I think Head Coach Bruce Boudreau's comment pretty much sums up the effort by the Caps last night:“We had a gear missing and they played well,” Capitals coach Bruce Boudreau said. “I just think we had a real stinker. We stunk in the first period.
“I can’t say it any more clearly: We were all horrible together."
The Caps were completely outplayed and went into the first intermission down 4-0. Chicago added a goal in the second and then Chicago's goalie, Nikolai Khabibulin, shut down the Caps with a couple of acrobatic saves to preserve the shut out. To make matters worse, Carolina pounded Atlanta to take a 5-point lead in the SE Division race, and Tampa was was unable to hold onto a 4-1 lead over Buffalo and giving up 6 goals in the third period. Buffalo moved ahead of Washington into 9th place in the conference. The Caps play again on Friday in Atlanta.
Of Note:- The Caps were out shot 42-25. After the first period, Chicago held a 18-6 advantage in shots.
- The Caps took twice as many penalties as Chicago and gave up 1 power play goal.
- Alex Ovechkin was held pointless for the 17th time this year and his frustration showed as he amassed 7 hits and got into it with Jonathan Toews. Both received matching minors for roughing.
- According to the Super Stats (link below) the Caps committed no giveaways on the evening. Not so sure about that one.
Game Summary
Super Stats
2 comments:
The lost dropped the team two points shy of the final playoff spot. With just seven games left in the season, we have to put this devestating lost behind us and finish the final home and away games with intensity and determination. The Caps play very good hockey, and they cannot disappointing losses sabotage their chances of making the playoffs.
The Caps cannot let this loss get them down, they need to be sharp in Atlanta on Friday. Those are two points that the team has to get. I don't think Philly, Buffalo or Carolina will win all their remaining games but the Caps no longer hold any games in hand. I think they may be able to afford 1 more regulation loss but then the fate of the Caps playoff hopes would rest in the hands of the other teams. Hopefully, they got the "bad game" out of their system and can go on a tear for the final 7 games.
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