Monday Roundup/Gamenight: Devils @ Caps

[AP Preview - WashingtonCaps.com Preview]

For the second time in four nights the Caps and Devils will meet as Jersey visits the nation's capital. This time, however, it's the Caps who come in on a high note (following Saturday night's 6-3 win over Atlanta) and the Devs who are looking to get back into the win column (after Sunday's 1-0 overtime loss to the Rangers).

If the Devils were ripe for the pickin' on Friday night - and they were - they're even moreso tonight, playing the second of back-to-back road games and the third of a three-games-in-five-nights set. In fact, Devils' bench boss Brent Sutter noted that the Caps were the "fresher" of the two teams on Friday night - and that was before last night's hard-hitting OT affair for his squad. Whether Martin Brodeur will be in net yet again or Kevin Weekes gets his first start since November 12 remains to be seen, but either way Jersey has got to be a tired team, and the 32 hits they absorbed in last night's loss will serve to weaken them that much more.

The Caps, for their part, should be playing with all the confidence they displayed on Saturday night and, if they come out guns a-blazin', could have another big night. Of course, "shoulds" and "coulds" have turned into "didn'ts" all season long for D.C., but Matt Pettinger's goal on Saturday night sure did feel like both he and the team had turned a corner, didn't it?

As every game becomes more important than the last for these Caps, Monday night's is certainly one that they should win - and hopefully tonight's "shoulds" and "coulds" turn into "dids."

Elsewhere 'Round the Rinks:

Random stat of the day: four Caps (Nicklas Backstrom, Alex Ovechkin, Mike Green and Jeff Schultz) are younger than the youngest player on the Devils roster (Travis Zajac), and two Caps (Donald Brashear and Olie Kolzig) are older than the oldest player in Jersey's lineup (Brodeur).... Backstrom has nine points in eight games (including two three-point efforts) under Bruce Boudreau and only has two fewer points over that span than the two players ahead of him among the rookie scoring leaders combined. If you'd written him off for Calder consideration, you'd better have an eraser handy.... Josh Godfrey had two goals and a pair of assists in Sault Ste. Marie's win over Sarnia last night. He's now third among OHL defensemen in goals and ninth in points.... Finally, gotta hand it to the WaPo - what a great picture they've got accompanying Tarik's article today.

Daily Awards

• Hart: Milan Hejduk (3G, 3A, +4, 4 SOG)
  
• Ross: Milan Hejduk (6 points)
  
• Norris: Andres Lilja (Game-winning goal, +3, 2 SOG, 3 hits, 3 blocked shots)
  
• Vezina: Martin Brodeur (28 saves on 29 shots against in OT loss)
  
• Richard: Milan Hejduk (3G)
  
• Calder: Dustin Byfuglien (G, A, 3 SOG, 4 hits)
  
• Aiken: Hannu Toivonen (L, 8 goals allowed on 25 shots against)
  

Senators/Devils Preview

My FanHouse preview of the Ottawa/Jersey series is up. I went with the Devils in seven, though I have very little confidence in the pick. I was all ready to pick the Sens, but I know the series will be low-scoring and just can't see Ray Emery out-dueling Martin Brodeur over the course of six or seven games.

Is it too late to change my pick and just go with the team in the red, black and white uniforms?

Goose EGGs For Devils Top Trio

I don't know where Patrik Elias, Scott Gomez and Brian Gionta have been for the past two games for Jersey, but I know where they are now - over at the FanHouse getting called out.

Meanwhile, Martin Brodeur - who has just two wins in his last dozen playoff road games - notes that, "The puck is not bouncing (our way), but our bounce is due."

Yeah, Marty, you guys aren't getting any bounces.

Finally, speaking of bounces...

Is This Becoming A Trend?

You're not really going to let him score from there, are you, Marty?

Ouch.

The Heat Is On In Tampa

Two games into their series, Martin Brodeur and Johan Holmqvist each have one win, goals against averages over three and save percentages under .900. Who's feeling the heat more - Marty or Holmer?

Bernie Vs. Marty

JP's post this morning over at the NHL FanHouse questioning the legitimacy of Martin Brodeur possibly owning the record for most wins in a season in the age of shootout wins, provides a great opportunity to pull this Time cover out of the attic.

Within the February, 1975 mag's pages is a great profile of former Flyer goalie Bernie Parent entitled, "Courage and Fear in a Vortex of Violence" that, through the magic of the Information Superhighway, you can read here.

And here's a bit of Time trivia for your next pub quiz: the Parent issue marks one of five times in the magazine's 84-year history that hockey has appeared on the cover, the most recent being back in 1985 when Wayne Gretzky and Larry Bird shared top billing.

Think The Vezina Race Is Going To Be Close?

Take a look at the two leading contenders for the Vezina Trophy as the League's best goaltender (stats through last night's games):

Martin Brodeur: 69 games played; 42 wins, 20 regulation losses, 7 OT/SO losses; 1,956 shots against, 1804 saves (.922 %)

Roberto Luongo: 68 games played; 42 wins, 20 regulation losses, 5 OT/SO losses; 1,956 shots against, 1802 saves (.921 %)

That's right - the same exact number of shots faced, wins and regulation losses for the two. Brodeur has the edge in goals against average (2.20 to 2.30) and shutouts (12 to 3), but this race is going to come right down to the wire.

As for the likely third finalist, this guy gets my vote:
[h/t to Dobber on the pointer]

Wednesday Roundup: Denouement EditionPanthers 6, Caps 5 (SO)

[SeSo Open Thread]

Playing without their captain and just hours after one of the alternates (and a trio of other roster players) was shipped out of town, the Caps shook off an awful start and rode their superstar all the way to a shootout loss to Florida. Feel free to comment on the game, but I know all you want to read about is more fall-out from deadline day, so here we go:

• Tarik has some quotes from Dainius Zubrus, GMGM and Coach Hanlon, including the coach saying that Zubie "helped [Alexander] Ovechkin more than you'll ever know, he's helped [Alexander] Semin more than you'll ever know." Weep.
• Steinberg feels bad for Jamie Heward's wife [must... resist... cheap shot], which in turn makes me feel like a jerk for yesterday's caveman post... OK, I'm over it. Thank god that passed.
• The Maven "was in Washington on Sunday and the Caps insiders assured [him] that Zubrus would return next year after his rental period ends. The key: Zubrus and Al Ovechkin are buddies. If The Big O wants Dainius back, he’ll get him."
• Masisak with this on newly-acquired Jiri Novotny: "He is a great guy, and I can't wait to see him," said Caps forward Tomas Fleischmann, who played with Novotny on the Czech Republic under-20 team at the World Junior Championships in 2003. "You can expect a lot of skill from this guy."
• TSN.ca: "Considering Zubrus is headed for unrestricted free agency, the Capitals get good value for the future with a couple of assets to put towards the rebuilding process. However, the only way that the Caps are going to get out of the rebuilding process is by adding more skilled players, not trading them away for prospects and draft picks."
• USAToday: "The Sabres, overrun by injuries up front, get a gifted center. Zubrus is 6-4, and he's been a 20 goal scorer. Even on this talented Sabres team, Zubrus can play on the second line. There is a possibility that Novotny could be as good, or maybe better, than Zubrus is today. He's big and skillful."

Finally, a lot is being made of this quote from GMGM (from Tarik's article):

"He's a big strong kid who's ready to play in the NHL now," McPhee said of the 2001 first-round draft pick. "He's good defensively and he's got some offensive upside. So we think he can fill that third-line hole for us, but he could be better."

While I know everyone's knee-jerk reaction is "Don't the Caps already have 47 third-line centers?" the fact is that Brian Sutherby, Brooks Laich and Kris Beech (as well as Novotny, for that matter) are not signed past this year and I think that this quote is an indication that the team will go out and get a first-line center, expect Nick Backstrom to center the second line and Boyd Gordon the fourth. Therefore, Novotny will battle for ice-time on the third-line. Or, put another way, would you rather have had GMGM say, "We think he can be our first-line center"?! It's called managing expectations. Relax, people.

I'll post more as I stumble upon it, and you can read reaction from around the Capogosphere at Washington Hockey Daily.

Daily Awards

• Hart: Martin Brodeur (31-save shutout win at Pittsburgh)
• Ross: Jason Blake, Alex Ovechkin (4 points each)
• Norris: Derek Morris (2A, +1)
• Vezina: Martin Brodeur (see above)
• Richard: Jason Blake, Olli Jokinen (3G each)
• Calder: Clarke MacArthur (G, 2A, +3, 2 hits, 2 SOG, 2 takeaways, 1 giveaway)
• Aiken: Brent Johnson (4 goals allowed on 15 shots against in just 20 minutes of work)

Monday Roundup/Devils 3, Caps 2

[NHL.com Recap - WashingtonCaps.com Postgame Coverage]

Is there a goalie controversy looming in New Jersey? No?

The Caps split the weekend home-and-home with the Devils, improbably beating Martin Brodeur in New Jersey, and perhaps predictably losing at home to his backup, Scott Clemmensen. Some thoughts on the weekend set:

• Muffins Gordon had a strong weekend, with a pair of assists on Saturday and a great job shutting down the Patrik Elias/Scott Gomez line both days. He'd have had himself a goal on Sunday, too, if he could have lifted the puck about eight inches.
  
• Brent Johnson was also sharp in both games, for the most part.
• John Erskine was not.
• Alex Semin did not play in the second-half of the third period Sunday. Injury? Benching? My guess is the latter, based on Glen Hanlon's postgame presser. Kid needs to distribute the puck some more and play with more passion.
  
• The VC public address crew needs to announce home goals quicker. It's hard to get excited and cheer for a tying-goal announcement when the opposition has just regained the lead before the announcement is made.
• That said, it was nice to see Alex Ovechkin score that game-tying goal on a very "AO" goal. Hopefully the floodgates will now open and he can get back in the Richard Trophy race.
• Though it's only been two games, Tomas Fleischmann looks more confident than he has in previous call-ups. I'm sure getting second-line (rather than fourth-line) duty has something to do with it.
• Reese Witherspoon is very attractive.

Next up is Florida tomorrow night, but the real question on everyone's mind is "who won't be around for that game?" Dainius Zubrus? Richard Zednik? Jamie Heward? Ben Clymer? The usher at the top of the stairs between sections 110 and 111? CapsNation sits anxiously at its metaphoric collective computer hammering the "refresh" button at TSN.ca.

Daily Awards

• Hart: Andy MacDonald (2G, A, +2, 7 SOG)
  
• Ross: Brad Richards (4 points)
  
• Norris: Scott Niedermayer (GWG, 2A, +2, 5 SOG, 3 hits, 3 takeaways, 0 giveaways)
  
• Vezina: Marty Turco (W, 1 goal allowed on 18 shots against in OT win)
  
• Richard: Andy MacDonald (2G)
  
• Calder: Travis Zajac (G, A, +2)
  
• Aiken: Eric Brewer (-4, 0 points, 0 hits, 0 takeaways)

Sunday Roundup/Caps 4, Devils 2Gameday: Devils @ Caps

[NHL.com Recap - NHL.com Preview - WashingtonCaps.com Preview]

Second verse, same as the first - could be better, could be worse.

I'll have my thoughts on the home-and-home later today or tomorrow, but for now, consider these stats from yesterday's win:

The Capitals beat Martin Brodeur and the Devils 4-2 in New Jersey. It was the first time that Washington has scored more than three goals in a game against Brodeur since Oct. 6, 2001, when the Caps knocked Brodeur out of the game by scoring five times in the first two periods of the season opener for both clubs.

Saturday's game ended Brodeur's 11-game unbeaten streak against the Capitals (10-0-1) and it was the future Hall of Famer's first loss to Washington at the Meadowlands since Dec. 9, 2000. Brodeur had won seven games in a row versus the Capitals in New Jersey since then.

Oh, and there's more fallout from New York regarding Jaromir Jagr's "leadership," for those of you interested in that sorta thing. This article asks the following:

Now that Jaromir Jagr appears to be one bad haircut away from a Britney Spears moment, we have to ask: What do the Rangers do now?

They miss the playoffs. That's what they do.

Daily Awards

• Hart: Jarome Iginla (2G, including the game-winner, 2A, +2, 4 SOG, 2 hits)
  
• Ross: Jarome Iginla (4 points)
  
• Norris: Bryan McCabe (3 assists, +2, 2 SOG, 2 hits)
  
• Vezina: John Grahame (W, 28 saves on 29 shots against)
  
• Richard: Tomas Holmstrom (3G)
  
• Calder: Frans Nielsen (1st NHL goal is the game-winner, 1st NHL assist, +1, for the Dane in 3-2 Isles win)
  
• Aiken: Evgeni Nabokov (L, 6 goals allowed on 22 shots against)

Saturday Roundup/Gameday: Caps @ Diablos

[NHL.com Preview - WashingtonCaps.com Preview]

Having trouble scoring goals? Missing your top two rightwings? Back-to-back games against Martin Brodeur and the red-hot Devils should cure what ails you.

Some numbers:

• The Caps are 0-7 in their last seven trips to The Meadowlands (which, by the way, is a phenomenal Wrens album that I've pimped here before), and 3-13-1 in their last 17 games against the Devs.
• Jersey is 14-2 in their last 16 games as a favorite of -201 or more (in other words, they know how to take care of business against teams they should beat).
• At 22-6-4, the Devils have the best home record in the Eastern Conference. At 9-16-5, the Caps have the fewest road points in the Conference.
• The Number 23 is apparently horrible. 300, on the other hand, looks totally sweet.

All that said, these are winnable games for the Caps because they'll be low-scoring games and the Devils don't blow teams out - they've only won two games by more than two goals since the New Year (both against Montreal). The Caps will have their chances. The question is, can they take advantage of those opportunities and surprise a Conference giant?

Daily Awards

• Hart: Brad Boyes (2G, including the game-winner, +1, 5 SOG)
  
• Ross: Brad Boyes, Brandon Bochenski (3 points each)
  
• Norris: Nicklas Lidstrom (2A, 3 hits, 2 blocked shots)
  
• Vezina: Mike Smith (W, 24 saves on 25 shots against)
  
• Richard: Brad Boyes (2G)
  
• Calder: Mike Smith (see above)
  
• Aiken: Marc Denis (2 goals allowed on 7 shots against in just 9:41 of work)

Friday Roundup/Ersk-win?

Apparently it's not just Steve Eminger that plays better with John Erskine in the lineup. KB points out that the Caps are a different team when the big man plays, and he uses numbers to back up his assertion (a novel concept). Now, I'm not one to confuse correlation and causation (hey, I read "Freakonomics"), but the numbers are certainly worth noting:

• Caps record with Erskine in the linuep: 9-7-5
• Caps record without Erskine in the lineup: 14-21-5

• Caps goals against average with Erskine in the lineup: 3.29
• Caps goals against average without Erskine in the lineup: 3.63

As for the theory that the GAA with Erskine in the lineup is helped by him having played a larger percentage of his games during the "trap" era, consider that the team's goals-per-game average when Erskine plays is 3.05. Without Big John Stud? 2.95.

Elsewhere 'Round the Rinks:

Another gem about our buddy in Rangerland - per Larry Brooks:

It is unfathomable. In what, by definition, was the most important game of the Rangers' season, because each succeeding match becomes the most important for the unsuccessful 11th-place Blueshirts, Jaromir Jagr did not participate in a shootout that went four rounds against Martin Brodeur.

The Rangers captain did not shoot for the sixth consecutive time after two initial misses because he previously told Tom Renney he does not feel confident enough to participate in the one-on-one showdown in which the great ones generally thrive.

It is unimaginable that Jagr, battered and bruised though both his left shoulder and psyche must be, would not demand to go. It is beyond belief that he would not demand the opportunity to have the game on his stick, if for no other reason than to prove himself unafraid of failure to his teammates.

It is inconceivable that he would not try to keep the Rangers alive when trailing 2-1 in the shootout in a game they once led 2-0 but would lose 3-2.

"I'm not good anymore," Jagr told The Post when asked why he wasn't on Renney's list. "That's the reason."

Is it safe to say that the honeymoon is over?

Daily Awards

• Hart: Martin St. Louis (Game-winning OT goal, 2A, +2, 3 SOG)
• Ross: Seven players tied with 3 points each
• Norris: Alexandre Picard (G, A, +1, 2 hits, 4 blocked shots in OT loss)
• Vezina: Dwayne Roloson (28-save shutout win)
• Richard: Dany Heatley, Trent Hunter, Shawn Horcoff, Tomas Vanek (2G each)
• Calder: Alexandre Picard (see above)
• Aiken: Ray Emery (L, 3 goals allowed on 12 shots against in just 25:09 of work before racking up 22 PIMs and getting kicked out)

Sunday Roundup/Gameday: Caps @ Pens

[NHL.com Preview - WashingtonCaps.com Preview]

In case you haven't heard, the Caps and Pens will be facing off this afternoon on national television. The Pens enter the game with a 15-game point streak (13-0-2), while the Caps... well... not so much (though they have gotten at least one point out of four of their last five games). Washington's Alexes have gone cold, as Alex Ovechkin has only one goal in his last six games and Alex Semin has only one goal in his last eight outings, and the team is getting absolutely no offensive help from the blueline. Consider:

• Caps defensemen have combined for just 16 goals on the season in more than 377 man-games (Ben Clymer played several games on defense, but did not score a goal), four fewer than Habs' rearguard Sheldon Souray has in 59 games.
• Jamie Heward's two power-play goals and Brian Pothier's one tally with the extra man are the only special teams goals scored by the Caps defensemen so far this year. Thirty-eight NHL defensemen have three or more special teams goals individually.
• The Caps' entire d-corps has 28 power-play points. So does Sergei Zubov. Sheldon Souray, Sergei Gonchar and Dan Boyle all have more.
• Pothier leads the blueline in assists with 18, 41st among NHL defensemen, despite playing with two of the League's top-11 goal scorers.
  

Yes, the Caps tend to use four forwards on the power-play, thereby limiting opportunities for defensemen to get points thereon, and there are several slumping forwards who aren't helping the D much either (paging Brian Sutherby). But any way you cut it, those stats are pretty bleak, and until the team starts getting better production from the blueline - better breakout passes, more shots at the net for rebounds, etc. - the team will likely continue to struggle to score.

As always, get all your previews from around the Cap-o-sphere over at Washington Hockey Daily. Enjoy the game, and Let's Go Caps!

Daily Awards

• Hart: Henrik Zetterberg (3G, including game-winner, A, 6 SOG)
• Ross: Henrik Zetterberg, Pavel Datsyuk (4 points each)
  
• Norris: Dion Phaneuf (G, 3 SOG, 5 hits)
  
• Vezina: Martin Brodeur (26-save shutout win)
  
• Richard: Henrik Zetterberg (3G)
  
• Calder: Daniel Girardi (2A, +1)
  
• Aiken: Steve Valiquette (L, 2 goals allowed on 8 shots against in 19:24 of relief work)

Thursday Roundup/Gamenight: Caps @ 'Ning

[SeSo Open Thread]

And so begins the [Brent] Johnson Administration, on the road in Tampa against the surging Bolts. Quick trivia: who is the winningest goalie in the NHL since January 7? Martin Brodeur? Bzzt. Marc-Andre Fleury? Good guess, but no. It's Tampa 'tender Johan Holmqvist with 11 wins, precisely 11 more wins than you and I... and Brent Johnson. Some numbers to chew on:

• The Caps are 0-4 in their last four games as underdogs. The Bolts are 4-0 in their last four as favorites. Guess who's favored in this one.
• The line of Vinny Lecavalier, Martin St. Louis and Vaclav Prospal has 14 points in Tampa's last two games.
• Brian Sutherby is pointless in his last 14 games.

But there is good news that has nothing to do with saving money on auto insurance - both Brian Pothier and John Erskine have been cleared to play, so expect at least Potsy back in the lineup against the Bolts. Hopefully his return can help get the atrocious-of-late power-play back on track.

Sorry for the abbreviated preview, but the weather has conspired to give me limited (and intermittent) internet access. Head on over to SeSo for more analysis throughout the day, and, as always, check out Washington Hockey Daily to see what everyone else has to say about the Caps.

Elsewhere 'Round the Rinks:

• Thanks to Dan Steinberg for getting on the case of AO's artwork. He's like the love-child of Nancy Drew and Tarik El-Bashir, that Steinberg.
• Shane Doan, who is on pace for fewer than 30 goals and 55 points, signed a five-year deal to remain in Phoenix on Wednesday. I'm sure Dainius Zubrus smiled when he heard that Doan's deal is worth more than $4.5 million per year, and that collective "Are you kidding me?" you heard was from owners and GMs, League-wide.
  
• Wanna waste a lot of money on crap you don't really need? Go here.
• I usually stick to hockey around here, but I've gotta ask - am I really to believe that a salad dressing cures homesickness? And if so, why didn't the Caps just hook Petr Sykora up with some Hidden Valley Ranch?
  

Daily Awards

• Hart: Henrik Zetterberg (GWG, 2A, +3, 4 SOG in 3-2 win)
• Ross: Patrik Elias, Henrik Zetterberg (3 points each)
  
• Norris: Brian Rafalski (2G, including game-winner, 6 SOG, 2 hits, 1 takeaway, 0 giveaways)
  
• Vezina: Martin Gerber (28-save shutout win)
  
• Richard: David Backes (2G)
  
• Calder: David Backes (2G, including game-winner, +2, 2 SOG, 2 hits)
  
• Aiken: Vesa Toskala (L, 2 goals allowed on 5 shots against in just 10:02 of work)
  

Friday Roundup/Caps 4, Kings 3 (OT)

[NHL.com Recap - WashingtonCaps.com Postgame Coverage]

Two point nights are so much more enjoyable than one point nights - far more than twice as enjoyable, in fact (but, interestingly enough, not quite infinitely better than zero point nights). Despite an awful first period in which they managed only five shots on goal (and no shots in goal), a marginally-better second period shot-wise (seven), and a better-yet third (ten shots on goal), the Caps managed to pull out a 4-3 overtime win against the Kings. If that shot pattern held, incidentally, and the game went 20 periods, the Caps would have had 214 shots on goal in that last frame. Now that would have been impressive.

Some thoughts on the game:

• If all I have to do is suggest the team trade a guy in order to get him going, then I suggest they trade Matt Pettinger and Richard Zednik next. Even with his big game, though, Dainius Zubrus did miss a gaping open net late in the second.
• I really like Boyd "Muffins" Gordon. Almost "buy-a-jersey" like, but not quite. Yet. He led all Caps in ice time and deserved every second he got.
• The Kings sure do dive a lot, and the referees seemed to encourage it by buying in. A pox on your house, Don Van Massenhoven.
• I'll resist (for now) the urge to say that Jamie Heward is terrible and instead say that he's had a string of pretty terrible games dating back to last season. How he finished last night with a plus-two rating is a mystery to me.
• On a somewhat-related note, why isn't Milan "Jerky" Jurcina getting more power-play time?
• Two shots and no hits for Alex Ovechkin, but he finished the game with a helper and a plus-three rating. I'm not sure yet how I feel about these numbers. Actually, I am sure - with a "normal" game out of AO, the team wouldn't have needed overtime to win.
• Anze Kopitar was as advertised - very impressive (and with his size, smoked visor, and rushes down the left side, reminded me of someone, but I can't quite put my finger on who). How he slipped to 11 in the Cheater Draft of '05 is beyond me.
• The Kings' goaltending was also as advertised - awful.
• Aaron Miller must be the slowest skater on the planet, as he made The Donald look like Apolo Anton Ohno (minus the soul patch) on one race for a loose puck.
• At one point during the game, "Capitals Salute The Military" night became an uncomfortable mash-up of the volleyball scene from Top Gun and an evening at Pete Townsend's house when "Flex Cam" made an appearance and males of all ages started shedding clothing.
• Big night in the dot for the Caps, who took 62% of the night's draws (Zubrus and Gordon were both right at 62% and Brooks Laich was all the way up at 78%).

Elsewhere 'Round the Rinks:

• When are people going to learn not to mess with Stephen Colbert (and Saginaw, for that matter)?

Daily Awards

• Hart: Ray Whitney (3G, including the game-winner, A, +3, 7 SOG)
• Ross: Ray Whitney, Slava Kozlov, Marian Hossa (3 points each)
• Norris: Ryan Whitney (2A, +2, 3 SOG, 2 blocked shots)
• Vezina: Martin Brodeur (25-save shutout win)
• Richard: Ray Whitney (3G)
• Calder: Joey MacDonald (L, 29 saves on 30 shots against)
• Aiken: Jose Theodore (3 goals allowed on 11 shots against in just 20 minutes of work)

Making The Skills Competition Suck Less

Is it just me or was last night's Skills Competition painful to watch ("It's just you that's painful to watch, J.P.")? No doubt there were senior citizens across the country changing the channel from the State of the Union to the Skills Competition thinking that the latter would be less likely to elevate their heart rate.

Assuming that there is actually a "need" for a Skills Competition (as opposed to the ones that end every tied regular season hockey game these days), can the event be saved? Sure. How? Here are some ideas:

1. Judge and reward creativity. Remember the first time Dr. J took off from the free-throw line or Dominique Wilkins did a tomahawk reverse dunk in a Slam Dunk Competition? Ok, me neither. But I bet you remember Marek Malik's shootout goal against the Caps last year. Why not expand the breakaway competition and turn it into something akin to the Dunk Competition in which players are judged for originality as well as execution? If there was a chance I'd see a Robbie Schremp- or Ron Hisey-like move, I'd tune in.
2. More hockey, less schlock-ey. Instead of a three-on-goalie "In The Zone" competition (yawn), how about three minute 2-on-2's? Imagine Sidney Crosby, Alex Ovechkin and Marty Brodeur going up against Joe Thornton, Teemu Selanne and Miikka Kiprusoff for a few minutes. Not only would there undoubtedly be sick passes, goals and saves, it would also be a great teaser for the following night's game.
3. Brief the announcers (and the players) on the rules. Crosby and Selanne each had approximately 14 "last shots" at the end of the night before the end of a competition that was decided "by the narrowest of margins" 15-11. Huh? No one in the Versus on-air crew had any clue what was going on, and I'm not sure it was any different on the ice.
4. Have more stuff blow up. I like the hardest shot competition, but can't help thinking how cool it would be if there was a pane of glass covering the net. Or have watermelons as targets in the accuracy competition and turn it into a Gallagher show. Weeee!
5. Hardest puncher competition. Invite the League's tough guys and measure the pounds-per-square-inch of their hardest jab, like they did at the Drago press conference in Rocky IV. Bad ass.

Alright, I'll stop now before I get even more ridiculous (an "accuracy competition with the Conference's most penalized players tied to the goal posts" was coming), but the point is that the Skills Competition can be a showcase of what's great about the sport - creativity, speed, action, etc. Unfortunately, very little of that was on display last night in Dallas.

You're a creative bunch - what suggestions do you have for making the Skills Competition more entertaining?

AHL All-Stars Announced

Congrats to Hershey Bears forwards Alexandre Giroux and Tomas Fleischmann and defenseman Lawrence Nycholat on being named to the AHL All-Star teams. Kudos also to head coach Bruce Boudreau and his staff, who will be behind the benches for the game later this month.

Giroux and Nycholat were elected starters for the Canadian team and were profiled thusly:

Lawrence Nycholat, Defense (Hershey Bears): Making his third consecutive AHL All-Star Classic appearance, Lawrence Nycholat is currently the league’s top-scoring defenseman with 28 points in 29 games for the Bears. Nycholat also sports a plus/minus rating of plus-14 and is serving as captain of the defending Calder Cup champions. The Calgary native has added two goals and four assists for six points in eight NHL games with the Washington Capitals this season, including his first career NHL goal vs. New Jersey’s Martin Brodeur on Dec. 29.

Alexandre Giroux, Forward (Hershey Bears): Perennial scoring threat Alexandre Giroux earns his first AHL All-Star Classic selection this season, having already amassed 27 goals and 41 points in 36 games for Hershey in 2006-07. A native of Quebec City, Giroux is coming off back-to-back 30-goal seasons in the AHL, and rattled off 11 goals during a nine-game stretch with the Bears from Nov. 11-29. The 25-year-old Giroux has also appeared in two NHL games with Washington this year.

I do have one question, though - why'd Eric Fehr get screwed?

Thursday Roundup/Habs 4, Caps 1

[NHL.com Recap - WashingtonCaps.com Postgame Coverage]

At the end of the first period of last night's 4-1 Caps loss to Montreal - a period in which the Caps outshot their opponents 14-7 and dominated play save for two defensive breakdowns that turned into Canadien goals - I turned to my wife and said, "I hope you liked that effort because that's likely to be as good as it gets tonight." I was more or less spot on, as the undermanned Caps ran out of gas and were able to muster up only a very late 5-on-3 goal to break Cristobal Huet's shutout bid.

A few noteworthy points:

• The Caps were again dominated in the faceoff circle, losing 57% of the 53 draws and a whopping 78% in the offensive zone. Dainius Zubrus (who has to be in the top ten in the League in being thrown out of faceoffs) and Kris Beech - the Caps' top two centers - combined to go 2-for-10 on offensive zone faceoffs. It's hard enough to score on the Habs when you have to gain the offensive zone first; not being able to take advantage of the opportunity to start in the zone makes life even more difficult. Boyd Gordon, who had an otherwise strong game, was 6-for-17 on draws.
• Brooks Laich looked good. I don't have any stats to back that up, but he was noticeable in areas other than the penalty kill, which has been rare for him.
• On the flip side, Mike Green was bad. I don't know if he's hitting some kind of wall, but his last two games have been among his worst this season.
• The line changes, especially in the second period, were particularly sloppy. At least twice, a Cap forward carried the puck across the blueline and dropped a pass to a teammate who had gone to the bench for a change, leading to a Canadien rush the other way.
• Olie Kolzig couldn't be faulted for any of the Hab goals (except for the empty-netter, for which Olie was horribly out of position). Saku Koivu's tip-in nail-in-the-coffin was a thing of beauty.
• Montreal's defense corps is everything the Caps' isn't - experienced, decisive and skilled at the break-out pass.
• Yesterday I mentioned the Habs' special teams and they were the difference last night as the Habs were 25% effective on the power play and 87.5% effective on the kill.
• It was a surprisingly large crowd for a mid-week game (during the holidays, no less), announced at 15,609 but didn't seem packed with Montreal fans. Huh. Could it have been the 7:30 start time (a half-hour later than usual)?
• The Donald absolutely soaked Aaron Downey's melon with haymakers (see video below - h/t to Off Wing). Psst... Aaron... he's left-handed.

After generating little offense against Huet and Les Habitants, it's off to the swamp to face Marty Brodeur and the Devils - that sure ought to cure what ails the team.

Elsewhere 'Round the Rinks:

• NHL.com has a little piece on Nick Backstrom playing in his final junior hockey tournament.

Daily Awards

• Hart: Jeff Halpern (Game-winning goal, 2A, 4 blocked shots)
• Ross: Jeff Halpern, Marian Hossa, Jere Lehtinen, Daniel Sedin, Mattias Ohlund, Wojtek Wolksi (3 points each)
• Norris: Mattias Ohlund (3A, +1, 2 blocked shots)
• Vezina: Cristobal Huet (W, 30 saves on 31 shots against)
• Richard: Kristian Huselius (2G)
• Calder: Wojtek Wolski (G, 2A, +1, 4 SOG)
• Aiken: Jose Theodore (L, 5 goals allowed on 22 shots against in 41:52 of work)

Tuesday Roundup/Gamenight: Lightning @ Caps

[SeSo Open Thread]

When the Caps and Bolts take to the ice tonight at the V.C., they'll be two teams headed in opposite directions. Tampa is a recent League Champ whose best days seem to be behind them as they struggle with salary cap management and currently sit in 13th place in the Conference after going 2-7-1 in their last ten games. The Caps, on the other hand, have nearly enough cap space to support an entire other NHL team, are 7-2-1 in their last ten tilts and are in sixth place and (hopefully) rising in the East.

Yet for all of these apparent on- and off-ice differences, I'm not ready to bury the Lightning quite yet. Sure, their goaltending has been suspect. And their blueline is mediocre. And they have no depth up front. But as long as they have the most talented triplets to terrorize the nation's capital since Troy, Emmit and Michael, they're a team with which to be reckoned in my book, and it will take a big effort to beat them.

One more interesting fact about the Bolts: I have Brad Richards, Dan Boyle, Ryan Craig and Paul Ranger on my fantasy team. Paul Ranger belongs on no man's fantasy team.

I'll have more thoughts on the game throughout the day over on the ol' SeSo, and please stop by the Open Thread and make yourself heard.

Elsewhere 'Round the Rinks:

• Dave Fay profiles the improvements in Boyd Gordon's game. Tarik el-Bashir similarly discusses Alex Ovechkin's improved play. Which are you going to read first? I thought so.
• Frodo St. Louis is in the holiday spirit. Are you?
• Some yokel out in San Fran doesn't think Sid and Alex are superstars (maybe it's a title he reserves for Nancy Pelosi).
• Gambling = bad. Sign the petition (and check out who already has).
• The Caps are up to ninth on ESPN's power rankings.
• If you're headed to Friday night's game against the Devils, wear a pair of reflective sunglasses and watch Marty Brodeur cry like a little girl.

Daily Awards

• Hart: Sergei Fedorov (2G, including game-winner, A, +2, 3 SOG, 1 hit)
• Ross: Sergei Fedorov, Dan Fritsche (3 points each)
• Norris: Chris Pronger (2A, 7 SOG)
• Vezina: J.-S. Giguere (W, 27 saves on 28 shots against, A)
• Richard: Sergei Fedorov, Robert Lang (2G each)
• Calder: Dustin Penner (G, A, +1)
• Aiken: Dominik Hasek (3 goals allowed on 12 shots against in just one period of work)

Monday Roundup: The Other Super Soph

Can you believe how hot Sidney Crosby is? Sixteen points (5G, 11A) in his last six games, four of which his team has won. This hot streak has vaulted him into the League's lead in scoring, pushed the Pens up to 11th place in the jammed Eastern Conference playoff race, and bloggers and the MSM alike are now comfortable asking whether or not Sid is the NHL's best player. And he may be.

But there is, of course, another super soph in the NHL, and he's been every bit as hot as Crosby. In his last six games, Alex Ovechkin has 15 points (5G, 10A), helping the Caps to four wins during that span. In fact, Alex's Caps are the hottest team in the NHL, with 15 points in their last 10 games, leaving them in sixth place in the Conference. AO may "only" be third in the League in scoring, but he is leading the League in goals, second in the League in game-winning goals, second in even-strength goals, leads the League in road goals and has eight points (including five goals) to Crosby's five points (two goals) on game-winning goals.

I keep hearing the argument about how much better Sid makes everyone around him. While undoubtedly true, ask Dainius Zubrus, Chris Clark or Sasha Semin if the same can be said about AO (and if you think that Ovie's just a goal-scorer, you obviously didn't see the pass he made on Semin's second goal against the Flyers on Saturday night).

Am I saying that Ovechkin is a better player than Crosby? No. But if we're going to start considering players who haven't even taken their teams to the playoffs as among the League's best, I just wanted to make sure all the deserving candidates are in the running.

Daily Awards

• Hart: Sergei Brylin (2G, 2 SOG, 4 hits, 2 blocked shots)
• Ross: Jamie Langenbrunner, Zach Parise (3 points each)
• Norris: Kimmo Timonen (Game-winning OT goal, 6 SOG)
• Vezina: Martin Brodeur (W, 35 saves on 36 shots against)
• Richard: Sergei Brylin, Patrick Elias (2G each)
• Calder: Travis Zajac (A+1, 2 hits)
• Aiken: Kevin Weekes (L, 6 goals allowed on 28 shots against)