First we should take a closer look at what’s been going right so that we can understand where they can play better. Lets go line by line.
The defensive core is rounding into shape nicely. Only the third pairing is looking unsettled. Dmitry Orlov is looking better game by game and looks secure in the fifth spot. Chorney and Nate Schmidt meanwhile have alternated on the last spot with Chorney looking to have the upper hand for the moment at least.
The goaltending has been good to great as expected. Braden Holtby is making his new contract look like the good deal we all hoped it was. Phillip Grubauer has only had one start, and surrendered 4 goals in that start. Given the ”run and gun” style of that game, it’s hard to fault him though the stats won’t be so kind. Everything looks at least good in net.
Overall, the team is playing pretty well to outstanding 5 on 5. For the first time in a long time, 60 minute efforts have been the rule not the exception. With a lead in the 3rd period, they’re shutting teams down and adding to the lead. The blue liners are chipping in with goals to a degree we haven’t seen in a while. I’m not sure we’ve ever seen every defensive line look like an offensive threat the way we’re seeing over the first 7 games.
With so much going well, how can we expect even more? Lets start with the system we saw the Capitals perfect as the previous season wore on. We’ve seen flashes of that shutdown and counter attack system, but we haven’t seen THE system as such yet. Expect to see that develop as this season rolls along, and much faster than we saw last season. With that comes the pounding game we saw so much of in the playoffs. I think the Capitals are probably working towards a middle ground that’s not as physically taxing as the playoff game but just as effective. Pounding combined with speed is a tough combination to attack. The Capitals are much better equipped to play that game on every line than in the past. Expect to see that continue to develop.
The overall puck control numbers look good but to my eye, we were better at the end of last season. The new additions and some improved Caps veterans are no doubt responsible for the possession improvements, but we can be better tape to tape through the middle of the ice. We saw games last season where the Capitals looked like they were playing keep away, playing well over half of the game in the offensive zone. We can do that again. It just needs some time for the chemistry between players to develop a bit more. Puck hogs (in a good way) like Oshie and Kuznetsov are capable of skating circles around defenders while holding onto the puck, and as their communications get better we should see even more from that line. Likewise Backstrom and Williams and Johansson on the second line. They’re all good possession guys and great passers. We’ve seen flashes of that, with the results to show on the scoreboard. Expect that to become more the norm shift to shift as the season goes along.
Now we get to specific players. Backstrom is still only a few games back from surgery. As well as he’s playing, he’ll be even better as the season goes along. The chemistry with his line mates still has plenty of room to grow. Oh, and you can rest assured, Backstrom IS your second line center. He’s simply playing too well as is Kuznetsov, to see that changing any time soon. I pity the opposing coaches trying to shut down those two lines. Speaking of Kuznetsov, he still has some room to grow on face-offs. We can expect the top line trio will continue to build chemistry and experience with one another one game at a time.
Tom Wilson is only going to get better. You can see in his play how close he is to figuring out how to score consistently with his line mates. The defense of all three lines has overall been good but still has room to get better, and it will. The pieces are there. It’s just the experience playing together and knowing who’s going to be where and doing what.
As the overall defense improves and the 3rd D pairing settles down, the goaltending numbers will benefit as well. Holtby hasn’t seen many shots, but the percentage of high quality chances against has been higher than you’d like. It skews the numbers but we should expect that to change in a positive way.
All this and we haven’t even talked about Burakovsky. That’s how good things are. How he’ll be used and where he’ll step up from the fourth line remains to be seen, but that’s a hell of a weapon to have for coach Trotz. He’s going to make things happen somewhere.
So the Capitals are absolutely playing great but I think it’s easy to see how much better they can be. This team has the potential to be as dominant as any we’ve seen in recent memory. The season should be a great one for the Caps fans.
By Ernie Mudd
Graphics by Aaron Davis