When we recapped David Steckel's season a week-and-a-half ago, it was the last of our 2007-08 Rink Wraps. Now all the votes have been counted (thanks for well over 8,000 of them), and we can discuss the results.
Here they are, in graphical form (click to enlarge):
Two notes. First, given that you rated players relative to their potential for the season, the fact that a guy like Quintin Laing finished with a better score than Alexander Semin doesn't mean that people think the former is better than the latter, just that Q did better relative to your expectations for his season. Second, since I asked that if a player more or less played as you expected he would, you should give him a 5 or a 6, anyone in the 5-6 range is represented in black in the graph, with those players who didn't meet expectations in red and those who exceeded expectations in green.
So what jumps out at you? Any surprises? With whose score do you most disagree?
From Backstrom to Steckel, we're taking a quick look at and grading the 2007-08 season for every player* who laced 'em up for the Caps during the campaign (and is still with the team) with an eye towards 2008-09. Next up, David Steckel.
[Ed. Note: "From Backstrom to Steckel"... and here we are at Steckel. Thanks for sticking it out with me through 29 (I think) players and making the discussion on each worthwhile... your reward is coming next week.]
The Good: Steckel (who sure does look a lot like Matt Bradley) registered his first NHL points and goals in 2007-08 as he came more or less out of nowhere to become a key contributor on a team not lacking in third- and fourth-line forwards (were it not for a broken finger suffered in early March, Steckel likely would have played 81 games). His faceoff numbers (see above) were fantastic (and he took a ton), he had the second-best takeaway-to-giveaway ratio on the team (behind only Boyd Gordon), got the second most shorthanded minutes per game of any forward (again, behind only Gordon) and kept his shifts short (with one notable exception). Like many Caps, Steckel's numbers improved once his former coach (twice) Bruce Boudreau took over behind the bench, and he registered four goals and seven assists in 46 games the rest of the way. Finally, he positively owned Tampa Bay, to the tune of four goals, two assists and a plus-four rating in six games. If he got to play the Bolts 82 times in a season, that would project to 54 goals, 27 assists and a plus-54 rating (Steckel, we assume, doesn't mind the unbalanced schedule one bit). And all of this for $525,000 and a $512,500 cap hit.
The Vote: Rate Steckel on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the best) based on his performance relative to his potential for the season - if he had the best year you could have imagined him having, give him a 10; if he more or less played as you expected he would, give him a 5 or a 6; if he had the worst year you could have imagined him having, give him a 1.
The Questions: What role do you see Steckel playing on the 2008-09 Caps? What will it take for him to earn a 10 rating next year?
If you've missed any of the previous 2007-08 Rink Wraps, click here, get caught up, and vote - polls will stay open for a while.
* And by "every," we mean every one who played more than just a handful of games.
From Backstrom to Steckel, we're taking a quick look at and grading the 2007-08 season for every player* who laced 'em up for the Caps during the campaign (and is still with the team) with an eye towards 2008-09. Next up, Alexander Semin.
Contract Status: 2008-09 salary of $4,200,000 (cap hit of $4,600,000); RFA after 2009-10 season Age (as of October 1, 2008): 24 NHL Seasons (including 2007-08): 3 2007-08 Regular Season Stats: 63 games played, 26 goals, 16 assists, -18, 54 PIMs Key Stat: Semin had the second most goals on the team. "At Least He Was Consistent" Stat: Semin had 12 goals, 8 assists and a minus-nine rating in 31 games before the All-Star break and 14 goals, 8 assists and a minus-nine rating in 32 games after the break.
The Good: Semin was second on the team in goals and power play goals, second in shots per game (2.9), and lead the team in shootout goals (including the clincher in Pittsburgh on January 21). He was 22nd in the League in goals per game (among players who played at least 54 games). Once he shook off a lingering ankle injury, Semin hit his stride - over the second half and change of the season he had 24 goals in 47 games (a 41-goal pace over the course of a season), including a six-game point-scoring streak in January and a five-game goal streak in February. Semin had seven goals and five assists in 18 regular season games following the acquisition of Sergei Fedorov and was arguably the Caps best forward in the playoffs with three goals, five assists, and a plus-two rating while playing probably the most inspired hockey of his career.
The Vote: Rate Semin on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the best) based on his performance relative to his potential for the season - if he had the best year you could have imagined him having, give him a 10; if he more or less played as you expected he would, give him a 5 or a 6; if he had the worst year you could have imagined him having, give him a 1.
The Questions: With which center would you most like to see Semin work for the 2008-09 Caps? What will it take for him to earn a 10 rating next year?
If you've missed any of the previous 2007-08 Rink Wraps, click here, get caught up, and vote - polls will stay open for a while.
* And by "every," we mean every one who played more than just a handful of games.
From Backstrom to Steckel, we're taking a quick look at and grading the 2007-08 season for every player* who laced 'em up for the Caps during the campaign (and is still with the team) with an eye towards 2008-09. Next up, Jeff Schultz.
Contract Status: 2008-09 salary of $650,000 (cap hit of $763,888.89 or $750,000, depending upon whom you believe); RFA after 2008-09 season Age (as of October 1, 2008): 22 NHL Seasons (including 2007-08): 1+ 2007-08 Regular Season Stats: 72 games played, 5 goals, 13 assists, +12, 28 PIMs Key Stat: Schultz lead all Caps blueliners in plus/minus. Don't Forget: Schultz is more than four months younger than Mike Green and more than five months younger than Alex Ovechkin.
The Vote: Rate Schultz on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the best) based on his performance relative to his potential for the season - if he had the best year you could have imagined him having, give him a 10; if he more or less played as you expected he would, give him a 5 or a 6; if he had the worst year you could have imagined him having, give him a 1.
The Questions: What role do you see Schultz having on the 2008-09 Caps? What will it take for him to earn a 10 rating next year?
If you've missed any of the previous 2007-08 Rink Wraps, click here, get caught up, and vote - polls will stay open for a while.
* And by "every," we mean every one who played more than just a handful of games.
From Backstrom to Steckel, we're taking a quick look at and grading the 2007-08 season for every player* who laced 'em up for the Caps during the campaign (and is still with the team) with an eye towards 2008-09. Next up, Tom Poti.
The Bad: Poti was brought in to (among other things) quarterback the top power play unit, but couldn't fill that role and lost the job to Mike Green fairly early on. As a result, his power play TOI dropped from 4:38 per game last season to 2:39 per outing this season and his point total dropped from 44 to 29. Poti's shooting percentage was the worst among all Caps with enough shots per game to qualify (and was 368th - or sixth worst - in the NHL in that stat), he had the fewest hits per minute of ice time of any of the team's blueliners (a nagging shoulder injury, no doubt, was at least partially to blame for both that and the lowest shots-per-game total since his rookie season), and his takeaway-to-giveaway ratio was better than only Alex Semin's, Jeff Schultz's and Milan Jurcina's among Caps' regulars. Poti also missed multiple games with groin (six games), upper- (three games) and lower-(two games) body injuries and waited 44 games before scoring his first goal of the season.
The Vote: Rate Poti on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the best) based on his performance relative to his potential for the season - if he had the best year you could have imagined him having, give him a 10; if he more or less played as you expected he would, give him a 5 or a 6; if he had the worst year you could have imagined him having, give him a 1.
The Questions: Which blueliner would you most like to see Poti paired with in 2008-09? What will it take for him to earn a 10 rating next year?
If you've missed any of the previous 2007-08 Rink Wraps, click here, get caught up, and vote - polls will stay open for a while.
* And by "every," we mean every one who played more than just a handful of games.
From Backstrom to Steckel, we're taking a quick look at and grading the 2007-08 season for every player* who laced 'em up for the Caps during the campaign (and is still with the team) with an eye towards 2008-09. Next up, Brian Pothier.
Contract Status: 2008-09 salary of $2,500,000; UFA after 2009-10 season Age (as of October 1, 2008): 31 NHL Seasons (including 2007-08): 4+ 2007-08 Regular Season Stats: 38 games played, 5 goals, 9 assists, +5, 20 PIMs Key Stat: Pothier was one of two defensemen on the team (Tom Poti being the other) to average more than 15 even strength minutes, one power play minute and one shorthanded minute per game. Quirky Stat: Had no points on Fridays, despite playing nine Friday games and having more than twice as many shots on that day than on any other.
The Good: Pothier was on pace for a 10-goal/19-assist/plus-10 campaign (which would have been career bests in goals and points, and the five goals he did score tied a career best) when his season was derailed by Milan Lucic. His 7.7 shooting percentage was tied with Mike Green for second among the team's blueliners, he drew the second most penalties per sixty minutes of a Caps rearguard, and even though he played less than half the season, he ended up fourth among the D-corps in points. Pothier had the best plus/minus relative to his team of any Caps defenseman, the second best takeaway-to-giveaway ratio of the group, and had four goals in 17 games under Bruce Boudreau.
The Bad: Pothier had two points (no goals) and a minus-3 rating in 15 November games and had just one goal in his first 26 games. He also had the second-fewest hits-per-game of any Caps defenseman (Poti had the fewest).
The Vote: Rate Pothier on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the best) based on his performance relative to his potential for the season - if he had the best year you could have imagined him having, give him a 10; if he more or less played as you expected he would, give him a 5 or a 6; if he had the worst year you could have imagined him having, give him a 1.
The Questions: If Pothier gets better and can play, what role do you see him having on the 2008-09 Caps? What will it take for him to earn a 10 rating next year?
If you've missed any of the previous 2007-08 Rink Wraps, click here, get caught up, and vote - polls will stay open for a while.
* And by "every," we mean every one who played more than just a handful of games.
From Backstrom to Steckel, we're taking a quick look at and grading the 2007-08 season for every player* who laced 'em up for the Caps during the campaign (and is still with the team) with an eye towards 2008-09. Next up, Alexander Ovechkin.
The Vote: Rate Ovechkin on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the best) based on his performance relative to his potential for the season - if he had the best year you could have imagined him having, give him a 10; if he more or less played as you expected he would, give him a 5 or a 6; if he had the worst year you could have imagined him having, give him a 1.
The Questions: On an individual level, what more can this guy do?
If you've missed any of the previous 2007-08 Rink Wraps, click here, get caught up, and vote - polls will stay open for a while.
* And by "every," we mean every one who played more than just a handful of games.
From Backstrom to Steckel, we're taking a quick look at and grading the 2007-08 season for every player* who laced 'em up for the Caps during the campaign (and is still with the team) with an eye towards 2008-09. Next up, Michael Nylander.
Contract Status: 2008-09 salary of $5,500,000 (salary cap hit of $4,875,000); UFA after 2010-11 season Age (as of October 1, 2008): 35 (he'll turn 36 two days later) NHL Seasons (including 2007-08): 13+ 2007-08 Regular Season Stats: 40 games played, 11 goals, 26 assists, -19, 24 PIMs Key Stat: Nylander was second on the team in points per game (.925). Surprising Stat: Nylander won 48.8% of the faceoffs he took before he got hurt (while taking 12.8 faceoffs per game) and 48.6% while playing injured (while averaging 14 draws per game).
The Good: Even though he played hurt for a third of his season, Nylander was on pace for a 22 goal/53 assist season, which is just a tick under his post-lockout averages of 24.5 and 56.5, respectively, and given that more than half of his games came while Glen Hanlon was still behind the bench, it's quite possible he would have beaten those averages. Nylander's 14.3 shot percentage trailed just Brooks Laich and Alex Ovechkin among Caps who played 20 or more games and was the second-best efficiency of his career. He trailed only Ovechkin in average ice time per game among forwards, had eleven multi-point games and two five-game point streaks, and his 36.9 power-play point pace would have had him in the top 10 in the League had it continued for a full season. But the biggest positive from Nylander's season (as Peerless notes) may have been the blessing in disguise that his injury turned out to be, as it forced Nicklas Backstrom into an undisputed number one center role, one in which the rookie flourished.
The Bad: That team-worst minus-19 sticks out like a sore shoulder, err, thumb, but owes a bit to Nylander playing through pain - from the game in which he is believed to have hurt his shoulder until he finally shut it down for the season, Nyls was minus-seven in 13 games (though he did manage to rack up a dozen points in that stretch). But that still leaves 26 "healthy" games in which he was a minus-14 (the game in which he was injured isn't included in either the pre- or post-injury numbers, since it's unclear when during the game he was hurt), including a miserable minus-ten November. But you can probably chalk it up to an adjustment to new teammates and a new system (two, actually), since in his entire career, Nylander has only finished a season with a minus rating three times, and never in double digits. There's more bad too, but take it with the grain of salt that 1/3 of his season was played with just one shoulder. Nylander was on pace for the third-highest PIM total of his career, had the most secondary assists per sixty minutes on the team but was only sixth in primary helpers per sixty (not necessarily a bad thing, but somewhat surprising), and perhaps most importantly, opponents scored more goals per sixty when Nylander was on the ice than when any other Cap was.
The Vote: Rate Nylander on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the best) based on his performance relative to his potential for the season - if he had the best year you could have imagined him having, give him a 10; if he more or less played as you expected he would, give him a 5 or a 6; if he had the worst year you could have imagined him having, give him a 1.
The Questions: Which wingers would you like to see flanking Nylander most often in 2008-09? What will it take for him to earn a 10 rating next year?
If you've missed any of the previous 2007-08 Rink Wraps, click here, get caught up, and vote - polls will stay open for a while.
* And by "every," we mean every one who played more than just a handful of games.
From Backstrom to Steckel, we're taking a quick look at and grading the 2007-08 season for every player* who laced 'em up for the Caps during the campaign (and is still with the team) with an eye towards 2008-09. Next up, Shaone Morrisonn.
Contract Status: RFA; 2007-08 salary of $900,000 Age (as of October 1, 2008): 25 NHL Seasons (including 2007-08): 4+ 2007-08 Regular Season Stats: 76 games played, 1 goal, 9 assists, +4, 63 PIMs Key Stat: In 55 games under Bruce Boudreau, Morrisonn had a plus-14 rating. Interesting Stat: Morrisonn had his best month, point-wise (4), in November, but it was also his worst month in plus/minus (-5).
The Bad: Morrisonn had only 47 shots on goal and an atrocious 2.1 shooting percentage, but when you're Mike Green's partner, it's not your job to score - it's your job to cover his butt. Still, Mo's offensive numbers declined for the second consecutive season on a team whose goal totals have risen at even strength (but declined on the power play) over that span, and he had the fewest points per minute of ice time on the team, as well as his personal career low in points per game (not including his 11-game 2002-03). Mo was second on the team in minor penalties, and got jumped by Vinny Lecavalier in his one fight of the year (which isn't necessarily bad on Mo, but I wanted to mention it, so there it is).
The Interview: Be sure to check out Garrett's post-season interview with Mo (parts I and II) over at Puckhead's Thoughts.
The Vote: Rate Morrisonn on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the best) based on his performance relative to his potential for the season - if he had the best year you could have imagined him having, give him a 10; if he more or less played as you expected he would, give him a 5 or a 6; if he had the worst year you could have imagined him having, give him a 1.
The Questions: Is Morrisonn a legitimate number one shutdown defenseman? What will it take for him to earn a 10 rating next year?
If you've missed any of the previous 2007-08 Rink Wraps, click here, get caught up, and vote - polls will stay open for a while.
* And by "every," we mean every one who played more than just a handful of games.
From Backstrom to Steckel, we're taking a quick look at and grading the 2007-08 season for every player* who laced 'em up for the Caps during the campaign (and is still with the team) with an eye towards 2008-09. Next up, Quintin Laing.
Contract Status: UFA; 2007-08 salary of $475,000 Age (as of October 1, 2008): 29 NHL Seasons (including 2007-08): 1+ 2007-08 Regular Season Stats: 39 games played, 1 goals, 5 assists, +4, 10 PIMs Key Stat: Laing was 23rd among NHL forwards in blocked shots, despite playing 26 fewer games than any of the players in the top 22 and half as many (or fewer) as 20 of the 22. Mildly Interesting Fact: On November 30, Laing became the first player in Caps history to wear the number 53.
The Vote: Rate Laing on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the best) based on his performance relative to his potential for the season - if he had the best year you could have imagined him having, give him a 10; if he more or less played as you expected he would, give him a 5 or a 6; if he had the worst year you could have imagined him having, give him a 1.
The Questions: Does Laing have a role on the 2008-09 Caps? What will it take for him to earn a 10 rating next year?
If you've missed any of the previous 2007-08 Rink Wraps, click here, get caught up, and vote - polls will stay open for a while.
* And by "every," we mean every one who played more than just a handful of games.
From Backstrom to Steckel, we're taking a quick look at and grading the 2007-08 season for every player* who laced 'em up for the Caps during the campaign (and is still with the team) with an eye towards 2008-09. Next up, Brooks Laich.
Contract Status: RFA; 2007-08 salary of $725,000 Age (as of October 1, 2008): 25 NHL Seasons (including 2007-08): 3+ 2007-08 Regular Season Stats: 82 games played, 21 goals, 16 assists, -3, 35 PIMs Key Stat: Laich was one of three Cap 20-goal scorers. Interesting Fact: Superman wears Brooks Laich pajamas. So does Gary Roberts. Where to Find More Brooks Laich Facts:Here.
The Vote: Rate Laich on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the best) based on his performance relative to his potential for the season - if he had the best year you could have imagined him having, give him a 10; if he more or less played as you expected he would, give him a 5 or a 6; if he had the worst year you could have imagined him having, give him a 1.
The Questions: How much (dollars and years) would you be willing to give Laich to keep him in D.C.? What role do you see Laich playing on the 2008-09 Caps? What will it take for him to earn a 10 rating next year?
If you've missed any of the previous 2007-08 Rink Wraps, click here, get caught up, and vote - polls will stay open for a while.
* And by "every," we mean every one who played more than just a handful of games.
From Backstrom to Steckel, we're taking a quick look at and grading the 2007-08 season for every player* who laced 'em up for the Caps during the campaign (and is still with the team) with an eye towards 2008-09. Next up, Viktor Kozlov.
Contract Status: 2008-09 salary of $2.5M; UFA following 2008-09 season Age (as of October 1, 2008): 33 NHL Seasons (including 2007-08): 12+ 2007-08 Regular Season Stats: 81 games played, 16 goals, 38 assists, +28, 18 PIMs Key Stat: Kozlov had the seventh-best plus/minus in the NHL. Miserable Stats: In 12-plus seasons, Kozlov has yet to play a second round playoff game or score a playoff goal (in 21 games).
The Good: 2007-08 was Kozlov's freshman year in the Dainius Zubrus school of statistical inflation, and, as a result, he had his highest point total since 2002-03 and the best plus/minus of his career (it didn't hurt that he played a career-high 81 games for the second consecutive season, either). He rode the A-train en route to finishing as one of only two Caps to finish in the top five on the team in goals, assists, points and plus/minus (guess who the other is), and finished third on the squad in shots on goal with his highest total since '02-'03. Kozlov lead the team in primary assists per sixty minutes and was second in points per sixty minutes of ice time (edging Nicklas Backstrom). He had three different four-game scoring streaks, didn't go more than three games without a point after mid-October, and had a ridiculous March in which he had 11 points and a plus-17 rating in 14 games. His takeaway-to-giveaway ratio was better than that of any of his Russian teammates, he committed only eight minor penalties all year (and had the third best penalties drawn-to-taken per sixty ratio on the Caps) and had the best plus/minus per sixty on the team.
The Vote: Rate Kozlov on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the best) based on his performance relative to his potential for the season - if he had the best year you could have imagined him having, give him a 10; if he more or less played as you expected he would, give him a 5 or a 6; if he had the worst year you could have imagined him having, give him a 1.
The Questions: What role do you see Kozlov playing on the 2008-09 Caps? What will it take for him to earn a 10 rating next year?
If you've missed any of the previous 2007-08 Rink Wraps, click here, get caught up, and vote - polls will stay open for a while.
* And by "every," we mean every one who played more than just a handful of games.
From Backstrom to Steckel, we're taking a quick look at and grading the 2007-08 season for every player* who laced 'em up for the Caps during the campaign (and is still with the team) with an eye towards 2008-09. Next up, Olie Kolzig.
Note: I debated whether or not to review Kolzig's season, but as he "laced 'em up" and is technically "still with the team," I guess I've got to play by my own rules. Besides, maybe this can help to bring a tiny bit of closure to the whole situation.
Contract Status: UFA, will not return; 2007-08 salary of $5.45M Age (as of October 1, 2008): 38 NHL Seasons (including 2007-08): 13+ (this seems like a good enough place to note that I consider an NHL season one in which a guy played more than 25 games in the NHL or more games in the NHL than in a lower league; the "+" indicates that parts of additional seasons were spent in the NHL) 2007-08 Regular Season Stats: 54 games played, 25-21-6 record, 1 shutout, 2.91 GAA, .892 SV% Key Stats: Kolzig had the fourth-worst SV% and eighth-worst GAA in the League in 2007-08, but posted a winning record (you guys can discuss which of those stats are important and which aren't). Surprising Stat: Kolzig was 1-1-1 with a 2.58 GAA and .917 SV% in the second of back-to-back games in which he played in both. Mildly Interesting Stat: If Kolzig had replicated his 2006-07 SV% in 2007-08 and all else was equal, his GAA would have been 2.41 (conversely, if he had posted his 2007-08 SV% in 2006-07, all else equal, he would have had a 3.58 GAA, which would have been the second-worst in the League in front of only... Brent Johnson).
The Good: Kolzig became only the 23rd goalie in NHL history to record 300 career wins when he beat Calgary on March 12 and won 25 games for the seventh time in his career. Kolzig was healthy for the whole season, and had it not been for the acquisition of Cristobal Huet at the trade deadline, probably would have made his most starts in a season since 2002-03. Olie had his best post-lockout GAA in 2007-08 and increased his win total for the third consecutive season. Kolzig's season started off with a bang - his only shutout of the year came in his first game - and through his first eight starts he had a 2.27 GAA and .922 SV%. Kolzig went 15-5-3 from December 26 through March 14, and, in the critical stretch from February 2 through March 14, went 7-3-2 with a 2.09 GAA and .923 SV%, giving up more than two goals only three times and more than three just once (I guess you can see why he had thought that he had righted the ship and deserved to be the team's number one netminder).
The Bad: For the sixth consecutive season, Kolzig started fewer games than he had the previous year, and while injuries limited him in the past few campaigns, it was his shaky play for much of the first two-thirds of the season that limited him in 2007-08 - from November 2 through the end of January he was 14-14-4 with a 3.33 GAA and .872 SV% and had three different four-game losing streaks during that span (including 3 OTLs). He had his fewest minutes played since 1996-97, his worst SV% of any year in which he played more than 18 games, and even through the 15-5-3 stretch had a GAA (2.77) that would have ranked him 33rd in the League for the season and a SV% (.893) that would have ranked him 41st.
The Bottom Line (special bonus feature, with commentary!): In 20 starts in October, February and March, Kolzig was 11-7-2 with a 2.30 GAA and a .920 SV%, but in 32 starts in November, December and January, he was 14-14-4 with a 3.29 GAA and a .874 SV%. To me, that says he's no longer able to handle number one goalie minutes, but probably can still do well as a number two with a bigger-than-normal role; during that 15-5-3 stretch, for example, he only started 23 of 36 games - he was at his best when somewhat well-rested. And here's the ironic kicker - starting 23 of 36 games pro rates to 52 starts over the course of a season... the most Cristobal Huet has ever started in a single campaign.
The Vote: Rate Kolzig on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the best) based on his performance relative to his potential for the season - if he had the best year you could have imagined him having, give him a 10; if he more or less played as you expected he would, give him a 5 or a 6; if he had the worst year you could have imagined him having, give him a 1.
The Question: What kind of numbers do you think a 2008-09 Kolzig is capable of putting up? And the big question - does Kolzig play in 2008-09 and, if so, where?
If you've missed any of the previous 2007-08 Rink Wraps, click here, get caught up, and vote - polls will stay open for a while.
* And by "every," we mean every one who played more than just a handful of games.
From Backstrom to Steckel, we're taking a quick look at and grading the 2007-08 season for every player* who laced 'em up for the Caps during the campaign (and is still with the team) with an eye towards 2008-09. Next up, Milan Jurcina.
Contract Status: 2008-09 salary of $912,500 ($881,250 cap hit); RFA following 2008-09 season Age (as of October 1, 2008): 25 NHL Seasons (including 2007-08): 3 2007-08 Regular Season Stats: 75 games played, 1 goals, 8 assists, +4, 30 PIMs Key Stat: Jurcina finished with the best single-season plus-minus of his career. Surprising Stat: Jurcina had 18-, 12- and 10-game stretches during which he didn't commit a single penalty.
The Good: Jurcina didn't miss a game due to injury all year, led all Cap defensemen in hits (by a country mile), finished second on the team in blocked shots and set a career high for average ice time per game with 16:38. Despite the increased ice time, Jurcina cut his penalty minutes for the second straight season, and the team blocked more shots on goal per sixty minutes of ice time when he was on the ice than when any other player was. After a February 16 benching, Jurcina played in every game the rest of the way and finished the season with a plus-11 rating in 22 games.
The Bad: Jurcina posted the worst points-per-game ratio of his career (0.12, a drop of .05 for the second consecutive season). His one goal came in the second game of the campaign (meaning he's currently riding a 73-game goal-less streak), and he had pointless streaks of 16, 14 and 10 games during the campaign (and that 14-gamer is current and 21 games long if you include the playoffs). Only one of his assists all season was a primary helper (think about that for a second - 75 games played, 16:38 of ice time per game... one goal, one primary assist). His 1.7 shooting percentage was the worst of anyone on the team who had at least 15 shots on goal and marked the second straight season in which his percentage has dropped by nearly 4% (his shots on goal total for the season was also a career low). He had the worst takeaway-to-giveaway ratio on the team (by far) and his inconsistent play resulted in seven healthy scratches over the course of the year.
The Vote: Rate Jurcina on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the best) based on his performance relative to his potential for the season - if he had the best year you could have imagined him having, give him a 10; if he more or less played as you expected he would, give him a 5 or a 6; if he had the worst year you could have imagined him having, give him a 1.
The Questions: What role do you see Jurcina playing on the 2008-09 Caps? What will it take for him to earn a 10 rating next year?
If you've missed any of the previous 2007-08 Rink Wraps, click here, get caught up, and vote - polls will stay open for a while.
* And by "every," we mean every one who played more than just a handful of games.
From Backstrom to Steckel, we're taking a quick look at and grading the 2007-08 season for every player* who laced 'em up for the Caps during the campaign (and is still with the team) with an eye towards 2008-09. Next up, Brent Johnson.
Contract Status: 2008-09 salary of $825,000 ($812,500 cap hit); UFA following 2008-09 season Age (as of October 1, 2008): 31 NHL Seasons (including 2007-08): 7 2007-08 Regular Season Stats: 19 games played, 7-8-2 record, 0 shutouts, 2.68 GAA, .908 SV% Key Stat: Take away his second start of the season and Johnson had a 2.41 GAA and .913 SV%. Ironic Foreshadowing Stat: Johnson became the first goalie other than Olie Kolzig to start a season opener for the Caps since Craig Billington in 2000.
The Bad: Johnson had a six-game winless streak (pre-Boudreau) during which he had a 3.61 GAA and a .878 SV%, and in five of his 17 appearances he had a GAA of 4.00 or higher (which is something to keep in mind if he ends up as the number two goaltender behind a guy who has never played more than 52 games in a season). Johnson had a 4-5-1 record with a 3.11 GAA and .897 SV% on the road and ended the season (early, of course) on an overall 1-3-1 slide.
The Vote: Rate Johnson on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the best) based on his performance relative to his potential for the season - if he had the best year you could have imagined him having, give him a 10; if he more or less played as you expected he would, give him a 5 or a 6; if he had the worst year you could have imagined him having, give him a 1.
The Questions: What's the maximum number of games you'd be comfortable seeing Johnson start for the 2008-09 Caps? What will it take for him to earn a 10 rating next year?
If you've missed any of the previous 2007-08 Rink Wraps, click here, get caught up, and vote - polls will stay open for a while.
* And by "every," we mean every one who played more than just a handful of games.
When we recapped David Steckel's season a week-and-a-half ago, it was the last of our 2007-08 Rink Wraps. Now all the votes have been counted (thanks for well over 8,000 of them), and we can discuss the results.
