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What a night!
The Caps got a very valuable point in Atlanta.
Although the Thrashers got the win (3-2 SO), the extra point gained by the Caps keeps them in 1st place in the SouthEast.
Albeit they are now officially in a 3 way tie for the lead.
The Florida Panthers also gained a point tonight in an overtime loss to Montreal, leaving them 2 points out of the top spot.
It is becoming very clear just how muddy this SouthEast division really is.
Three teams are tied for 1st with 60 points:(Conference Rank in Brackets)
*1. (*3) Washington Capitals: GP 58/W 27/L 25/OT 6/Pts 60
*1. (10) Carolina Hurricanes: GP 59/W 28/L 27/OT 4/Pts 60
*1. (11) Atlanta Thrashers: GP 59/W 28/L 27/OT 4/Pts 60
And the Florida Panthers are stepping on the heels of all 3 of the SouthEast leaders:
*2. (12) Florida Panthers: GP 59/W 26/L 27/OT 6/Pts 58
Its also hard to ignore the Lightning. Tampa has been creeping back into the picture with recently improved play and they are not out of it officially, yet. Although they are 15th (last) in the Eastern Conference and 29th in the NHL, at 54 points in 57 games, there is still time for Lightning to make some noise.
These numbers are what gave way to my title.
The reality is that there are 4 Elephants trying to squeeze into only 1 Elevator.(If you can picture it?)
That Elevator can only fit one Elephant.
The rest of them are going to have to be left behind.
(4 teams, 1 spot...see where I'm going with this?)
Elephants are massive animals and are very aggressive and territorial. Therefore, when the challenge of survival presents itself, it is always the most dominant and powerful animal of the pack that fights off all other challengers and is able to claim that territory.
In this case, that territory is the SouthEast Division.
With 3 teams tied and one team 2 points out of the lead, the noose of parity is quickly suffocating the SouthEast.
The reasonable expectations are that there will be only 1 team to emerge from the SouthEast.(At least that it was the experts will have you believe) The only reason that a team will even make the playoffs is because of the automatic 3rd seed provided by winning the 3rd Division(the SouthEast) in the Eastern Conference.
Right now, for the Caps and their divisional rivals, survival of the fittest never made more sense.
With little room to falter, only 1 team is likely to make it to the playoffs.
With the Capitals never say die attitude and a real "Believe" style of attitude, I feel they have a strong chance to emerge with that precious 3rd seed in the Eastern Conference at the end of the NHL's regular season. They are the Bull Elephant of the pack and need to starting pushing the weaker opponents around!
*It is also worth noting that the Bruins and Sabres both won tonight. Boston and Buffalo hold the 7th and 8th spots in the Eastern Conference, respectively. A mere 3/4 points above (virtually) the entire SouthEast division. Although top spot is the easiest way into the playoffs, there is the very distinct possibility that one or more of the teams tied for the lead in the SouthEast could work their way into the 7th and 8th playoff positions.
Game Recap
The Washington Capitals held off the Atlanta Thrashers just long enough to get a point in tonight's 3-2 SO loss to the squad from Georgia. If it were not for the mighty heroics of the incomparable Alex Ovechkin and his 48th tally of the year, the Caps very well could have flown out of Atlanta without any points at all. Instead, Ovechkin and the Caps kept banging away at Kari Lehtonen until AO was able to blast one past the Finnish netmider with under two minutes to play in the 3rd period.
The game was an interesting one. Both goaltenders played quite well, yet it was Kari Lehtonen who shone as the star of the game facing, 41 Capitals shots and only allowing 2 goals.
The Breakdown
Mid way through the 2nd, Kozy made the game 1-0 as a bouncing puck found its way onto his stick.
Unfortunately, the Thrashers responded just as quickly.
Luckily for Bruce Boudreau and the Caps, Eric Perrin's apparent goal was waved off because it was directed in. It was an interesting replay that really showed how complicated this "kicking motion" concept can be. Perrin stuck his knee out and just before the puck popped towards him, you could see him lift his leg and shift it in order to redirect the wobbling disc behind Kolzig. The Thrashers were obviously upset, but once they see the replay, they too will understand how confusing the rule book can be sometimes.
Nonetheless, the Thrashers would find their way onto the board 2 times before the end of the 2nd and the Caps, who had played solidly until mid way through the 2nd, would have to face a deficit heading into the 3rd period. Perrin would finally make his mark, getting his revenge by firing a top corner shot past Kolzig as he fell to the ice. Fancy stickwork by Kari Lehtonen quickly resulted in a 2-1 lead for the Thrashers. The Thrashers goalie fired a saucer pass from his net to the Capitals blue line, where the puck would find Marian Hossa, who stormed Kolzig and shoveled the puck by him.
Quickly turning the Caps hard work from the first 30 minutes of the game into futility, the Thrashers were on the verge of walking away with another stunning one goal win, courtesy of their netmider, when Ovechkin would get a pass from his favorite partners in crime, Nicklas Backstrom and Mike Green. Ovechkin's 48th goal of the season would prove timely as it would get the team into overtime for a much needed point.
Although the Thrashers pulled off the shootout win by scoring on their first 2 opportunities, the Caps should be confident in knowing that they can comeback when the game is on the line. Missing out on this one point could prove the difference at the end of the season.
With back to back games in Florida and Tampa Bay on Friday and Saturday, respectively, the Caps will need to continue gettng as many points as they can from their divisional rivals. Each game should be looked upon as a game 7 of an important series. Everytime they win, they should know that they are vaulting themselves closer and closer to becoming champions.
Goalie Note
Olie has shown that he can be good in the shootout or terrible.
He did play a strong game last night. The 2 goals that beat him were decent and he was staying in his net alot more last night.
In previous games, one of the problems I had been noticing with Kolzig's play, was his urge to leave his crease too often. He tends to get himself caught too far out of the crease(and therefore too far out of position) to make the save. The goals that have been beating him, on most occasions, are beating him because he is not protecting the net well enough. Being too far to one side or too far out the crease, Olie is offering up angles for players to sneak the puck past him.
Last night, Olie was more sound and was, at least from my point of view, keeping himself closer to his posts, trying to keep his feet in the blue paint as much as possible.
Goalie shopping is certainly on the radar for the Caps, but I am still confident that Olie is on his way back to playing smarter hockey in nets for the Caps. If he can recapture his form, he will begin limiting the easier goals that have been beating him. He knows he has to play his angles better and has to be more confident into forcing the shooter to make the first move.
Brent has been ok. He knows he can step up. It will be interesting to see how many points Brent will get the Caps from now until the end of the season. His win totals may be the key to the Caps playoff dreams.
When all is said and done, the Caps still need to address their depth situation on offense and defense. This team needs a top 6 forward and a 3rd or 4th defensemen.
These positions are more vulnerable than the goaltending right now and should be addressed between now and the trade deadline.
***Here is a repost of my earlier thoughts on the Caps current team and trade situations.
Injuries & the Questions They Are Creating
With the prolonged absences of Chris Clark and Brian Pothier, everyone is starting to wonder.
When are these two coming back and how soon?
From all I can gather, it is seeming less and less likely that the team is going to have the return of their Captain and one of their better defenseman anytime in the near future. With less than 2 weeks to go until the trade deadline, this news is proving to be a worry.
If the Capitals do not receive any positive news regarding these two players, it will be very likely that they become players in the trade market. I stated this in a previous blog, noting that there would be only one sure way that would force the Capitals into looking into trades. That scenario, of course, being that if Chris Clark and Brian Pothier cannot be of any help to the team, they will be forced to look at acquiring players to bolster their lineup on their playoff drive.
With this situation becoming more and more of a reality, it is looking like the Caps will indeed dip their hand in the trade waters.
What Do The Caps Need?
Given that the team is missing their leader and a formidable winger in Chris Clark, the first place the Capitals should be looking is for a Right Winger. A RW would immediately solve the game of musical chairs on the top two lines(aside from the AO & NB combo). If a RW is not available, the Caps should also inquire about possible Centermen.
Michael Nylander's presence is sorely missed, on the power play and just in the offensive zone in general, but, knowing that Nyls will not be ready until next season, the Caps would serve themselves well to find a short-term replacement for him heading into the playoffs.
The Capitals also need to address their depth at the Defensive position. Since Pothier's return is still up in the air, it would not hurt management to also look into another D-man. Erskine and Eminger have not been able to completely replace what Brian brought to the back end of the Capitals and, with no offense to them, the team would be best served by looking into someone who could compliment Tom Poti.
Who Should the Caps Look At?
How about Sundin? Or hey, maybe Jokinen or Hossa?
Hahaha! I hope you got a kick out of that like I did?
There is no way the Caps will be interested in getting involved in the silly sweepstakes. Washington is more likely to make a more low key move, focused on bringing more depth to the team. With such ferocious competition in the division, George McPhee is sure to be active in reacting to Carolina's recent move of acquiring Patrick Eaves and Joe Corvo.
I am not so sure how that will help the 'Canes against the Caps, as the Caps usually fare better against a team with a more offensively oriented D corps. The 'Canes did get better on the blue line, but the subtraction by addition that the 'Canes did by letting Cory Stillman go for the injury plagued(just this season) RFA Patrick Eaves, removes an ever present scoring threat from the lineup. They have gained a proficient shutdown player in the young Eaves, but without Stillman in the lineup, I have to wonder if they haven't taken too much punch away from their offense.
McPhee should not be interested in losing too much in order to acquire pieces that will help the team. There is the possibility of a rental, but since the management in Washington is more in favor of building, I see the team going after players that have contracts already or perhaps RFA's, UFA's would be a stretch, but would fit as a rental.
A team that I am very interested in is the Chicago Blackhawks. They are falling out the race more and more in the West and with the plethora of youth and veterans on that squad, the Caps could be well served by inquiring as to who is available. I would love to see the Caps get their hands on either of Brent Seabrook or Cam Barker and up front I like Robert Lang(he's got history in DC and would fit well as a replacement for Nyls) or Tuomo Ruutu. Ruutu's name comes up often in trade talks and his aggressive style would compliment a Caps lineup that could use an extra jolt of aggressiveness to it.
There are other teams in the West that could fit as trading partners for the Caps. The Blues and the Kings(even Minnesota: the Caps have drafted the Wild's Pierre Marc Bouchard's younger brother – a scoring phemon in the Quebec Junior Leagues-QMJHL) have interesting pieces that could compliment the Caps and within the Eastern Conference, the Islanders, Sabres and Bruins could all be interesting.
The Caps have 2 extra picks in the 2nd round of the 2008 draft coming up and given that the next drafts are going to be so talent laden, their 3 picks in this years 2nd round may come in very handy as bargaining chips.
As I said, I do not think that the Capitals have to give up a lot to acquire help. There will be plenty of teams interested in dealing off salary and their should be plenty of GM's looking to acquire picks. With 14 million in CAP space and 4 picks in the first 2 rounds of the 2008 draft, the Caps should feel confident.
What do you think?
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