UNIONDALE, NY -- What does a Stanley Cup contender do when nothing is working, their feisty underdog of an opponent is giving them fits and they're down 2-0 with 15 minutes left in the game? To hear the Washington Capitals tell it after coming back to beat the New York Islanders 3-2 on Saturday night, a few things.
Be Aggressive: "The coaching staff told us before the third they wanted all the defensemen rushing the puck and getting it deep," said veteran blueliner Tom Poti. "There shouldn't be any wasted time in the neutral zone."
Defenseman Mike Green scored at 6:02 of the third period to close the gap to 2-1. Although the Islanders out-shot the Capitals 16-8 in the third period, the stat is misleading. While the Islanders had their chances to put the game away, Washington had a significant territorial edge in the final 10 minutes.
Get Angry: The Islanders won most of the one-one-battles through two periods and the game was chippy, with star wing Alexander Ovechkin engaging in personal battles with Andy Sutton, Sean Bergenheim, Jon Sim and Radek Martinek during the game and after whistles. Emotions boiled over when Islanders center Nate Thompson put a penalized knee-on-knee hit on Green, who was hobbled but stayed in the game.
"When Mike scored that goal," said Washington coach Bruce Boudreau, "you could tell how badly he wanted it, how badly he wanted to win. He got mad, like 'What the heck, let's win this game.' He played like he's capable of playing. For me, he was the best defenseman in the league last season."
Pray for Goaltending: A 1-0 Islanders lead after the first period could have been a lot more if the home team finished their chances and Capitals goaltender Jose Theodore didn't make several key stops.
"They really came hard and out-worked us," said Theodore. "As a goalie, especially with the talent we have, you just want to keep it close."
Said Boudreau: "I was thinking on the bench, Jose has played so well for us with not much to show for it. Let's win one for him."
Make Adjustments: Mid-way through the game, Boudreau split up Ovechkin and veteran right wing Mike Knuble. "I didn't see the chemistry," said the coach. "They were fighting the puck. I thought it was best for Knuble and Alex."
Keith Aucoin, just called up from the AHL, scored on a scramble near the crease off Islanders second-year center Josh Bailey to make it 2-2. Assists were credited to Ovechkin and Jeff Schultz.
Never Quit: Less than 10 minutes after scoring the overtime goal to give Washington the win, Capitals center Brooks Laich made it clear that the Islanders gave his team all they had.
"We have a lot of respect for that team," said Laich. "They work hard and are extremely well-coached. Teams talk a lot about working hard, but I don't think you can say that for every team in this league. The Islanders do. There's a reason five of our last seven games against them have gone to overtime."
Laich wasn't aware of the Islanders' recent tendency for blowing third period leads (New York is now 1-0-3 this season when leading after two periods). But he did think the Islanders could be taken.
"On the ice you could see fatigue in their faces in the third when we started carrying the play," said Laich. "They looked a little tired."
Boudreau cited the Islanders having played their third game in four nights, but his pride over his team's comeback out-weighed any disappointment in their disjointed first 30 minutes.
"Any time your team comes back from down 2-0 in the NHL, you're happy," said Boudreau. "It means you never quit."
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
10-25-2009 @ 12:42AM
andautumncomes said...
As an Isles fan, I love Brooks Laich, so I'm glad he said that and I agree with him. They probably put too much into the first two periods they're probably spent by the third. But at least we got a point. We should've won, but like they said, we go to OT a lot with them so that says something
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10-25-2009 @ 1:25AM
zillano9 said...
I've been thinking that there's a reason this style doesn't work. The players all get to tired constantly pushing. I know they're pro athletes, but they're playing against what is honestly more talented teams every night.
Anyone who's ever played knows that hockeys is so demanding on your conditioning and even the best conditioned players are tired after a minute long shift.
Might be time to tinker with the system a little. Maybe pressure in the neutral zone a little more and a little less in the attack zone. I hate when I see these guys go after a guy behind the goal line only to have to bust
it all the way back to the defensive zone and be out of gas.
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10-25-2009 @ 1:36AM
rbrigantic said...
Except for Ovechkin and Green, the Caps are mediocre and are going backwards. Cup contender? I don't think so.
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10-25-2009 @ 9:12AM
bennie said...
What a Hater....That's like saying except for Michael Jordan the Bull's were average. Thats what make a superstar super...he makes his team a contender.
10-25-2009 @ 1:02PM
capsyoungguns said...
You forgot Backstrom and Semin.
10-25-2009 @ 1:43AM
hocykid33 said...
Good story CB. It doesn't surprise me the Isles look tired in the eyes of their opponents. We talk about it all the time on PB... the system the Isles play have led to these third period breakdowns. I think the guy above me has it right, less energy expended in the attacking zone and more of a trap in the neutral zone. Also, the Isles run around in their own zone, every time the puck rims around to the point it seems like the forwards are one or two steps away from being there leading to long periods of time defending. I'd like to see some adjustments from Gordo, maybe positionally to fix this
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10-25-2009 @ 9:19AM
isles316 said...
Great story CB. I am a fan of Scott Gordon, however the blown leads of the last 2 seasons can't all be attributed to being a young team can it? The defense has plenty of experience.
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10-25-2009 @ 11:50AM
Bluze Guy said...
Thank Nate Thompson for waking the somnambulant
Caps and getting them mad...otherwise we may have notched a win...good thing they didn't look for retribution and nail one of our kids.
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10-25-2009 @ 10:05AM
remllov said...
Presuring in the offensive zone doesn't tire you out half as much as being pinned in the defensive zone. Besides, who doesn't mind working hard to score. That said, changing up the plan to back off in the O zone and trap in the neutral zone for a while during each period may conserve some energy and throw the opposition off a bit.
Isles spend way too much time in D zone. Look how often particularly in the third all five players are at the dots and below. Even when we get control, nobody is in position for breakout and the other team simply keeps it in and sends it deep. Other times Isles too content to simply clear the puck out of D zone only to have op D men collect the puck at the red line and start the process all over again.
Until we get D men that can win the puck, shake the pressure and make a good breakout, I'm afraid the trend will continue.
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10-25-2009 @ 11:09AM
arliss118 said...
Bluze guy, please dont even think about blaming nate thompson for that hit. thompson stepped up for a hit ang green tried to slide away and left his leg out. in no way did thompson extend his leg to make it a knee on knee
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10-25-2009 @ 11:13AM
steve said...
For those criticizing the coach, after the first line, the two most legit nhl players on the isles are weight and hunter. Neither played. The coach can't turn Jon Sim, Bergenheim, Tambellini, Comeau etc into more than they are - fringe nhl players.
Of course the isles will be tired late because they have to lean more heavily on their top 3 or 4 guys than most other teams.
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10-25-2009 @ 12:17PM
dogsncats45 said...
I predict that Ovechkin will soon drop the gloves, but when he does, he is going to pick someone that doesn't fight, like Martinek. If that happens, I am all for taking an instigator penalty the next time Ovechkin is on the ice, and having some heavyweight just go out there and pummel him, whether he wants to fight back or not. Ovechkin is chippy, so he deserves it soon...Malkin is dirty, and he deserves it now. I am all for sending the Wrecker on a mission to pummel Malkin right now. And how about Crosby? He should be pummeled for being a pansy.
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10-25-2009 @ 3:12PM
art said...
Garth Snow acquires 7 goalies period and it now appears that a healthy Rick DiPietro is a key for the Isles to be a losing but competitive team this season-Am I the only one that sees the irony?
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10-25-2009 @ 4:59PM
Rich D said...
Agree with all who stated that after the first line where will consistent scoring come from this year? I was at the game last night and with all the pressure shown in the first period, a team with better snipers would have put the game away early. Our best chances early resulted in the ever present shots going wide or hitting Theodore in the chest. Poor finishing results in small leads which are overcome by better teams later in the games. As far as the D are concerned, I agree that being able to control the puck in our own end and initiating crisp breakout passes is something we will have to wait for as our best D men are either playing in the AHL now or are yet to be drafted.
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10-25-2009 @ 6:22PM
Jah Love said...
More of the same from the Isles, not enough gas. Great post CB, yet another great style of bringing the story out.
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10-26-2009 @ 5:20PM
tazgraz91 said...
Look, here is the bottom line. Looking at the Isles roster, and this is just my opinion, we have 4 guys who should be in the AHL (Schremp, Bailey, Tambellini and Thompson). Of the remaining 19 who I think can play in the NHL only 2 are first liners (Biron and Streit). I have 5 as second liners (Okposo, Tavares, Meyer, Roloson and Sutton). The rest are 3rd and 4th liners. So the record is no surprise, but make no mistake, how could this be considered a rebuild? I cant see any of these players, in my opinion, building up to 1st line status with the exception of maybe Okposo and JT.
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