GDT: CA @ US @ 4pm PST

[HTFN]

They never really felt like empty wins but I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop:

now I can say fairly confidently that these aren't flukes. This team, for whatever reason, is pretty goddamn good. The way they're shelling teams on shot count is seriously encouraging after last year, it's wild to say goaltending might be their biggest weakness, everyone is just so much faster and more ready to do the right thing with the puck.

He won't be, but Carbery should be up for coach of the year if this keeps pace.

 

[tycoonheart]

I think we can fight for the division.

 

[kanucks25]

I know he took a big step last year as well but, is Protas the real deal?

 

[IafrateOvie34]

Ovechkin:

This season: 5 goals after 9 games

Last season: 5 goals after 29 games.

Indeed!

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

No point for him to take that fight
Up three at the end of the game, only thing you can do is get yourself hurt

If he’s going to lay big hits…he was pretty much jumped anyways…

 

[IafrateOvie34]

I think we can fight for the division.

I’m thinking bigger, but I’m still on a World Series high.

 

[Empty Goal Net]

This team. Guys are playing like a team. Once Roy and JC6 return, this should continue. A few goose eggs every now and then. As long they don't lose as a good portion of the team to simultaneous slumps, it's looking like a good RS. And unlike Bruce's run-and-gun teams, this group looks more balanced. We'll see. I do think the goaltending has looked worse many nights due to the ramshackle defense, neither Chuckie nor Logan inspire regular steal-a-game confidence, at least not yet.

 

[HTFN]

I know he took a big step last year as well but, is Protas the real deal?

I'm already on record as someone who has been bullish on his progression so I'll take this one:

Last year he really showed up as a big body with hands and touch with the IQ to pull it off and play intelligently within the team system. I said at the time that if he adds one more significant tool to his arsenal he's going to be a problem, and that could be shooting, skating, or perhaps smothering defense but he was just on the outside of being a guy that fans of other teams pay moderate respect towards...

It looks like this year he took his footwork to a new level and now he's able to chase some of the plays his higher IQ allows for, which has made him ridiculously valuable on the top line as a retriever/distributor and why he and McMichael seem to keep clicking. If he can keep this up his size and mobility alone is going to distract defenses and his innate hockey ability will hopefully take advantage, because he's got it all right there in front of him.

He won't be some transcendent superstar but I think he's got the blueprint of a "who the f*** is that and why does he keep ruining us" vibe for a lot of teams

 

[marcel snapshot]

They never really felt like empty wins but I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop:

now I can say fairly confidently that these aren't flukes. This team, for whatever reason, is pretty goddamn good. The way they're shelling teams on shot count is seriously encouraging after last year, it's wild to say goaltending might be their biggest weakness, everyone is just so much faster and more ready to do the right thing with the puck.

He won't be, but Carbery should be up for coach of the year if this keeps pace.

It’s Carbs. He has the whole lineup top to bottom playing a relentless 5-man, 2-way game. Pressure on the opponent, tons of support in transition, pucks on and off each guy’s stick immediately cuz an available guy is already there.

This is also an almost perfect setup for success for 39 year old Ovie, and it’s showing. Reminds of late stage Brett Hull, who won Cups at age 34 and 37. He doesn’t have to be The Guy - he can pick his spots and be confident that everyone in the lineup is playing a 200 foot game, even if he can’t always do it.

 

[Langway]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1852167445257109867

 

[ClevelandCapsfan]

We good…

We not suk.

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1852167445257109867

Ahah! I bet he knew…

 

[Pigskin]

The goal tending has been average at best, which makes our start even more impressive. While against some good teams, our schedule has been friendly - 6 home, 3 away and a good amount of rest. Our first back to back coming up. Important that we have banked points during this period. Great stuff, enjoyable to watch.

The Protas deal all of a sudden is looking sweet. Maybe offset somewhat by the Mikey deal being on the short side.

 

[wickedwitch]

The goal tending has been average at best, which makes our start even more impressive. While against some good teams, our schedule has been friendly - 6 home, 3 away and a good amount of rest. Our first back to back coming up. Important that we have banked points during this period. Great stuff, enjoyable to watch.

The Protas deal all of a sudden is looking sweet. Maybe offset somewhat by the Mikey deal being on the short side.

We did have the back-to-back against Philly. But that's with both teams on the same schedule.

 

[Calicaps]

It’s Carbs. He has the whole lineup top to bottom playing a relentless 5-man, 2-way game. Pressure on the opponent, tons of support in transition, pucks on and off each guy’s stick immediately cuz an available guy is already there.

This is also an almost perfect setup for success for 39 year old Ovie, and it’s showing. Reminds of late stage Brett Hull, who won Cups at age 34 and 37. He doesn’t have to be The Guy - he can pick his spots and be confident that everyone in the lineup is playing a 200 foot game, even if he can’t always do it.

It is definitely Carbery, but it's not just him. Gotta give management their due here. They got the right pieces for the roles that needed filling and they had patience with young guys. I am so enjoying watching the Caps thrive, and it's so clear what a great job BMac and GMCP did, when you contrast it with how badly Nashville sucks. All the pundits were kissing Trotz's ass after free agency talking about how he did so great to get all those big-name players, and all the talk about the Caps, when there was any at all, was about how sure, they added a bunch of guys, but they're not game breakers. But no one looked at the whole picture.

Anyone with any serious understanding of hockey could have predicted that the Preds' all-star lineup had a high probability of failure and that the Caps had made strategic moves to build an actual team. And here we are.

https://x.com/i/web/status/1852167445257109867

Love it. Also seems impossible.

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

Tough night when you don’t get a star of the game with 3 pts lol….

Big Pro
Mikey
Wilson

 

[stephenball]

The goaltending needs to tighten up a bit, but we were also short 2 top-4 defensemen. Mikey is a beast, and our PP with him on the ice looked a lot more dangerous.

 

[HTFN]

The goal tending has been average at best, which makes our start even more impressive. While against some good teams, our schedule has been friendly - 6 home, 3 away and a good amount of rest. Our first back to back coming up. Important that we have banked points during this period. Great stuff, enjoyable to watch.

The Protas deal all of a sudden is looking sweet. Maybe offset somewhat by the Mikey deal being on the short side.

I feel like McMichael took the expected route, it's Protas as the real surprise and honestly... if he keeps this up that's suddenly one of the better contracts in the league.

It is definitely Carbery, but it's not just him. Gotta give management their due here. They got the right pieces for the roles that needed filling and they had patience with young guys. I am so enjoying watching the Caps thrive, and it's so clear what a great job BMac and GMCP did, when you contrast it with how badly Nashville sucks. All the pundits were kissing Trotz's ass after free agency talking about how he did so great to get all those big-name players, and all the talk about the Caps, when there was any at all, was about how sure, they added a bunch of guys, but they're not game breakers. But no one looked at the whole picture.

Anyone with any serious understanding of hockey could have predicted that the Preds' all-star lineup had a high probability of failure and that the Caps had made strategic moves to build an actual team. And here we are.


Love it. Also seems impossible.

Ding ding.

There's a quote chain in another thread that talked about square pegs and round holes, and the Caps are upper echelon for a pretty long time when it comes to targeting the guys they want for the roles they want, and it happened again this year.

 

[SherVaughn30]

Totally agree on the goaltending. We’ll have to address this next offseason.

Only gets addressed if we promote the Finnish goalie coach in Hershey. I have had enough of Scott Murray!

 

[um]

Dumb to take that fight. Let him get the roughing and just laugh at him, you blew up his teammate already.

Great way to get your teammates ran.

 

[Kalopsia]

I know he took a big step last year as well but, is Protas the real deal?

Protas is gonna end up on those player surveys where they ask who's the most underrated player in the NHL. He's a winger who doesn't have a great shot, and he doesn't use his size to lay big hits like Wilson does, so he's always gonna fly a little under the radar, but he does literally everything else. Great vision, great speed, great boardwork, consistent effort, defensively responsible... and he's under contract at 3.375M through 2029.

By the way, the Caps drafted his brother Ilya in the 3rd round this year and he's put up 10-6-16 in his first 10 games in the OHL.

 

[BallardEra]

Ovie how has 28 goals in his last 45 games played. That’s a 51 goal pace over 82 games.

Not too shabby for a 38-39 year old player over that span.

 

[Block]

Great way to get your teammates ran.

With 3 minutes left? Just f***ing destroy another one of them with a hit then. They'll get the message. This fighting for honor bullshit is two decades past needing to be aggressively legislated out of the game.

 

[um]

With 3 minutes left? Just f***ing destroy another one of them with a hit then. They'll get the message. This fighting for honor bullshit is two decades past needing to be aggressively legislated out of the game.

You’re not taking Wilson’s loss well.

 

[HTFN]

I’m not going to check the stats but desperately want someone else to do it:

They’ve got so many 5-6 goal games already I wonder where they compare against the entirety of last season.