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Habs beat Caps 3-2 but at least someone scored

By Peter Hassett

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October 21, 2023 9:49 pm

It looked like the Washington Capitals would be unable to score, just like you in high school, in their Saturday night game against the Montreal Canadiens. But actually one guy could score, and just like on 90210 his name was Dylan.

But first the other guys. Sean Monahan tapped Nick Suzuki’s pass during the power play to put the Habs up 1-0 in the first. Brendan Gallagher crashed the net to make it 2-0 through two periods. Penalties – sus ones – dominated the third period until Dylan Strome caught a pass from Alex Ovechkin to bust the shut out. With two minutes left, Strome struck again, cleaning up Kuznetsov’s wraparound.

Cole Caufield won it in overtime.

Caps lose 3-2.

  • This was the best game of Alex Ovechkin‘s season. After going two games without a shot on goal, Ovi was motivated at Bell Centre on Saturday night. He had five shots on goal, including a couple good looks on the power play.

  • Ovechkin’s linemates were Dylan Strome and bildungsroman Matthew Phillips, who must have tricked a neighborhood kid into whitewarshing a fence so he could play tonight. They were Washington’s best line, which is not to say they were very good. All four lines had trouble taking and keeping the offensive zone, but Strome and Ovechkin sure earned this one.

  • Re: the old guys. Oshie has tenacity but limitations.Wilson seems both meeker and slower – even if he’s still catching reputation calls. Backstrom actually feels way better than last season, but that’s just damning by faint praise. And most of all: they’re all too easy to knock off the puck now.
  • The power play is now 0 for 11 to start the season. I haven’t seen anything in the regular season that distinguishes the 2023-24 Caps power play from the one Blaine Forsythe ran (into the ground) last season. Maybe more swaps opposite from Ovi? Maybe something different in neutral? I’m still figuring it out.
  • With Nic Dowd out with an injury, Spencer Carbery kept his bench short. The fourth line of Malenstyn, Protas, and Mantha didn’t get much action during five-on-five play, though Protas and Malenstyn did some special teams work.
  • Hardy Haman Aktell made his NHL debut. It’s not his fault, but his presence is kind of a sign that Washington’s defensive corps is in dire shape. If the guys Washington depended on last season to perform can’t do it again – and I’m thinking particularly about Trevor van Riemsdyk’s silly giveaway during a zone exit in the first period – I need to lower my expectations. Luckily Joel Edmundson is about to return to fix everything.
  • Tremendous game from Dylan Strome, who survived a puck to the jaw in the first period before deadlifting the entire team on the scoreboard. Strome has none of the juice that Kuznetsov and Backstrom have, but he’s been a critical contributor since day one.

I know what I need to write about Sunday morning. Sure, the Capitals are miserable right now, but even a miserable team is supposed to score more than this. People not named Dylan should be allowed to score. So while the team needs to improve in multiple ways — especially on the roster – I want to emphasize that they’re getting unrewarded for the (few) good chances they have generated.

Maybe that luck will turn next week, when Washington’s schedule goes into hell mode: Toronto on Tuesday, then a roadie in New Jersey unrested on Wednesday. It’s not beyond the realm of possibility that the Capitals will be winless (aside from the shootout) after six games. Or maybe the puck will just freaking start going in even if you’re not Dylan Strome.

Headline photo: Carrie from Crashers

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