Another season come and gone with playoff disappointment. To briefly recap the game on Saturday, the first Rangers goal tanked the resilient DC squad in almost every sense. After that, they had their chances undoubtedly, but I saw very little of the pace and drive that characterized their play over the previous two weeks. A first goal like that, a screened shot, the first of the game, takes the heart right out of lots of teams, especially given that first goal meant victory in this series.
All in all, however, the Caps finally found an identity. In an exceptionally cogent argument, Thomas Boswell of the Washington Post proclaimed the brand of hockey witnessed for the last month proved the Capitals could not only win games, but grind to wins. For my money, Boswell’s point should include a larger revelation: the Capitals learned to control games in the postseason. For a long time the “Young Gun” era featured breakneck speed and shoddy defense where the Caps simply outscored the opposition. Wave goodbye to those days folks. The Caps played 13 of 14 playoff games as one goal games and outplayed the Rangers in at least four games (I’m referring to Game 5) before succumbing. We can’t ask too much more from the Caps, but some decisions need to be made for the team to reach anywhere near the top again.
1.) Find a way to keep Dale Hunter
I had a paragraph written, I swear, which will now find the Recycling Bin. Hunter squeezed every last amount of effort from his guys. I’m surprised he’s resigning after so much success in the postseason, but Hunter always looked uncomfortable at the NHL level. He jumped a few steps from the OHL to the pros, and after GM George McPhee admitted he didn’t try telling Hunter to stay, you know the arrangement was never going to work out.
Still, McPhee cannot let the current opportunity slip. He finally has a coaching model to achieve playoff hockey. Find another coach with that mindset (blocking shots, clogging the neutral zone, etc.) soon, and the team will hum right along. Follow Hunter’s lead to find a coach unwilling to be the nice guy in the room, hesitant to defer to the wants of star players, and above all appreciative of the role players who get the job done.
2.) Trade/Release/Unceremoniously Dump Schultz and Quietly Shed Hamrlik
Close friends of mine know I’ve wanted Schultz cut for at least three years. His performances this postseason betrayed what some have long suspected and I’ve always known: he isn’t very good. His postseason minus-7 rating inspires no confidence and his multiple defensive mishaps in Game 7 certainly don’t help. At one point, the Caps benched Schultz because he had an inopportune blow-out a few years ago, leading to a Rangers goal in the playoffs. Dmitri Orlov could take his place without any problem.
As for Hamrlik, he might be a wily veteran who works well on the boards, but he cannot keep up anymore with NHL speed. The three players that burned the Caps the most this postseason: Brad Richards, Tyler Seguin, and Chris Kreider, all speedsters through the neutral zone that dump and chase to create opportunities. Pairing Hamrlik with Mike Green also makes little sense…their styles of play remain totally different and Hamrlik does not skate fast enough to recover should Green get to greedy in the offensive zone. Might be time for him to retire.
3.) Let Semin go or sign a 1 year deal again
The only way to motivate Alexander Semin remains the contract year. When hot, he can score in much the same way that Pavel Datsyuk of Detroit can score: sick moves and a wicked wrist shot. I will give Semin credit, he played much better defense this postseason than previous years, buying into the defensive scheme. Still, with a talent like his, he should be able to fill the scoring void when Backstrom goes down, not have to rely on role player Jason Chimera. If Semin doesn’t score goals he will be useless to this team. Maybe he wants to stay in DC. If so, sign him to a one-year incentive-laden contract in an attempt to jumpstart some energy. He played well this postseason, but the Caps need that for 82 games at least. I would not be surprised if he jumps to the Russian KHL for a little more money and fame. Unless he wants to come back for a one year deal, I say good riddance.
4.) Create a net presence
The style of play for the Caps works very, very well 5 on 5, but they continue to struggle a little on the power play. I think they would benefit immensely from switching their scheme with the man advantage to one that includes placing a man in front of the goalie. Goaltenders are so good in the NHL if they can see the puck, they almost always stop it. Players like Mike Knuble and Joel Ward, should they return, could fill that role very well. As I said a few weeks ago, the Caps need more garbage goals to really advance in the playoffs. Sidney Crosby remains so good not only for his passing ability but for hanging around the net and stashing any loose change on the doorstep. If the Caps can instill that kind of attack, it would work wonders.
5.) Strip Ovie of the C (this will never happen but it’s a good idea)
The captain in hockey has an unusual amount of responsibility. In the NFL, the captains trot out for the coin toss, while NHL captains have exclusive negotiating rights with referees during games. In addition, hockey captains bring the mood of the team to the coaching staff not unlike many other sports. Wearing the C is an honor, and Alex Ovechkin needs a little push. His play this year left some heads scratched but overall did not unduly disappointed when all was said and done, mainly due to success for the team in playoffs. But, for the best player on the team to remain the locker room leader he must be willing to make the sacrifices for the team. Ovechkin plays abysmal defense and seems unable to stop moving unless he checks someone violently, both of which don’t click too well with the new style the Caps must play. Maybe he’s doing well in the locker room, but I would support someone like Brooks Laich or Chimera earning the C.
Overall, the team needs some help and direction but much less than you might think. Above all else, any attempt to blow this team up through trades and such misses the facts on the ice. For a 7-seed to push the top two Eastern seeds to the brink of elimination takes talent. I would add luck as well but the best thing about this playoffs…the Caps did not play the child of fortune. The only truly soft goal came against Thomas in Game 5 of the first round and even then the Bruins could have won the series in Game 7. So, as we ride into the summer, beg the Caps to change their style a little and to make some tough decisions about new players. The talent and desire looks to be there in the proper mix, but some refining can only make this team better.
Bit #1: Pacers must keep their cool
In Sunday’s Game 1, the Indiana Pacers received nine more foul calls than the Miami Heat. Of course, Pacers players and fans want to cry foul and maybe they have an argument. Nine fouls is a decently sized difference, but the Pacers can only blame themselves should the trend continue in this series. Indian racked up one of the highest foul counts in the NBA this season and the Heat similarly ran up an impressive number of drawn fouls. In addition, stars like James and Wade will receive favorable treatment from refs like all the great ones before and after them. Any team playing the Heat should keep that in mind as well when either of the two drives to the basket. I don’t mind complaining about a skewy foul count, but the difference doesn’t look as bad when you factor in the teams and their respective abilities for getting to the line.
The Heat still look pretty dominant, but without Chris Bosh the low post game will suffer slightly which could be tough if the Heat play a good low post team like the Lakers.
Bit #2: Crazy, crazy day across the pond
Tough to believe it worked out this way, but Manchester City, long bereft of a Premiership title, won in stunning fashion to capture their first in 44 years. Manchester United, the perennial contender and center of Manchester’s attention, won earlier in the day to go two points ahead. City, down 2-1 with under five minutes left needed two goals to win on goal differential and were able to cash in during stoppage time against Queens Park Rangers (this game shouldn’t have been close) creating the most thrilling finish the Premiership has seen in years. Most importantly, however, one of the most expensive collaborations on a football field finally came through to knock crosstown rivals United off their perch, if only for a season. Still, quite impressive to say the least.
Bit #3: MLB left with egg on its face
The Slough of Despond approaches and baseball continues to recover from the Ryan Braun saga. On Monday afternoon, MLB fired the arbitrator that overturned Braun’s suspension. Many of you may remember a post a few months ago about this suspension, which sparked lots of intrigue and whispering as to what occurred behind closed doors. The biggest question: did arbitrator Shyam Das overturn the suspension because of the urine samples being defective or in spite of the evidence entirely, choosing to focus on a breakdown in the process. That MLB fired him strikes me as evidence that they thought the evidence to be rock solid and that Braun escaped on a technicality. I continue to believe that Braun should count his lucky stars, since everyone associated with this case from the tester to the arbitrator has lost their jobs in the process. Don’t expect MLB to make similar mistakes again but to refine the process to not be embarrassed in the future.
Bit #4: Seahawks Camp Gets Weirder
An announcement came on Monday that rookie QB Russell Wilson of Wisconsin will compete for the starting job against last year’s starter Tarvaris Jackson and pricey free agent Matt Flynn. This coming from the same dude who selected a fourth rounder in the first round at the draft this year. I don’t doubt Wilson can throw well, but if the Seahawks truly think he will lead their team anywhere this upcoming season they are mistaken. Flynn and Jackson might not be more attractive than the White Chicks, but at least they’ve started games in the pros already. Statements like this continue to show (to me at least) that while Pete Carroll has a way with players he remains one of the worst personnel guys in football.
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