twenty games in

Twenty games in: Russian machine yadda yadda you know the rest

The Washington Capitals, riddled with injuries, lost Wednesday’s game in New York. Though a bunch of players missed the game due to injury, the most important guy was there.

Alex Ovechkin played in his 1,108th regular-season hockey game. His career has become special for reasons beyond his demented smile and his absurd goal totals. He is, simply put, the most durable hockey player in the world.

(There really should be a better way to say that. I’ll brainstorm some ideas.)

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By Peter Hassett 2 months ago

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Twenty games in: Braden Holtby’s opportunity

On October 14, Braden Holtby played one of the worst games in NHL history, allowing three goals on three shots before getting pulled. It was a crummy start to the season for Holtby, and I’d certainly understand why it has led some people to think he’s over the hill. Holtby won the Vezina in 2015-16, but his last two seasons have been pretty spottty. Still, I’d urge caution before concluding that he’s on an irreversible downturn.

In a big, complicated system with lots of inputs, Holtby is just one player. And I think he’s a very good one.

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By Peter Hassett 2 months ago

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Twenty games in: Trending to the top

I’ve been taking a different approach to the Twenty Games In series this time around. Instead of checking off the same old boxes (goaltending, special teams, 5v5, etc.), I’ve been analyzing only the qualities of the 2019-20 Washington Capitals that I find most interesting.

Today, I think it’s important that we zoom out as much as possible and see how the team has evolved over the last few seasons. I promise you will like where we have ended up.

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By Peter Hassett 2 months ago

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Twenty games in: Stuff Pat thinks

I asked Pat what he thinks about the Caps right now. He had already blown off our double date/board-game night this weekend because he’s a Serious And Busy Grown-Up, so all he gave me in response was this barely legible tweet.

jake vrana shooting more than Ovechkin, Leipsic’s offensive confidence and flash, and me wondering when Poti came back every time I see Jensen

— Paddy Holds (@pfholden) November 15, 2019

Still, that’s some good stuff. Let’s talk about that stuff.

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By Peter Hassett 2 months ago

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Twenty games in: The Caps penalty kill is good and getting better

After twenty games, the Washington Capitals find themselves in a novel position. For the first time since 2016-17, the Caps appear to have a darn good penalty kill. And you could argue that they’re even underperforming.

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By Peter Hassett 2 months ago

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Forty games in: Defensemen

The Washington Capitals are two and a half years removed from being one of the best defensive teams in the NHL. A lot has changed between then and now, including, ya know, a Stanley Cup Championship. To win their Cup Washington had to overcome a bunch of defensive problems, which now appear resurgent. If they wish to truly go back-to-back, the Caps will have to solve those problems all over again.

But whether defensive problems are actually the same thing as problems with defensemen is another matter altogether.

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By Peter Hassett 1 year ago

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Twenty games in: Bottom-six forwards

The only place in the Caps lineup that significantly changed from last season, the bottom six has been a mixed bag. For every good performance – like Lars Eller filling in for Evgeny Kuznetsov or Brett Connolly racking up points – there have been just as many problems – like the fella in the picture at the top of this story.

We’ll get to Andre below, but there’s a lot of struggling happening in the bottom six, and the Caps would be well served to address it.

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By Peter Hassett 1 year ago

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Twenty games in: Top-six forwards

Not many people would dispute that the Washington Capitals have some of the best high-end forwards in the NHL. Led by reigning Conn Smythe- and Rocket Richard-winner Alex Ovechkin, the Caps’ top-six forwards are a fearsome bunch, critical to the team’s overall success.

But despite sterling offensive numbers and lavish praise, all has not been right with the scoring lines in 2018-19. The reason why is now apparent.

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By Peter Hassett 1 year ago

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Twenty games in: Lineups and chemistry

Before Evgeny Kuznetsov went down with a concussion in game 19, the Capitals had a surprisingly stable squad of centers. Really, since Lars Eller joined the club in 2016, the team has been able to depend on him, Kuznetsov, and Nicklas Backstrom to anchor the top nine nearly every game.

But this season has seen lots of changes on the wings, and more recently the defense, as Todd Reirden has dealt with missing Tom Wilson, Brooks Orpik, and a general underperformance up and down the line up. And now, with Kuznetsov out, we’re seeing bold lineup changes for the first time. It’s exciting.

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By Peter Hassett 1 year ago

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Twenty games in: Special teams

There’s a simple method you can use to evaluate special teams at a glance. If you add a team’s power-play conversion percentage to their penalty-kill percentage, you get a number called a special-teams index. If that number is above 100, things can’t be too bad.

The Washington Capitals are a 103, so obviously everything is fine and there’s nothing to worry about here.

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By Peter Hassett 1 year ago

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