Sixty Minute Effort, Sixty Minute Result

The Caps got the best player in the NHL back tonight, and dividends were paid immediately. Alex Ovechkin scored two goals in a 3-0 DC win over the Lightning, who they've now beaten in twelve straight games.

Thoughts on the game:

This was back and forth at the start, but when it settled down, it was dominated by the folks in white.

The Lightning were not outworked. Both teams fought hard, and the result was based on talent, not ethic.

Alex Ovechkin played a game style that was new for him. He was throwing his weight around, but obviously held up on some hits. He backchecked more than normal. He played a near perfect game. This Ovechkin is the scary good one.

Varlamov's save on Malone's power move to the net sealed the deal. There's no reason that Semyon should not be the number one goalkeeper. There's also no reason he shouldn't be in the discussion for rookie of the year. Goodness.

The Capitals are on a six game winning streak, and are playing the best hockey I've seen in a long time. This has them on top of the entire NHL right now, and they STILL have a game in hand on the Sharks, who play tonight as well, and who trail the Caps by 1 point.

Semin had a typical Semin game. It was good to see him play so well, but not so good to see him miss so many chances. Again.

Laich had a chance to put the game away before it was over, but didn't cash in on a perfect pass.

Hale's hit on Green was clean. In the wake of last two games, this was the third consecutive game with solid officiating.

Downie's hit on Pothier, however, was not clean, and was clearly from behind, and nearly a reverse slew-foot. Kudos to John Erskine, though, as he went after Downie. Pothier is one of Erskine's two "little brothers" it seems, the other being Semyon Varlamov. In a related story, I wish John Erskine was my big brother growing up.

The trailer tonight was not covered by either team. More than four or five times an odd man rush saw the puck finding it's way to a trailer, and more than once it generated a scoring chance. Crazy that such a wide open game ended in a three goal total for the game.


Three Stars:

3. Mike Smith - He really kept the Lightning in the game, and Fehr's and Ovechkin's second goals were not his fault. I told Old Capital before the game (direct quote) "They need to play dirty around the net to get in goals on smith, he's hot." OC's reply? "I'm sure we can do that." Points to me and him on that.

2. Alex Ovechkin - In his first game back, he played remarkably solid, and looked more like Ron Francis combined with Maurice Richard instead of Matt Cooke and Maurice Richard. The result? A great game.

1. Semyon Varlamov - He stole the game, it seemed. He was there for every offering the Lightning had, and made several saves you'd have thought in the past 5 years would have eaten up Capital goaltenders.

Up next for the Caps: A date in Buffalo on Wednesday, as the Capitals keep on this road trip. Five of the Caps next six games are on the road. Strange schedule, but Olympic years do that.

Early Strike Helps Caps to Easy Victory.

Once the Capitals scored their first two goals on the 9 minute power play, it was smooth sailing for the Capitals as they ripped off an 8-2 victory over the Flyers. The only strikes for the Flyers came in the first period eleven minutes after the 1^st goal for the Caps and the other one came at the 6:09 of the 3^rd.

Ovechkin will be back with the team and eligible to play on Monday.

Thoughts of the Game:

If it weren't for the nine minute power play in the first period for the Caps, three of the goals would have not possibly happened. The Caps played very well on the power play tonight and even though the Caps had one PK opportunity, they were able to kill that off without any major problems.

Second straight game with a penalty kill goal. This time, Chris Clark was able to get this one and put the game away for good.

Theodore played a wonderful game. The two goals he let in really weren't his fault and did a wonderful job in net.

The team played one heck of a game against a Flyers team that was being coached by their new coach; Peter Laviolette.

My Three Stars:

3: Brian Boucher: If it weren't for him, this game would be very out of control and the Caps would have lit him up for possibly ten or more goals. Just an off night for him.

2: Tomas Fleischmann: He had the first two goals for the Caps and set the tempo for the game. One of the best games this season for this kid.

1: Nicklas Backstrom: How could he not be the first star of the game? One goal + four assists = five points. What a night for this 22 year old. He got five points for only the second time in his career. This will be one of his more memorable nights for the rest of his career.


Stat of the Night:

Last time the Caps scored more then 6 games in back to back games; December 29th, 2007 (8-6 road win) and January 1st, 2008 (6-3 home win). Both times were against the Ottawa Senators.

Caps Toy With Cats - Come Out With 6-2 Win

If the Washington Capitals ever needed a statement saying "Hey, we don't need no stinkin' Ovechkin", then well, they made it tonight.

A completely dominant 6-2 win over Florida in a game riddled with Panther penalties and Capital power plays was never as close as the score indicated. Two Panther goals as time was dying made a 6-0 deficit look almost respectable.


Thoughts on the game:

55 minutes of dominant play and 5 minutes of lapse against Florida? 6-2 win. Against a team like Philly or Boston? Probably a 4-3 loss or a game heading to OT.

Florida had no fire. They played frustrated and looked like a team on the tail end of a back to back and on their third game in four nights.

Semin showed once again that he is just as skilled, if not MORE skilled, than AO. He also should have had two or three more goals. Incredible.

Steckel is still slumping. Ouch.

Giroux should be in Hershey, but drawing a 7 minute power play from another guy who should have been in the AHL was good. Well done.

Varlamov - still solid.

Bruce Boudreau did a good job getting the stars out and giving the plumbers some PP time. Bradley on the PP is something I want to see more often, if only because of what the score has to be to get him out there.

28-19-21 looks like a solid enough line to have. I wouldn't split it up on Ovechkin's return. In fact, I'd pair him with Morrison and Knuble, or Perreault and Fehr. The top end talent on the Caps is deep.

Finally, it's easy to see why the team needs Ovechkin on it's power play. 3-12 on the PP is a decent percentage, but they were only 1-10 on 5 on 4 time, with two of those goals coming 5 on 3. 1-10 isn't going to get it done.


My Three Stars for tonight's game:

3 - Matt Bradley - his Shorthanded Goal killed everything the Panthers had going for them, and really took all of the wind they had out of their sails after a dominant start to the second.
2 - Brendan Morrison - Great work on the power play, good skating. What a pick up in the offseason he's continueing to be.
1 - Alex Semin - Two goals, two assists, and should have had more. Thanks for reminding us who the other Alex is.


Glaring Stat:

So far, the Capitals are 5-2 without Ovechkin this year. They are 12-3-6 with him. Small sample sizes, but the idea that DC's squad is a one player team is a myth that's quickly being busted.

This blog...

Here on this blog, we will be doing a lot to keep everyone updated with the team. Game recaps, players of the week, etc. STAY TUNED!

Is Alex Ovechkin a Double Edged Sword

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/301434-alex-ovechkin-double-edged

This is an article I wrote over on Bleacher Report. Feel free to check it out.

Welcome to Capital Bloom!

Capital fever is Blooming!

Welcome to Capital Bloom! This blog is going to be devoted to all things Washington Capitals, with a spin from two guys from the Shenandoah Valley. We're hoping to add some new insight to the Caps Blog-o-sphere while basically just giving fans another outlet to read up on the Caps.

Thank you for reading, and Go Caps!