At long last, the Washington Capitals met the Pittsburgh Penguins in a real game of hockey. And while the Caps sure had the puck a lot in this one, the Penguins had it more where it mattered.
Lars Eller kicked us off with a wristshot from the slot, but the Penguins came back with a goal off some person named Sam Lafferty, who I don’t know and won’t respond to. Patric Hornqvist got a short-side goal on Samsonov to give Pittsburgh a lead after twenty weird minutes.
That lead grew in the second period with Dominik Simon going five-hole with a backhand shot during a defensive breakdown. Evgeny Kuznetsov narrowed it to a one-goal lead with a filthy backhand in the third period. Brandon Tanev deflected a shot off Orlov to score, but Eller immediately responded by roofing the puck behind Matt Murray. The Caps pressed late but couldn’t tie it.
Caps lose.
- These teams had not met yet this season for reasons beyond understanding. They seemed a bit worked up in the first period, or maybe it was just the refs. We saw very little five-on-five play early on. What we did see, the Caps seemed to control most of the volume. But volume’s not everything, as we’ll discuss below.
- Here’s something you don’t see often: Sidney Crosby committed a penalty from the bench, grabbing the stick of TJ Oshie, on-ice, and then complaining about a phantom spear that never happened. The Capitals, naturally, wasted the power play.
- Yeah, the power play is still a disaster. It sure seemed like Blaine Forsythe was trying some new looks on the power-play formation. In the first period, the team put Ovechkin on the opposite side once or twice, but we didn’t see much of it as the breakouts and neutral-zone play was still a mess. Honestly, Carlson-to-Ovi is probably the best part of the Caps’ PP and the last thing I’d want them to mess with.
- This tweet should be illegal. Get your own dog, Pittsburgh.
When they force you to be a Capitals fan. pic.twitter.com/lJYzBjn67t
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) February 2, 2020
- Lars Eller played like a man possessed. His third line absolutely dominated their shifts (so too did the fourth line, but without a goal to show for it.) A few ticks after serving a penalty, Eller recorded his first goal since January 7. His goal in the waning minutes was a shot of pure adrenaline. Excellent game from number 20.
- Just wanna shout out all the fans who wore their shirts and shared pics. Thanks for repping us. Shirt is still available in our store.
- Evgeny Kuznetsov is ceaselessly entertaining. His first highlight was when he tried to evade a too-many-men penalty by hopping onto the Pittsburgh bench. Madcap comedy.
- And his second highlight was when he drove to the net and — unlike previous opportunities — he actually took a shot. With a gorgeous backhand, Kuznetsov put the game back within reach for a moment.
these suits are trash
might as well wear a trashbag pic.twitter.com/4TwIZu1jk1— Peter Hassett 🌮 (@peterhassett) February 2, 2020
Ilya Samsonov got his first loss in a start since November 15. Sammy did well overall, but the defense in front of him was not nearly as stout as it has been for him in the past. As much as the Caps controlled the flow of the game, they were unable to keep chances out of the crease — giving Samsonov a difficult workload that Braden Holtby surely found familiar.
Even though the Caps out-attempted the Penguins two-to-one during five-on-five play, the Penguins got more chances from high-danger areas. Those defensive problems, plus continued distress on the power play and some iffy bench management paint a worrying picture to me about how the league’s best team is being led.
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