Wednesday Roundup/Gamenight: Caps @ 'Canes

[AP Preview]

Just six days after Alex Semin's late heroics saved the Caps from falling six points behind the 'Canes in the Southeast Division, Washington heads to Raleigh tied for first place with a game in hand (note: first "game in hand" mention of the season). And while the Caps have enjoyed the comforts of home thus far this season (they're the only Eastern Conference team without a regulation loss in their own building), they've found the road to be considerably less friendly - their five points away from home are tied for the fewest in the East; they have scored 3.57 goals per game as hosts, but just 2.43 away from the VC and have allowed an average of just two goals against per game on their slushy sheet, but 3.71 on the road. Basically, the Caps have been The Stone Roses' eponymous debut album at home, and their brutal follow-up record on the road.

But with a bounce here or there, the story could be much different - three of the Caps' five road losses have been by a single goal, a trio of 2-1 decisions (the other two losses are never again to be spoken of).

So what does the team need to do to get over the hump and starting picking up some W's on the road? One big question revolves around the top line. The trio of Alex Ovechkin, Alex Semin and Nicklas Backstrom (and, before he got injured, Sergei Fedorov) has produced five of the Caps' last eight even strength, non-empty net goals, but were singled out as being "too cute" on Monday night. Perhaps more importantly, the line's successes have come on a three-game homestand, where line matching was in Bruce Boudreau's favor. If they take this show on the road as is, however, they can expect a heavy diet of Rod Brind'Amour, Tim Gleason and Carolina's other top defensive players, raising the obvious question as to why you'd want to put your two best scorers on one line and rather than forcing Peter Laviolette to pick his poison? I'm on record as being against the regular use of an "Eggs" line (i.e. any line with both Alexes on it), especially on the road, but I have about as much influence on the Caps roster as I do on U.S. foreign policy ("Mr. President, that briefing you requested on the deportation of Sidney Crosby..."), so we'll see how the man in charge rolls.

The Caps would also help their chances at victory if they can get the power play going - they're stuck in a 1-for-16 (6.3%) rut with the extra man over their last five games, and lately have had incredible trouble entering the zone and/or establishing possession once there. It's a much larger problem than any one player, but there's one guy who got a big contract this summer because he makes the power play go, and it's been stuck in neutral for nearly a month. Put another way, how the hell can the season be 14 games old with Mike Green still looking for his first power play assist and Alex Ovechkin still looking for his first power play goal of the campaign?

For their part, the 'Canes are getting healthy (for them, at least), and having Matt Cullen as a second shut-down center should Gabby keep the Alexes paired isn't a bad option (to say nothing of how much he and Joni Pitkanen will help Carolina's power play). Expect to see Michael Leighton between the pipes for the 'Canes (the 27-year-old netminder has never faced the Caps), and Eric Staal flopping around on the ice like a fish on deck.

The bottom line on tonight is that it's never too early for a statement game, and after last week's win over Carolina, taking two points in Raleigh would certainly make a bold proclamation as to who this year's beast of the Southeast is. But no one's going to be too scared of a team that can't win on the road.

Elsewhere 'Round the Rinks:

Matt Cooke on being a teammate of both AO and Sid the Kid.... Bear Tracks, Bear Tracks!... If you're wondering about Hershey's line combos, wonder no longer.... John Carlson: elite player (scroll about halfway down).

One Last Political Ad...

From (who else?) Puck Daddy:

Monday Roundup

Alright, it's time for Silver Lining Monday*, which today features the penalty kill. The Caps PK got off to a rough start, allowing seven goals against in its first 24 times shorthanded (70.8% effective), but has gone 31-for-36 (86.1%) since to raise the efficiency to a nice, round 80% on the season, which is still not great (it would have ranked 26th in the League last season), but it's certainly a significant step in the right direction.

Unfortunately, as the PK has gotten better, the power play has gotten worse, as shown below:

But as this is Silver Lining Monday, we're going to focus on the PK. What has been driving the improved kill efficiency? Well, statistically, it's hard to say - the amount of time shorthanded doesn't seem to be much of a factor, and neither do the total number of shots against or the per game average shots against per minute (I won't bore you with those charts, but note that since the PK started this turn around in Game 5, the Caps have had three games in which they've been shorthanded for more than 13 minutes - not good). But one major driver seems to be the goaltending (which likely includes the defense limiting quality chances against):

As you can see, GAA is down, SV% is up. Granted, both stats had plenty of room for improvement after that rocky start, but they have, indeed improved. In fact, heading into last night's game, the Caps were 17th in the League in four-on-five save percentage - plenty of room for improvement, to be sure, but far better than their rank in overall save percentage, a woeful 27th prior to last night (Colorado, Nashville and Dallas were worse).

Now, it may not seem like a great revelation to attribute a better PK to better goaltending, and indeed, it's no great epiphany. But given that the team isn't cutting down on the penalties it's taking and isn't limiting the shots against on the kill, it's good to know that the last line of defense is holding up its end of the bargain... shorthanded, at least.

* Just because it's Silver Lining Monday doesn't mean you can't piss and moan in the comments.

Elsewhere 'Round the Rinks:

The way the "Semin disses Crosby" quote has been covered is beyond annoying on so many levels. First of all, the mainstream media's attribution of credit for the quote is shameful, but unsurprising (recall their coverage of the Ovechkin Hart t-shirt story). Secondly, I must have mis-read the quote, because I don't recall Semin saying he was better than Crosby, and yet I see comparison's between the career accomplishments of the two everywhere, as if the only people who can criticize a player are those who are more skilled than the subject of their criticism. Finally, how big a stiffy did Don Cherry get (sorry for the visual) when he saw that a Russian claimed that an American is better than a Canadian? If a Swede had agreed, Cherry would have spontaneously combusted.... The Bears rookie line of Oskar Osala and "two Frenchies" was pretty awesome in the third period yesterday (and for a couple more prospect notes, head over to TRS).

And With The First Overall Pick...

Fantasy hockey is an absolute passion - no, obsession - of mine (more on that later in the week), and I'm an avid consumer of any and all opinions on the topic (much in the way Sarah Palin is an avid consumer of news). Want to debate Shea Weber versus Brent Burns? Go. Have some thoughts on the value of game-winning goals as a scoring category? I'm listening.

Naturally, then, I was interested to see the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's take on the top fantasy forward in the game. Here's how they ranked the top two:

1. Sidney Crosby - No, this isn't because I live in Pittsburgh, this is because he is the best player in the NHL, but just barely. This really depends on how your league is structured. If goals, power play goals and game winning goals mean a lot, then Ovechkin would have to be at the top. But in your basic point and head to head leagues, Crosby has a slight advantage. He consistently racks up over 100 points, usually around 80 assists, is always close to 40 goals and takes a tremendous amount of shots for a playmaker. Not to mention his plus/minus is better and isn't afraid of the rough stuff which contributes to PIM. Ovechkin's value is all in his goal scoring ability. Last year, he scored 65 goals, but the year before that he only scored 46 (yeah, I know, I say "only 46" like its low). Unless he gets injured, Crosby will always have 30+ goals and 80+ assists. Teams are really going to focus on Ovie this year after dominating the way he did last year and I seriously doubt he'll reach the 65 goal plateau again. Crosby, on the other hand, has Geno to help take away some of the defensive focus. If you have the first pick in your draft, use it on the superstar with the easier road to success.

2. Alexander Ovechkin - As I mentioned above, Ovechkin's value is in his goal scoring ability. No one has reached the 60 goal mark since Super Mario did it in 1996 (69 goals). In this era of "defense first" hockey, opposing teams are going to focus on Ovechkin like never before and he doesn't have a lot of help to take that pressure off him. The good news is that no one in the Southeast division, except for the Panthers (and even that's a little questionable), has any shred of defense. So I do expect Ovie to clean up when he plays his own division and will be the favorite to win the Rocket Richard Award (most goals).

Shocking, right?

Now, I disagree with the "best player in the NHL" tag, but it's certainly a valid opinion. Less valid? That that makes Sid the best fantasy forward in the game. Here are a couple of reasons why:

• Left wings are more valuable than centers due to the lack of depth at the position (obviously, this is only relavent in a league that differentiates among the three forward positions). This is the same reason you draft a stud shortstop before a stud outfielder in fantasy baseball - if you don't know your league rules and ignore positional scarcity, you're making a mistake.
• Under most fantasy scoring systems, goal scorers are going to be more valuable than playmakers, all things equal. Take ESPN's standard scoring system, for example, and two forwards - one with 60 goals and 40 assists, the other with 40 goals and 60 assists. For every one of those 60 goals, the first forward is getting a goal AND a shot on goal (and for some, a PPG), while the other guy is helping himself out in only one category for each of his 60 assists (both players may be getting a plus for their points as well, but that's a wash). Quite simply, every goal scored helps across the board more than every assist recorded.
• Crosby has missed 33 games in his three seasons in the League. Ovechkin has missed one.

The above, of course, doesn't even address the silliness of the claims that Crosby "consistently racks up over 100 points" (Ovi has as many 100-point seasons), "is always close to 40 goals" (his totals have been 39, 36 and 24), that he "takes a tremendous amount of shots for a playmaker" (he has never come within 100 shots of Ovi over the course of a season), that he has a better plus/minus (AO was +28 last season, Sid was +18 in admittedly far fewer games) or that "teams are really going to focus on Ovie this year" because "he doesn't have a lot of help to take that pressure off him" (psst... they really focused on him last year, and he has as good a supporting cast as any in the League). Oh, and I'm not buying this as an "era of 'defense first' hockey" either.

But the point is that in most Leagues, Ovechkin is the better pick than Crosby, and most folks outside of the 'Burgh know it.

All-Time Team And Other Miscellany

Who's more marketable - Alex Ovechkin or Sidney Crosby? Who cares - neither of them "will be significant winners in the U.S. in the short term."... Tampa Trib blogger Erik Erlendsson lists D.C. as his seventh favorite NHL city.... Speaking of Tampa bloggers, for Chrissakes, Damian Cristodero, there's only one "l" in "Olie" (but expect him to add at least 25 in the standings... zing!).... Finally, last week 'Canes beat writer/blogger extraordinaire Luke DeCock put together his all-time all-'Canes team and threw it to his readers for discussion. Taking inspiration from that, here's my take on an all-time all-Caps team (full lineup, roles and line combos considered and a few liberties taken on positioning) for you to tear to shreds in the comments:

Alex Ovechkin - Michal Pivonka - Peter Bondra
Dennis Maruk - Bengt Gustafsson - Mike Gartner
Bobby Carpenter - Mike Ridley - Dave Christian
Steve Konowalchuk - Dale Hunter - Kelly Miller

Rod Langway - Calle Johansson
Scott Stevens - Sergei Gonchar
Kevin Hatcher - Larry Murphy

Olie Kolzig
Don Beaupre

Line Of The Day

Excerpted from an Olympics article by Shelly Anderson of the Pittsburgh Post Gazette:

Near the back, I came upon Alex Ovechkin sitting alone on a wall over a pond. The Russians brought the Washington Capitals winger and reigning NHL MVP here to help promote the Sochi Games.

"You all by yourself?" I asked.

"No, I'm with friends," he said, although they were nowhere in sight.

I told him I was from the Pittsburgh paper and had interviewed him several times.

"Pittsburgh?" Ovechkin said, lighting up a bit. "Tell [Sidney] Crosby hello."

"What about [Evgeni] Malkin?" I asked.

"Him, too."

Ovechkin's ESPY...

... goes to Sidney Crosby.

One less reason to waste your time watching when they air the garbage on Sunday night.

Welcome To The Club, Cookie

Barring injury, at some time in early October, Matt Cooke will join Rico Fata as the only players to have played at least one NHL game with each of Alexander Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby (Fata played with the 2004 and 2005 number one draft picks during the 2005-06 season). Narrowly missing joining this exclusive club was Kris Beech, who played five games for Pittsburgh this past season, four of which Sid missed with an injury and the fifth The Kid sat out on the last day of the season.

On a slightly related note, Rico Fata played only 230 NHL games since being drafted sixth overall back in 1998, but had some very impressive teammates, including Crosby, Ovechkin, Mario Lemieux, Mark Messier, Pavel Bure, Brian Leetch, Theo Fleury, Phil Housley, Jarome Iginla, Peter Bondra, Ilya Kovalchuk, Marian Hossa and Brooks Laich. You'd think he'd have learned something along the way. You'd be wrong.

Sid The Defensive End?

Alex Ovechkin is listed at 6'2", 217 pounds. Judging from the picture below currently running on NHL.com, Sidney Crosby must be 6'5", 275. Funny...I thought he was smaller than that.

Tuesday Roundup/Gamenight: Wild @ Caps

[AP Preview - WashingtonCaps.com Preview]

The Caps and tonight's opponents, the Minnesota Wild, really aren't all that different. Both teams are in second place in their Division. Each team has a Ni(c)klas Backstrom, a blueliner named Schultz and one of the League's most talented goal scorers. Um... both teams play in the NHL.... neither has won a Cup...

The fact of the matter is that the Caps and Wild actually are about as different as two teams can be in today's NHL. The Caps are an up tempo, run-and-gun squad while Jacques Lemaire's Wild play a trapping style and wait for their opponents to make mistakes. And unlike the Caps, who have lost four of the last five games in which they had a lead at any point, the Wild take a lead and go and hide with it - Minny has the League's best winning percentage when scoring first and is 25-0-1 when leading after two periods.

Think that first goal is going to be big tonight?

Minnesota comes into tonight's game having lost three straight and scoring only three times along the way, but with dynamic offensive players like Marian Gaborik, Pavol Demitra, Brian Rolston and Pierre-Marc Bouchard (assuming they don't trade him for an even more dynamic - and familiar - offensive player during the day) and a good power play, they can drop four or five in a hurry on an unsuspecting team that isn't prepared.

The Caps and Wild have played six times since Minny's latest NHL club entered the League in 2000, and the Wild have won five times, including a 3-2 shootout win last season. But only once has a game between the two teams been decided by more than a single goal, and only twice have more than three goals been scored in any one game in the series. To top it off, Minnesota is one of just four teams in the NHL against whom Alex Ovechkin does not yet have a goal (one assist in one game) and the Caps are one of only two teams against whom Gaborik has never lit the lamp (one single assist in six career games). How 'bout that? Oh, and in case you're wondering, Donald Brashear and Wild uberthug Derek Boogaard have fought once in the past, but with the Boogie Man on the IR, the two won't be renewing acquaintances tonight.

So expect another low-scoring affair and let's hope that the Caps' have the better of the Backstroms and the better of the bounces tonight - they'll probably need both in order to win.

Why The Wild Will Win:

"The Minnesota Wild will defeat the Washington Capitals because they have greater scoring depth and play a defensive system that is perfect to counter attack an offensively aggressive Capitals squad. Not to mention, the Wild currently have much more to lose and know they cannot afford to drop non-Conference games in another ultra-tight Western Conference." - The State of Hockey News

Elsewhere 'Round the Rinks:

Time change for the March 9 Pens game.... Insert Sidney Crosby joke here.... One year ago today it was Trade Deadline Day Eve, but the Caps got into the act early, trading Richard Zednik and Lawrence Nycholat, which we discussed, as well as the previous day's Caps/Devils game, and two years ago today we had the opportunity to gloat and use one of our favorite pictures. Good times.

Daily Awards

• Hart: Darcy Tucker (2G, A, +1, 4 SOG, 3 hits, 5 BkS)
  
• Ross: Matt Stajan, Darcy Tucker (3 points each)
  
• Norris: Jaroslav Spacek (2A, +3)
  
• Vezina: Vesa Toskala (31-save shutout win)
  
• Richard: Darcy Tucker (2G)
  
• Calder: Clarke MacArthur (G, 3 SOG, +3)
  
• Aiken: Ray Emery (L, 5 goals allowed on 21 shots against in two periods of work)

Sunday Funnies

Hat tip to Alex Ovetjkin for pointing us to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review's article which asked a number of mainstream media types the ridiculously ambiguous question, "Who is the NHL's best player right now?"

The results and commentary are all worth checking out, as the writers engage in an impromptu competition to see whose quote can come across as the douchiest. The winner? Probably Pierre LeBrun, though Bruce Garrioch's rhyme and Tim Panaccio's head-scratcher are up there. Oh, and who the hell voted "Chris Pronger"?

Friday Roundup/Gamenight: Caps @ Panthers

[AP Preview - WashingtonCaps.com Preview]

I hope the Caps can get fired up to play the Panthers more easily than I can to write about 'em.

Here's the quick rundown on the Kitties - they have the fewest home wins in hockey, are in the bottom half of the League in goals scored and allowed, have a good power play and a bad penalty kill, give up the most shots per game in the League, have lost two in a row and, well, you know the story on Richard Zednik.

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?

Elsewhere 'Round the Rinks:

I'll take the under on Sidney Crosby being able to take 20 five-year-olds in a fight (and I base this on Donald Brashear, by my math, being able to take 23)... Finally, one year ago today we discussed a potential trade rumor, a surprise demotion and a roster shuffle and previewed the evening's Caps/Bolts game, and two years ago today we recapped Day One for Caps Olympians and passed along a very special birthday wish.

Daily Awards

• Hart: Jonathan Toews (2G, including the game-winner, A, +3, 3 SOG)
  
• Ross: 8 players tied with 3 points each
  
• Norris: Alex Edler (2G, A, +3, 4 SOG)
  
• Vezina: Manny Legace (W, 39 saves on 40 shots against)
  
• Richard: Ruslan Fedotenko, Jonathan Toews, Alex Edler, Stephane Veilleux (2G each)
  
• Calder: Jonathan Toews (2G, including the game-winner, A, +3, 3 SOG)
• Aiken: Chris Mason (L, 3 goals allowed on 7 shots against in just 12:42 of work)
  

Quote Of The Day

"Sid may be the game's best player, but Alex is by far the most exciting to watch." - Paul Attfield, Globe and Mail

I guess it's better to be half right than all wrong.

Monday Roundup/Gamenight: Caps @ Pens

[AP Preview - WashingtonCaps.com Preview]

Despite what you may have read elsewhere on the interwebs, the biggest diver in hockey likely will be in Pittsburgh's lineup for tonight's big game between the two best teams in the Eastern Conference since Turkey Day, but the focus will most likely be on the two Russians comrades who were taken one-two in the 2004 Entry Draft and have won the last two Calder Trophies. You know plenty about that first pick, so let's talk a bit about the second.

Evgeni Malkin is following up last season's playoff disappearing act his brilliant debut with another big season - 24 goals, 29 assists, plus-six rating, etc. - with much of his success has come riding shotgun on Sidney Crosby's left wing. But with Crosby now out indefinitely, the pressure is on Malkin to step up and center the top line. And despite being drafted as a center, Malkin hasn't yet been able to really establish himself as an NHL pivot - he has the worst faceoff percentage (37.6%) of any center in the League who has taken more than 78 draws and has the fifth-most giveaways of any forward in hockey (Alex Ovechkin, incidentally, has the second-most, though he has a much better giveaway-to-takeaway ratio than Geno).

Make no mistake about it - Sidney Crosby is irreplaceable, both on and off the ice. But if there's a silver lining to his injury for the Pens, it's that they'll get a clearer picture of where Evgeni Malkin is in his development as a player and a leader. Something tells me they won't be disappointed.

Why The Pens Will Win:

"Evgeni Malkin. Period. The guy has been playing like he has a chip on his shoulder the size of the Communist Bloc. His consistent dismissal of an all-star game invitation will fuel 'Geno' to new levels leaving goalies to beware." - Confessions of a Hockey Fanatic (and if you're more of an aural learner, check out the audio clip Mike sent over - very cool):boomp3.com

"This game has Capitals finally rise up and beat the Penguins all over it..... It should be a really entertaining game. How come no one ever talks about Malkin vs. A.O. Old fashion shootout. Pens torch caps goalie Jim Carey 6-4." - The Pensblog

"The Pittsburgh Penguins will win this game because of, wait for it, defense. Gasp! That's right, since getting lambasted by the injury bug in 2008, the Penguins have clamped down in their own zone and played tight hockey in front of some hot goaltenders. Ty Conklin has been absolutely stellar between the pipes and Dany Sabourin earned a shutout in his first start of 2008 Saturday night in Montreal. Evgeni Malkin rose to the occasion in Crosby's absence Saturday and I'd expect him to do the same tonight." - Faceoff-Factor

"Let me preface this by saying that I was once a resident of Northern Virginia. Yes, I was one of those Penguins fans that all Capitals fans hate. You could count on me being at each and every game that the Pens came south to meet Washington, in my Lemieux jersey, agitating everyone around me to the point that my well being was threatened on many occasions. But those, as they say, were the days...

"The series is much better when both teams are competitive. Right now, the Caps are in a re-building stage and the Pens are at a much different stage of development. This alone should be reason enought that Pittsburgh will prevail. But, due to Sid Crosby's ankle injury, the plot has thickened. In the Pens most recent game, a 2-1 victory against the Canadiens, they proved to everyone, including themselves (and this may be the most important), that they can win without #87 in the lineup. They did so by playing sound defense, finishing checks and eliminating costly mistakes. Does this sound like a typical Penguins team? No. And this is the same team that the Capitals will face tonight. If Washington is not prepared for a gritty, hard nosed game then they will not end up on top when 60 minutes have been played. If they are prepared, which I believe they will be, it should be a very tight contest with the Pens winning in OT 3-2." - Home of the Penguins

"The Penguins will win because it's not just about Crosby, it's about Malkin. The Pens supporting cast (Malone, Sykora, Gonchar) is more skilled, experienced than the Caps. The Caps have given up three or more goals 5 times in calender year 2008 already; the Penguins just once. The Pens will win because role players like Jarrko Ruutu and Georges Laraque spend more time on the cycle than Lance Armstrong. But mainly the Pens will win tonight because they've beaten the Capitals six times in a row, it's just one of those things that's meant to be." - The Sweater Ted

Elsewhere 'Round the Rinks:

On this national holiday, I wonder how Donald Brashear and George Laraque plan to honor the memory of famously pacifistic Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.... Mathieu Perreault is on a 17-game point-scoring streak (only 44 games to go to tie Mario Lemieux's record) and is tied for sixth in the Q in scoring with 64 points in 40 games (three points behind fellow Caps prospect Francois Bouchard).... Maybe the Caps are scouting the Jax after all.... Another Canadian writer thinks Alex is overpaid. Surprise.... Short blurb on Flash.... Finally, a special welcome to our puppy-stealin' friends to the north. Make yourselves at home.

Daily Awards

• Hart: John Madden (2G, including the game-winner, +1, 5 SOG)
  
• Ross: Scottie Upshall, Braydon Coburn (3 points each)
  
• Norris: Braydon Coburn (G, 2A, +3)
  
• Vezina: Tim Thomas (W, 30 saves on 31 shots against)
  
• Richard: Brenden Morrow, Niklas Hagman, John Madden, Scottie Upshall (2G each)
  
• Calder: Andrew Cogliano (A, +2)
  
• Aiken: Martin Gerber (L, 4 goals allowed on 14 shots against in 39:51 of work)
  

Uh Oh...

Link

Update (10:24): Gary Bettman has elevated the NHL Public Relations Disaster Advisory level to "Severe."


Update (10:28): President Bush has ordered flags to fly at half-staff tomorrow in recognition of a national day of mourning.

Update (10:31): Evgeni Malkin has begun sitting shiva.

Update (10:38): U2, Bon Jovi and Bruce Springsteen (sans E Street Band) are now confirmed for Saturday night's "Concert for Sidney" telethon.

Update (10:42): Barring last minute intervention from the Supreme Court, Paul Ranger is to go before a firing squad at dawn.

Update (10:48): Kanye West has issued a statement that reads "Sidney Crosby doesn't care about black people." Huh.

Update (10:51): Elton John has just released "Candle in the Wind 2008" in tribute.

Alright, I need to go drown my sorrows. Follow George's lead in the comments and keep me posted, will ya?

Friday Roundup/Habs 5, Caps 2

[AP Recap - Game Summary - Super Stats - WashingtonCaps.com Postgame]

On some nights, you're the big dog. On others, you're the fire hydrant. Thursday night at the VC was a bit more of the latter for the Caps as they ran into a hot goalie, had trouble on the penalty kill and missed converting a couple of chances of their own en route to a 5-2 loss. Some thoughts on the game:

• Jeff Schultz played the Alexei Kovalev/Tomas Plekanec first period 2-on-1 beautifully.
• Shaone Morrisonn can't leave his man alone on top of the crease with the puck behind the net on a power play, or you get what you got on the Habs' first goal.
  
• Chipchura sounds sounds like something I'd order at Taco Bell.
• The Habs scored on their second power play with Tom Poti in the box, but I blame the penalty on Tomas Fleischmann's brain cramp giveaway at the blueline.
• Was I the only one expecting Mike Green to stop to fix his hair after Mike Komisarek separated him from his helmet? Green had another solid game, finishing with seven shots on goal, an even rating and only one giveaway in a game-high 30:12 of ice time (nearly eight minutes more than any other Cap).
  
• Losing Brian Pothier for a few weeks with a broken thumb will hurt. Say what you want about him, but he's a 19-minute guy who can play in all situations, and the Caps sure don't have six more of those. Heck, do they have two? Sidenote: Here's hoping Steve Eminger gets a sweater tomorrow night and not John Erskine, though I'd be shocked if that's what happens.
  
• Apparently Locker's favorite new phrase is "soap on a rope." Personally, I'm waiting for him to drop "Soul on roll, but you treat it like soap on a rope 'cause the beats in the lines are so dope."
• Michael Nylander and Nicklas Backstrom swapped lines in the third period and the Backstrom-centered second line produced instant dividends (the Alex Semin goal). One wonders if the new combos will stick.
• Speaking of Backstrom, he's now only nine points out of the rookie lead in scoring.
• Alex Ovechkin seemed to be off his game a bit, especially after his third period tripping call. He whiffed on an open net thereafter and didn't exactly shine in his brief tryout as a blueliner. He finished minus-three on the night and had nine shots either miss the net or get blocked. Maybe Andrei Markov and company are in his head. Or, perhaps, the Matt Pettinger as a top line winger experiment just isn't working - AO is minus-eight in his last four games (Backstrom is minus-six and Pettinger minus-five - it sure would be nice to get Chris Clark back in the lineup or, better yet, a legitimate first-line right wing).
  
• Red, white and blue is still better than bleu, blanc et rouge.
• Fact: Guillaume Latendresse is the only player in NHL history to wear the number 84. For another bizarre Latendresse fact, check this out.
• A lot of bad news for scoreboard watchers, as the four teams directly ahead of the Caps in the Eastern Conference who played last night - Tampa, Atlanta, Florida and Pittsburgh - all won and the Bruins picked up a loser point.
  

So it's off to Long Island to try to snag a win and, with it, a merrier Christmas.

Elsewhere 'Round the Rinks:

Let's give credit where credit's due, and it's due Sidney Crosby on the occasion of his first career Gordie Howe Hat Trick (and he handled himself a hell of a lot better when the rough stuff started than the Great One did).... Sure, you can play in the World Junior Championships at age 16 (and spell your name with almost as many umlauts as Mötley Crüe and Löwenbräu combined), Magnus Svensson-Pääjärvi, but Viktor Alexandrov would like to know where you've been the past two years.... I was catching up on my Mirtle and really digging this post when I recalled having seen this article in The Windsor Star - dated a day later - that had a handful of noteworthy similarities to Mirtle's post. Was it coincidence? Inspiration? Did Tom Layberger move to Canada and change his name to try to escape his shame?... Finally, on this date in 1929, the "NHL implemented the new 'offside' rule for the first time in league play. Forward passing would now be permitted inside all three zones, but not across the blue lines." At the time, Chris Chelios thought this would be a great way to increase offense, and, as it turns out, he was right.

Daily Awards

• Hart: Marian Gaborik (5G, but not the game-winner, A, +2)
  
• Ross: Marian Gaborik (6 points)
  
• Norris: Ed Jovanovski (2A, +1, 6 SOG)
  
• Vezina: Karri Ramo (W, 30 save on 31 shots against)
  
• Richard: Marian Gaborik (5G)
  
• Calder: Karri Ramo (W, 30 save on 31 shots against in first NHL start)
• Aiken: Henrik Lundqvist (L, 6 goals allowed on 18 shots against in 52:04 of work)

Sidney, With Your Lips So Bright...

Quick question: has anyone ever seen a lamer hockey poll than the one Sportsnet.ca is currently running? Don't bother clicking over - here it is:


Note that Martin St. Louis is not an option, undoubtedly because he'll be busy in the workshop making toys.

Like Potty Humor? Urine Luck!

As you undoubtedly know, tonight marks a very special anniversary in the hockey world (and not just because it was 15 years ago today that the NHL tapped Gary Bettman to be its first commissioner). More on the anniversary in a minute, but first a bit of history. As long as there's been hockey, there have been men drinking beer and watching hockey. And as long as there have been men drinking beer and watching hockey, there have been calls of nature.

At the confluence of hockey, beer and these calls of nature is one of the great achievements of modern plumbing, the urinal. After all, the deodorizing blocks found in these marvelous contraptions are frequently referred to as urinal pucks (and that's taken a bit more literal in some places than others), and it's doubtful that this first definition of the term "hockey puck" (link potentially NSFW, depending upon where you work) occurs in the absence of copious amounts of suds.

Forgetting the cold ones for a moment, hockey and urinals have a rich shared tradition. For example, did you know that Walter Brown Arena, the former home of the Boston University Terriers, was affectionately referred to in some circles as "The Urinal?" Then there's this fantastic story, as recounted at INCH:

[Jeff] Sauer is the only coach to ever receive a penalty while at a urinal. Between periods. Bill Brophy writes In "Shot and a Goal: A History of Wisconsin Hockey" that The Dean received his unorthodox bench penalty while coaching at CC.

"We were at Michigan,'' Sauer recalls in the book, "and there was an altercation after the period. I thought a Michigan guy started it and we had (Michigan coach Dan) Farrell and I separating 40 guys. So we get back to the locker room and I talk to my team and then head for the bathroom. Now at the old Yost Arena, there was a vent over the bathroom in our locker room and I could hear the officials in the next locker room saying I was right, that a Michigan guy started the fight. So I banged on the wall and yelled through the wall, 'if you see the bleeping penalty, call it.' So I go out on the ice and find out I got a two-minute bench penalty while in the men's room."

For Washington Capitals fans, there are decade-old fond memories of one of the ads out of the "Always Intense" campaign in which former Caps' bench boss Ron Wilson calls for a line change in the men's room, swapping out five fellas at the urinals for a fresh quintet.

But hockey fans' love affair with the urinal reached its pinnacle one year ago tonight at the Verizon Center. With the hated Penguins in town for a nationally-televised matchup between the reigning Rookie of the Year and the season's eventual scoring champ, gentlemen attending the game were presented with a very special opportunity. As the artiste himself described it:

As of about three years ago I began paying tribute to the Penguins by offering fans of both teams the ability to urinate on a "star". This year happened to be Sid with a small caption to entice those willing participants to aim more precisely.

I successfully placed these little pee-pics [pictured] in all the urinals at Verizon Center this past Monday night.

Do yourself a favor - read the entire story and ask yourself if you can imagine a better hockey urinal story (and if you can, I sure as hell don't want to hear about it).

As an epilogue to this porcelain heart-warming tale, I'd note that the New Jersey Devils have written a new chapter in the great book of hockey urinals by slapping their logo atop the plumbing. But while technological innovations may come along (or not) and events may conspire to spawn fantastic urinal-related anecdotes, one can't help but feel that never before and never again will so many hockey fans and so many urinals come together in such a monumental evening as they did one year ago tonight in our nation's capital.

Wednesday Roundup

One thing that good teams do is they win close games. Not surprisingly, eight of the top nine teams in winning percentage in one-goal games last year made the playoffs (flying in the face of this theory, however, is the fact that last year's Senators won only ten of 32 one-goal games and yet managed to play in the very last game of the playoffs. Huh).

The Caps, as you know (intuitively, at least), were dead last in the League in that stat last season (don't forget, every shootout loss is a one-goal loss). And, unfortunately, they're off to a rough start in that category again this season, losing three of their four one-goal games so far.

But let's take a deeper look at the Caps' play in close games, or, more accurately, at the Caps' play when the games have been close.

Through 11 games (660 minutes of hockey), the Caps have been tied for just over 167 minutes of game time (167:06, to be exact). Ten times, the Caps have scored the game's next goal, while their opponents have broken the tie 11 times. Seven of the Caps' tie-breakers have come in the first period (five have opened a game's scoring), two have come in the second and one has been in the game's final stanza (that first Isles game).

With those (and other) one goal leads, the Caps have played 94:57 of hockey in which the next goal would either serve as a bit of insurance or send things back to square one. Six times (twice in each period) the Caps have extended their margin to two, five times they've allowed their opponents to tie the game, and one time they held on for a one-goal win (that first Isles game again).

And what about their play when down a goal? In 146:28, the Caps have managed to score the tying goal five times, have fallen behind by a pair seven times, and seen the game end down that single goal three times. Of those five game-tying goals, only one has come in the third period (Flash's goal in the second Isles game), and overall, when down a goal in the third, the Caps have scored once and not scored six times. As a result, they're 0-6-0 when trailing after two periods.

So what do these numbers tell us? First, that when games are close (within a goal or less), the Caps have done their job (scoring or preventing a tying goal) 22 times and failed (to take the lead or tie the game) 26 times overall. That's pretty much a wash. But the team needs to start coming through in the clutch - only three times all season so far when the game was tied or within one goal in the third have the Caps scored with an opposing goalie in the net.

Second, the Caps are scoring once every 29:18 while down a goal, nearly twice the 15:49 it's taking them on average to score with a one-goal lead - perhaps a function, in part, of teams tightening up with a lead (versus taking chances when down a goal), but the Caps are scoring once every 16:43 in tied games, so there may be other factors at work as well (such as team and individual confidence, motivation, etc.). Or it could all be dumb luck.

I'll leave you (if you're still with me) with one last stat: the Caps are tied for first in the League with a 100% winning percentage in games they've lead after three periods. Put that in your pipe and smoke it, Elias Sports Bureau.

H/t to Earl over at BoC for the inspiration for this post.

Elsewhere 'Round the Rinks (and Beyond):

Apparently no Caps are among the League's most overrated players.... More weekly rankings are out, with the Caps at 22nd, 22nd and 21st.... One big win in a hockey-crazed city has the natives asking, "Are the Caps for real?"... Finally, since it's Halloween, I thought I'd let you guys in on my simple strategy for not having to deal with kids or buying candy while at the same time not getting your house egged for being the jerk who's not handing out treats. It's brilliant in its simplicity, really. You just put a huge empty bowl out by your front door with a sign that reads "Please take only one... or two [insert name of most popular/expensive candy]" and pretend to not be home. The result is that kids will think that it was some other little bastard's greed that has left them staring at an empty bowl, thereby sparing your reputation, sanity and siding for another year.

Daily Awards

• Hart: Sidney Crosby (G, 3A, +3, 4 SOG, 3 hits, 1 takeaway, 0 giveaways, 1 blocked shot, 68% faceoffs won)
  
• Ross: Sidney Crosby (4 points)
  
• Norris: Sergei Gonchar (2A, 3 SOG)
  
• Vezina: Miikka Kiprusoff (W, 39 saves on 40 shots against)
  
• Richard: Evgeni Malkin, Jarome Iginla (2G each)
  
• Calder: Carey Price (31 saves on 33 shots against in shootout loss)
  
• Aiken: Chris Mason (L, 5 goals allowed on 33 shots against)
  

Hockey MythBusters, Part I

Who's the youngest player in NHL history to serve as his team's captain?

That's easy - Sidney Crosby. After all, the League itself has parroted the fact (and markets the claim) and the meme has more or less become a commonly-accepted part of modern hockey lore, so it must be right, right?

Wrong.

Back in January of 1984, Brian Bellows first wore the "C" for the Minnesota North Stars and continued to do so for the remainder of the 1983-84 season (Bellows was the interim captain while Craig Hartsburg was out with a lengthy injury). Bellows was five eight-plus months younger when he first captained the North Stars than Crosby was when he formally took over the Pens' captaincy.

The fact that Crosby was the youngest "permanent" captain in League history can't be debated - but neither can the fact that Brian Bellows was the youngest captain in NHL history.