Here. This spot right here is the closest the Washington Capitals have been to a championship in two decades. The problem is they’ve been in this spot for a week now. Since winning Game Two in Florida, the Caps have dropped three in a row to the Tampa Bay Lightning and are now one loss away from elimination.
They’ve gotta win at home, tonight at 8 PM, to keep their season and our hopes alive. They’ve just gotta.
The final regular season stats:
| Record | 54-23-5 | 49-26-7 |
| Shot Attempt % | 52.3% | 48.3% |
| PDO | 102.1 | 101.4 |
| Power Play | 23.9% | 22.5% |
| Penalty Kill | 76.1% | 80.3% |
Projected Lines
This is a good look.
Ovechkin – Kuznetsov – Wilson
Vrana – Backstrom – Oshie
Burakovsky – Eller – Connolly
Stephenson – Beagle – DSP
Kempny – Carlson
Orlov – Niskanen
Orpik – Djoos
Holtby
Momentum
The line is shot attempts during 5-on-5 play. Except for the end of Game Four and the beginning of Game Five, this series has belonged to Washington. That applies to shots, scoring chances, goals, but not high-danger chances.
There, Tampa has had the edge. That red blob low at the right side? That’s Braden Holtby getting abused. The main defenders failing to defend Holtby surprised me: It’s Carlson and Kempny.
Goaltending will decide this series, and the Caps crew need to make their goalie’s life just a bit easier.
Storylines
- A guarantee? Big talk from Big Game Ovi.
- Lines: Jakub Vrana in the top six, Andre Burakovsky on the third line, Alex Chiasson out.
- Ian spoke with Mike Knuble before our chance to drink some Natty Bohs at the Keys game got rained out.
- Ex-Caps Nate Schmidt and George McPhee are going to the Finals.
- Uber is funding the Metro staying open late. Yes, I have Uber opinions. No, I don’t have time to share them right now.
Now For Something Completely Different
Everyone take the time out of your day to please watch this pic.twitter.com/RtUsNpV3Ef
— Gabrielle Geno (@GabbyGeno) May 16, 2018
Go Caps.
Headline photo: Mike Ehrmann
