The Caps played better against the Los Angeles Kings than they did against the Anaheim Ducks two nights ago, but the result was the same: a loss, like usual for the Caps in LA.
Jeff Carter beat Philipp Grubauer after a TJ Oshie turnover to put the Kings up in the first period. Jakub Vrana swatted a puck out of mid-air to tie the game in the second, but Trevor Lewis restored the Kings lead with a rebound score five minutes later. The Caps had some good looks in the third but could not complete the comeback. Instead, Kyle Clifford got an empty-netter.
Kings beat Caps 3-1.
- The Caps got demolished in the first 9-10 minutes of the game. The Caps were outshot 15 to 5 around the 9-minute mark, so this game initially looked to be a dreary repeat of the beatdown in Anaheim.
- Then the Caps turned it around – led by the top six, especially Tom Wilson, who missed time in the second period after a very scary puck-to-the-face sent him running to the tunnel. Miraculously, Wilson returned for the third period, disfigured, where he was accosted by Kyle Clifford for some stupid reason.
- Jakub Vrana keeps heating up. His impressive goal in the second period puts him at 12 in the season, with three points in his last four games.
- The secondary assist on that goal belonged to Brooks Orpik, who skated with Jerabek while Christian Djoos got a surprising healthy scratch.
- Will Ferrell was at the game, which got me thinking about his best bits. Bill Brasky is up there, as is Robert Goulet. And I was reminded by a reader of the hidden classic above, the Old Prospector.
- The fourth line got totally outplayed, but they were deployed almost entirely defensively – a strategy that seemed to have worked out for Trotz, as the other three lines did better.
- Did TJ Oshie Score? watch: No. No, he did not. He had a darn good chance in the third period, but he remains accursed.
#JoeBSuitOfTheNight #CapsKings pic.twitter.com/hDYZdVW8Yi
— Ian Oland (@ianoland) March 9, 2018
The real story was between the pipes. Philip Grubauer acquitted himself quite well in his first game as interim number-one goalie. The two that beat him came from very close (as you can see on Natural Stat Trick’s heat map). Those are the kinds of shots that have been beating Braden Holtby a lot lately too, and the fact that the Kings got so much action in the paint should temper our enthusiasm for any progress in team defense made since last game.
San Jose this weekend. Should be a fun one.
Full Coverage of Caps at Kings
Headline photo: Andrew D. Bernstein
