The Washington Capitals hoped to end a two-game losing streak on their stop in Saint Paul, but the Quinn Hughes-ified Minnesota Wild were much, much better.
Vladimir Tarasenko scored the first of two brilliant goals with a great shot screened by a large percentage of the on-ice Capitals. Kirill Kaprizov doubled the lead in the second period, securing a rebound on the power play. Tarasenko’s second of the night came in the third period, right after a faceoff. Danila Yurov, who is new to me, made it 4-0 on Tarasenko’s rebound. Bouldy got a shorthanded goal, to add a whole other dimension of humiliation.
Caps lose.
- This is the second time Washington has been shut out this season. They got blanked by Dallas in October.
- The Wild rank in the league’s bottom five in five-on-five possession and shooting percentage. Even with Hughes on their side, they struggled with possession against the mostly coordinated Caps. But if the Caps can’t score, then that’s all that matters.
- Mostly was doing work in the prior bullet. Caps’ breakdowns created Wild breakaways, and there were way too many of both, and they decided the game. Dylan Strome was the inspiration behind this one, which required a nice save by Charlie Lindgren.
- Hendrix Lapierre had a scoring chance halfway into the period. As that puck went wild, a parallel reality spun off in which he scored and then the Caps won the game and then he started getting ice time and yadda yadda yadda they’re flopping in the fountain again.
- I wanted the Caps to get Quinn Hughes. The best counter argument wasn’t that Ryan Leonard projects too well; it’s that the Caps are relatively strong in the positions Quinn would play. I love the big swing for Bill Guerin and Minnesota, but I don’t think it changes their fate. And I’d bet by February 2027 Quinn’s not going to be allowed to fill up his own gas tank.
- I love Heathcliff. If you’re a Garfield head, you need to get the hell off this website. Go to Japers Rink if you think that’s the superior comic-strip cat. You’re not welcome here. Ham limit? Modern classic.
- I don’t see why TJ Oshie couldn’t wear a tie. Happy to hear from him though. I’m always down for hearing how easy it was to play with Backstrom, why he liked playing inside the diamond on the power play, and all about Tom Wilson’s leg strength. Sincerely, we need more of that!
- The Caps have one power-play goal in their last fifteen opportunities. So now with Matt Boldy’s shorty, over the past five games, their goal differential when the other team has less dudes on the ice is even.
No tie. No respect. #joebsuitofthenight
Three losses in a row. Bright side is at least two of the three were to the other conference. But none of these three has achieved burn-the-tape status. It’s the opposite – these are all the things the Caps need to purge from their game.
On Thursday they’ll have their chance against a flailing Toronto Maple Leafs team that is currently celebrating a soaring win over Chicago, who are one of only three teams in the East below .500.
