Plenty of hockey writers and bloggers use statistics to prove their point about this or that hockey player.  The problem with relying solely on statistics to evaluate a player is that it misses the subtle points of hockey that are just as, if not more, important to winning championships.  I'm talking about hitting, forechecking, parking your butt in front of the net and winning...

The Caps continued their mini four game winning streak with a 4-1 victory over the Calgery Flames tonight.  Under Coach Dale Hunter, the Caps have gone 7-3-1 in their last 11 games, after dropping their first 3 of 4 in the Hunter era. Dale said he was going to instill his system for this team from the blue line out and slowly, but, surely, his system is showing, ending with the...

After that abomination of a game against the Flyers the other night (which, thankfully, I couldn't watch), long-time Caps fans began wondering.  Is this team just awful?  Will they ever be able to get it together, even under new coach Dale Hunter?  It seems like every season Caps teams are lacking in one way or the other - lack of talent, lack of heart or lack of coaching.  This...

The Caps need confidence desperately. Hopefully, their 5-3 win in Ottawa will give them some of it back.  They scored on a power play, finally, after blowing a 5 on 3.  Alex Ovechkin scored a goal after turning away from the d-man, stopping in an instant, sending ice shavings into the air, and lifting a wrist shot past Craig Anderson.  Troy Brouwer scored 15-seconds later on a...

Most Caps fan felt like Christmas came early today as Dale Hunter took to the ice at Kettler for his first practice as the new head coach of the Caps.  Hunter is a legend to Caps fans and that is my biggest fear about him jumping from the OHL to the NHL as a head coach.  I don't want anything to tarnish his legend.  All day, I've alternated between insane excitement about Dale...

There's nothing positive to say about the Caps right now.  They got smacked around in Toronto 7-1 when the Leafs had seven players out and they just finished getting trounced by the AHL Buffalo Sabres, 5-1. The Sabres have nine players out.  GMGM talks about Mike Green's injury as if it's the only thing wrong with the Caps.  I'm so sick of excuses from this organization. If the...

They're sort of like the anti-Caps - consistent - hardworking - overachieving - battlers.  They leave it all out there on the ice every time I watch them play.  I watched many of their games during last season's playoffs and enjoyed seeing them overcome the Anaheim Ducks and push the Stanley Cup Champion finalist Vancouver Canucks to six games in round two.  All but one of those...

I've heard and read encouraging signs from the Caps this young season that they're taking more accountability as they try to overcome their history of playoff debacles.  Things like no more optional practices, practices that last longer than 30-minutes, admitting they need to play 60-minutes of hockey, and no more post-game quotes about "hot goalie" excuses. The Caps must not think...

In response to an awful 0-2 Canadian road trip against Edmonton and Vancouver where the Caps defense, penalty killing and transition game looked inept, Coach Bruce Boudreau made several changes to the line up against the Anaheim Ducks.  He brought up Cody Eakin from the Hershey Bears to man the wing on the 2nd line with Marcus Johansson and Alexander Semin while demoting Mike Knuble...

I'm still stunned at the Caps "shock and awe" 5-2 performance against the Flyers in Philly last night.  With two goals in 1:08 to take the lead at the end of the first, after the Flyers scored first, and three goals in 2:25 at the beginning of the third period, it was a night of goals in bunches. For two games in a row, the Caps have played hard for almost 60-minutes (that ridiculous...

Joel Ward impressed me in the playoffs last year for Nashville because he had 13 points - 7 goals, 6 assist in his 12 playoff games and played +4 hockey.  In 80 games during the regular season, Ward garnered 29 points and played -1 hockey.  Clearly, this is a guy that picks up his intensity in the playoffs.  He's a hard working forward that battles for pucks along the boards and...

Like most, I think GMGM picked up some good players this summer in forwards Troy Brouwer, Joel Ward and Jeff Halpern and Roman Hamrlik on defense.  I watched all of them, except Halpern, at the last pre-season game yesterday against the Chicago Blackhawks and I liked what I saw.  Brouwer and Ward bring desperately needed grit to the team and I like how they battled for the puck...

Please excuse my yelling, but if I hear Ted, GMGM or Coach Boudreau talk about how the Caps won the East again I'm going to throw my remote through my TV.  Well, not really, since the Caps aren't worthy of causing me to have to buy a new TV.   GMGM apparently (and I say apparently because I didn't listen to his interview on NHL Live) once again, spouted the ******** that the CapsÂ...

I'm tired of rationalizations about the Caps ongoing debacles in the playoffs and about good regular season performances from Ted Leonsis, George McPhee and Coach Bruce Boudreau.  I got pissed off about the Caps all over again after seeing the Tampa Bay Lightning smack down the Boston Bruins 5-2 in the Eastern Conference finals series opening game. Boston won the series, but I'm...

Instead, the Caps made history with a new level of epic failure in the playoffs as the first number one seed swept in the first or second round of the playoffs since 1994.  Wow, that's some achievement.The Tampa Bay Lightning out coached, out played and out hustled the Caps.  There is not enough heart, effort or desire in that Caps locker room to win a championship.  I feel like...

Who lost this game?  The coach.  Successful professional hockey teams don't take a too many men on the ice penalty in the playoffs. Last night, that was the difference.  If Mike Knuble's goal had counted on the power play in the first period, the score would have been tied in the third, even after Tampa's two goals in under a minute.  But, no, another stupid change cost the CapsÂ...

Not that there aren't many other reasons the Caps are failing in the playoffs, once again, but line change mistakes are killing them in this series.  It led to the overtime goal that put the Caps down in their series against the Tampa Bay Lightning 0-2 last night.  Atrocious line changes during Friday's game contributed to that first game loss, too.  The coach doesn't get all...

I'm watching the series deciding #8 seed Chicago Blackhawks play the #1 seed Vancouver Canucks game, like most hockey fans right now, and it reminds me why hockey is the greatest game on earth. Yes, I know any non-hockey fan would disagree, but they're wrong :). It's a 1-0 Vancouver lead with 3:26 left in the third period. Vancouver is battling back from losing the...

The Caps played the game they were supposed to yesterday and came away with the win, 3-1, and the series. The ringing in my ears finally subsided several hours after I left the Verizon Center.  The deafening cheers from the sea of red started before the Caps appeared on the ice and they rarely let up yesterday afternoon.   From the "we are louder" chant to the "hey, hey good-bye...

After that epic, heart attack inducing, come from behind double overtime victory, I only have a short plea today.  Win, just win tomorrow Caps.   The Rangers are tired.  Send them home. And, please, please do it before overtime.That is all.I'm looking forward to rocking the red.Let's go Caps!

On Sunday, the New York Rangers wanted it a lot more than the Caps.  The Caps played a disorganized, sloppy, penalty filled game that ended in a 2-3 loss and handed the momentum back to the number eight seed.  This history is disturbingly familiar.  Obviously, even Jason Arnott didn't have magic words for this team, but, at least, he still appeared on the score sheet. The Rangers...

I loved the sign that said that in the phone booth last night.  I also love Jason's remarks in today's Washington Post talking about how the Caps eased up a bit in the third period of their 2-0 victory over the New York Rangers Friday night.  He mentions that even with all the positives they have to address the negatives, like being lackadaisical in the third period.  Awesome...

There is nothing more exciting than overtime hockey in the Stanley Cup playoffs.  The game moves so fast compared to other sports that in a blink of an eye a puck can fly into the net and the game's over.  But, if it's your team playing overtime in the playoffs, the stress can have you reaching for your phone to call 911 because your heart hurts.  So, of course, that's how the...

Finally, the second season in hockey starts next week.  The one where the team left standing in June after four grueling playoff series gets to lift the Stanley Cup.  Hockey teams are defined by what they accomplish in the second season, not by winning the regular season Presidents' Trophy for most points.  Because really, who cares?  I've never figured out why hockey awards...

A lot when it comes to game winning goals.  At 3:19 in the overtime period against the Buffalo Sabres last night, Alex Ovechkin netted another game winner, a shot that deflected off the skate of a Sabre before going into the net past goalie Jhonas Enroth, playing for injured Ryan Miller.  Ovie's celebratory dance after scoring his league leading 11th game winning goal amused...