Marc-Andre Fleury

Caps have few answers, face uncertain future after another devastating Game Seven Loss

As the Washington Capitals shuffled through the locker room after the game, Braden Holtby slammed the door as he headed to the showers.

The Capitals had just lost another Game Seven to the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Capitals were out of the playoffs after the second round once again, after they fell down 3-1 early in the series. It has been nearly 20 years since the team has made it to a conference final. A few minutes later, Holtby walked back into the room.

“I don’t think we gave ourselves a chance,” Holtby said. “We’re going to have to live with that.”
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By Chris Gordon 6 years ago

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The goaltending battle between Braden Holtby and Marc-Andre Fleury pits two of the weirdest goalies in the NHL against each other

At the end of the night, either Braden Holtby or Marc-Andre Fleury will have led their team to the conference final. They are two of the strangest goaltenders in the league.

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By Ian Oland 6 years ago

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The Caps are burying Marc-Andre Fleury in easy-to-save shots

In the 2009 postseason, Pittsburgh goalie Marc-Andre Fleury allowed 63 goals on 686 shots for a .908 save percentage. He won the Stanley Cup anyway. In the 2016-17 playoffs, Washington goalie Braden Holtby has a .909 save percentage. It’s by far the worst postseason performance of his career.

But the Penguins 2009 Cup run illustrated that, even without superb goaltending, a team can still win if they have explosive scoring. The Capitals, who had both in the regular season, now have neither.

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By Peter Hassett 6 years ago

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With the Caps down 3-1, Barry Trotz challenges Capitals stars to be better — but is that fair?

When the buzzer sounded at PPG Paints Arena on Wednesday night, the Washington Capitals made their way back to the locker room. The Pittsburgh Penguins had beaten them 3-2, putting them on the brink of elimination in the second round.

Inside the locker room, the Capitals gave trite answers to reporters about never giving up on a series and how the team could play better. There was one issue with this company line: the Capitals had played well enough to win. They’ve done it in all four games that have been played against Pittsburgh yet trail in the best-of-seven series 3-1. On Wednesday, Washington outshot Pittsburgh a remarkable 38-18.

The Capitals are now going to be staring the end of their season in the face on Saturday night at Verizon Center. After dropping Game Four by a close margin, the Caps began searching for something to blame. Like every other game in this series, their criticisms were self-directed.

“I would say I didn’t play my game at all tonight,” Alex Ovechkin told reporters. “I think me personally have to play much better.”

“I think I didn’t control the puck well and make stupid decisions,” he added.

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By Chris Gordon 6 years ago

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Marc-Andre Fleury tapes over Matt Niskanen’s name on goalie mask

Well, this is cold-blooded.

During the first period of Game Four, CBC’s Christine Simpson reported that Marc-Andre Fleury made a subtle alteration to the backplate of his mask. Fleury put a piece of masking tape over Niskanen’s name, giving shade to his former teammate for injuring Sidney Crosby.

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By Ian Oland 6 years ago

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Marc-André Fleury makes miraculous save on Evgeny Kuznetsov

Late in the second period, Evgeny Kuznetsov had a chance to give the Caps a commanding 2-0 lead heading into intermission.

Instead, like he’s done the entire series, Penguins goaltender Marc-André Fleury made an incredible stop, keeping it a one-goal game.

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By Ian Oland 6 years ago

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Overshadowed by Sid vs Ovi, Braden Holtby and Marc-Andre Fleury could be keys to series

The second round matchup between the Washington Capitals and Pittsburgh Penguins has an easy narrative: Alex Ovechkin vs Sidney Crosby. However, there is a one-on-one battle brewing between the pipes as Marc-Andre Fleury attempts to out-duel Braden Holtby, one of the best playoff goalies in recent NHL history.

Young netminder Matt Murray was fantastic for the Penguins during last year’s run to the Stanley Cup, having taken the job after Fleury got injured. When the veteran finally got a chance in net, he faltered and Pens head coach Mike Sullivan jumped back to Murray. But teams, fans, and media members alike were impressed by how Flower, as he’s known, handled the situation.

This year, the script has been flipped, with Murray, 22, forced to sit in the press box after getting injured in the first game of the playoffs. His return does not seem imminent. (more…)

By Chris Gordon 6 years ago

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Sizing up the Penguins: goaltending

In advance of Thursday night’s second round opener, we are taking a deeper dive into the Caps’ familiar foe, the Pittsburgh Penguins.

For this piece, we will look at goaltending. Soon we will check out special teams and five-on-five play. Below we’ve got the full breakdown of how these two teams stack up in this crucial area.

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By Nathan Sick 6 years ago

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Marc-Andre Fleury is the Escape Goat, But the Whole Penguins Team is to Blame (GIF)

Weather warming, birds singing, Marc-Andre Fleury spazzing out. These are the rites of Spring. When Nick Foligno chipped an innocent shot from the blue line on Wednesday night, the Pittsburgh goalie’s programming kicked in: Must. Allow. Weak-ass goal.

That softie won the game for Lumbus in overtime, tying the series 2-2, and sending Penguins fans into conniption fits. All for good reason: a shot from the blue line has like a 1-in-50 chance of going in– maybe less. It should have been a routine save for Fleury. His gaffe on the tying goal in the third period shouldn’t have happened either.

So Fleury is the Escape Goat, again, but I fear that reputation might obscure how truly bad the entire Penguins team was in this game. Really, it’s the whole team’s fault.

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By Peter Hassett 9 years ago

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Playing Marc-Andre Fleury is the Right Move, According to Caps Fans

Photo credit: Marianne Helm

FREDERICK, MD – On the eve of a pivotal game between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Ottawa Senators in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, fans of the eliminated Washington Capitals finally chose their allegiance. “If Bylsma doesn’t play Marc-Andre Fleury, he’ll be squandering the Pens’ chance at the Cup,” said 24-year-old die-hard Caps fan Steve Neuschwander of Monrovia, MD. “I mean, I know his playoff save percentage has been under 90% for the last few years, but that just means he’s due.”

Neuschwander, wearing a custom-embroidered KOLZILLA Caps jersey and smelling vaguely of stale Keystone, continued, “You put your trust in Flower; he won’t let you down.” Holding one hand to his chest and the other to the sky, Neuschwander proclaimed, “I want the Penguins to win this as much as anyone, and they’re not gonna do it without MAF.”

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By Peter Hassett 10 years ago

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