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On Flukes: How Weird Goals Ruled on Tuesday

By Tuesday night, the NHL had seen 10,226 shots and 904 goals. That’s a 8.8 shooting percent. One out of every 11 or 12 shots on target gets through in this game, and every single one of them has a story to tell.

In the Caps’ corner of the league, those stories have been tragic– coming at the worst times and in the worst ways. Despite outshooting their opponents 334 to 280 in all game situations, the Caps have outscored their opponents just 34 to 31.

Put another way: the Caps aren’t getting the bounces.

The Caps’ excruciating 4-3 overtime loss to the Calgary Flames was more evidence of how elusive goals can be– and how downright stupid they can be as well.

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By Ian Oland 9 years ago

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Flames beat Caps 4-3 (OT), Oh Noes, Teh Caps R Bad

The GOAT (Photo: Patrick McDermott)

The Washington Capitals should have beat the Calgary Flames. They played well for the most part, but the Calgary Flames got the better bounces. So the slump continues, but at least the Caps got a standings point this time.

Calgary got on the board first when Lance Bouma stole a rebound that Mike Green didn’t see. The Caps struck back soon after as Nick Backstrom chopped Alex Ovechkin’s long bomb.

Mark Giordano got the best of some meh Capitals defense to give the Flames the lead in the second, but the Caps had a quick response thanks to a weird bounce in Marcus Johansson’s favor. The Capitals entered the second intermission with a one-goal lead thanks to a greasy 5v3 goal by Joel Ward.

The Flames got a freak goal of their own off Marcus Johanssons’ stick and Troy Brouwer’s skate with about five minutes left because hockey is cruel and hates your stupid narrative. Tom Wilson almost had a buzzer beater, but Hiller denied him.

Dry scrape! Overtime was exciting as hell, with tons of chances for the good guys, but it was the Flames who emerged victorious when Sean Monahan got the best of the defense.

Flames beat Caps 4-3 (OT). Five games without a W.

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By Peter Hassett 9 years ago

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Craig Laughlin and Daughter Courtney in the TV Booth (Photo)

Photo: @CourtneyCSN

First, Caps legend Peter Bondra joined Joe Beninati and Craig Laughlin in the TV booth. Then Laughlin’s daughter Courtney, who was hired by CSN Washington in the fall, got inside and took some photos with dad. This is great.

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By Ian Oland 9 years ago

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According to CSN, Alex Ovechkin Plays for the R*****ns

wtfwtfwtfwtfwtfwtfwtfwtfwtfwtfwtfwtfwtfwtfwtfwtf

The Caps are way better than 3-6.

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By Peter Hassett 9 years ago

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An Intimate Moment Between Liam O’Brien and His Mustache (GIF)

I feel like maybe we’re intruding on Liam O’Brien here. One minute after fighting Deryk Engelland in a brutal bout, O’Brien, he of tongue-wagging John Scott fame, smiled, licked his fingers, and adjusted his mustache in the penalty box. He seemed none the worse for wear, despite a fresh welt on his cheek.

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By Ian Oland 9 years ago

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826! Alex Ovechkin Passes Peter Bondra to Become Washington’s All-Time Points Leader (GIF)

Photo: Nick Wass

Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin has another record. With a primary assist on Nicklas Backstrom’s first period goal, the 29-year-old Ovechkin became the Caps’ all-time points leader (826).

Against the Coyotes on Sunday, Ovechkin tied Peter Bondra‘s mark of 825 after scoring a goal and three assists. Bonzai was in attendance in Ted Leonsis’s box Wednesday as The Great Eight broke his record in 270 fewer games.

“Congratulations to Alex Ovechkin on the outstanding achievement of becoming the leading scorer in Washington Capitals history,” said Wayne Gretzky through a Caps press release. “He’s a tremendous talent with many great years and achievements ahead of him.”

“You’re still the man, Bonzai,” Craig Laughlin said he texted Bondra during the second period.

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By Ian Oland 9 years ago

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Lance Bouma Tries to Hit Michael Latta, Misses, Nearly Flips Into Bench (GIF)

Calgary Flames center Lance Bouma looked to lower the boom on fourth-line enforcer Michael Latta early in the first period on Tuesday. Instead of hitting Latta, Bouma nearly went head-over-heels into his own bench.

Whoops!

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By Ian Oland 9 years ago

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Our Coverage Tonight is Dedicated to Dominik Pettey and Gonzaga High School

Shortly after 2 am on Saturday, there was a fatal two-car crash on the inner loop of the Capital Beltway.

Five teenagers in a Honda Accord had to pull over to the side of the road because their car ran out of gas. Four of the teens were students at Gonzaga High School; the other was from St. John’s. While they sat in their car on the shoulder waiting for help, their car was struck by a Jeep Compass which had veered off the road. Dominik Liam Pettey, 17, of Potomac, was sitting in the back. He died. Three of his friends suffered injuries.

According to NBC Washington, the driver of the jeep displayed signs of being impaired. Charges are pending.

Pettey, known as Dom, was a hockey player at Gonzaga High School, an all-boys’ Catholic school in Northwest D.C.

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By Ian Oland 9 years ago

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Capitals vs Flames Pregame: Appealing to the Hockey Gods

No high-minded introduction today. Just listen to Barry Trotz: “If you keep doing the right things over and over, I think the hockey gods recognize that, and they allow you to win hockey games. It all evens out.”

Caps vs Flames at 7 PM tonight at Verizon Center. Joe B and Locker will call it on CSN-DC. The Caps gotta win this one.