback over Boston.
The Rangers took Game 5 at home and finished off the Caps.
And as any Rangers fan will tell you - and tell you again - two rounds later they were Stanley Cup champions for the first time in 54 years.
"Matteau! Matteau!" quickly turned into "And this one will last a lifetime!" as they took a dramatic 7-game series against the Devils and then another 7-game series against the Canucks.
Not to beat a dead horse, but those two Game 7 home wins are the same number the Caps have in franchise history........
***************************************************************
Fast forward about 7 years. It was January 2001. I had just gotten back from a semester abroad in the Netherlands. I was on my winter break for a few weeks before needing to return to college.
My friend from New York invited me up to see a Rangers game. The train from DC to NY as many of you know is extremely efficient, so I figured why not?
We saw a Saturday afternoon matinée between the Rangers and Devils. That is fitting. If you are going to catch a game at Madison Square Garden, it would make no sense if it was against the San Jose Sharks.
Might as well be a nearby rival. And thanks to the fact that MSG is right on top of a train station, it made getting to the game very easy for me.
I just hopped on at Union Station-DC that morning. And an hour before game time I was at MSG. Perfect.
The game was wild. Jan Hlavac had a hat-trick for the Rags. Some guy named Theo Fleury scored for them too. Former Capital Scott Stevens played for the Devils - as did current Capital Jason Arnott.
My friend explained to me that every Rangers fan thought some guy named Valeri Kamensky was a waste of space. And well, they let him know it often. That was his last season as a Ranger to say the least.
The Rangers were up 5 to 4, but gave up a goal in the final 90 seconds or so of regulation. Gasp! The game ended in a 5 to 5 tie! Remember those?
I just remember MSG being loud. A fun place to watch a hockey game. For some reason all of the thick New York accents are a lot easier to stomach when the Rangers aren't playing your team.
That evening I wanted to do something touristy. As I said earlier, I had just returned from Europe and was in sightseeing mode.
Throughout my youth I made annual trips to New York City to visit family. But I never did anything touristy.
And of all places, my friend and I chose to go to the top of the World Trade Center.
I will never forget how frickin' scary it was to be on the roof of one of the Twin Towers.
That feeling is attached at the hip to my memory of the only time I've seen a hockey game at MSG.
And in the greatest arena in the world. And has the best fans ever. So they say.
The last time I was at a Caps/Rangers playoff game I was in high school. To be precise, the date was May 7, 1994. It was Game 4 of the second round.
Interestingly enough, in the first round the Caps beat the Pittsburgh Penguins in 6 games.
It was the first/last/only time the Caps have beaten the Penguins in the playoffs. Vomit.
And heading into this fateful Saturday night in Landover, the Caps trailed the Rangers 3 games to 0. Lots of annoying Rangers fans at the Capital Centre.
Pretty sure I saw a few brooms there, too.
I had a feeling the series was already over. I just didn't want it to end on my watch. I shouldn't be into consolation prizes.
But I was young. And I can't stand New York sports fans.
All I wanted was to not witness the Caps' elimination. To not have to deal with New Yorkers being New Yorkers.
To provide them with a little unhappiness and me with a peaceful ride home.
Showing a somewhat surprising refusal to die, the Caps actually came to play that night.
For some reason I remember the Caps only allowing a goal en route to a near shutout.
Todd Krygier had 2 goals for DC. Joe Juneau one goal. Jason Woolley the other.
In reality, the final was 4 to 2 in favor of the Caps. Regardless, the Caps won and it wasn't really close.
I had earned a temporary reprieve and that peaceful ride home I so desired.
A lot of Caps fans chanted the then-popular "19-40!" in response to winning the game.
Probably a bit over the top for a fan base that was still 1 game away from elimination and had no control over the series.
But that was indeed the last time the Rangers had won the Stanley Cup at the time and I guess you have to celebrate the victories in life, right?
Well, in a "brought to you by 'touche'" moment - some Rangers fans responded with "19-Never" on the way out of the arena.
Clever, I'll give them that.
What pains me is that one of those chants quickly became outdated and the other one is still current.
See, it was two nights later in New York when reality would set in. There would be no precursor to the 2010 Flyers comeback over Boston.
The Rangers took Game 5 at home and finished off the Caps.
And as any Rangers fan will tell you - and tell you again - two rounds later they were Stanley Cup champions for the first time in 54 years.
"Matteau! Matteau!" quickly turned into "And this one will last a lifetime!" as they took a dramatic 7-game series against the Devils and then another 7-game series against the Canucks.
Not to beat a dead horse, but those two Game 7 home wins are the same number the Caps have in franchise history........
***************************************************************
Fast forward about 7 years. It was January 2001. I had just gotten back from a semester abroad in the Netherlands. I was on my winter break for a few weeks before needing to return to college.
My friend from New York invited me up to see a Rangers game. The train from DC to NY as many of you know is extremely efficient, so I figured why not?
We saw a Saturday afternoon matinée between the Rangers and Devils. That is fitting. If you are going to catch a game at Madison Square Garden, it would make no sense if it was against the San Jose Sharks.
Might as well be a nearby rival. And thanks to the fact that MSG is right on top of a train station, it made getting to the game very easy for me.
I just hopped on at Union Station-DC that morning. And an hour before game time I was at MSG. Perfect.
The game was wild. Jan Hlavac had a hat-trick for the Rags. Some guy named Theo Fleury scored for them too. Former Capital Scott Stevens played for the Devils - as did current Capital Jason Arnott.
My friend explained to me that every Rangers fan thought some guy named Valeri Kamensky was a waste of space. And well, they let him know it often. That was his last season as a Ranger to say the least.
The Rangers were up 5 to 4, but gave up a goal in the final 90 seconds or so of regulation. Gasp! The game ended in a 5 to 5 tie! Remember those?
I just remember MSG being loud. A fun place to watch a hockey game. For some reason all of the thick New York accents are a lot easier to stomach when the Rangers aren't playing your team.
That evening I wanted to do something touristy. As I said earlier, I had just returned from Europe and was in sightseeing mode.
Throughout my youth I made annual trips to New York City to visit family. But I never did anything touristy.
And of all places, my friend and I chose to go to the top of the World Trade Center.
I will never forget how frickin' scary it was to be on the roof of one of the Twin Towers.
That feeling is attached at the hip to my memory of the only time I've seen a hockey game at MSG.
Saturday, April 9, 2011
All is Quiet for Now
This week has been one for reflection and enjoying sanity. The weather is finally getting nice here in the Midwest. One can now go outside without wearing a jacket. Tonight was beautiful as a matter of fact.
I enjoyed one of my staple low-budget cigars. I had the pleasure of listening to a decent baseball announcer on the radio - as that season is now underway.
As much as I wish I was listening to Charlie Slowes and Dave Jageler from my Nats, it is Cincinnati Reds announcer Marty Brennaman painting the picture. To his credit, he is damn good. A legend, in fact.
It gives me time to reminisce about the greatness that is Ron Weber. And wish that Ted Leonsis recognized how mediocre Steve Kolbe is - and what fans miss out on by being stuck with radio mediocrity.
I graciously indulge all of my friends who care about the Masters. Rather than get belligerent, question their manhood, or talk about how worthless watching golf on TV is, I just let it go.
All of this serenity, for a die-hard Capitals fan, is perfectly acceptable during the final week of the regular season: To listen to a secondary sport. To listen to a baseball team that I don't even follow. To look back. To be nice.
To do things that are relaxing. Peaceful. Therapeutic. Calming. And to get a preview of what the summer will be like after hockey season is finished.
Thankfully, gone are the days in which the Capitals don't make the playoffs or have to fight until the end to make them. They've known for a while that they'll be participating in the second season.
We can wind-down the season by looking down on teams like Toronto and Florida.
We can wish them the best with their rebuilds and tell them to take notes for us on which golf courses they enjoy.
The #1 seed in the East belongs to DC again. It is just a matter of whether the Caps play the Carolina Hurricanes or the New York Rangers in the first round.
It is just a matter of making sure no Caps player dies of a cocaine overdose in South Beach this weekend.
But really, there is no business to attend to this week. This week, we can take off. This week we can take one, final deep breath. This week, we can be clean-shaven.
Next week, however, is a different story.
Next week is what we live for. Next week, the Caps have something to prove. Next week, the blood gets pumping and we can't even sit still.
Every time the puck is in the offensive zone, I eagerly sit on the edge of my seat ready to scream incessantly if/when the Caps score.
Every time the puck is in the defensive zone, I prepare for imminent doom. And God help my blood pressure if a Caps playoff game goes to overtime.
Yes, it is that intense. Nothing - and I mean absolutely nothing sports related - comes anywhere close to the intensity that is playoff hockey.
It is truly the best sporting playoff in the world. Throw away the razors. Suck up the pain. Accept that it will take years off your life.
It's time for the best time of the year.
I always have a love/hate relationship with what playoff intensity does to my body. I honestly can barely handle it. It truly is gut-wrenching.
But, I'm sick and damn tired of taking the easy way out.
The only thing worse than dealing with playoff intensity is that anti-climatic feeling one gets when the Caps playoff stint lasts 2 weeks instead of 2 months.
Division titles haven't done much good. The #1 seed wasn't any help. Presidents' trophy? Vancouver can have it! 2-0 series leads? 3-1 series leads?
Home-ice advantage?
Dale Hunter's goal vs. Philly and Sergei Fedorov's goal vs. New York are the GWGs from the only two Game 7's the Caps have won at home in franchise history!
Both in the first round, mind you.
As much as I'd like to think the Caps are a better #1 seed than they were last year, really who knows? Yes, they've dealt with adversity. They've changed their system. They made improvements at the deadline.
But anything can happen in the playoffs. And if it's a bad thing, it normally finds a way to happen to the Capitals.
The Hurricanes are playing good hockey right now. And while the Rangers may be different than when they drubbed the Caps 7-0 and 6-0, they've shown a lot of fight as well.
So the Caps could be done in one round again. And that would be catastrophic. Or, they could overcome team history and win the whole damn thing. Or anything in between.
I'm not trying to show off my ability to pussyfoot around the subject of making a playoff prediction. I'm merely highlighting that it is truly anybody's guess as to what happens to the Caps this postseason.
That's what makes it so exciting. And dreadful. And awesome. And painful. And intense.
For now, I relax. I enjoy the peace and quiet that is the final days before the playoffs. I enjoy baseball on the radio.
I enjoy the weather. I enjoy looking in the mirror and seeing the skin on my face. I enjoy normal blood pressure.
Next week, it will be time to Rock the Red.
I enjoyed one of my staple low-budget cigars. I had the pleasure of listening to a decent baseball announcer on the radio - as that season is now underway.
As much as I wish I was listening to Charlie Slowes and Dave Jageler from my Nats, it is Cincinnati Reds announcer Marty Brennaman painting the picture. To his credit, he is damn good. A legend, in fact.
It gives me time to reminisce about the greatness that is Ron Weber. And wish that Ted Leonsis recognized how mediocre Steve Kolbe is - and what fans miss out on by being stuck with radio mediocrity.
I graciously indulge all of my friends who care about the Masters. Rather than get belligerent, question their manhood, or talk about how worthless watching golf on TV is, I just let it go.
All of this serenity, for a die-hard Capitals fan, is perfectly acceptable during the final week of the regular season: To listen to a secondary sport. To listen to a baseball team that I don't even follow. To look back. To be nice.
To do things that are relaxing. Peaceful. Therapeutic. Calming. And to get a preview of what the summer will be like after hockey season is finished.
Thankfully, gone are the days in which the Capitals don't make the playoffs or have to fight until the end to make them. They've known for a while that they'll be participating in the second season.
We can wind-down the season by looking down on teams like Toronto and Florida.
We can wish them the best with their rebuilds and tell them to take notes for us on which golf courses they enjoy.
The #1 seed in the East belongs to DC again. It is just a matter of whether the Caps play the Carolina Hurricanes or the New York Rangers in the first round.
It is just a matter of making sure no Caps player dies of a cocaine overdose in South Beach this weekend.
But really, there is no business to attend to this week. This week, we can take off. This week we can take one, final deep breath. This week, we can be clean-shaven.
Next week, however, is a different story.
Next week is what we live for. Next week, the Caps have something to prove. Next week, the blood gets pumping and we can't even sit still.
Every time the puck is in the offensive zone, I eagerly sit on the edge of my seat ready to scream incessantly if/when the Caps score.
Every time the puck is in the defensive zone, I prepare for imminent doom. And God help my blood pressure if a Caps playoff game goes to overtime.
Yes, it is that intense. Nothing - and I mean absolutely nothing sports related - comes anywhere close to the intensity that is playoff hockey.
It is truly the best sporting playoff in the world. Throw away the razors. Suck up the pain. Accept that it will take years off your life.
It's time for the best time of the year.
I always have a love/hate relationship with what playoff intensity does to my body. I honestly can barely handle it. It truly is gut-wrenching.
But, I'm sick and damn tired of taking the easy way out.
The only thing worse than dealing with playoff intensity is that anti-climatic feeling one gets when the Caps playoff stint lasts 2 weeks instead of 2 months.
Division titles haven't done much good. The #1 seed wasn't any help. Presidents' trophy? Vancouver can have it! 2-0 series leads? 3-1 series leads?
Home-ice advantage?
Dale Hunter's goal vs. Philly and Sergei Fedorov's goal vs. New York are the GWGs from the only two Game 7's the Caps have won at home in franchise history!
Both in the first round, mind you.
As much as I'd like to think the Caps are a better #1 seed than they were last year, really who knows? Yes, they've dealt with adversity. They've changed their system. They made improvements at the deadline.
But anything can happen in the playoffs. And if it's a bad thing, it normally finds a way to happen to the Capitals.
The Hurricanes are playing good hockey right now. And while the Rangers may be different than when they drubbed the Caps 7-0 and 6-0, they've shown a lot of fight as well.
So the Caps could be done in one round again. And that would be catastrophic. Or, they could overcome team history and win the whole damn thing. Or anything in between.
I'm not trying to show off my ability to pussyfoot around the subject of making a playoff prediction. I'm merely highlighting that it is truly anybody's guess as to what happens to the Caps this postseason.
That's what makes it so exciting. And dreadful. And awesome. And painful. And intense.
For now, I relax. I enjoy the peace and quiet that is the final days before the playoffs. I enjoy baseball on the radio.
I enjoy the weather. I enjoy looking in the mirror and seeing the skin on my face. I enjoy normal blood pressure.
Next week, it will be time to Rock the Red.
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Ice Interviews on Galiev and Carlson
Asst. Coach Brad Lutsch on first impression of Stanislav Galiev:
“He got over here, we didn’t know a ton about him, had heard some good things, and then when he got here, we had a few weeks to take a look at him, before the USHL Fall Classic [scouting event].
But we could tell certainly as a young player, playing in this league is not easy, but you could tell he had exceptional skill.
He got better each month and he ended up having a great season for us en route to winning the Clark Cup”.
Brad Lutsch on Stanislav Galiev's strengths/development:
“His skating with the puck [is a strength]. A lot of guys can skate well without the puck, but when he had the puck on his stick he could get it going pretty quick. With the puck he put the ‘D’ back on their heels when he attacked the offensive zone.
His stride developed as well. It was a little choppy when he first got here. He worked on his skating.
And he could one-time a puck. We had him on the power-play on the point and he could one time the puck – probably the best I’ve seen in this league”.
Brad Lutsch on Stanislav Galiev leaving the Ice:
“We would have liked to have him come back that 2nd season [2009-2010]. We were a little bit disappointed about that. Our league’s track record speaks for itself. It’s better each year.
The number of draft picks compared to the Quebec league is certainly on par. Last season we had more in the first round than they did. So, we would have liked to have seen him come back.
I think he went through a little bit of a sophomore slump, but the difference to adjusting to a whole new team, whole new people, language, all that stuff, so I think this year [2010-2011; has been] a better year for him.
And we’ll see how he develops next season.
But he’s got a ton of talent, he’s a kid that will make it, he wants to be a player”
**********************
Head Coach Charlie Skjodt's first impression of John Carlson:
“My scouts had told me that he had great finesse for a big guy. He has a great shot, could skate well, covered the ice well, saw the ice well, and was offensive. He’s everything you want in a ‘big D’.
He came to camp – very first day – I told my other two coaches – ‘this guy is going to make the team’. I could see from the second day that he was going to be close to an all-star just [because of] his presence.
He’s got a little cockiness to him, which some of the scouts used to ask me about.
But, it really isn’t cockiness as much as it is confidence and it’s just his personality. John was a special kid.
We were all excited when he went in the 1st round with the Washington Capitals and I knew they got themselves a good one.”
Charlie Skjodt on John Carlson’s time with Indiana:
“He was a kid who played a lot of penalty kill, a lot of power play, and regular shifts.
We always talked about playing in his defensive zone -- and how tough it would be for him to go to college and to eventually go pro.
These guys [in college and pro] are going to be a lot quicker than they are in the USHL – so you have to make sure you use space and time correctly. And you have to play physical.
So really the only thing I saw was he would have to concentrate more on his defensive zone work. He could carry the puck, he could shoot the puck, he could do all of those things, really.
He just plays with such a relaxed style. He never gets pushed or makes bad decisions. He covered all of the basics of the game with the exception of [needing] more experience in his own zone.”
Charlie Skjodt on John Carlson’s demeanor off the ice:
“I will tell you this about John, he always had that half-smirk, the head was tilted back. You know he is more like a kid from California than a kid from the East.
He was the type of kid who was always on time, was always even-keel, always had that smile on his face.
Even the first day I met him and he stood by the boards after his team had gotten off the ice [following a] scrimmage, he just had that pleasant smile and was a great all-around nice guy to the other players and fans.”
Charlie Skjodt on John Carlson being a USHL 2nd team all-star (not 1st):
“What usually happens in this league is when you have a rookie, he has got to be exceptional to be a 1st team all-star.
We had [a handful] of really good second-year defensemen and they were not better than John, but politically it’s the way it sort of works.
You know, [John Carlson] is going to go onto that 2nd-team because he was a ’90 [1990 birth year].
The kids who made the 1st-team were ‘87’s [1987 birth year], had been there a couple of years, and really that’s the only reason.
There’s no way they were any better than John. It’s just the fact that John was a rookie.”
Charlie Skjodt on John Carlson being scouted by the NHL:
“Well I watch him all the time on TV. Me and my brother [Paul Skjodt, owner of the Indiana Ice] went to the [2008 NHL Entry] draft.
The year that John was listed to be a first round pick, I got calls from 29 teams. The one team I did not get a call from was the Washington Capitals - that I recall.
A lot of teams saw him 5, 6, 8, 10 times. [They] interviewed him. I got calls after the interviews. It ended up Washington drafted him.
It’s just ironic that the [Washington Capitals] are the one team I don’t recall calling me and asking me about John Carlson.
I had some teams ask me about his personality – he seemed a little nonchalant – and I was like,
‘that’s just the way he plays. That’s the way he is on the ice. He doesn’t force things. He doesn’t rush things. He doesn’t freak out about things. He just gets the job done.’
I got a call last night [March 29, 2011] from Jimmy Devellano [current Sr. VP of the Detroit Red Wings] and he said ‘You know, we really should have listened to you a little more about John Carlson’.”
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