Game #82 Recap: Caps 0 Florida 1

In a game that looked more like a scrimmage the Caps fell 1-0 to the Florida Panthers. Probable playoff game #1 starter Michal Neuvirth looked decent in the loss giving up only 1 goal on 23 shots. On offensive the Caps had 28 shots at the net but couldn't get one past Tomas Vokoun for the second time this season. Vokoun shutout the Caps in Washington back on December 9th for the fourth loss of their infamous 8-game losing streak. So the regular season is done and a little scoreboard watching showed that the Carolina Hurricanes were routed at home so the Capitals will face the New York Rangers in the first round of the playoffs. Hopefully, Washington will either forget the beat downs they took from the Rangers earlier this season. It should be fun and it all starts next week.

Of Note:

• Alex Ovechkin had 6 shots on goal and 3 hits in the game and finished the season with a career low 85 points and 31 goals. However, he did tie his career high with 11 game-winning goals and finished the final 5 games with 3 goals and 5 assists.
• Michal Neuvirth finished his first full campaign in Washington with a record of 27-12-4. The goalies for the Capitals combined for a save percentage of 0.920 which was a franchise best.
• Scott Hannan led the rear guards with 4 of the teams 18 blocked shots in the game. The Capitals also set a franchise mark with a total of 1,257 blocked shots during the season. This is a good skill to be good at in the post season be sure to watch.
• Washington was 0 for 1 on the power play while the Panther were 0 for 2. The Capitals penalty killers finished the season allowing 42 power play goals on 299 chances for an 86% kill rate.
• Now its on to post season and thank you to everyone who has been following along for the 2010-11 Capitals regular season. I hope to see you back again for the playoffs.

Official Recap
Game Summary
Event Summary

Game #82 Preview: Washington Capitals at Florida Panthers

Where: BankAtlantic Center, Sunshine, FL

When:  April 9, 2011, 7:00 PM

History:           

Caps Record on this Date: 5-0-1-0

Caps Game 82 Record: 8-5-1-2

All-Time vs. FLA: 48-33-9-7

All-Time at FLA: 23-19-4-2

Last Season vs. FLA: 6-0-0

Last Meeting: 4/6/11, WAS 5 FLA 2

Season Series: 4-1-1

This Year:

WAS Record: 48-22-11

Standings Points: 107

Division Rank: 1st

Conference Rank: 1st

Last Game: 4/6/11, WAS 5 FLA 2

Streak: Win 4

FLA Record: 29-40-12

Standings Points: 70

Division Rank: 5th

Conference Rank: 15th    

Last Game: 4/8/11, FLA 2 TAM 4

Streak: Lost 10

Probable Line-Ups:     

Washington

Forward Line 1: 8 OVECHKIN, 19 BACKSTROM, 22 KNUBLE

Forward Line 2: 18 STURM, 44 ARNOTT, 16 FEHR

Forward Line 3: 21 LAICH, 90 JOHANSSON, 25 CHIMERA

Forward Line 4: 26 HENDRICKS, 15 GORDON, 10 BRADLEY

Defense Pair 1: 55 SCHULTZ, 23 HANNAN

Defense Pair 2: 27 ALZNER, 74 CARLSON

Defense Pair 3: 4 ERSKINE, 62 COLLINS

Goalie: 30 NEUVIRTH

Back-up Goalie: 1 VARLAMOV

Florida

Forward Line 1: 14 SAMSONOV, 13 SANTORELLI, 11 BERGFORS

Forward Line 2: 10 BOOTH, 19 REASONER, 15 SKILLE

Forward Line 3: 63 DADONOV, 20 CARTER, 32 REPIK

Forward Line 4: 16 HORDICHUK, 18 MATTHIAS, 26 BERNIER

Defense Pair 1: 52 GARRISON, 43 WEAVER

Defense Pair 2: 4 ELLERBY, 7 KULIKOV

Defense Pair 3: 3 WILSON, 48 CALLAHAN

Goalie: 30 CLEMMENSEN

Back-up Goalie: 35 PLANTE

Injuries:

Washington – 3 POTI (upper body) IR, (upper body) IR, 52 GREEN (head) IR, 6 WIDEMAN (lower body) DTD, 89 SLOAN (jaw) DTD, 28 SEMIN (wrist) DTD

FLA – WEISS (groin) DTD, SULZER (groin) IR, VOKOUN (back) DTD, TIMMINS (concussion) IR, OLESZ (knee) IR, BITZ (sports hernia) IR

Caps Milestones:

Jason Chimera needs 2 goals to reach 100 in his career.

Preview:

In the last game of the regular season the Capitals and Florida Panthers meet in the sunshine state. For the Caps it is the stop for their season long wait to get back to the post season that went so wrong a year ago. For Florida it is the culmination of a tough year and the final chanced for the youngsters to show the GM that they belong in the big leagues. For one Capital, however, it is a return to ice and chance to play again. Mike Green is slated to play for the first time since being elbowed in the head by the Rangers’ Derek Stephan on February 25^th which followed a slap shot to the head a week earlier. For the Caps it is some welcome relief to the blue line that has been ailing in the final two weeks of the season. Let’s hope Green has an uneventful game and can get back in the swing of things. Due to an overtime loss by Philly, Washington has captured its second consecutive Eastern Conference crown and, should they survive, home ice for at least the first three rounds of the playoffs.  Tomorrow’s game should interesting, will Head Coach Bruce Boudreau put out his playoff lineup for a final tune up or rest them for what he hopes is a long second season? One thing is for sure, this is not last year’s team. The Capitals have prided themselves on becoming a shutdown defensive team and allowed only 36 goals against in their last 19 games. That’s an average of 1.89 goals against. They played tough competition and compiled a record of 16-2-1 over those games. The Caps should be feeling good about themselves but they do have one game to play. I think they put this one away early and get ready for the show.

Joe’s prediction: Caps 5 FLA 1

Official Preview

Game #81 Recap: Caps 5 Florida 2

The Washington power play has come to life and contributed 2 goals in the first period and the Caps built a 4-0 lead before a couple of late goals by the Panthers. The Caps took the 5-2 win and are within grasp of the Eastern Conference top spot with one more game with these same Panthers to go. The Caps took the early lead when Mike Knuble directed the puck into the net just 1:20 into the contest. Late in the period Jason Chimera deposited a Nicklas Backstrom pass for a 2-0 lead after 1 period. In between the two goals, Semyon Varlamov stopped all 18 shots he faced in his first action since March 29. The second period saw a more defensively focused Washington team who only allowed 8 shots. The Caps extended the lead with some unlikely sources. Sean Collins got the eventual game-winner when he converted a nice pass from Alex Ovechkin. Matt Hendricks got his 9th goal of the season early in the third period. The Caps let down a little at the end when the Panthers scored on the power play and another with the goalie pulled to cut the deficit to 4-2. Alex Ovechkin finished off the scoring with an empty netter. Washington will head to Florida for the back end of the home-and-home series and the final game of the regular season.

Of Note:

• Semyon Varlamov stopped 31 of 33 shots for his 11th win of the season.
• Alex Ovechkin had another 3-point night with a goal and 2 assists and has registered 29 points in his last 21 games. That's an average of 1.38 points per game which is a little higher than his career average of 1.30 points per game. I think Ovie is definitely back.
• Brooks Laich and Nicklas Backstrom each had 2 assists each while Boyd Gordon and Jeff Schultz had 1 apiece.
• The Capitals blocked 24 shots in the game led by John Erskine who had 6 on his own.
• Sean Collins playing in his third game of the season got his second career goal and his first game winner.
• The Caps were 2 for 4 on the power play while the penalty killers were successful on 3 of 4 Florida power play attempts.
• Schultz was +1.

Official Recap
Game Summary
Event Summary

Game Highlights:

Game #81 Preview: Florida Panthers at Washington Capitals

Where: Verizon Center, Washington, DC

When:  April 6, 2011, 7:00 PM

History:           

Caps Record on this Date: 4-5-2-0

Caps Game 81 Record: 9-6-0-1

All-Time vs. FLA: 57-49-10-5

All-Time at home vs. FLA: 21-28-6-3

Last Season vs. FLA: 6-0-0

Last Meeting: 3/6/11, WAS 3 FLA 2

Season Series: 2-1-1

This Year:

WAS Record: 47-22-11

Standings Points: 105

Division Rank: 1st

Conference Rank: 1st

Last Game: 4/5/11, WAS 3 TOR 2 (OT-SO)

Streak: Win 3

FLA Record: 29-38-12

Standings Points: 70

Division Rank: 5th

Conference Rank: 15th    

Last Game: 4/2/11, FLA 2 PIT 4

Streak: Lost 8

Probable Line-Ups:     

Washington

Forward Line 1: 8 OVECHKIN, 19 BACKSTROM, 22 KNUBLE

Forward Line 2: 18 STURM, 44 ARNOTT, 16 FEHR

Forward Line 3: 21 LAICH, 90 JOHANSSON, 25 CHIMERA

Forward Line 4: 26 HENDRICKS, 15 GORDON, 10 BRADLEY

Defense Pair 1: 55 SCHULTZ, 23 HANNAN

Defense Pair 2: 27 ALZNER, 74 CARLSON

Defense Pair 3: 4 ERSKINE, 62 SLOAN

Goalie: 30 NEUVIRTH

Back-up Goalie: 1 VARLAMOV

Florida

Forward Line 1: 14 SAMSONOV, 13 SANTORELLI, 11 BERGFORS

Forward Line 2: 10 BOOTH, 19 REASONER, 15 SKILLE

Forward Line 3: 63 DADONOV, 20 CARTER, 32 REPIK

Forward Line 4: 16 HORDICHUK, 18 MATTHIAS, 26 BERNIER

Defense Pair 1: 52 GARRISON, 43 WEAVER

Defense Pair 2: 4 ELLERBY, 7 KULIKOV

Defense Pair 3: 3 WILSON, 48 CALLAHAN

Goalie: 30 CLEMMENSEN

Back-up Goalie: 35 PLANTE

Injuries:

Washington – 3 POTI (upper body) IR, (upper body) IR, 52 GREEN (head) IR, 6 WIDEMAN (lower body) DTD, 89 SLOAN (jaw) DTD, 28 SEMIN (wrist) DTD

FLA – WEISS (groin) DTD, SULZER (groin) IR, VOKOUN (back) DTD, TIMMINS (concussion) IR, OLESZ (knee) IR, BITZ (sports hernia) IR, MATTHIAS (ankle) DTD

Caps Milestones:

Jason Chimera needs 3 goals to reach 100 in his career.

Preview:

After facing 5 straight teams that are in the playoffs or were fighting to stay in the hunt the Capitals take on the Eastern Conference’s last place team in a home-and-home series to close out the regular season. By way of their shootout victory last night in Toronto and a Philly loss the Capitals have taken the lead in the East and have a shot at a second consecutive Eastern Conference Title. The Panthers on the other hand are trying finish out the season with their pride intact. Florida has been struggling to score goals which play right into the hands of the Washington defense. The Caps have only allowed 35 goals in their last 18 games and have been getting progressively better on that side of the puck. The Caps are starting to get some its defense back as John Erskine returned to the lineup last night and GM George McPhee has said that Mike Green may return for one of the Florida games so that is welcome news to the team who will need an experienced puck moving defenseman come playoff time. I expect this game to start fast and if the Caps score first they will win going away if not it will be close but I think the Caps will be fired up for their final home game.

Joe’s prediction: Caps 4 FLA 1

Official Preview

Game #66 Recap: Caps 3 Florida 2 (OT)

The Capitals pulled out another 1-goal victory, this time it was Alexander Semin on overtime. Washington started a bit slow giving up 16 shots in the first period but Michal Neuvirth was only pierced for 1 goal against. The Caps responded on the very next shift with Alex Ovechkin winning a puck battle in the corner and feeding Nicklas Backstrom in the high slot. Backstrom powered home a one-timer and the game was knotted a 1-1 after one period. In the second period Washington was a bit careless and gave up 3 power play attempts but luckily got some good goal tending and the penalty killers got the job done. In the midst of the penalties was some brilliant play by the Caps who were holding the puck in the offensive zone and cycling like crazy. It was off a cycle play that Boyd Gordon came up with a rebound and backhanded the puck into the unguarded side of the net for his second goal of the season and gave the Capitals a 2-1 lead after two periods. The third saw the Capitals come out with a full defensive posture. With 5 guys back the Capitals were frustrating the Panthers by clogging the neutral zone and giving no easy entrance in the offensive zone. This plan was working well for the Caps until the penalty bug hit again. With 4 minutes left in the game John Erskine and Dennis Wideman were whistled for tripping and slashing and gave the Panthers a two-man advantage. 27-seconds later the score was tied 2-2. There was no more scoring in regulation. In the overtime period it took one shift change for the Capitals to get Marcus Johansson and Alexander Semin on the ice and the duo took the puck down the left wing into the Florida zone. Semin dropped the puck to Johansson who passed it straight back to Semin who one-timed a bad angle shot through the goalie's legs for the game-winner.

Of Note:

• The Capitals have won 4 games in a row and reclaimed the top spot in the SE Division. They face the second place Lightning tonight in Tampa.
• Alex Ovechkin picked up an assist and has 12 points in his last 9 games.
• The Caps last 7 wins have been by 1-goal.
• Alexander Semin scored his second game-winning goal in the last four games.
• Michal Neuvirth stopped 32 of 34 shots for his 21st win of the season.
• Boyd Gordon scored his second goal of the season and blocked 4 shots both he and Semin scored on the only shots they took in the game.
• Mike Knuble, Matt Hendricks, John Carlson, Karl Alzner, and Marcus Johansson each had 1 assist in the game.
• The Caps were unsuccessful in their only power play attempt and stopped 5 of 6 Florida power plays.

Official Recap
Game Summary
Event Summary

Game Highlights:

Game #66 Preview: Washington Capitals at Florida Panthers

Where: Bank Atlantic Center, Sunshine, FL

When:  March 6, 2011, 5:00 PM

History:           

Caps Record on this Date: 8-3-4-0

Caps Game 66 Record: 15-15-1-3

All-Time vs. FLA: 46-33-9-7

All-Time at FLA: 22-19-4-2

Last Season vs. FLA: 6-0-0

Last Meeting: 1/11/11, WAS 3 FLA 4 (OT)

Season Series: 1-1-1

This Year:

WAS Record: 35-20-10

Standings Points: 80

Division Rank: 2nd

Conference Rank: 5th

Last Game: 3/4/11, WAS 3 STL 2

Streak: Win 3

FLA Record: 26-31-8

Standings Points: 60

Division Rank: 5th

Conference Rank: 13th

Last Game: 3/5/11, FLA 3 ATL 4 (OT)

Streak: Lost 4

Probable Line-Ups:     

Washington

Forward Line 1: 8 OVECHKIN, 19 BACKSTROM, 22 KNUBLE

Forward Line 2: 21 LAICH, 44 ARNOTT, 28 SEMIN

Forward Line 3:18 STURM, 90 JOHANSSON, 25 CHIMERA

Forward Line 4: 26 HENDRICKS, 15 GORDON, 10 BRADLEY

Defense Pair 1: 23 HANNAN, 6 WIDEMAN

Defense Pair 2: 27 ALZNER, 74 CARLSON

Defense Pair 3: 55 SCHULTZ, 4 ERSKINE

Goalie: 30 NEUVIRTH

Back-up Goalie: 70 HOLTBY

Florida

Forward Line 1: 14 SAMSONOV, 9 WEISS, 11 BERFORS

Forward Line 2: 10 BOOTH, 13 SANTORELLI, 26 BERNIER

Forward Line 3: 17 MCARDLE, 19 REASONER, 32 REPIK

Forward Line 4: 16 HORDICHUK, 75 TIMMINS, 37 THOMAS

Defense Pair 1: 52 GARRISON, 43 WEAVER

Defense Pair 2: 4 ELLERBY, 2 SULZER

Defense Pair 3: 7 KULIKOV, 48 CALLAHAN

Goalie: 29 VOKOUN

Back-up Goalie: 30 CLEMMENSEN

Injuries:

Washington – 3 POTI (upper body) IR, 16 FEHR (upper body) IR, 52 GREEN (head) DTD, 1 VARLAMOV (undisclosed) DTD

FLA – SKILLE (ankle) IR, CARTER (upper body) IR, OLESZ (knee) IR, DADONOV (broken finger) IR, MATTHIAS (broken ankle) IR, CULLEN (Achilles) IR, BITZ (lower body) IR

Caps Milestones:

Brooks Laich needs 2 goals to reach 100 in his career.

Jason Arnott needs 3 goals to reach 400 in his career.

Jason Chimera needs 4 goals to reach 100 in his career.

Alex Ovechkin needs 6 goals to reach 300 in his career.

Jason Arnott needs 1 point to reach 900 in his career.

Alex Ovechkin needs 4 points to reach 600 in his career.

Dennis Wideman needs 2 points to reach 200 in his career.

Preview:

The Capitals head to Florida with a 3 game winning streak and a chance to catch Tampa for at the top of the SE Division standings but first they must deal with a Florida that has nothing to lose. The last 6 wins by the Capitals have come in 1 goal games so they need to take every game seriously. The Panthers are already playing for next season so it is important to take them out of the game early. The Capitals top lines are starting to click again and have been vastly improved in the two games since the trade deadline. The third and fourth lines need to step up and chip in on the score sheet. I am looking for a breakout of sorts from the line of Chimera-Johansson-Strum. The speed is unbelievable but the finishing hasn’t been there. I expect these guys to put one up in today’s game.  I am thinking that the Caps will take care of business in Sunshine and come away with the two points and with more than a 1 goal cushion.

Joe’s prediction: Caps 4 FLA 1

Official Preview

Game #43 Recap: Caps 3 Florida 4 (OT)

The recap is the same for quite a number of games this year. The Caps come out flat, give up the lead, fight back to even, and lose in overtime. Last night the Caps allowed the Panthers a three goal lead before deciding they were going to play in this game. The only reason they were still in the game was the play of Michal Neuvirth in the Capitals net. The goalie made numerous big saves in the early going as he faced 30 shots in the first two periods. The Caps gave up goals on two 5-on-3 Florida power plays and a deflection that Nuevirth had no chance on. The Caps did come back on a two goal effort from Marcus Johansson and a goal from Mike Knuble. The story of the game was special teams as the team when 0 for 5 on the power play and gave up 3 power play goals including the game winner. With Mike Green in the box for hooking the Panthers scored a 4 on 3 overtime goal to take the extra standing point. The good news for the Capitals is in their last 9 games they have a record of 6-0-3 and have picked up 15 of 18 points in the standings.

Of Note:

• Marcus Johansson had the first two goal game of his career. He connected for the Capitals first goal off a nice rush up ice from Brian Willsie, to Johansson, to Brooks Laich and back to Johansson for the finish. His second goal was a goalmouth stuff in of a loose puck. Matt Hendricks collected the puck in the right wing corner and through the puck to the net where Johansson pushed the puck in to tie the game at 3-3.
• Mike Knuble scored on a wrist shot after Alex Ovechkin drew 3 defenders and make a nice pass hitting Knuble in stride on the right wing circle.
• The Capitals were out shot 41 to 33 in the game. 10 of Florida's shots came on the power play.
• Washington defenders blocked 22 shots with Eric Fehr leading the team with 4 on the night.
• Mike Green and Nicklas Backstrom each picked up 1 assist.
• In the OT loss Michal Nuevirth stopped 37 of 41 shots but without his effort it would have been much, much worse.

Official Recap
Game Summary
Event Summary

Game #43 Preview: Washington Capitals at Florida Panthers

Where: BankAtlantic Center, Sunrise, FL

When:  January 11, 2011, 7:30 PM

History:           

Caps Record on this Date: 8-11-3-0

Caps Game 43 Record: 15-15-5-0

All-Time vs. FLA: 46-33-9-6

All-Time at FLA: 22-19-4-1

Last Season vs. FLA 6-0-0

Last Meeting: 1/8/11, WAS 3 FLA 2

This Year:

WAS Record: 24-12-6

Standings Points: 54

Division Rank: 2nd

Conference Rank: 5th

Last Game: 1/8/11, WAS 3 FLA 2

Streak: Win 1

FLA Record: 18-20-2

Standings Points: 38

Division Rank: 5th

Conference Rank: 11th    

Last Game: 1/8/11, FLA 2 WAS 3

Streak: Loss 3

Probable Line-Ups:     

Washington

Forward Line 1: 8 OVECHKIN, 19 BACKSTROM, 22 KNUBLE

Forward Line 2: 25 CHIMERA, 85 PERRAULT, 14 FEHR

Forward Line 3: 21 LAICH, 90 JOHANSSON, 83 BEAGLE

Forward Line 4: 17 KING, 26 HENDRICKS, 39 STECKEL

Defense Pair 1: 52 GREEN, 23 HANNAN

Defense Pair 2: 27 ALZNER, 74 CARLSON

Defense Pair 3: 55 SCHULTZ, 3 POTI

Goalie: 1 VARLAMOV

Back-up Goalie: 30 NEUVIRTH

Florida

Forward Line 1: 21 HIGGINS, 9 WEISS, 67 FROLIK

Forward Line 2: 10 BOOTH, 13 SANTORELLI, 85 OLESZ

Forward Line 3: 61 STILLMAN, 19 REASONER, 14 DVORAK

Forward Line 4: 26 BERNIER, 18 MATTHIAS, 16 HORDICHUK

Defense Pair 1: 6 WIDEMAN, 52 GARRISON

Defense Pair 2: 24 MCCABE, 43 WEAVER

Defense Pair 3: 5 ALLEN, 7 KULIKOV

Goalie: 29 VOKOUN

Back-up Goalie: 30 CLEMMENSEN

Injuries:

Washington – 15 GORDON (lower body) IR, 17 KING (undisclosed) IR, 10 BRADLEY (broken finger) IR, 28 SEMIN (thigh) DTD

Florida – 36 CULLEN (ruptured Achilles tendon) IR, 12 BITZ (lower body) IR

Caps Milestones:

Nicklas Backstrom needs 4 points to reach 300 in his career.

Preview:

The Capitals are headed for a two day tour of Florida with back-to-back games against the Florida Panthers and the Tampa Bay Lightning. The last game saw the Caps beat the Panthers in a one goal game. The Capitals are still struggling on the power play but got goals from two of their big guns, Alex Ovechkin and Mike Green. Alexander Semin was injured in the game and did not make the trip to Florida. Boyd Gordon did make the trip and may see action at some point this week. I expect the rematch with the Panthers to go about the same as the game on Saturday with both teams grinding and the game won or lost in the corner battles. The Washington penalty kill is playing stellar hockey and have not allowed a goal in 27 shorthanded opportunities. Look for more of the same in this one with the power play getting back in gear.

Joe’s prediction: Caps 4 FLA 1

Official Preview