The last two games between the Washington Capitals and New York Islanders had a grand total of ONE (1) goals scored by either team. Maybe they can do better this evening. They might have to do it without Alex Ovechkin.
Game starts at 7 PM. Chris is in charge of your recap.
 |
 |
|
|---|---|---|
| Record | 29-13-5 | 30-13-4 |
| Shot Attempt % | 49.2% | 50.4% |
| PDO | 101.7 | 102.1 |
| Power Play | 17.2% | 26.9% |
| Penalty Kill | 82.9% | 83.7% |
Projected Lines
With Ovechkin out, it seems like these will be our lines, as reported by the intrepid Samantha Pell of WaPo:
Sprong – Kuznetsov – Wilson
Mantha – Backstrom – Oshie
Sheary – Eller – Raffl
Hagelin – Dowd -Hathaway
Orlov – Carlson
Dillon – TvR
Chara – Jensen
Samsonov
The Season
| WSH | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BOS | 🌮 | 🚽 | 🌮 | 🚽 | 🚽 | 🌮 | 🚽 | 5/11 |
| NJD | 🌮 | 🌮 | 🌮 | 🌮 | 🌮 | 🌮 | 🌮 | 🌮 |
| PHI | 🚽 | 🌮 | 🌮 | 🌮 | 🌮 | 🌮 | 5/7 | 5/8 |
| NYI | 🌮 | 🌮 | 🌮 | 🚽 | 🚽 | 🌮 | 4/24 | 4/27 |
| PIT | 🤷 | 🤷 | 🚽 | 🌮 | 🤷 | 🌮 | 4/29 | 5/1 |
| NYR | 🚽 | 🚽 | 🌮 | 🚽 | 🌮 | 🚽 | 5/3 | 5/5 |
| BUF | 🌮 | 🌮 | 🌮 | 🤷 | 🌮 | 🌮 | 🌮 | 🚽 |
Legend: 🌮 = win; 🚽 = loss; 🤷 = OTL
The Aesthetics of Hockey
Excerpting a comment we got recently:
There is nothing more exciting than a 0-0 hockey game. And they are so rare. Enjoy the intensity of the “who will make the first mistake” and the last 5 mins and overtime are just nail biting awesomeness.
Here at RMNB we are pluralists who believe there are lots of ways to enjoy hockey, and it’s not anyone’s job to judge which ways are valid or not.
You may have enjoyed that overtime period on Thursday, and that’s fine, but now you should not be allowed to babysit or hold public office. The Islanders had the puck for like 90 percent of those five minutes. After the Caps dominated play (that’s how both Kuznetsov and I characterized it) for forty minutes, they were on their heels in OT, and it was unfun for me.
Still, you do you. Fine, okay, yes, you can babysit. Let one hundred flowers bloom. I admit I also found myself enjoying a lot of that 0-0 game in spite of myself — not overtime though. And still: I’d prefer an 8-7 goalie-sundering disaster game any day of the week.
That’s not what we get with the Isles. Caps-Isles games this season have lots of shot attempts (109 per hour from both teams), but very few from up close (very low ratio of expected goals to shot attempts by both teams). To me, that’s frustrating.
Storylines
- The Caps are — for now — atop the division.
- Has Ilya Samsonov won the battle to be playoff starter?
- Alex Ovechkin is day-to-day with a lower-body injury. He was not at morning skate. I wouldn’t be opposed to being cautious today.
- Zdeno Chara will hit a milestone tonight.
- Chris’s exegesis of Thursday’s game.
- Ilya’s Samsonov’s shootout shutout was the first in Caps history.
- Brian MacLellan has thoughts on how to win a Cup.
- David Pastrnak is afraid to talk to Chara during games now.
- J4KUB VR4N4
Jack Black on Jabs
RMNB Coverage of Caps at Isles
Screenshot courtesy of NBC Sports Washington
