The Washington Capitals season is now in the books, as they lost in the first round to the Carolina Hurricanes in a wild seven games. The series was very competitive, but the Capitals did not catch the breaks in these playoffs that they did a season ago during their Stanley Cup run.
It was a crazy first round, as many of the Stanley Cup favorites were bounced early. The Capitals are still in shock, and the fans are now wondering what went wrong.
POWERPLAY BUZZKILL
Capitals fans have seen this before, but there were instances in the series where the Capitals powerplay failed to convert in critical moments.
The beginning of Game 7 was a prime example of failing to convert in critical moments. The Capitals had a chance to extend their lead early in the first period after going up 2-0 quickly. They failed to go up 3-0, and instead, gave up a critical shorthanded goal that kept the Hurricanes alive in the game. A 3-0 hockey game has a different feel and control to it than a 2-1 hockey game.
INJURIES
The Capitals were banged up in the series against Carolina. During player exit interviews, some players acknowledged that they played through various ailments.
The most devastating injury to the Capitals came in Game 4 of the series as T.J. Oshie broke his clavicle thanks to a questionable hit from Warren Foegele. In addition to Oshie, Nicklas Backstrom, Lars Eller, Jakub Vrana all expressed playing through some minor injuries through the playoffs.
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Vrana said he was nursing an injury but declined to say what it was. Added that he could play. (He was seen with a lot of ice on his shoulder during the playoffs)
— Isabelle Khurshudyan (@ikhurshudyan) April 26, 2019
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Backstrom said he doesn’t know if he’s going to Worlds. Said he’s a little banged up, so he wants to get his medical evaluation done first.
— Isabelle Khurshudyan (@ikhurshudyan) April 26, 2019
While the players will not use injuries as an excuse, the regular season and postseason are long grinds. The Capitals have played a lot of hockey over the last year. It is a physical sport that takes its toll on the body.
SHOTS ON GOAL
The Capitals struggled in the series to get a lot of shots on goal. Carolina has a quick defensive group that can transition the puck very well. The Capitals averaged just 27 shots per game in the series.
There were many instances in this series where the Capitals went 20+ minutes without mustering much in terms of shots on goal and offensive zone pressure. The Capitals were not able to get many second and third chances around the net and did not crash the net well in this series.
By: George Foussekis