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Not good enough: Panthers beat Caps 4-1

By Patrick Holden

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October 21, 2017 10:21 pm

We’ve got Caps, we’ve got Cats, we’ve got Ovi (not Ovie), we’ve got face/offs, and we’ve got Saturday night hockey.

Connor Brickley put the Panthers up 1-0 before the game was even two minutes old, capitalizing on a turnover behind the net by Christian Djoos. The Caps had the better of the play for much of the period but couldn’t convert. With less than a minute to go, Evgenii Dadonov, who really does spell his name with two i‘s, scored on the power play to put the Panthers up 2-0.

Jumping to the second, the Caps continued their 2017-18 strategy of taking three bajillion penalties and it didn’t work out. Vincent Trocheck scored on a five-on-three to put the bad guys up 3-0. After some more penalties, Christian Djoos scored a beauty to pull the Caps within two, 3-1.

The Caps brought the heat in the third as the Panthers turtled  protected the lead but couldn’t break through. Aleksander Barkov added an empty netter.

Panthers beat Caps 4-1.

  • The Caps entered Saturday having taken 40 penalties, eighth most in the NHL. Their penalty differential of minus-7 is tied for third worst in the league. This will be an issue if it continues. It’s an issue now, but it also will be if it continues.
  • Tim Peel officiated the game which sometimes means bogus calls. Most of the penalties tonight were legit, but Nick Backstrom’s tripping minor that negated a Caps PP in the second was the most bogus of bogus calls.
  • The list of players who are more persistent and effective on the forecheck than TJ Oshie is very short. His pursuit of loose pucks is one of the reasons the Caps PP is so effective. He had a great play to keep the attack alive on the Caps first man advantage of the game. It didn’t result in a goal, but it’s the kind of play that has and will.
  • Shout out to Tom Wilson for this PK shift:

  • But seriously, stop taking so many penalties.
  • Ian was at the game tonight and some rando Twitter account was not impressed

  • It’s only been six games, but it’s pretty clear how Christian Djoos posted 58 points in 66 games last season in Hershey. There may be growing pains, and some may harp on them a bit more than necessary because he’s young, but his offensive skills and instincts are evident.
  • #VogsFacts on Djoos’ goal:

  • No, that empty net that Andre Burakovsky couldn’t bury late in the second isn’t indicative of his issues hitting the next. The puck was in his skates and it was an awkward angle. Stuff happens.
  • What are Devante Smith-Pelly and Alex Chiasson bringing to the table that Nathan Walker isn’t?
  • We now cut to Columbus to check in on Brooks Laich’s season debut:

  • There’s plenty the Caps did wrong tonight, but James Reimer played really well. From our boy CFTC, since 2014, only 10 goalies with 100-plus games played have a higher save percentage at five-on-five than Reimer.
  • Go Astros
  • The Panthers went into the turtle, the Caps came in waves at time, but it wasn’t enough
  • This wasn’t a great game, in and of itself, but it doesn’t call for panic. At least not on a  cool Saturday night when you have a glass of red wine and a belly full of soup.

Full Coverage of Caps vs Panthers

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