Depleted D

If there was any question about how much the injuries on defense have affected the Capitals style of play, one need only look at the Caps game Tuesday night against the Panthers. Usually a team that plays a defense first, trapping style of play, the Panthers came out with an all out blitz of a forecheck, constantly pressuring the Caps defense for all three periods.

It paid off big time.

The Capitals simply don't have the bodies or talent to compete in the defensive end in their current form. The Caps defense without Tom Poti, Mike Green, Sergei Fedorov, and to a lesser extent Jeff Schultz and John Erskine is now a mirror of what it was during the Caps first post lockout season. Which is not good. At all.

The current defensive lineup doesn't feature a single defenseman that should be playing top 4 minutes in the NHL for any team. Uber prospect Karl Alzner is still adjusting to the NHL game, and needs more seasoning before he's ready to assume a role as a top tier defenseman. Milan Jurcina refuses to play the body unless it's away from the play for a penalty which renders him basically useless. Shoane Morrison gets outplayed and out muscled near the front of his own net on almost every play. And Lepisto, Helmer, and Sloan, with respect to the effort and determination they've shown, are third pairing defensemen at best.

For the Caps to be successful, they must keep the puck out of their own end as much as possible. And with Alexander Semin still injured, the burden for keeping puck possession falls to Michael Nylander and his line. The Caps first line has always been solid at controlling the play in their opponents' end as soon as they gain possession. For the Caps to take the burden off their crippled defense corps, the second line needs to be just as strong to give their defense the relief they so desperately need.

If the Caps top two lines can maintain possession and control the play and allow the defense to bend without breaking, they have a chance to beat the Islanders tonight. If not, it's going to be a long night.

-----------------------------------

Oh, and remember to skip lunch today so you can enjoy as many dollar dogs at the arena as possible. I'm thinking I can take down at least 5... blogger competitive eating contest, anyone?

What we know so far

We're three games into the season, and four things already stand out.

- Bruce Boudreau is a smart hockey coach. Knowing that he was playing a team that was not strong offensively and played the trap, Boudreau removed John Erskine from the lineup and moved Sergei Fedorov to the back line. Breaking the neutral zone trap depends on quick and accurate outlet passes, and Fedorov provided them in droves last night. Because of this, the Canucks were unable to slow the pace of the game and were completely outmatched by the speed and talent of the Caps forwards.

By specifically targeting the opposing gameplan and adjusting his lineup accordingly, Boudreau was able to completely nullify the strongest weapon in the Canucks arsenal (their boring as all get out system). The Caps have had fits dealing with trapping teams in the past, but it looks like they've found a viable solution for the future.

- Alexander Semin is good. Really good. Not that this is news to anyone who was watching the last 20 or so games last year, but Semin has arrived as an elite level talent. He's much stronger on the puck than in previous years, quicker, andis an absolutely lethal finisher around the net. If he stays healthy, fifty goals should be a cinch. On every team in the East except Pittsburgh or Atlanta he'd be the team's number one scoring option. And yes, I'm including the Canadiens in that list. Who would you rather have on your team, Alex Semin or Alex Kovalev? Thought so.

- Goaltending is going to be an adventure. Goals on the first shot in back to back games? Not good. Inconsistent stickhandling and poor decision making? Also not good. The Caps need to calm their goaltenders down in a hurry. Great puck possesion performances (such as the one the team put together against the Canucks) should go a long way towards settling Theodore and Johnson down and getting them focused.

- Defense is going to be even MORE of an adventure. The Caps right now have three viable NHL calibur defensemen, and one of them is a forward. Everyone not named Poti, Green, or Fedorov has so far looked like they're in a competition to see who can play themselves out of a job first.

So, to sum things up, our coach is showing that last year was no fluke, our defense is showing that the team needs Alzner sooner than later, our goalies haven't shown us much yet, and Alexander Semin is proving that he's got what it takes to be a superstar in the league.

Oh, and as the Deuce said, Viktor Kozlov has a boo-boo.

An addendum

Last year, I wrote this post on why the Caps would make the playoffs this year (and win a playoff series). There were a couple misfires (Dainius Zubrus isn't going anywhere? Really?) but for the most part it was pretty much on target. And although the focus lately has been on the Caps trade deadline acquisitions, this team would never have made the playoffs without one major addition made during the offseason:



That's right, folks. Tom Poti is the unsung hero of this Capitals team.

Now I know Poti's offensive numbers this season are nothing to write home about. In fact, his two goals this season tied his career low set in 2001-2002. But make no mistake, Tom Poti is the reason this team has a chance to compete for the Cup this year.

Without Poti, the Caps would have had no veteran leadership after Brian Pothier went down with a cuncussion. Without Poti (second overall in ice time per game, first among defensemen in time on the penalty kill) this defense would have lacked an anchor to hold the D together in tough spots. Poti has been by far the slickest defensive player on the ice, always making the right decision and making it quickly.

I can't say how many times I've turned to the Deuce during a game and said "You know who's a smart hockey player? Tom Poti." He could always be trusted to make the best play available without forcing the issue.

With a player with such a high hockey IQ on the backline, the Capitals knew that one side of the ice would always be taken care of as long as Poti was on the ice. That's exactly the kind of confidence that was missing from the team's defense last year.

So while we rightly celebrate the incredible ability of the Russian Machine, or the lightning-quick maturation of uber-rookie Nicklas Backstrom, or the great crunch time acquisitions of Huet, Fedorov, and Cooke, remember first that one summer day where the Caps signed the rock on which their young defense would be built. Remember July 1st as the day this playoff team was born.

Offense from Defense

After getting a good look at Coach Boudreau's system over the past couple weeks, I can't say for sure what he's done with the offense, except giving them a longer leash to forcheck on. However, one can plainly see that his philosophy concerning defensemen is as different from the previously installed setup as night and day.

Under Glen Hanlon, the defense was set far back, not involved with the offensive rush except in the most obvious of circumstances. The main tenant on defense was to hold good defensive positioning, not extend yourself, and keep the opposition from getting behind you. While players were not routinely beaten by long passes up the middle, this had the effect of always having the defense on its heels, constantly absorbing attacks without countering. And with a set of rookies whose potential was just beginning to show itself, that seemed like the right approach at the time. You can almost hear Hanlon saying it: Sit back, let the game come to you, don't make any big mistakes.

At the time, you wouldn't have wanted the Caps crew of 20 year old defensemen running around like a bunch of mites on ice (not any more than they already were, at any rate). However, with a couple years for the young defensive corps to mature and with the acquisition of solid two way defenseman Tom Poti, newly installed Coach Bruce Boudreau clearly thought that it was time for a change.

The change was first evident in the Caps power play, where offensive wunderkid Mike Green scored twice from within 10 feet of net in the first couple games. How can a defenseman score goals from that close in while still protecting the blue line? He can't, but the risk involved was lessened by the extra attacker for the Caps.

That's all well and good, and pinching the defense on the power play certainly seemed like a good idea. But then it started happening with Green and Tom Poti at even strength. A few games later Shoanne Morrison made several offensive forays that started at his own goal line. And this Saturday, Brian Pothier scored the game winner from about five feet away from the net, taking a Matt Pettinger behind the goal line pass and depositing it in the upper shelf.

So it seems that Coach Boudreau's new attacking system is at least as much about aggressive play from the defensemen as it is about the forwards. With a couple years of development, the Caps blueliners are confident enough to pick their spots to attack, and their coach has presented them the opportunity to do so. In addition to adding to the offense, it keeps the other team focused on defending an extra man, which fundamentally changes their ability to strike back. And while they have been burned by giving up the big play on occasion, the team as a whole seems to function better when their blueliners are pushing forward. It seems like the right fit for this team right now. And it's certainly entertaining to watch.

Why defense shouldn't always come first

When Tarik ran a story a few weeks back on the team's desire to get Alex Ovechkin to play more (and better) in his defensive end, I warned that it was too soon. And I was right. Since that time, the Russian Machine has improved his two way play, working harder in the defensive end and not trying (as much) to get a jump out of the zone in order to beat the opposing defense. The result? Since January 23rd (the day of the article), the Caps record is 3-6, and their offensive output has fallen off sharply. They've looked listless and, as in the case of the loss to the Rangers, completely impotent in the offensive zone.

How bad has the Caps offense been? So bad that their only goals against New York were caused more by a bad section of boards (video 1, 2) than their offensive play.

The Capitals simply don't have enough depth to have Ovechkin subverting his offensive skills in order to play a better all-around game. The team's offense revolves around him and, to a lesser extent, Sasha Semin creating opportunities with their all-world offensive abilities. The rest of the team is expected to chip in when possible and bang home rebound opportunities created by their young left wingers' shots. As much as I like Captain Clark, it's safe to say he wouldn't have nearly the point total he has without Ovechkin creating for him (and drawing coverage off of him). Ditto for Zubrus, but without the whole me liking him part.

We all know that superstars from all sports sometimes need to conform to a scheme or philosophy that may not put their skills to best use in order to win a championship. But right now, the Capitals are not a championship caliber team (and unfortunately they're not even that close). Asking one of the very few players on the roster capable of lighting the lamp to shackle part of his game was a bad move. The Caps need to remedy the issue by relieving AO of some of his defensive responsibilities, or else the rest of this season is destined to play out just as badly as Saturday's game against New York.