Capitals' dominance waning as season draws to a close

Turning a season into a run at history doesn’t happen to every hockey team in the league. There’s a reason why the Washington Capitals are the ones to make it happen — because their team is made up of a winning recipe.

"That's why they're the best in the league," San Jose Sharks defenseman Brenden Dillon said of the Caps. "Not only are they really fast and skilled, but they're physical too. They come at you in waves, and that's part of their game plan that's made them successful this year."

But over the last stretch, that recipe has appeared to be lacking a few ingredients, in the form of Washington not completely running away with contests and blowing the opposition out of the water. And after going five straight contests in which they have surrendered the first goal and had to play from behind, it’s only natural to wonder if perhaps their collective foot has come off the gas just a tad.

Truth be told, it isn’t that Washington is losing games. They just aren’t completely annihilating opposing teams, and it's a bit of a head-scratcher at the end of such a stellar campaign.

NBCSports touched on the subject in a piece on Monday:

… the Caps haven’t been their dominant selves lately. The last time they won by more than a single goal was almost a month ago, a 3-1 home victory over the Kings on Feb. 16. The last time they won by more than two goals was all the way back on Jan. 19, a 6-3 victory in Columbus. 

Call it nitpicking if you want, but when a team is 49-14-5 and holds a 12-point lead in the race for the Presidents’ Trophy, there won’t be any massive deficiencies to point out. With no glaring weaknesses, there are only potential chinks in the armor.

One factor that has contributed to closer games for the Caps has been the competition on their recent road trip. Washington just completed a tour of California, visiting the Ducks, Kings and Sharks — the entire top rung of the Pacific Division. And it’s no secret that all three teams were ready to tango with the NHL’s best.

“(Playing Washington) is a measuring stick, where we can see where the best in the league are at,” Dillon said after San Jose pulled out a 5-2 win last Saturday. “From top to bottom they have a really, really strong team. Their fourth line is (chuckles) a lot of times a second or third line other places... We had this one circled on our calendar, for sure."

Surely the teams Washington is preparing to face down this final stretch are preparing just as hard for the league leaders, so perhaps a couple games back in the comfortable confines of Verizon Center will do the trick to get the Caps' dominant spirit back.

"I need all our guys to play at the level they need to play at,” coach Barry Trotz reportedly told CSN Mid-Atlantic. “Everybody we’re playing is in playoff mode. They’re fighting for playoff position and they’re marking us and they’re using us as a little bit of a yardstick based on our record and every game is hard. You’ve got to fight for inches and right now we’ve got some guys, they’re playing hard but we’re not fighting for enough inches."