Game #81 Washington Capitals vs. Tampa Bay Lightning

Where: Verizon Center, Washington, DC

When: April 3, 2008, 7:00 PM

History:
Caps Record on this Date: 9-7-1-2
Caps Game 81 Record: 6-6-0-1
All-Time vs. TAM: 47-24-6-4
All-Time Home Record vs. TAM: 24-10-4-2
Last Season vs. TAM: 2-4-2
Last Meeting: 3/27/08, WAS 4 TAM 3 (OT)

This Year:
WAS Record: 41-31-8
Standings Points: 90
Division Rank: 2^nd
Conference Rank: 9^th
Last Game: 4/1/08, WAS 4 CAR 1
Streak: Won 5

TAM Record: 31-40-9
Standings Points: 71
Division Rank: 5^th
Conference Rank: 15^th
Last Game: 4/2/08, TAM 2 CAR 6
Streak: Loss 2

Game 1: 10/24/07, WAS 5 TAM 3
Game 2: 11/10/07, WAS 2 TAM 5
Game 3: 11/16/07, WAS 2 TAM 5
Game 4: 12/15/07, WAS 3 TAM 2
Game 5: 12/26/07, WAS 3 TAM 2
Game 6: 2/16/08, WAS 3 TAM 2
Game 7: 3/27/08, WAS 4 TAM 3

Probable Line-Ups:
Washington
Forward Line 1: 8 OVECHKIN, 19 BACKSTROM, 25 KOZLOV
Forward Line 2: 24 COOKE, 91 FEDOROV, 28 SEMIN
Forward Line 3: 43 FLEISCHMANN, 21 LAICH, 14 FEHR
Forward Line 4: 87 BRASHEAR, 15 GORDON, 10 BRADLEY
Defense Pair 1: 23 JURCINA, 52 GREEN
Defense Pair 2: 55 SCHULTZ, 3 POTI
Defense Pair 3: 4 ERSKINE, 44 EMINGER
Goalie: 33 HUET
Back-up Goalie: 37 KOLZIG

Tampa
Forward Line 1: 10 JOKINEN, 4 LACAVALIER, 26 ST. LOUIS
Forward Line 2: 21 DARCHE, 11 HALPERN, 7 OUELLET
Forward Line 3: 61 STEWART, 29 MACDONALD, 42 LESSARD
Forward Line 4: 74 TARNASKY, 24 KARLSSON, 16 WARD
Defense Pair 1: 22 BOYLE, 2 PICARD
Defense Pair 2: 54 RANGER, 71 KUBA
Defense Pair 3: 32 SMABY, 39 LUNDIN
Goalie: 41 SMITH
Back-up Goalie: 31 RAMO

Injuries:
Washington – 17 CLARK (groin) DTD, 92 NYLANDER (shoulder) IR, 2 POTHIER (head) IR, 39 STECKEL (broken finger) DTD, 26 MORRISONN (upper body) DTD
Tampa – 34 CRAIG (knee) IR, 27 TAYLOR (hip) IR, 77 GRATTON (hip) IR, (knee) DTD

Caps Milestones:
Viktor Kozlov needs 6 points to reach 500 in his career.
John Erskine needs 5 PIM’s to reach 500 in his career.

Preview:
The Caps got a little bit of help last night but need to win tonight to take advantage. The Caps can move into the 8^th spot in the conference as Pittsburgh defeated Philly in regulation. Philly has 91 points in the standings and with a win the Caps will have 92. New Jersey defeated Boston in a shootout so Boston gained 1 point to move to 92 in the standings. Tampa could not hold off the Carolina as the Hurricanes put a 6-2 beating on the Lightning. The win put Carolina 2 points ahead of the Caps in the SE Division. The Caps face a very unpredictable team in Tampa. They are a team with nothing to lose so look for the Caps to try and score early. Carolina scored a first minute goal last night and Tampa never recovered. The Caps had a tough time putting the Lightning away and required overtime to beat them last Saturday. I don’t see that happening again tonight. Look for the Caps to come out with lots of intensity knowing they need to win to survive.

Joe’s prediction: Caps 4 TAM 1

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Game #80 Recap - Capitals 4 Hurricanes 1

In the biggest game of the year, the Caps dominated the Carolina Hurricanes and sent them to a 4-1 defeat. The win drew the Caps even in standings points with the 1st place Canes in the SE Division and within 1-point of the 8th place final playoff spot in the East. The first period went exactly as the Caps wanted. It was very physical and the Caps scored twice to put the pressure on the Canes. Carolina responded with a goal early in the second but then a parade to the penalty box led to a Caps power play goal with about six minute remaining in the period. In the third period, Alex Ovechkin put the icing on the cake when he took a feed from Nicklas Backstrom an absolutely wired a shot into the top right corner for his 63rd goal of the year. Cristobal Huet stopped 21 of 22 shots and had an amazing stop on a breakaway in the second period. The Capitals 3 trade deadline acquisitions were named the stars of the game: 1st Star - Cristobal Huet, 2nd Star - Sergei Fedorov, 3rd Star Matt Cooke

Of Note:

• The Capitals are now tied with Carolina with 90 standings points, however, Carolina holds the tiebreaker advantage should the teams finished tied. Both team have two games remaining vs. Tampa and Florida.
• The Capitals got goals from 4 different player last night. Matt Cooke opened the scoring at even strength followed by Brooks Laich and Alexander Semin on the power play and finally Ovechkin at even strength in the third.
• Alexander Semin played his best game of the season. His stat line was 1 goal, plus-1 rating, 3 shots on goal, 2 attempts blocked, 4 missed shots, 3 hits, 5 giveaways, 2 takeaways, 1 blocked shot, and 2 penalty minutes. He also leveled Carolina's Eric Staal with a beautiful hit in the first period.
• Alex Ovechkin's 63rd goal of the season ties him with Luc Robitaille for most goals All-Time by a Left Wing. He needs 1 goal to tie Kelly Miller for 10th place on the Capitals All-Time Goals List.
• Cristobal Huet recorded his 7th straight victory. Since coming over from Montreal at the trade deadline he is 9-2-0 with a 1.75 GAA and a 0.933 save percentage.
• The Capitals out shot the Canes 39-22 and converted 2 of 8 power play opportunities. Carolina were held 0-4 on the power play. the Caps won the face-off battle 32-26.
• Mike Green and Sergei Fedorov each had 2 assists apiece. Viktor Kozlov, Tomas Fleischmann, Nicklas Backstrom and Jeff Schultz each had one.

Official Recap
Game Summary
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Game #80 Washington Capitals vs. Carolina Hurricanes

Where: Verizon Center, Washington, DC

When: April 1, 2008, 7:00 PM

History:
Caps Record on this Date: 11-5-1-1
Caps Game 80 Record: 18-10-3-0
All-Time vs. CAR: 29-19-7-3
All-Time Home Record vs. CAR: 16-9-2-1
Last Season vs. CAR: 3-3-2
Last Meeting: 3/25/08, WAS 3 CAR 2

This Year:
WAS Record: 40-31-8
Standings Points: 88
Division Rank: 2^nd
Conference Rank: 9^th
Last Game: 3/29/08, WAS 3 FLA 0
Streak: Won 4

CAR Record: 42-31-6
Standings Points: 90
Division Rank: 1^st
Conference Rank: 3^rd
Last Game: 3/29/08, CAR 1 TAM 2
Streak: Loss 1

Game 1: 10/6/07, WAS 2 CAR 0
Game 2: 11/5/06, WAS 0 CAR 5
Game 3: 11/24/07, WAS 5 CAR 2
Game 4: 11/30/07, WAS 3 CAR 4
Game 5: 2/8/08, WAS 1 CAR 2
Game 6: 2/23/08, WAS 3 CAR 6
Game 7: 3/25/08, WAS 3 CAR 2

Probable Line-Ups:
Washington
Forward Line 1: 8 OVECHKIN, 19 BACKSTROM, 25 KOZLOV
Forward Line 2: 24 COOKE, 91 FEDOROV, 28 SEMIN
Forward Line 3: 43 FLEISCHMANN, 21 LAICH, 14 FEHR
Forward Line 4: 87 BRASHEAR, 15 GORDON, 10 BRADLEY
Defense Pair 1: 26 MORRISONN, 52 GREEN
Defense Pair 2: 55 SCHULTZ, 3 POTI
Defense Pair 3: 23 JURCINA, 4 ERSKINE
Goalie: 33 HUET
Back-up Goalie: 37 KOLZIG

Carolina
Forward Line 1: 14 SAMSONOV, 12 STAAL, 37 AUCOIN
Forward Line 2: 15 RUUTU, 34 JENSEN, 24 WALKER
Forward Line 3: 59 LAROSE, 19 LETOWSKI, 51 HAMILTON
Forward Line 4: 18 BAYDA, 28 BROOKBANK, 26 COLE
Defense Pair 1: 42 GLEASON, 6 HEDICAN
Defense Pair 2: 7 WALLIN, 77 CORVO
Defense Pair 3: 5 KABERLE, 2 WESLEY
Goalie: 30 WARD
Back-up Goalie: 47 GRAHME

Injuries:
Washington – 17 CLARK (groin) DTD, 92 NYLANDER (shoulder) IR, 2 POTHIER (head) IR, 39 STECKEL (broken finger) DTD
Carolina – 11 WILLIAMS (knee) IR, 45 TANABE (concussion) IR, 44 EAVES (shoulder) IR, 17 BRIND’AMOUR (knee) IR, 8 CULLEN (concussion) IR, 13 WHITNEY (leg surgery) IR, 6 HEDICAN (torso) DTD

Caps Milestones:
Mike Green needs 2 Shots on Goal to reach 300 for his career.
John Erskine needs 7 PIM’s to reach 500 in his career.

Preview:
The roller coaster ride continues as the Carolina Hurricanes come into the Phone Booth with a two point lead in the division with three games to play. The dreaded 3-point game came into full effect this weekend and has Washington three points behind Boston, Philly, and the New York Rangers for the eight spot in the East. The scenarios range far and wide as to who needs to do what for the Caps to get in the playoffs. The one constant is that the Caps need to keep winning. Winning will put the pressure on the other teams and if there are true hockey gods then the best teams in the league (i.e. the Caps) will make the post season. In the most recent meeting at Verizon Center, February 8^th, Washington came into the game having just moved into first place in the division. Carolina dealt them a humbling blow with a 2-1 defeat of the Caps. Over the weeks since that game we have watched a team grow up. This team now knows what it is like to play in the big games to take on the top competition as well as how to take on the teams with nothing to lose. They have learned to come back from adversity and how to finish off a team when they are down. Now is their biggest test of the season. A win will put them squarely in contention for the post season. Look for this game to start at a torrid pace with both teams being very physical. The intensity will be sky high and watch our guys as, I think, they will grow into a true playoff caliber team and nothing will stand in their way.

Joe’s prediction: Caps 2 CAR 1
Joe’s wife offers a little more scoring: Caps 4 CAR 3 (possible OT)

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Game #79 Recap - Capitals 3 Panthers 0

With a 3-0 victory over the Florida Panthers, the Capitals keep pace with Philly and Boston in the race for the 8th playoff spot. They also got some help from Tampa who defeated the Carolina Hurricanes allowing the Caps to pull within 2 points of the Southeast Division Leaders. Cristobal Huet recorded his second shutout for the Caps since coming over from the Canadians at the trade deadline. After a scoreless first period, Viktor Kozlov opened the scoring in the second period with a one-timer that beat Florida goaltender Tomas Vokoun. Then Mike Green converted a beautiful feed from Alex Ovechkin for a 2-0 lead after two periods. Not to be out done, Ovechkin collected a loose puck mid-way in the third and fired it into the net for his 62nd goal of the season. The Caps finished their 6-game road trip with a 5-1-0 record. They face Carolina at home on Tuesday.

Of Note:

• Huet stopped 34 shots for his 4th shutout of the season.
• Viktor Kozlov had a three point night (1 goal - 2 assists) and Mike Green scored his 18th goal of the year. Both players broke the 50 point plateau on the season.
• Tom Poti had 2 assists and Brooks Laich and Ovechkin had 1, as well.
• The Caps were out shot 30-32 and out drawn in face-offs 28-24.

Official Recap
Game Summary
Super Stats

Game #79 Washington Capitals at Florida Panthers

Where: Bank Atlantic Center, Sunrise, FL

When: March 29, 2008, 7:00 PM

History:
Caps Record on this Date: 7-2-5-1
Caps Game 79 Record: 12-15-3-1
All-Time vs. FLA: 34-29-9-6
All-Time Road Record at FLA: 16-18-4-1
Last Season vs. FLA: 3-3-2
Last Meeting: 2/15/08, WAS 2 FLA 4

This Year:
WAS Record: 39-31-8
Standings Points: 86
Division Rank: 2^nd
Conference Rank: 9^th
Last Game: 3/27/08, WAS 4 TAM 3 (OT)
Streak: Won 3

FLA Record: 36-33-9
Standings Points: 81
Division Rank: 3^rd
Conference Rank: 11^th
Last Game: 3/27/08, FLA 2 ATL 3
Streak: Loss 2

Game 1: 11/15/07, WAS 1 FLA 2
Game 2: 11/19/07, WAS 3 FLA 4
Game 3: 11/28/07, WAS 1 FLA 2 (OT-SO)
Game 4: 12/1/07, WAS 2 FLA 1
Game 5: 1/19/08, WAS 5 FLA 3
Game 6: 2/16/08, WAS 2 FLA 4

Probable Line-Ups:
Washington
Forward Line 1: 8 OVECHKIN, 19 BACKSTROM, 25 KOZLOV
Forward Line 2: 24 COOKE, 91 FEDOROV, 28 SEMIN
Forward Line 3: 43 FLEISCHMANN, 21 LAICH, 14 FEHR
Forward Line 4: 87 BRASHEAR, 15 GORDON, 10 BRADLEY
Defense Pair 1: 26 MORRISONN, 52 GREEN
Defense Pair 2: 55 SCHULTZ, 3 POTI
Defense Pair 3: 23 JURCINA, 4 ERSKINE
Goalie: 33 HUET
Back-up Goalie: 37 KOLZIG

Florida
Forward Line 1: 10 BOOTH, 9 WEISS, 16 HORTON
Forward Line 2: 85 OLESZ, 53 MCLEAN, 14 DVORAK
Forward Line 3: 18 PELTONEN, 12 JOKINEN, 15 STUMPEL
Forward Line 4: 11 CAMPBELL, 54 KREPS, 33 BELAK
Defense Pair 1: 4 BOUWMEESTAR, 22 CULLIMORE
Defense Pair 2: 3 SKRASTINS, 6 JOHANSSON
Defense Pair 3: 21 MURPHY, 5 ALLEN
Goalie: 29 VOKOUN
Back-up Goalie: 31 ANDERSON

Injuries:
Washington – 17 CLARK (groin) DTD, 92 NYLANDER (shoulder) IR, 2 POTHIER (head) IR, 39 STECKEL (broken finger) DTD
Florida – 20 ZEDNIK (neck laceration) IR, 17 MURRAY (shoulder) IR, 26 VAN RYN (wrist) IR, 27 WELCH (shoulder) IR

Caps Milestones:
Mike Green needs 7 Shots on Goal to reach 300 for his career.
Victor Kozlov needs 2 Shots on Goal to reach 200 as a Capital.

Preview:
The Capitals again need to win this game to keep pace in the playoff race. The Panthers are a very dangerous opponent. They have lost their previous two games and have almost been eliminated from the playoffs but have still been one of the hottest teams in the league over the last three weeks. In their last meeting, February 15^th, the Panthers beat the Caps 4-2. The Caps, however, have been playing elimination hockey for the last two months and Head Coach Bruce Boudreau has them believing in themselves. They have come from behind in the last two games to pullout shootout and overtime wins. Look for this to be another close physical game that will cause you to pull your hair out. The Caps will find a way to pull this one out in the end, but hang on because it’s going to be a rollercoaster ride.

Joe’s prediction: Caps 3 FLA 2

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Game #78 Recap - Capitals 4 Lightning 3 (OT)

Another nail bitting overtime victory for the Caps. It took 2:27 of overtime before the Tomas Fleischmann of the Capitals finally put away the Tampa Bay Lightning. With the Tampa goalie scrambling to cover a loose puck Brooks Laich was able to pass to a wide open Fleischmann who buried the puck for the victory. The win allowed the Caps to keep pace with the Boston Bruins who defeated Toronto last night. This was a good win for the Caps who have won four of five on this road trip and have another game in Florida tomorrow. The game was a hard fought victory as the Caps twice took one goal leads only to have Tampa come back and score. Tampa took the lead early in the third and the Caps came back with a goal late to tie it up and send it to overtime. This is what happens when teams play as many times as the Caps and and Bolts have played each other over the last three seasons. Each team knows each other inside and out and its a grind it out type game. Tampa really made life difficult in the neutral zone and frustrated the Caps vertical game. The Caps had a standout performance from Sergei Fedorov who set up Brooks Laich to open the game with a shorthanded goal and then set up up Alexander Semin's game tying goal with a face-off win in the third period. Cristobal Huet played an excellent game in goal making several spectacular saves to keep the game close. With 4 games remaining the Caps are 2 points behind the Bruins in the playoff race. For the Caps the need to follow the advice of Oakland Raiders owner Al Davis and "Just win, baby."

Of Note:

• Brooks Laich recorded his 20th goal of the season, a career best. It was his 2nd shorthanded goal on the year and he assisted on Fleischmann's game-winner.
• Matt Bradley scored his 7th goal of the year, assisted by Tom Poti and Jeff Schultz.
• Boyd Gordon played in his 200th career NHL game. He was a plus-1 with 1 shot on goal and 2 blocked shots.
• The Capitals out shot Tampa 32-26 and led in face-off wins 35-28.
• Cristobal Huet finished with 23 saves in the win giving him a 7-2-0 record since coming over from Montreal.
• Alexander Semin's goal was the 72nd of his career and tied him with Chris Simon at 33rd on the Caps All-Time Goals list. His 134th point ties him with Richard Zednik at 45th on the All-Time Points list.

Official Recap
Game Summary
Super Stats

Game #78 Washington Capitals at Tampa Bay Lightning

Where: St. Pete Times Forum, Tampa, FL

When: March 27, 2008, 7:30 PM

History:
Caps Record on this Date: 3-8-2-0
Caps Game 78 Record: 13-13-3-2
All-Time vs. TAM: 46-24-6-4
All-Time Road Record at TAM: 22-14-2-2
Last Season vs. TAM: 2-4-2
Last Meeting: 2/16/08, WAS 3 TAM 2

This Year:
WAS Record: 38-31-8
Standings Points: 84
Division Rank: 2^nd
Conference Rank: 9^th
Last Game: 3/25/08, WAS 3 CAR 2 (OT-SO)
Streak: Won 2

TAM Record: 30-38-8
Standings Points: 68
Division Rank: 5^th
Conference Rank: 15^th
Last Game: 3/25/08, TAM 3 FLA 1
Streak: Won 1

Game 1: 10/24/07, WAS 5 TAM 3
Game 2: 11/10/07, WAS 2 TAM 5
Game 3: 11/16/07, WAS 2 TAM 5
Game 4: 12/15/07, WAS 3 TAM 2
Game 5: 12/26/07, WAS 3 TAM 2
Game 6: 2/16/08, WAS 3 TAM 2

Probable Line-Ups:
Washington
Forward Line 1: 8 OVECHKIN, 19 BACKSTROM, 25 KOZLOV
Forward Line 2: 24 COOKE, 91 FEDOROV, 28 SEMIN
Forward Line 3: 43 FLEISCHMANN, 21 LAICH, 14 FEHR
Forward Line 4: 87 BRASHEAR, 15 GORDON, 10 BRADLEY
Defense Pair 1: 26 MORRISONN, 52 GREEN
Defense Pair 2: 55 SCHULTZ, 4 POTI
Defense Pair 3: 23 JURCINA, 44 EMINGER
Goalie: 33 HUET
Back-up Goalie: 37 KOLZIG

Tampa
Forward Line 1: 21 DARCHE, 4 LACAVALIER, 7 OUELLET
Forward Line 2: 10 JOKINEN, 11 HALPERN, 26 ST. LOUIS
Forward Line 3: 61 STEWART, 29 MACDONALD, 42 LESSARD
Forward Line 4: 74 TARNASKY, 24 KARLSSON, 16 WARD
Defense Pair 1: 22 BOYLE, 2 PICARD
Defense Pair 2: 54 RANGER, 71 KUBA
Defense Pair 3: 55 O’BRIEN, 39 LUNDIN
Goalie: 31 RAMO
Back-up Goalie: 30 DENIS

Injuries:
Washington – 17 CLARK (groin) DTD, 92 NYLANDER (shoulder) IR, 2 POTHIER (head) IR, 39 STECKEL (broken finger), 4 ERSKINE (undisclosed) DTD
Tampa – 34 CRAIG (knee) IR, 27 TAYLOR (hip) IR, 37 LUKOWICH (sports hernia) IR, 77 GRATTON (hip) IR, 41 SMITH (knee) DTD

Caps Milestones:
Boyd Gordon will play his 200^th career NHL game
Nicklas Backstrom needs 2 assists to tie Alex Ovechkin’s record for most assists by a Capitals rookie.
Mike Green needs 13 Shots on Goal to reach 300 for his career.
Victor Kozlov needs 4 Shots on Goal to reach 200 as a Capital.

Preview:

The Capitals need to win this game to stay in the playoff hunt. This will be the case for the final 5 games of the season. After a big win in Carolina the team cannot afford a letdown against the Lightning. The Caps need to come out strong and build a lead early and not let Tampa even into this one. These are the dangerous games as Tampa is having a difficult year but still has the power to put a huge damper in the Caps’ playoff plans. Just ask the Florida Panthers who lost to Tampa on Tuesday to put them 3 points behind the Caps. Look for the Caps to put the accelerator down early and continue to shoot the puck from everywhere. With Tampa’s #1 goalie going down in practice earlier this week it will be an uphill battle for the Lightning, but it has been that way all season for them. If the Caps play their game this one should not be close.

Joe’s prediction: Caps 6 TAM 2

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