There's plenty of great stuff there, but my favorite quote from this new batch is easy: "It doesn't make any difference to Brashear with which hand he beats you."
Via Simply Sensational: "Since the beginning of the 2007-2008 season, when one of [Donald Brashear, Boyd Gordon or Matt Bradley] scores a goal, the Capitals are a combined 18-0-1."
The Caps played three tight games this week and managed to snag five points along the way - we'll certainly take that. Let's take a look at the week what was in Corsi, but first, here's the year-to-date Corsi Rating for each skater on the team on a per game, per sixty minutes of even strength ice time rate (click to enlarge):
Still no change at the top or bottom from last week, with Sergei Fedorov and Boyd Gordon at the extremes for a fourth consecutive week, but thanks to a horrible showing against Ottawa on Tuesday, Donald Brashear has joined the trio of Caps previously on the wrong side of zero (it should be noted, however, that in the two subsequent games, the Brashear-Gordon-Matt Bradley fourth line has the same raw CR as the Alex Ovechkin-Nicklas Backstrom/Sergei Fedorov-Alex Semin line in this metric, and has done so in significantly less even strength ice time).
In terms of raw numbers, the Caps best player, by far, was Tom Poti at plus-17. In fact, since returning from injury, Poti has led the Caps in this stat in three of the four games and has been positive in each game - it goes without saying that a healthy Poti is absolutely critical to the Caps success right now. Shaone Morrisonn (plus-seven in limited action), Nicklas Backstrom and Tyler Sloan (plus-six apiece, and in just one game for Sloan), and Brooks Laich and Viktor Kozlov (plus-five apiece) round out the top five.
Chris Clark's was the worst skater on the team at minus-12 (in just two games) for the week, but we can blame his *ahem* injury, right? A quartet of players at minus-11 completes the bottom five and consists of Jeff Schultz, Milan Jurcina, John Erskine and Brashear. Also of note, Mike Green was a team-best plus-ten on Thursday and a team-worst minus-nine last night.
So what jumps out at you? Is Tyler Sloan ready for top-six minutes? For that matter, how would you rank the Caps' defensemen overall (and no, Fedorov doesn't count)?
While the Caps haven't won a single game without Alex Ovechkin in the lineup since March 30, 2004 (they lost the only game he has missed in his NHL career so far), one could easily view the current melancholy situation as one that presents somewhat muted silver linings for both the player and his team.
For the Caps, the opportunities abound for every player on the team to step up where they might have thus far been over-relying on the League's best player, consciously or otherwise. It's an opportunity for Nicklas Backstrom to re-assert himself as an offensive threat and register his first goal... or even strength point... or primary assist of the season. It's an opportunity for Chris Clark to get into the goal column. It's an opportunity for Tomas Fleischmann to continue his development as a scorer and for Alex Semin to prove that he can be every bit as good as he has been when he's the primary focus of an opposing defense. It's an opportunity for the defense and goaltending to tighten up a bit and win a game in which the offense doesn't provide four or more goals of support. It's an opportunity for every single player to raise his game a notch or two - it's in situations like these that players' mettle is tested. We'll see who responds.
For Alex Ovechkin, a little time away from the game to focus on what really matters might be just what the doctor ordered (albeit the result of horribly trying circumstances). Only Alex knows how much his grandfather's health has been weighing on him these past days and weeks, but everyone who has been watching him knows how much his own on-ice struggles have impacted his play. Perhaps this trip and a taste of home will reinvigorate the Great Eight, and if he takes the inspiration to re-dedicate himself to the game in his grandfather's honor, well, look out once he returns. And, if as some suspect there's something slightly off with AO physically (left over from when he left practice early a few weeks ago, perhaps), a few days away from the rink won't hurt on that front either.
Fortunately, tonight's opponent - Nashville - is a team that the Caps should be able to beat, with or without Ovechkin. The Preds are the very picture of mediocrity so far - four wins, four losses; they're scoring a lot but allowing a lot of goals too (thanks, in part, to sub-par goaltending); and their special teams have hardly been special at all. Sure does sound familiar, doesn't it? But the Preds are 1-3 on the road and the Caps are 2-0-1 at home - this is definitely a "should win" for D.C.
So expect an entertaining game (too bad you won't be able to see it without buying a ticket), and pay particular attention to who steps up and who disappears in the absence of AO - it'll tell you a lot about those players.
Well, last night the tough kid locked horns with a tough man:
Actually, here was the result:
PL3, as he's known, earned big points for taking on Brash (Jamie Langenbrunnernoted that "Anybody who goes with Brashear has my respect"), and the kid continues to make the Devils take notice.
And while he may have lost a decision to one of the League's reigning heavyweight champs, the moment was not lost on him:
"The guy is from Quebec-City, he's a French-Canadian and I've been watching him growing up and now I'm here fighting him," Leblond said after tonight's 3-2 preseason loss to the Capitals at Prudential Center. "It's kind of special." ...
"All game long he was asking me if I was tough in French," Leblond said. "He said, 'good fight.'"
Donald Brashear: a living legend doling out wisdom one left jab at a time.
H/t to Peerless and HockeyFights on the pic and vid.
One month from tonight, the Caps will be in Atlanta to open the season against the Thrashers... but for today, you get a link dump.
The National Postwrote the same article that EMac wrote three weeks ago, and in it they referred to Donald Brashear as "a reigning heavyweight champion." Edward Fraser of The Hockey News isn't as easily impressed, as he didn't list The Donald among his ten fighters worth talking about, but Steinz has no problem posting a picture of Lindsay Czarniak talking about the Caps' enforcer (and, of course, neither do I).... Caps prospect Dmitri Kugryshev is adjusting quickly - and very well - to the North American game.... You knew Viktor Kozlov was a stud in the shootout, but did you know that Jose Theodore has the highest career shootout save percentage "among goaltenders likely to be on NHL rosters at the start of the season?" I bet you a nickel no team this season beats him on three consecutive attempts using the exact same move.... Finally, our buddy Pepper at the red skate emailed me yesterday noting a couple of points from my "Thinking Inside The Box" post. In it, I quoted Ted Leonsis as stating that "Our defense is going to be really good in a couple of years with [Mike Green], Eminger, Morrisonn and Schultz," asking, "Can you believe Boston gave us Morrisonn and [the pick that became] Schultz for Gonchar?" and noting that "I really like Laich. He's going to be another Konowalchuk-type guy." That was more than two-and-a-half years ago. Pretty prescient, no?
En route to their first playoff appearance in half a decade, the 2007-08 Caps racked up only 33 fighting majors, good for 22nd in the League. Whether or not this is a positive or a negative can be debated (though without the context of each individual fight, I fail to see the usefullness of doing so), but what isn't up for discussion is the fact that the 33 fights were the fewest for a Caps team since the 2000-01 season. Here are the annual totals for the last seven seasons:
Of the 33 fights this past season, nine came with Glen Hanlon still behind the bench (which would pro-rate to 35 over the course of a full season) and 24 came under Bruce Boudreau's watch (which pro-rates to 32).
Now, Boudreau is hardly a pacifist - his 2005-06 and 2006-07 Hershey Bears combined for 182 fights in 160 games (thanks in large part to Louis Robitaille) - and his Caps had to pick their spots more carefully than Hanlon's did. Nevertheless, some will undoubtedly question the team's toughness. I won't (mainly for three reasons: 1) there's a world of difference between total fights and team toughness, 2) Donald Brashear, 3) the Detroit Red Wings), but that's neither here nor there right now, as the point of this post is to take a look back at the year that was in Caps fisticuffs.
Nine different Caps received fighting majors during the 2007-08 regular season, lead, of course, by Brashear (with 12). Matt Bradley was right behind Brash with an even ten (the most he's had in a season since 2003-04), and John Erskine fought four times in his 51 games. David Steckel's rookie season included two fights, and Chris Clark, Brooks Laich, Shaone Morrisonn and former Caps Matt Pettinger and Brian Sutherby all had one fight apiece.
How'd these pugilists fair? Using the incredibly scientific HockeyFights.com vote tallies, here's the breakout (note - if neither player in a fight was voted the winner by a majority, it's counted as a draw here):
That's a total of 10-10-13 overall and 3-7-9 for guys still with the team not named Donald. This team may be tough, but they're not going to physically intimidate anyone if #87's not in the lineup (which, I suppose, is why he is in there).
So what do you think - is this team tough enough? Do they need an enforcer in the lineup on a nightly basis? In light of the current cap concerns, did they need a million dollar pugilist?
We'll have to wait until June 12 to see who the NHL's most gentlemanly player is (here are the über-manly nominees), but if you're more a fan of the type of guys who are more likely to be elected Prime Minister of Canada than to be nominated for that award, you don't have to wait to see and participate in the voting for the annual hockeyfights.com Awards.
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, Donald Brashear.
Contract Status: $1.2m cap hit in 2008-09; UFA after 2009-10 Age (as of October 1, 2008): 36 NHL Seasons (including 2007-08): 12+ 2007-08 Regular Season Stats: 80 games played, 5 goals, 3 assists, -7, 119 PIMs Key Stat: The top line missed a combined total of one game all season. Surprising Stat: All eight of his points came under Bruce Boudreau, including a goal in Gabby's first game.
The Good: Brashear's leadership earned him an "A" on his sweater in 2007-08, and he celebrated by beating the living crap out of Riley Cote, Colton Orr and Chris Neil (among others) before New Year's. Despite getting a team-low ten shifts per game, Brash was fourth on the squad in hits (and, not surprisingly, led the team in hits per minute of ice time). His goal early in the first period of Game One got the playoffs off to a great start for the Caps.
The Bad: The Donald is clearly slowing down, which wouldn't be surprising for any 36-year-old, much less one who has had 210 NHL fights to his credit. He had his lowest point total since 1995-96 in his least amount of ice time per game since they started tracking the stat (a bit of a chicken-or-the-egg scenario there), his worst plus-minus since 2001-02 (and third-worst on the team), and his lowest PIM total since 1995-96 (when he played just 20 games). Brash had four different and full months during the season in which he had one point or less, and had pointless streaks of 21, 20 and 14 games. Oh, and the triple minor in Boston certainly falls under "The Bad" (especially given his leadership role).
The Vote: Rate Brashear 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(s): Should the Caps have re-signed Brash for one more year (2008-09) or let him walk? 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.
And while the playoff history between these two teams has created some of the most memorable moments in either franchise's history, the games (be they regular or post-season) have usually had a common denominator - brutally physical play. Case in point, the Caps have only had more fighting majors against Boston and Atlanta since 1998-99 than they have had against Philly, proving that you can take the Caps out of the Patrick Division, but you can't take the Patrick Division out of the Caps.
Psst... Riley... He's left-handed
Given that the Flyers plan to ramp up the physical play for the 2008 edition of the rivalry (to the delight of Pierre McGuire and others), I thought I'd take a moment and recap some of the pugilistic highlights of the teams' shared history (and if you like YouTubes of hockey fights - and who doesn't? - this is the post for you):
In the three playoff series between the two teams, there have been 46 fighting majors in 16 games. Check out, for example, the first period of Game 3 of the 1984 Patrick Division Semifinals - seven minor penalties (including five hi-sticks and a rough), ten fighting majors and five 10-minute misconducts. 114 PIMs in one period. But that's nothing...
In a totally separate game (a 4-4 tie on March 27, 1982), the Caps and Flyers combined for 208 penalty minutes in a 49 second span of the second period.
Former Cap and Flyer Craig Berube was never afraid to start something, as a Flyer running Don Beauprehere (igniting the brawl you can see detailed at 12:04 of the third period here) and coming in with elbows high on an incredibly well-disciplined Scott Stevenshere.
While we're on the topic of goalies getting run, if you touched Scott Stevens' goalie - even if he pushed you into the goalie - you were going to answer. What a stud (seen brawling with the Flyers' Jeff Chychrun at the other end of the ice here). By the way, nice work by Smokin' Al on the color in those last few clips.
You didn't think we'd get through this list without a little more Dale Hunter and Ron Hextall did you?
1. the position or function of a leader: He managed to maintain his leadership of the party despite heavy opposition. 2. ability to lead: She displayed leadership potential. 3. an act or instance of leading; guidance; direction: They prospered under his leadership. 4. not taking a friggin' triple minor with under seven minutes left in a 1-0 game: Donald Brashear displayed a stunning lack of leadership on Saturday afternoon.
Brash should've had the "A" ripped off his sweater before he even made it to the locker room after the game.
Pens tomorrow. Update: "Brash's penalties were dumb," Washington coach Bruce Boudreau said. "A guy that's been in the league that long should know that." Update: H/t to DMG for pointing out an interesting fact - see if you can pick it out from the bio of one of today's referees:
On the Caps side of things, you know that Tom Poti is questionable (a line that's sure to get a grin from Ranger fans) for tonight's game, which means he's not playing, and while the goaltending has been very good (tonight is Brent Johnson's turn to keep it going, and he has very strong season and career numbers against Florida), the offense has run and hid against Southeast Division opponents since the All-Star break, scoring just three goals in three games, all losses.
So there it is. Another game that, on paper, the Caps should be able to win. Then again, intra-divisional road games when you're missing two top-four defensemen, your number one center and a 30-goal-scoring winger are never, ever easy and I wouldn't expect this one to be. Then again, have any of them been easy?
Yesterday's game had it all - great goals, big saves, crunching hits and... wait. Yesterday's game didn't have it all, as it lacked what has become the one constant in Caps/Rangers games: Donald Brashear beating the crap out of Colton Orr.
So because Orr didn't dance with his most frequent dance partner yesterday, here's a reminder of what we were forced to go without:
How 'bout a nice open thread to help you all heal your groins, tail bones and undisclosed upper body parts? See, doesn't that feel better already?
Elsewhere 'Round the Rinks:
Happy 36th Birthday to Donald Brashear.... Verizon Center isn't the only NHL rink with ice problems (h/t to KK on the link).... Plenty of Karl Alzner coverage (notably here and here, with a bit more here that includes a mention of Josh Godfrey) in the wake of the World Juniors.... Hey! The Caps won somethingcompletely meaningless!... Finally, on this date back in 1989, Mike Ridley assisted on all six Caps goals in a 6-3 win over Chicago. Rids' six helpers are still a single-game team record.
Daily Awards
Hart: Marian Hossa (2G, +2, 9 SOG)
Ross: Marian Hossa, Colin Stuart, Jiri Hudler (2 points each)
Norris: Andreas Lilja (A, 4 blocked shots)
Vezina: Johan Hedberg (W, 37 saves on 39 shots against)
Brooks Laich said recently (and I paraphrase Peerless's paraphrasing) that over the course of a season, you're gonna lose some games - the key is to not let one loss become two losses. That's really the bottom line heading into Saturday afternoon's game, which is yet another four-pointer against a likely Eastern Conference bubble team (which includes every team in the Conference other than Ottawa, who may soon join the list if they don't straighten things out in between the pipes).
The Caps have won just once in Montreal since March of 2003 (a 5-1 win thanks to a 43-save performance by Olie Kolzig and a pair of Brian Sutherby goals), but last time I checked Montreal was still in Canada, where the Caps are a perfect 3-0-0 on the season so far (and where the Caps have outscored their Canadian opposition by a combined total of 19-8). The Caps are also a perfect 3-0-0 on the season in day games, and today's bizarre 12:30 start time would make this a day game.
For their part, the Habs have the fewest home wins in the Eastern Conference, but come into the game unbeaten in nine of their last eleven overall (6-2-3) and have given up two or fewer goals in seven of those games while scoring at least four times in six of them. Their power play is the League's best and they come in with two lines that are scoring in bunches.
Injuries and travel woes will make an already difficult task even tougher for the visiting Caps, but here's an encouraging stat to end the preview - the Canadiens have lost 13 of their 19 games following victories this season (6-9-4). Hopefully the Caps can make it 14 of 20 on Saturday.
Oh, and Go 'Skins!
Elsewhere 'Round the Rinks:
Bill Clement lists Donald Brashear as the NHL's number three heavyweight (h/t to Kukla's Korner on the link).... Pop the cork on a nice cuvée de prestige - we've been named the biggest bunch of elitist snobs east of Los Angeles.... Flipping through the channels last night I landed on CSTV and found the North Dakota/St. Cloud State game. The game featured a pair of Caps prospects - UND blueliner Joe Finley and St. Cloud freshman goalie Dan Dunn, a tall goalie who gave up a bunch of rebounds (sound familiar?) but made 33 saves en route to an impressive 3-2 upset (Finley, from what I saw, did nothing of note).... Check out today's Ice Sheet for more from me on the NHL. You know you want to.
Daily Awards
Hart: Martin Brodeur(36-save shutout win)
Ross: Eric Staal (3 points)
Norris: Andrej Meszaros (G, A, +2)
Vezina: Martin Brodeur (36-save shutout win)
Richard: 21 players tied with 1G apiece
Calder: Jonas Hiller (W, 20 saves on 21 shots against)
Aiken: Ryan Miller (3 goals allowed on 16 shots against in 30:30 of work)
Thanks to Tuvanhillbilly for passing along yet another installment of the interview that never ends between Dmitry Chesnokov and Alex Semin.
Still no change at the top or bottom from last week, with Sergei Fedorov and Boyd Gordon at the extremes for a fourth consecutive week, but thanks to a horrible showing against Ottawa on Tuesday, Donald Brashear has joined the trio of Caps previously on the wrong side of zero (it should be noted, however, that in the two subsequent games, the Brashear-Gordon-Matt Bradley fourth line has the same raw CR as the Alex Ovechkin-Nicklas Backstrom/Sergei Fedorov-Alex Semin line in this metric, and has done so in significantly less even strength ice time).
PL3, as he's known, earned big points for taking on Brash (Jamie Langenbrunner noted that "Anybody who goes with Brashear has my respect"), and the kid continues to make the Devils take notice.
The Carolina Hurricanes pulled off one of those goofy pick-for-rights trades today and acquired the pesky Darcy Hordichuk from Nashville in exchange for a fifth-round pick in next year's draft.
Before last night, Aaron Downey was just another one of Donald Brashear's punching bags as far as I was concerned. But now he's just another one of Donald Brashear's punching bags whose name will be on the Cup.
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, Donald Brashear.
Caps win 3-0 in Florida. From the stands, Wade Brookbank gives Donald Brashear the hairy eyeball. 
