Former Hart Winner Fedorov Leads Caps into the "Hart Series" with Pens
It has been a long time coming, but the deadline acquisition of Sergei Fedorov has finally paid off.
Albeit a year later.
Fedorov, acquired at last season's trade deadline, was brought to the Capitals to provide a much needed boost of veteran leadership. He did so last year, helping Washington on their magnificent run to the playoffs, but Caps fans were still waiting for the great #91 to give them something real to cheer about.
Fedorov was only too happy to comply, ripping home a laser of a wrist shot past a Henrik Lundqvist with exactly 5 minutes remaining in Game 7 to give his Washington Capitals a 2-1 lead.
The game winning goal could not have been achieved were it not for the hard work of Matt Bradley. Bradley, who stepped to the forefront as a playoff hero by scoring 2 goals, including the game winner against the Rangers in Game 5, made a dandy of a backhand pass to Feds as he out-hustled a Ranger for the puck alongside the boards. Spinning away from the checking Ranger, Bradley found Fedorov streaking out of the Capitals zone. With a full head of steam, the former Hart winner waltzed up the ice on a 2 on 1 only to come to a full stop once he reached the dot at the faceoff circle just to the left of Lundqvist. Putting on the brakes, Fedorov gave himself space away from Rangers defenseman Wade Redden before he wired a shot past the glove hand of Lundqvist. Although Sergei had Ovechkin open on the far wing, he chose to shoot the puck, knowing full well that the Caps game plan was to take advantage of Lundqvist's tiring glove hand.
If it were not for that fateful moment, the Caps could very well have been looking at a second consecutive elimination from the post-season due to a Game 7 collapse.
It's not as if the Caps were their dominant selves to start the game. The Rangers outshot the Caps 6-2 through the 1st and everyone watching was wondering if Washington had not been stricken with stage fright.
Fortunately after the first period, the Caps played a solid game. Despite allowing the Rangers opportunities that they had not seen since the first 2 games of the series, the Capitals got timely plays from their defenseman and goaltending sensation Simeon Varlamov.
The miracle comeback is complete.
And now, well now we get to see what Gary Bettman and the NHL have been waiting for since the lockout.
The Battle of Ovechkin vs. Crosby. Or is it Oveckin vs. Malkin?
Either way, the NHL has just been handed their marketing dream. The top 3 players in the NHL fighting it out. Could they ask for more?
This upcoming series is going to draw ridiculous numbers(if they get the coverage right).
The merchandise is set to fly off the shelves and the fans are chomping at the bit, having waited oh-so long for another shot at beating each other in the playoffs.
Capitals versus Penguins. What a series to be. I cannot wait.
For now, let's hear it...WHO'S GONNA WIN?
Round 1 Wrapup
Caps win.
No surprises there, right?
The fact that the Caps were taken to 7 games by a Rangers squad that was barely holding itself together, could be a rather troubling thought. Yet, coming back from a 3-1 deficit should essentially erase those doubts.
The Caps were not ready to start the series against the Rangers and it showed in the first 2 contests.
They put themselves on the ropes when they let the Rangers beat them at home in Game 4 to take a commanding 3-1 series lead, but they did not give up.
Ovechkin said it best when interviewed following Game 4, "You think series is over?"
That in itself shows the true fire and mettle that makes up the NHL's reigning MVP.
He took it upon himself and his energy radiated to his team-mates.
The Caps opened up following Game 4. They let it all out. And it worked.
The team regrouped and the play of each player improved drastically in the final 3 games of the series.
The Rangers toyed with themselves too much during this series. With 3 chances to close out Washington, they failed to employ the killer instinct.
Credit is due to New York as all the prognistacator's barely gave them 1 win heading into the series. Including yours truly.
I felt that Lundqvist was capable of easily stealing a game for a Rangers team that struggled through many parts of the regular season.
Did I ever think that King Henry would steal 3? No way Jose.
Did I ever think that this series would slowly turn into a goaltenders duel? Never!
We all knew that the Rangers outclassed the Caps in nets...that is until we were introduced to Simeon Varlamov. That's Sem-yen Var-lam-ov folks. Pronounced Var;lam(like Bomb)-ov.
Varly shined.
He gained the starter's job too.
Here are my top 3 performers and top 3 non-performers for both the Caps and Rangers following their First Round series:
Caps Top 3:
- Alex Ovechkin. Ovi was non-stop. He demonstrated not only his leadership skills, but also his offensive and defensive skills in round 1.
- Simeon Varlamov. Varly appeared out of nowhere to steal away Jose Theodore's job. And it only took one game. Varlamov, the best goaltender in the NHL through Round 1 has everyone scratching their heads. Hopefully he can keep that up through Round 2.
- Alex Semin. There could have been a ton of players who fit the bill for the Caps 3rd spot here, but it has to go to Alex Semin. Semin, in true sniper fashion, led all goal scorers with 5 goals through 7 games of the 1st round.
Rangers Top 3:
- Henrik Lundqvist. Is there any doubt? This guy needs a serious supporting cast, but if New York can finally do it, there is no reason this guy cannot lead a team to a Stanley Cup.
- Ryan Callahan/Brandon Dubinsky. These 2 were phenomenal for the Rangers. It was ashame that the rest of the team left it up to these 2, but again, if the Rangers can surround these guys with quality players, there is no reason Callahan and Dubinsky cannot be key parts of a successful Rangers team in the future.
- Sean Avery. I was going to pick Wade Redden, but Redden really only had two solid games(games 1 & 2). Avery was an issue every game. The games where he kept his stick on the ice and his mouth shut, he played very effectively. The games where he failed to do that, he was terrible.(And that is why Avery makes both the Rangers top 3 and bottom 3.
Caps Bottom 3:
- Jose Theodore. He may not have been given enough of a chance to redeem himself, but one game full of back-breaking goals was enough to tell Bruce Boudreau that if they wanted to go far in the post-season this year, it would likely be with Theo sitting on the sidelines.
- Donald Brashear. Intended to intimidate, Brashear went a little too far in the first round. Playing on limited ice time, Brashear actually was a detriment to the Caps offense. Although he never played more than 5 minutes in a game, the Caps are better served by having Chris Clark in their lineup.
- Tomas Fleischmann. Flash wasn't terrible, but he was more or less invisible. Although the Caps got secondary scoring from elsewhere, Flash has the skills, the shot and the hands to get himself onto the board more often. Tomas will have to step up in the 2nd round.
Rangers Bottom 3:
- Scott Gomez. On and off, Gomez was eventually easy to contain. Left to run around the perimeter, Scott never showed any interest in getting into the slot, essentially limiting any effect he could have had. It has been an off year for Gomez, hopefully, for Ranger fans sake, Scotty shows up next season, otherwise I would expect Gomez to be grazing in other pastures next season.
- Nikolai Zherdev. Might as well have been Joe Thornton. For a guy that Rangers fans said reminded me of Alexei Kovalev(earlier in the season), that was quite an atrocious performance. One would have thought, after spending so many years failing to make the playoffs in Columbus that he would have been excited to see post-season action. See ya next year Nikky...or maybe not!
- Markus Naslund/Sean Avery. Naslund had a decent season, but is clearly beyond being an effective player in the post-season. Naslund can still skate and shoot, but his desire to win seems to be waning. Avery, as I mentioned above, was on and off. When he could keep his cool he played an excellent, pest-like style of hockey. When he let his temper get the better of him, well he cost his team quite abit of confidence. As everyone says, if Avery can get it under control, he can be a helluva hockey player. Otherwise...good luck working at Vogue.
I will be back tomorrow, or later tonigh(?), with a serious review of the 1st round by the numbers. I am also planning a lovely little preview of what is going to be the most watched playoff series in the NHL in...I dunno, ages?!?!
Sound off on the first round and feel free to make your predicitions for the 2nd round.
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Go Caps!!!!!
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