Tuesday Roundup/Gamenight: Caps @ Jackets

[AP Preview - WashingtonCaps.com Pregame]

"His first NHL check was so fierce it dislodged a support beam. He refused to let his team lose, twice answering with goals less than 90 seconds after the opponents took the lead. And when his face appeared on the large scoreboard, he stuck out his tongue and flashed a charismatic smile."

Guess who?

Back on October 5, 2005, Alexander Ovechkin made quite the impact in his NHL regular season debut against the Columbus Blue Jackets and has been "worth the admission," as then-Jackets coach Gerard Gallant said, ever since.

KB's ticket from Ovie's first game, signed by #8 himself

Much has changed in the D.C. hockey world in the twenty-eight months since then - that night the bronze and black-clad Caps got points from Ovechkin, Dainius Zubrus, Jeff Halpern, Mathieu Biron and Steve Eminger before an MCI Center crowd - but at least one thing has remained the same: Alexander Ovechkin is still the best player on the ice almost every time he laces up his skates.

The Caps have come a long way since then. Gone are guys like Andrew Cassels, Jeff Friesen and Bryan Muir (seriously, look at the team they put out there that night, but be careful doing so on a full stomach), replaced in the lineup by the likes of Nicklas Backstrom, Alexander Semin and Mike Green. And, to be sure, there is still a long way to go for this team before they reach their goals both small and large. But with a win tonight in Columbus, the 2007-08 Caps will be within four wins of the 2005-06 team (and within three wins of the 2006-07 squad). Given where they've come from, when they surpass those two teams it will be a bit of an accomplishment, but one that you could have seen coming from the very first shift on Opening Night, 2005.

Interestingly, the Blue Jackets goalie that night was the same one the Caps are likely to face tonight, Pascal Leclaire, who is having a breakout season in C'bus. Leclaire (who is not only leading the NHL.com 3 Stars race, but also has one of the worst headshots in the history of Earth) sports a 19-11-3 record with a 2.11 goals against average (fourth in the League), .925 save percentage (fifth in the NHL) and a League-high eight shutouts - not exactly what the doctor ordered for a Caps team that has been shutout in two of its last three games.

But Leclaire's emergence isn't the only positive story for Ken Hitchcock's Jackets, who are on pace to end up with the first winning record in team history. Rick Nash is establishing himself as a clutch goal-scorer (though he's pointless in four games), the enigmatic Nikolai Zherdev (think Alex Semin without as many bad penalties - check out his TSN.ca scouting report) leads the team in scoring and is within six goals and nine points of a career high, and the team's top four defensemen in ice time all have positive plus-minus ratings. Oh, and former Cap Jiri Novotny already has career highs in goals and points.

Simply put, these Blue Jackets aren't the easy two points that teams have grown accustomed to over the years. Though they're just 26th in the League in scoring, they're sixth in goals against, third in penalty killing and have a sparkling 16-8-4 at home record (only Detroit and Colorado have more points at home).

The Jax have lost three in a row and five of seven (having scored just 12 times in those seven games), but two points will still be tough to come by for the visiting Caps, who will get no breaks as they have to play in Philadelphia on Wednesday night. These two points are huge for both teams, and as it will likely be a low-scoring affair (C'bus has scored two or fewer goals in a staggering 31 of their 54 games), the opportunity will be there for a single individual to be great and snag the win for his team. In such situations, is there a player on the planet that you'd rather have than the Caps' Number Eight?

Why The Blue Jackets Will Win:

"We will win because our goalie was an All Star...and yours wasn't...wait ours wasn't either...crap." - Bethany's Hockey Rants

"The Jackets are a team that's seen the post All-Star break games transform them from a team on a roll to one where desperation lurks around the next corner. With a few days off to recover, the Jackets will get back to what's been successful for them so far: smart, hard checking defense, aggressive forecheck, and good goaltending in the Capitals' first visit to Nationwide since prior to the strike." - End of the Bench

Elsewhere 'Round the Rinks:

Today's a big day, historically, for Caps goal scorers. First, on this date back in 1991, Dino Ciccarelli became the 33rd player in NHL history to score 400 goals as he tallied in a 5-3 Caps win over Vancouver (he would score another 208 before hanging 'em up). Then, eight years later, Peter Bondra would notch a hat trick in a second straight game (he actually had four two days earlier against the Bolts) with three goals in a home win over the 'Canes. Whaddya got, Alex?... Know what's impressive? Being one of the 30 most improved players in the League (merely from a point production perspective) after scoring 92 points the season before. Just another reason pundits and fans alike think AO is Hart-worthy.... Or maybe it's because he was the most clutch player in the League in January. By a mile.

Daily Awards

• Hart: Zach Parise (OT game-winning goal, 2A, 3 SOG, 3 hits)
  
• Ross: Zach Parise, Patrick Elias (3 points each)
  
• Norris: Steve Staios (G, +1, 4 SOG, 2 BkS)
  
• Vezina: Mathieu Garon (24-save shutout win)
  
• Richard: Radim Vrbata, T.J. Hensick (2G each)
  
• Calder: T.J. Hensick (2G, 75% faceoffs won)
  
• Aiken: Curtis Joseph (L, 5 goals allowed on 28 shots against)
  

Friday Roundup/Gamenight: Caps @ Devils

[AP Preview - WashingtonCaps.com Preview]

Two players skate onto a rink. Player A has 3 goals, 12 assists, 8 PIMs, 78 shots on goal and a minus-1 rating on the year. Player B has 5 goals, 10 assists, 8 PIMs, 32 shots on goal and an even rating on the year. They've each played 27 games, their first 27 for new teams. If Player A is considered a disappointment who is not yet living up to the expectations that come with his $2.5 million per year, what would you call the $3.4 million per year Dainius Zubrus, err, Player B?

What would Zubie do? Apparently not all that much.

Despite a lack of production from their big free agent acquisition, the Devils are appropriately on fire, winning eight straight games and racing towards the top of the Atlantic Division after a dreadful (for them) start. How are they doing it? Goaltending (of course), but also strong special teams and an offense that's been rejuvenated by the return to the lineup of now-captain Jamie Langenbrunner (11 points in ten games). During the winning streak, the Devs are out-scoring opponents by two goals per game (3.5 to 1.5), have connected on 23.5% of their power plays and have killed off 90% of opponents' extra man advantages.

And then there's Zach Parise and his 32 points. Indulge me this moment to cry over spilled milk and what nearly might have been, would you? Thanks. Let's take a quick look back at the middle of the first round of the 2003 Entry Draft:

Each of the guys flanking Eric Fehr has 126 career points. Fehr? Three. Ouch.

Speaking of injuries, the Caps will play tonight without Chris Clark, Boyd Gordon and now Michael Nylander. That's the team's top right wing, top defensive forward (and faceoff guy) and top center. Sweet. Oh, and the three goals Alex Ovechkin has scored in his career against the Devils is the fewest he has potted against any Eastern Conference opponent other than Montreal (against whom he has scored twice; AO also has just three against Pitt and Boston).

All that said, it's time for Alex Semin to start filling the net. Having most of this week off, number twenty-eight has had a chance to both shake off the rust and get healthy. No excuses. Step it up. And bring Viktor Kozlov with you.

Elsewhere 'Round the Rinks:

The organization's injury woes aren't limited to the NHL, as Chris Bourque is Hershey's latest injury (Josef Boumedienne, Dean Arsene and, of course, Fehr are already on the shelf), sidelined with "concussion-like symptoms." That's potentially worrisome for a guy who missed eight games in 2005-06 after suffering a concussion and being "unconscious for 45 seconds while he was carried off on a stretcher."... With the Caps likely to recall someone from Hershey today (could Ben Clymer return to D.C. or will the Motzko Motzko Man era resume?), the Bears have called up Owen Fussey (but hopefully not his acne) from ECHL Columbia.... The hockey world's most famous mullet will be in attendance for tonight's game.... Prior to tonight's game, the Devils will honor Scott Stevens' Hall of Fame induction. It's nice of them to wait until the Caps came to town to do so - or is it just being done now to rub it in our faces? Hmmm.... If you're dying to know what former Cap Yogi Svejkovsky's up to these days, click here....Finally, some Caps trivia: three players have scored 200 goals in a Caps jersey. The first two are easy (Peter Bondra and Mike Gartner). Name the third (hint #1: he scored his 200th for the Caps 14 years ago tonight; hint #2: it's not Svejkovsky). Click here for the answer.

Daily Awards

• Hart: Nik Antropov (3G, including the game-winner, 3 SOG, 4 hits, 2 blocked shots)
  
• Ross: Anze Kopitar (4 points)
  
• Norris: Tom Preissing (2G, including the game-winner A)
  
• Vezina: Johan Holmqvist (W, 23 saves on 24 shots against)
  
• Richard: Nik Antropov (3G)
  
• Calder: Kyle Chipchura (G, 2 SOG, 62% faceoffs won)
  
• Aiken: Jocelyn Thibault (L, 4 goals allowed on 14 shots against in just one period of work)
  

Thursday Roundup

In case you missed it, Boyd Gordon's injury is a broken hand, one that he received during the first period of last Wednesday's Florida game. It should be noted that he played 15:38 in the game and scored in the shootout. With a broken hand. If he was a baseball player, he'd have been carted off the field and shot up with Novocaine in the ambulance on the way to the nearest hospital.

Another note of interest from Tarik's post is Chris Clark's comment that the ice at Verizon Center is the "worst in the League" (a point expounded upon by Vogs). "There's a lot of ruts in the ice," said Clark. "It's soft. It's wet half the time. I could see a lot of injuries coming from the ice there. It could cost [players] their jobs." Or coaches.

As bad as the ice is - and it is awful - is the poor quality of the home sheet showing up in the stats? Maybe. The Caps are averaging 2.25 goals per game at home and 2.40 on the road (over the course of a full season, that's about a six goal differential). That number may seem negligible, but given the opportunity to make the last line change, a friendly crowd, familiar setting, etc., you'd expect a team to be more potent at home (the Bolts, for example, are scoring well over a goal more per game at home than they are on the road). In fact, all but ten teams heading into last night's games were scoring more at home than on the road (insert adultery joke here). So while the differential here doesn't seem like much, the Caps are likely better than a 2.40 goals per game team on a decent sheet of home ice, and those six or more goals over the course of the season could translate into lost points in the standings. Then again, perhaps the ice is slowing down faster, more-skilled teams and the Caps are already getting those "home ice advantage" points.

Another couple of key indicators show the Caps performing better on home ice than on the road - the power play has clicked at 18.0% at home and 15.7% on the road and Alex Ovechkin has scored 10 goals at home (in 12 games) and 10 on the road (in 15). Of course, maybe on a good rink the Caps have a 20+% effective power play... and maybe AO would already be the NHL's leading goal scorer. [Sidenote: after the shootout against Florida last week, I meant to ask AO if the ice condition played any part in his decision to shoot rather than deke in the shootout, but his postgame time with the media was short, so I just let the big dogs eat.]

There's no question that the ice is horrible at the VC and that bad ice puts players' health at risk (and it has probably cost some guys - Clark, Tom Poti and Alex Semin - some games already this year)., but it's also likely costing the Caps on the scoreboard. Don't forget, however, that both teams have to skate on the same sheet, so it's probably saving the Caps a handful of goals against as well. The real question at this point, however, isn't 'what is crappy home ice costing the Caps?' but rather 'when the hell is someone going to do something about it?'

Anyway, on to the question du jour: Viktor Kozlov - boom or bust? He's got one goal since October 8 (a span of 24 games) and has been held shotless in two of his last four games. Still, he's on pace for 45 points, which is only six fewer than he had last year and 20 more than he had two years ago. The odd stat here is that he's on pace to take 43% more shots than last year (237), but score 64% fewer goals (9). Last year was clearly a fluke on the goal front for Kozlov, who tallied a career-high 25 goals (which equaled his total from the previous two seasons), but the points are still coming and, as is the case with Matt Pettinger, so long as he keeps shooting, the goals should come too. In other words, Kozlov may be playing a little bit below expectations, but if you had been hoping for much more from him, you probably weren't all that familiar with his complete body of work. Or am I wrong?

Elsewhere 'Round the Rinks:

Andrew Gordon is back in Hershey and everyone's happy about it.... It was twenty years ago today Sergeant Pepper taught the band to play that Scott Stevens set a club record with five assists in a 10-3 win over the Kings out in Landover. The record would stand for a little more than a year before Mike Ridley would rack up six helpers in a 6-3 win over Chicago. Stevens' five points is still the team's single-game record for points by a blueliner.

Daily Awards

• Hart: Zach Parise (2G, 2A, +3, 8 SOG, 3 hits, 2 blocked shots)
  
• Ross: Zach Parise (4 points)
  
• Norris: Steve Montador (G, 2A)
  
• Vezina: Ilya Bryzgalov (W, 28 saves on 29 shots against)
  
• Richard: Zach Parise, Patrik Elias, Rick Nash, Randy Robitaille, Olli Jokinen (2G each)
  
• Calder: Peter Mueller (G, 2A, +2, 6 SOG)
  
• Aiken: Tomas Vokoun (2 goals allowed on 5 shots against in just 7:10 of work)
  

Thursday Roundup/Gamenight: Isles @ Caps

[AP Preview - WashingtonCaps.com Preview]

We all know what the Caps have been up to since they left Long Island last Monday, but in case you haven't been following the Isles too closely, they beat the Rangers, got pasted by the Leafs (with their backup 'tender in net) and lost to the Flyers. In fact, in each of the Islanders' last four games, the losing team scored only one goal, so getting off to a quick start at home will likely key for Glen Hanlon's crew, who will try to avoid showing any of the rust that plagued them in Manhattan last week after a similarly long lay off between games.

The Isles have made some personnel moves as well in the past week-plus, as they got Chris Simon back from suspension, signed power play quarterback/defensive liability Bryan Berard, and officially lost Cap-killer Jon Sim for the year to a knee injury. Their special teams have been very good, but, lo and behold, there they are with the same number of wins as the Caps (three) in one more game (interestingly, the Isles' three wins have come against the only two teams that have beaten the Caps in this young season, the Rangers and Sabres).

But enough about the visitors, let's talk about tonight's home team.

We all know that the injury bug has already paid a visit the Caps, and while it may not have hit too hard (yet), it has struck with surgical precision. For my money, aside from Olie Kolzig, Alex Ovechkin, Boyd Gordon may be the most important player on the team. In his absence, shots on goal against are way up and penalty-killing efficiency is way down (from perfect). Sure, the competition in Boyd's absence was better than it was in the games he has played, but his role on the team shouldn't be under-estimated, let's just leave it at that. Gordo may go tonight, but with Sid and the Pens coming up next, it's critical that he's as close to 100% as possible for Saturday night.

Also gumming up the works is the lingering Alex Semin ankle injury. Losing their number two scoring threat has hobbled the Caps' offense and left them with a pair of playmakers without a finisher which, in turn, allows opposing teams to key on the top line (on which the right wing du jour has been largely freeloading each night). The result has been a revolving door of wingers on each of the top two lines and tonight might very well see Joe Motzko and Tomas Fleischmann as the right wings on those units. Eric Fehr's chronic hip/back injury certainly is a notable part of this discussion as well, but the fact of the matter is that whether it's Motzko, Flash, Matt Bradley, Brooks Laich or whomever else Hanlon might throw out there does not belong on an NHL scoring line until they prove otherwise. Well, fellas, here's that chance (and for some of you, it may be your last).

On the blueline, the team has recalled Jeff "wake-up call" Schultz and he'll likely get a sweater in John Erskine's place tonight. Erskine looked awfully slow this past weekend and was on the ice for five of the ten goals the team allowed (and not a single one they scored). Brian Pothier - because I'm sure you were about to ask, "What about Pothier?" - was on the ice for three of the ten. Big John was definitely playing some tough minutes, but the way he was playing against some speedy and talented wingers, every minute was tough. Is Sarge better-suited for this duty? I guess we'll see.

Anyway, I'll be in the press box for the game tonight and down in the room after, so if there's anything you want me to ask about, let me know and I'll try to get some answers.

Why The Islanders Will Win:

We're debuting a new feature here at The Rink today that aims to shed some gameday light on the perspective from "the other side." To that end, we went out and asked some of the Isles bloggers why their squad would win tonight, and here are some of the responses we got:

"The Isles will win Thursday because Hillary Duff is hotter than anything Viktor Kozlov can pull. Isles over Caps 4-2." - The 2 Man Advantage

"Considering how sloppy the Isles have been on both offense and defense the past three games, Rick DiPietro looks primed for a game-stealing performance against Washington. Every time the team looked done for last season, DP always picked them up. Against a promising, revamped Capitals team, there is isn't a better time to do that. I'm sure DP knows that as well." - The Drive for Five

"The Caps are paying Jagr to play for the Rangers; the Isles are paying Yashin to play for Lokomotiv Yaroslavl. Clear win for the Isles." - Islanders Outsider

"[I]f the Islanders are to win, it will be simply because they have to win. After a great start, they've fallen asleep and need to prove to themselves, the league, and the fans that they can compete regularly. Also, we're looking for a little payback for last week. Heh.

"Look out for the Guerin-Comrie-Fedotenko line to hit the net hard, as well as Bryan Berard to pitch in more than usual. The Isles need goals before all else. Let's just hope they don't forget keep Alex on a tight leash. " - Islanders Castaway

"None of them want to endure another excruciatingly quiet plane ride home with Ted." - 7th Woman

"Kolzig always eats the Islanders for breakfast, maybe he'll choke on them this time." - SportSquee

"Honestly, I feel that the Isles will come out completely rested and fired up to earn two points in typical gritty Ted Nolan style. With a few shuffled lines and a long break, the Islanders will get back to what made them successful during the first week of the season." - Isles Blogger

"Because the Islanders led by captain Bill Guerin will sink the Capitals ship and Rick DiPietro will protect the buried treasure. " - Battle of New York

There you have it - why the Isles will win tonight. Take some time and check some of those blogs out, and don't be afraid to tell 'em why they're wrong - and why the Caps will get back in the win column to start this four-game homestand.

Elsewhere 'Round the Rinks:

Last week it was the Calgary Hitmen, this week it's the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds atop the Canadian Hockey League's weekly rankings. Pretty sweet to have the top defenseman for each team in the pipeline, isn't it?... Perhaps GMGM should look to make a trade today. Why? On this date back in 1978 the team acquired Denis Maruk from Minnesota in exchange for the Pens' first round pick in 1979 (used to draft Tom McCarthy) and on this date back in 1983 the club acquired Larry Murphy from Los Angeles for Brian Engblom and Ken Houston. Maruk and Murphy combined to tally 497 goals and 1179 assists after being traded to D.C. (267 goals and 508 assists of which came for the Caps) while McCarthy, Engblom and Houston would total only 196 goals and 296 assists in the rests of their respective careers.

Daily Awards

• Hart: Zach Parise (3A, +1, 6 SOG, 54% faceoffs won)
  
• Ross: Zach Parise, Sergei Gonchar (3 points each)
  
• Norris: Sergei Gonchar (G, 2A, 3 SOG)
  
• Vezina: J.S. Giguere (W, 28 saves on 29 shots against)
  
• Richard: Travic Zajac (2G)
  
• Calder: Andrew Miller (Game-winning goal, +1, 3 SOG)
  
• Aiken: Ryan Malone (0 points, -2, 0 SOG, 0 hits, 2 penalties)
  

The Parise-Eaves Connection

What do Jersey's Zach Parise and Ottawa's Patrick Eaves have in common? More than you might think.

Go, Zach, Go

Zach Parise and the Devils took Game One last night in front of 14,000 or so of their closest friends, families and fans. I've got some thoughts over at FanHouse about the game, but one that I didn't mention over there is that the better Parise plays, the more comfortable Sweet Lou Lamoriello will be letting Scott Gomez walk, right?