Caps hoping adversity makes them stronger
They breezed through a wonderful regular season in 2009-10 and carried all the accolades and hosannas that go to the NHL’s best team into the Stanley Cup playoffs.
It all ended in disaster for the Capitals last spring, of course. A picture-perfect year was torn apart in a first-round upset loss to the Montreal Canadiens. And after a strong start to this campaign, Washington would endure plenty more turmoil before a late-season charge brought it right back around again: the No.?1 seed in the Eastern Conference entering the 16-team tournament for Lord Stanley’s Cup. That chase begins Wednesday at Verizon Center in the best-of-seven conference quarterfinals against the No. 8 New York Rangers.
“Last year was one of those where we really had no adversity all season. It’s enjoyable to play those kind of seasons,” Caps forward Matt Bradley said. “But I think in the end having a season with the ups and downs like we did this year will help us in the long run because you have to kind of deal with that in the regular season and when it comes up in the playoffs it’s not the first time.”
| GOALIE battle |
| Michal Neuvirth, Washington Capitals |
| The rookie has never lost a postseason series — not in Canadian junior hockey, not in the American Hockey League. He has started 14 playoff series and won every time. He’s the most consistent — and healthy — of the Caps’ young goalies. Neuvirth has a .914 save percentage and a 2.45 goals-against average. |
| Henrik Lundqvist, New York Rangers |
| He led the NHL with 11 shutouts — two of them against Washington. Only four goalies who started at least 30 games posted a better save percentage than Lundqvist’s .923. But in 17 games since Bruce Boudreau took over Washington, Lundqvist has just an .899 save percentage against the Caps and a 7-10 record. |
| X-FACTORS |
| John Carlson, Capitals |
| Carlson’s cool, calm and collected. The 21-year-old teams with Karl Alzner, 22, to form the league’s youngest No. 1 pair. But they are good despite heavy minutes against the opposition’s top lines. Carlson scored the game-tying goal late in Game 2 of the Montreal series last spring. |
| Derek Stepan, Rangers |
| He will hear plenty of boos from Caps fans at Verizon Center. Stepan was the one who put Mike Green on the shelf a second time with his Feb. 25 hit. He played all 82 games at center for New York, and only four rookies produced more points. Stepan finished with 21 goals and 24 assists. |
| Playoff history |
| The Capitals and Rangers have played only five times in the Stanley Cup playoffs. But they have put together some memorable series. |
| 1986: Rangers 4, Caps 2 » This was the best team in Washington history up until last season’s 121-point club. The Caps finished second in the Patrick Division, swept the fading Islanders in the first round and were heavy favorites vs. the Rangers, who finished the regular season with 29 fewer points and barely qualified for the postseason. But Washington lost twice in overtime and couldn’t solve goalie John Vanbiesbrouck. At the time, New York employed a gritty little forward named George McPhee. |
| 1990: Caps 4, Rangers 1 » Washington needed a hero after the Patrick Division winner lost top scorer Dino Ciccarelli to injury. But no one expected it to be little-known forward John Druce. He went nuts in the semifinals, recording a hat trick in Game 2, four points in Game 3, two more goals in Game 4 and an overtime game-winner — and series clincher — in Game 5 for one of the sport’s most remarkable postseason outbursts. |
| 1991: Caps 4, Rangers 2 » No revenge for New York the following year even though it was favored and had home-ice advantage in this conference quarterfinals series. This time it was former Rangers Mike Ridley and Kelly Miller who helped end New York’s season. The duo combined for five goals and four assists in that series, and Ridley had the game-winning goal in Game 6 at Capital Centre. |
| 1994: Rangers 4, Caps 1 » Washington was just outmatched. New York scored 11 goals in the first two games at Madison Square Garden, and goalie Mike Richter posted a shutout in Game 3. The Rangers never looked back en route to a conference semifinals victory. They went on to win their first Stanley Cup in 54 years. |
| 2009: Caps 4, Rangers 3 » New York held a 3-1 lead before falling apart. Rangers coach John Tortorella tossed a water bottle at a fan behind his bench during a 4-0 loss in Game 5 at Verizon Center. The Caps torched goalie Henrik Lundqvist that night and in Game 6 back at MSG (5-3). Finally, Sergei Fedorov broke a 1-1 tie late in third period of Game 7 to lift Washington to a victory in the conference quarterfinals. |
Last season, Washington went on a franchise-record 14-game winning streak. This year, they saw an eight-game losing streak in December that was broadcast on HBO’s “24/7 Penguins/Capitals: Road to the NHL Winter Classic” program. Last year, Alex Ovechkin led a team that was far and away the best offense in the league. This season, he scored just 32 goals — 14 below his previous career-worst effort — and his teammates struggled right along with him. In 2009-10, the Caps won the Southeast Division by an incredible 38 points. This season, they were still trailing Tampa Bay on March 5.
Yet despite those struggles, which also included injuries to several key players, including defenseman Mike Green (concussion), and a woeful power play, here they are again as the top seed. But few teams have a better grasp on how meaningless that accomplishment is.
“No, that’s all gone out the window. One seed, eight seed — we learned that last year,” Washington forward Brooks Laich said. “The one seed didn’t get us anything. I guess the only thing it does is put a target right on your back.”
Washington appears better suited for a playoff style this spring. Last year’s offense-heavy approach is gone, replaced by a team that gives opponents little to work with. The Caps have the NHL’s second-rated penalty kill (85.6 percent) and allow just 2.33 goals a game, fourth best in the league. But they are also playing a Rangers team that excels in most of those same categories and beat them three of four times, including a 7-0 win on Dec. 12 and 6-0 on Feb. 25.
“This year we’ve been pushed really hard,” Washington coach Bruce Boudreau said. “Saying that, we’re playing a team that’s kicked our butt three times. So we know we’re not walking into a cake walk.”
