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Game 5: WSH 3, FLA 5 - Washington Lets Another Lead Slip Away |
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Hello All,
The Washington Capitals lost to the Florida Panthers by a score of 5-3 in regulation last night. The Caps held a 3-goal lead early in the second period and looked to be on the path to a victory. All of the sudden, the Panthers took advantage of a few opportunitisc bounces and Capitals miscues in the 2nd period to tie the game. The rest is history.
Here are the stats from the game:
Shots on Goal:
WSH – 33
FLA – 38
Shots on Goal (5v5):
WSH – 23
FLA – 34
Corsi For %:
WSH – 46.22%
FLA – 53.78%
Corsi For % (5v5):
WSH – 41.3%
FLA – 58.7%
Power Play:
WSH – 1/3
FLA – 0/3
Hits:
WSH – 48
FLA – 35
Blocks:
WSH – 12
FLA – 10
Scoring Chances For:
WSH – 34
FLA – 38
Scoring Chances For (5v5):
WSH – 26
FLA – 32
High Danger Chances For:
WSH– 19
FLA – 16
High Danger Chances For (5v5):
WSH – 13
FLA – 14
xGF:
WSH – 4.02
FLA – 4.09
xGF (5v5):
WSH – 2.65
FLA – 3.04
My Takeaways:
The Lead - As mentioned above, the Caps held a 3-goal lead early in the second. The overall effort from the Capitals for the first 24 minutes of the game was spectacular. Exactly the start you want on the road against a team like Florida. This game was ripe for the taking for the Capitals and they once again failed to take advantage of the opportunity in front of them. That is really been their thing for the entire season. Missed opportunities. The Caps had chances to get back in the game but just couldn't find the back of the net. Florida had 11-wins in the regular season when trailing by 2-goals. I am sure they led the league in most 3-goal comebacks as well. The Comeback Cats is a catchy name but lets call a spade a spade, it means they a constantly down in games and having to claw back. That doesn't exactly scream Stanley Cup.
The Penalty Kill - I have to mention this every blog now cause the PK is absolutely on fire. The Cats went 0/3 again and are now 0/16 in the series. During the regular season, Florida was ranked 5th in the league at 24.4%. The Capitals have done a great job stifling the power play. The Panthers only generated 3-shots on goal in three power plays. If I were the Florida coaching staff, I would just tell them to shoot the dang puck more. Florida seems to be looking for the perfect set of passes when they are on the power play and its just not working. As a Caps fan, I am super happy with the PK this series. Knowing that we have shutout the powerplay, it makes game 4 and 5 even more frustrating. You have to take advantage of these game situations when you have them! Florida could come out in game 6 and go 3/3 on the power play and we will all look back on games 4 and 5 and think what could have been. Coulda shoulda woulda I know I know!
The Power Play - The Caps PP is also humming at this point. The Caps are 6/20 on the PP (30%) which is 3rd best for all teams in the playoffs. Oshie is giving us a master class on how to deflect a puck in front of the net every game. It is insane how easy it makes it look. I play beer league hockey and maybe some of you do too. Holy cow is it tough to get a quality tip like that. Overall, I have been very impressed with the power play for the most part. Ovechkin is getting shadowed pretty hard so its on the rest of the guys to create movement that will either open Ovi up, or open up other opportunities. The Caps are comfortable with the bumper pass to Oshie but I haven't seen that play much this series. John Carlson has had the most space at the point and he has and should continue to shoot the puck toward the net from there.
5-on-5 Play - Florida had some key statistical advantages in 5-on-5 play. They had a 34 to 23 shot advantage, a 58.7%-41.3% "Corsi For Percentage", and a 3.04-2.65 xGF advantage. Simply put, the Panthers were slightly the better team regardless of the Caps 3-goal lead that they blew. Particularly at 5-on-5 Florida seems to be playing better than the Caps for the last two games. The Caps have started games well but seem to fade and go through lulls as the game progresses. Not sure old age is kicking in, I really dont know. Here is the "deserve to win meter" from playoff chatter charts:
Pretty much 50-50.
Honorable Mention - Carter Verhaeghe is the savior for the Panthers right now. Without him, this series is a over and the Caps are on to the next round quite easily. I have to give the kid ive barely seen play some real credit. 5-points last night is insane. Verhaeghe was on the Lightning team that won the Stanley Cup a few years back. I am sure his experience with that club and their Stanley Cup run is also playing into his productivity right now.
Final Thoughts -I picked the Caps in 7 this series and I fully expect Washington to win game six at home. It will be important to continue with recent PK and PP success in game six otherwise it could be a blowout in favor of Florida. At this point of the series, the Caps are struggling to keep pace with the Panthers for a full 60 minutes at 5-on-5. Samsonov has looked strong in my opinion, we must continue to rally around him!
That is all, thank you for reading and GO CAPS!
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Stats/Facts/Video Clips Provided By:
nhl.com/stats
hockey-reference.com
naturalstattrick.com
moneypuck.com
hockeyfights.com
@CapitalsPR Twitter page
@ChatterCharts Twitter page
@Capitals Twitter page
@HersheyBears Twitter page
>>>Follow me on Twitter @HB_Capitals<<<
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