The Goal...Part II?
Alexander Ovechkin scored his 42nd goal of the season last night as the Caps squeaked out a 4-3 shoot-out win over Montreal at the Verizon Center. In addition to the plethora of goals that Ovi has already scored during his short career(205 to be precise), last night’s tally was just another display of the incredible talent and skill that is constantly on display at the VC this season.
Here is how I saw it:
Ovechkin eyed the glorious scoring opportunity from across the neutral zone; circling from his bench towards the penalty box in a race with Montreal Canadiens defender Roman Hamrlik for a loose puck...#8 reached the black disk but a second before the defender.
Tapping the puck off the boards and around Hamrlik, Ovechkin spun in a counter clockswise motion, a move vaguely reminiscent to that of a Russian ballet dancer, twirling around the confused Canadien defender before barreling in from the left faceoff circle on Carey Price.
Gaining momentum from the blue line in, Ovechkin held off a last second challenge from Kyle Chipchura.
Mustering all of his strength and skill, Ovi barely held his balance as Chipchura tackled him, yet, even while falling to the ice, the young Russian sniper still managed to draw the puck back on his stick and slide into the unguarded bottom left corner of the net.
Priceless?
Price was just drawn into Ovechkin as he came at him full speed and, even if he could have made a better effort to stop the puck, it was Ovi’s drive and focus that forced that puck into the net.
In comparison to “The Goal” it is not quite the same. But, given the variety of skills he displayed in that one play, it’s easy to say that it will definitely go down as one Ovi’s classics.
Where do you rank Ovechkin’s 42nd goal of the season among his 205 career NHL goals?
Ovechkin is on a tear. His glittering goal from last night aisde, he is on a 10 game point streak where he has earned 16 points(11 goals - 5 assists - +3).
Ovechkin’s play has somewhat buoyed the Caps as of late...if you can really say that.
Washington is 7-1-2 since the All-Star break and are the 4th best team in the NHL.
Considering all of the injury trouble this team has gone through this year(again), it’s rather remarkable to say that this Washington Capitals team may be the best team the franchise has iced in it’s 34 year history.
The Best Washington Capitals Team Ever?
The win, Washington’s 37th of the season, puts them only 6 wins behind their total of 43 from last season, with another 24 games remaining.
That is a pretty ridiculous pace.
Having accumulated 79 points in 58 games thus far, the Caps are averaging 1.36 points per game played.
Roughly translated, Washington is on pace to finish the season around the 110-112 point range.
That means that they are well on their way to eclipsing their 43 wins from last season and possibly breaking the franchise’s All-time win count of 50, established in 1985-86 when the Capitals went 50-23-7 during an 80 game season.
The Capitals have only breached the 100 point mark four times in 34 seasons, their pinnacle season coming in 85-86' when they registered 107 points. The last time they reached 100 points was in 1999-2000 when they won they had 44 wins and 102 points.
Based on their current average of 1.36 points per game, Washington should finish with a record of 52-23-7, 111 points. If they keep up the pace, the Capitals are well on their way to setting all new franchise records for wins and points.
But it doesn’t stop there.
The Caps are doing so well for a reason. That reason, of course, is their scoring.
The Caps currently have 195 goals in 58 games, an average of 3.36 goals per game, putting them on pace for a total of 275 on the season. That total would be their highest total since the 93-94' season and essentially be their highest total in the modern NHL. If you count all their seasons, the projected count of 275 would rank 14th All-time, but realistically, the NHL has been a different place since the lockout shortened season of 94-95'. Their best goal total since the 1st lockout was last season when they registered 242.
Projections aside, I can see this team averaging better than their current 3.36 goals a game as they rev up for the playoffs. The Caps rely on their scoring heavily and if they expect to go far, the offense will have to lead they way. In order to win the Cup, the Caps will have to outdo themselves from here on out.
The defense is also doing a decent job. Certainly not the best, but they are by far not the worst. The Capitals are averaging 2.86 goals against per game this year.
Currently, their 166 goals against through 58 games ranks the Capitals 14th overall. Not the best average, but so long as you are averaging a half goal scored more than allowed, that shouldn’t be a problem.
The Caps are on pace to allow a total of 234 goals over the 82 game schedule, 3 more goals allowed than last year.
Not their best assembled d-corps of all time, but certainly solid. Ironically, the projected 234 goals against would rank as their 9th best total since the 94-95' season, but 10th All-time. The 234 GAA would be better than every season prior, except for the 1983-84' season when they allowed 226 goals in 80 games.
The Caps +/- differential is currently + 29 and is projected to finish at + 39(if they keep up their current pace). The +29 ranks places the Caps in 7th at the moment, while their projected final total of +39 would rank as the Caps 7th best +/- total in franchise history.
All of these projections do not necessarily mean much, except that the identity that the Washington Capitals have created for themselves places them as one of the best teams in the NHL right now and could very well translate into the best season in Capitals history.
The lineup is top heavy with scoring, but have been truly under-rated defensively.
Their goaltending, expected to be the biggest question mark this season, has stabilized the Caps and has only improved as Jose Theodore eyes the playoffs on the horizon.
As a team, they are only getting stronger as they climb closer and closer to clinching their second consecutive SouthEast Division title and a post-season berth that will earn this team have home ice advantage.
Many questions still remain and they are squarely focused on the defense and goaltending.
As the history books show, this team will not go down as the greatest defensive team in Caps history, or for that matter offensively, but if you read between the lines, they do appear to be the best Stanley Cup contending team that Washington has ever iced.
George McPhee will find ways to address any holes he sees on this Capitals team, but when it comes down to tweaking the roster, you don’t necessarily want to mess with such a good thing.
The Caps may ride this team in the playoffs without making changes, and if that is the case, it won’t be the worst thing as they have proven to everyone in the NHL that they are willing and able to take on all opponents and will do so happily.
Of course, the question of best Capitals team every can only truly be answered by the winning of a Stanley Cup.
Being the best regular season team in franchise history won’t mean much if it doesn’t accompany a Stanley Cup Banner.
What say you? Is this the best Capitals team ever?
Will they be?
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