Capitals backup goalie bids for more ice time
He has appeared in just four games and started only three. But at the very least, Capitals backup goaltender Brent Johnson has made a statement early this season that he deserves consistent playing time.
The latest example was Tuesday night’s 2-1 overtime loss at Ottawa. Johnson was spectacular, stealing the Caps a point on a night where they played better — especially after a 5-0 thrashing at Buffalo on Saturday — but still surrendered far too many scoring chances. Johnson allowed two goals in 64 minutes, turning away 42 Ottawa shots. The Senators finished with 44 shots, the most Washington has allowed in 11 games.
“(Johnson) was great,” Ottawa goalie Alex Auld told reporters afterwards. “It seemed like everything we threw at him, he was getting a piece of it.”
Now, the dilemma. Does Caps coach Bruce Boudreau stay with Johnson for tonight’s Southeast Division home game against the Carolina Hurricanes? Or does he go right back to Jose Theodore, the $4.5 million free agent who signed over the summer to be the starter for the next two years? The Caps canceled practice on Wednesday, but Boudreau has decided to give Johnson another crack, according to a team spokesman, and he will be in goal tonight.
Johnson’s numbers are solid. In three games — plus 31 minutes in relief of Theodore when he was shelled Opening Night in Atlanta — he is 1-1-2 with a .914 save percentage and a 2.46 goals against average.
That’s a small sample size. And Theodore has had his moments, playing well on the road against Calgary and Phoenix, both 2-1 losses, and at home against Chicago and Nashville, both wins. But a couple of ugly outings have Theodore’s save percentage at .877 with a 3.44 GAA. He had played five games in a row before Johnson earned the nod on Tuesday night.
Carolina (7-3-2) is in first place in the Southeast, four points ahead of the Caps (5-4-2). The Hurricanes are coming off back-to-back wins over the Toronto Maple Leafs, including a 5-4 overtime win on Tuesday. Center Eric Staal leads Carolina with five goals and four assists. Goalie Cam Ward (4-2-2, .922 save percentage) is 10-4 lifetime against the Caps. The two teams split eight meetings last season.
