FINALLY, WE MADE IT! This one is for real, this is a real-life playoff game. The Capitals are facing off against Barry Trotz’s New York Islanders for their first series. The big ol’ question mark for this afternoon is John Carlson, he will be a game-time decision.
All of this feels very strange. I should be getting ready to go to a watch party, I should see some people getting ready to go to the game, etc. But, I’m still excited. This NHL schedule is exhausting and fun, and the bubble seems to be working. So, here’s to an exciting and safe first round. I’m thrilled to be watching all the action with you guys, even if it’s via the internet. Rock the red, let’s go Caps.
The puck drops at 3 PM, as long as the Hurricanes and Bruins game doesn’t go on forever and push the time back like SOME teams did last night. Peter will have your recap.
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|---|---|---|
| Record | 35-23-10 | 41-20-8 |
| Shot Attempt % | 46.4% | 51.8% |
| PDO | 100.1 | 100.5 |
| Power Play | 17.3% (24th) | 19.4% (17th) |
| Penalty Kill | 80.7% (15th) | 82.6% (6th) |
Projected Lines
Lars Eller is still out after leaving the bubble to attend the birth of his new lil baby, so Travis Boyd is in. As mentioned above, John Carlson is a game-time decision. Braden Holtby is in net:
Ovechkin – Kuznetsov – Wilson
Vrana – Backstrom – Oshie
Hagelin – Boyd – Kovalchuk
Panik – Dowd – Hathaway
Dillon – Orlov
Kempny – Gudas
Siegenthaler – Jensen
Holtby
Toronto Space Needle
Mike, that is not the Space Needle. This isn’t Seattle. Someone please take this man’s account.
On another worldly night, Space Needle is an appropriate backdrop. Insane Columbus – TB game. God bless both teams for a great effort. Enough tho. I believe we should end these games sooner via 3 v 3 or shootout after a time. Whaddya think? pic.twitter.com/L9dyhJeT2W
— Mike Milbury (@realmikemilbury) August 12, 2020
Storylines
- The Pittsburgh Penguins are having a meltdown.
- Seth Jones now holds the NHL record for most ice time in a game. During last night’s Lightning-Blue Jackets showdown, Jones skated for over an hour. Personally, I think my legs would fall off.
- What else happened during that 5OT monster of a game last night? Eventually the game ended with Brayden Point scoring the winning goal, but also Joonas Korpisalo broke the record for most saves in a single game. I’m exhausted simply by typing all of this.
- When you play a game that lasts a million hours, make sure you hydrate!
- The NHL Draft Lottery took place and the New York Rangers won. But, the real story of it all was the fact that the Toronto Maple Leafs almost got it and their fans went kookoo bananas.
- The Buffalo Sabres have some fancy new jerseys.
- Former Capitals head coach Bruce Boudreau has a new gig for the remainder of the 2020 playoffs!
- Baseball news break: Juan Soto hit a DINGER against the Mets.
- Yesterday, I got an order of these Lemon Poppy Seed Cookies and almost ate all 12 of them in one sitting.
Loffs Merch
If you can’t seem to get yourself hyped up for these playoffs, if you have the means to do so, might you consider gettin’ yourself some merch from our sweet lil store?
It IS the loffs’, so maybe you need a new mug to sip coffee out of when games begin at 11 AM or go on for 6 hours? Or maybe you just need a new shirt to lounge around in while you continue to self-isolate. You deserve it, you’re doing great! Here is our model named Peter:
so it begins #loffs pic.twitter.com/zCd1kYvSnj
— Peter Hassett (@peterhassett) August 12, 2020
Or, if you need a new hat to wear while you take in some summer sunshine, these are on sale in the Capitals store:
New item in the Capitals store: These ALL CAPS hats which are currently $9 off https://t.co/3i1vBK4uGQ pic.twitter.com/yD5A9J12ty
— RMNB (@russianmachine) August 12, 2020
