The Washington Capitals are moving on…to Game Four with a 0-3 series deficit after a 2-1 overtime loss to the New York Islanders. It’s not “over”, over, but it’s over.

The Isles outshot the Caps 34 to 23 and out-attempted them at five-on-five 58 to 43.

• Well, the Caps needed a big improvement in performance in the biggest game of their season and…got out-played by Barry Trotz and the Islanders yet again. They managed to put together a first period that was somehow their worst period in the entire series. In a game that would determine their final fate this season, they came out of the gates and were out-attempted at five-on-five 15 to 9, out-scoring chanced 8 to 1, and out-high danger chanced 5 to 0. Their expected goals percentage in the first period was literally under 8-percent.
• Their second period was much better and probably their best period of the series which just goes to show you how inconsistent and confusing this team is which I believe has to come down to how they are being coached. Even with that being said, the Isles still got the better of the play in the second so that trend wasn’t even bucked in what was the Caps best spell in this first round.
• I’ve kept a list of some of the giant issues I see with this team and feel the need to share them with you all to see if you are seeing the same things. This team feels even slower now, in terms of how they operate at evens, than they did under Trotz. It feels like zone entries with speed and control have become rarer and rarer to the point where they maybe get a couple per period. They are absolutely, utterly clueless in their own zone when facing a team that has various forecheck looks like the Islanders. Most of their offense is being created on the backs of individual brilliance rather than actual sustained pressure in the offensive zone. That’s just a handful and I’d love to know what you would add in the comments below.
• With the above bullet out of the way, it’s time to come up with the conclusion to those many issues. The entire coaching staff needs to go. That’s the first step. And then I personally think several higher paid players on the roster need to be evaluated this offseason in terms of whether the front office believes that they would improve under a new coaching regime or if they’re just the players they are no matter what and the possibility of a change of scenery is a viable option. I have some opinions on what I’d like to see roster wise next season, but I’ll save that for the post when the Caps get eliminated.

Evgeny Kuznetsov: 5:18 5v5 TOI, 0/-8 CF, 0/-7 shots, 0/-1 goals, 0/-6 SCF, 0/-5 HDCF

— Chris Cerullo (@CJC_95) August 16, 2020

• A very saddening happenstance amongst this very overall saddening picture is that this is likely what Braden Holtby will be going out on in terms of his career as a Washington Capitals player. One of the greatest players in franchise history put in his best effort of the postseason (32 saves on 34 shots) and got nothing from his teammates in return.
• John Carlson was miserable at five-on-five. The Isles out-attempted the Caps 31 to 13 with him out there and scored both goals in this game against his defensive pairing. What started out as an unbelievable campaign for Carlson looks to end with all the thunder of a tiptoeing mouse.
• Siri, play Closing Time by Semisonic before this last bullet.
• Four teams in NHL history have been able to come back from a three-game hole in a playoff series. The 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs, the 1975 New York Islanders, the 2010 Philadelphia Flyers, and the 2014 Los Angeles Kings. I don’t see any signs at all that this Caps team will be joining those four teams.

Numbers thanks to Hockey-reference.com and NaturalStatTrick.com.

Full RMNB Coverage of Caps at Islanders

Screenshot: USA