Capitals collapse to Canadiens’ pressure in rough road loss: numbers for the morning after

The Washington Capitals saw their winning streak halted at just three games by the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday night. The tired Capitals tried to hang in there against the Habs, but ultimately fell by a lopsided 6-2 score, aided by two empty-net goals.

There are going to be some losses down the stretch; there just can’t be too many.

• For most of the game, the Capitals looked decent, but they were burned by some horrendous defensive breakdowns, a lack of finish, likely a tired roster, and the absence of their number-one goaltender in net. The game was basically over in the second period when, after the Capitals dominated five-on-five with eight high-danger chances, the Canadiens still came away with the only two goals in the period. It’s the same stuff in most losses this season. You know it, I know it, and they know it.
• Alex Ovechkin scored the team’s lone two goals in the loss, his 920th and 921st of his career and 23rd and 24th of the season. With the two tallies, the 40-year-old Ovechkin now leads the Capitals in goals and points (50). While that’s incredibly impressive given his age, that should also be ringing several alarm bells in the club’s front office.
• Another 0-for-4 effort from the power play. I don’t know, chat. Maybe just go reread my bullet on the power play from the last numbers post. That might just be my go-to for the rest of this season because, without intervention, nothing is changing on that front.

• I didn’t love Charlie Lindgren in net. It seemed like a typical start from him this season: he makes some really ridiculous stops on shots he shouldn’t get to, but then allows a stinker that deflates the team. Lindgren finished with 19 stops on 23 shots faced and, per MoneyPuck, allowed 1.19 more goals than expected.
• If I had to guess, I would imagine Spencer Carbery changes up some of his forward lines soon. I don’t think he loves what he’s getting from that McMichael-Sourdif-Leonard trio, as they were separated near the end of this game. The Capitals created just one scoring chance with those three on the ice at five-on-five.
• The Capitals will take Sunday off and then head into the first eight days of March, with the trade deadline on March 6, where they’ll play just twice. Some major decisions to be made during that stretch.