GDT: GM 47: Team Connor @ Team No-Connor - 9:08PM EST

[DWGie26]

I think it's fine to enjoy winning despite the lack of shots, but I think it's also fine to say this is not a sustainable way to win games especially in the postseason.

I'm mostly fine with how they're playing because I don't think expectations should be terribly high for this season despite the gaudy W-L record. They are still a "retooling" team in transition. Make the postseason and then hope for the best this year, and continue to get stronger in the following years as some of their higher end prospects get into the NHL.

this is the beautiful thing about sports Twabby. It’s not all logical. Sometimes miracles happen. see HTTR.

 

[pman25]

We have the best coach in the league right now, we are 2nd in goals per game, 1st in GAA, our PK is 3rd. It doesn't matter if we score 1st or not, Caps still find ways to win games. Oh we are top 5 team @ home and I think we just jumped over the Wild for best record on the road. We have 3 good D pairs and 4 good forward lines.

I’ll give you goaltending and PK, that seems to be pretty crucial lately

I don’t really believe we have 4 good forward lines right now. We have the big boy line that seems to do well. But everything else is a mixed bag.

Outcomes have been good so far, that’s fun but man every game I turn on lately they can barely get to 10 shots after two periods. That’s pretty concerning!

Wins are wins though, so I’ll take it. But If LT gets into a rut, we’re screwed

 

[Lou Sassole]

He’s so annoying… He just has a way of putting it like we’re not allowed to enjoy this victory.

I wonder what kind of nonsense they’ll be posting the day the Caps finally fall to the bottom of the standings.

He definitely dedicates too much time to playing hockey simulator games. Dude doesn't realize the games are played on the ice, and not on a spreadsheet. Also, PLD is our best player not named Thompson right now.

 

[Corby78]

Props to Logan, he is carrying the team right now. He wanted to prove he was a legit 1A goalie and he is doing it.

While I’m not loving the 5v5 play, it’s great to be not playing well and have guys step up to keep the points going. I have faith LT will cool down before the playoffs, but the offensive play will pick up again.

 

[Lou Sassole]

I’ll give you goaltending and PK, that seems to be pretty crucial lately

I don’t really believe we have 4 good forward lines right now. We have the big boy line that seems to do well. But everything else is a mixed bag.

Outcomes have been good so far, that’s fun but man every game I turn on lately they can barely get to 10 shots after two periods. That’s pretty concerning!

Wins are wins though, so I’ll take it. But If LT gets into a rut, we’re screwed

Agreed, the Ovie/strome combo is just not good right now. The Jumbo line is great, the "4th line" is ok, would rather they go back to Raddy on it. They don't trust the 3rd line and rarely use it in key situations. It will eventually catch up to them, as it's hard to maintain intensity and desperation throughout the season. They definitely have a couple issues to sort out up front.

 

[Maruk moustache]

I think, if not for the nachos, and I guess the refs not seeing them until too late, the Capitals win 3-1, possibly 4-1 with an ENG, and then it gets harder to think about what the Capitals didn't do well and all that. I didn't love the call at the end either. So, I am mainly just impressed. Though I think they would have needed to have played even better than they did to have won if McDavid had been there, probably.

 

[SherVaughn30]

Maybe if McDavid was in the Oilers lineup, they win this game? Just one thing, McDavid had a dumb moment in his last game and crosschecked another player in the head! He was suspended for 3 games, so his irrational action cost his team tonight. Despite being badly outshot, the Caps still prevailed by exposing the Oilers D/Skinner. Oilers offense can be so dominant at times, that is terribly masks how bad their D and goaltending could be. If the Oilers really want to win a Cup with McDavid/Draisaitl, they should acquire a better goalie that can make clutch saves! Thompson has that ability, while Skinner does not.

 

[Roshi]

Maybe if McDavid was in the Oilers lineup, they win this game? Just one thing, McDavid had a dumb moment in his last game and crosschecked another player in the head! He was suspended for 3 games, so his irrational action cost his team tonight. Despite being badly outshot, the Caps still prevailed by exposing the Oilers D/Skinner. Oilers offense can be so dominant at times, that is terribly masks how bad their D and goaltending could be. If the Oilers really want to win a Cup with McDavid/Draisaitl, they should acquire a better goalie that can make clutch saves! Thompson has that ability, while Skinner does not.

Dont go giving them ideas... we havent locked either of ours yet.

Now that we somehow squeezed another undeserved W, I love the Nacho-goal. Forget the nuggets, some local pub should give out free Nachos for everyone in the game for that.

 

[Ovechkins Wodka]

Dont go giving them ideas... we havent locked either of ours yet.

Now that we somehow squeezed another undeserved W, I love the Nacho-goal. Forget the nuggets, some local pub should give out free Nachos for everyone in the game for that.

I saw a report they don’t want to commit to one of them first and make jealousy in the locker room

 

[Roshi]

I saw a report they don’t want to commit to one of them first and make jealousy in the locker room

Yeah, giving both equal time on nacho-duty works pretty damn well currently.

 

[Kuz]

Agreed, the Ovie/strome combo is just not good right now. The Jumbo line is great, the "4th line" is ok, would rather they go back to Raddy on it. They don't trust the 3rd line and rarely use it in key situations. It will eventually catch up to them, as it's hard to maintain intensity and desperation throughout the season. They definitely have a couple issues to sort out up front.

Yeah they need to find the chemistry they had pre Ovi injury. Ovi is in a little worse shape probably affecting the line as a whole, but Strome have struggled a lot after Ovi got injured. He was buzzing and was around top 5 in points when Ovi got injured.

 

[trick9]

Caps have been underwhelming for few weeks now, but yet they still keep winning since Thompson has been ridiculously good. So the PDO argument checks out.

It's funny though. People who complain about the PDO are always the fans of the teams who have shit goaltending.

 

[Ovechkins Wodka]

Caps have been underwhelming for few weeks now, but yet they still keep winning since Thompson has been ridiculously good. So the PDO argument checks out.

It's funny though. People who complain about the PDO are always the fans of the teams who have shit goaltending.

If you call us underwhelming averaging less than two goals against a game I don’t know what game you’re watching. You probably wanted to get a basketball.

I am in defender mood tonight

Playing team D and a lot of them committing is a big deal for why we are in first place. Look PLD and Protas and this guy named Wilson

 

[trick9]

If you call us underwhelming averaging less than two goals against a game I don’t know what game you’re watching. You probably wanted to get a basketball.

I am in defender mood tonight

Playing team D and a lot of them committing is a big deal for why we are in first place. Look PLD and Protas

Read what you reply to? Like i said, Logan Thompson has been great. When your goalie is great, goals against number is likely to be low...

They gave up 18 high-danger chances and 5.15 xGA. Let's not act like this was some defensive masterpiece. But again, Logan Thompson was great.

 

[Ovechkins Wodka]

Read what you reply to? Like i said, Logan Thompson has been great. When your goalie is great, goals against number is likely to be low...

They gave up 18 high-danger chances and 5.15 xGA. Let's not act like this was some defensive masterpiece. But again, Logan Thompson was great.

Right I took it. You were shitting on the rest of the team who played an awesome D game as well.

Blocking shots. Making the right plays in the right place on the boards. And hustling their ass off for loose pucks.

 

[Ovechkins Wodka]

I might be such a Hockey old timer. I don’t know what PDO is

Please don’t shame I think it’s something like puck moving defender

 

[Roshi]

I might be such a Hockey old timer. I don’t know what PDO is

Please don’t shame I think it’s something like puck moving defender

Puck defending offensiveman.

Its the new adv stat in fashion that the kids like to throw up there. And because the Canucks of last year fitted the narrative, its now known as "the actual meter of success in long term".

"As a statistic, PDO is simple – shooting percentage plus save percentage. While that might not seem like much, this statistic is attempting to capture “puck luck” with a number, a proxy measure of how fortunate a team or player is."

PDO concetrates on the fact that hockey involves a lot of luck, and in long term the luck evens out. Kind of. But what we old timers like to say, "you earn the puck luck!" so I think we two atleast can go on with our lives and ignore that Capitals is PDO-sweetheart and will balance out back to mediocre team when PDO evens out - and instead just say we have the best goalie in the world and we are doing a lot of bodywork to earn tip in/deflection goals, and theres no reason that wont go on forever.

Im old too, so its possible that I dont get it either, though.

 

[Ovechkins Wodka]

Puck defending offensiveman.

Its the new adv stat in fashion that the kids like to throw up there. And because the Canucks of last year fitted the narrative, its now known as "the actual meter of success in long term".

"As a statistic, PDO is simple – shooting percentage plus save percentage. While that might not seem like much, this statistic is attempting to capture “puck luck” with a number, a proxy measure of how fortunate a team or player is."

Oh, we have a team of these people

 

[Empty Goal Net]

Props to Logan, he is carrying the team right now. He wanted to prove he was a legit 1A goalie and he is doing it.

While I’m not loving the 5v5 play, it’s great to be not playing well and have guys step up to keep the points going. I have faith LT will cool down before the playoffs, but the offensive play will pick up again.

It's great when your goalie can steal a game here and there. LT is doing that more often than should be necessary for this team to be successful. If the offense can recover more of its early season effectiveness, the team will be fine. LT can revert a bit - we just don't want him to display Sammy-like attributes (too many weak goals, swimming) that tend to cause teammates to lose confidence.

 

[Dr John Carlson]

I don't like PDO very much because I don't think save percentage is a very useful stat.

That said, the way they're winning games isn't sustainable. My pipe dream TDL scenario continues to be an upgrade over Strome at 1C.

 

[John Price]

Caps goalie miffed by nachos on ice during goal

Capitals goalie Logan Thompson said he was distracted by a tray of cheese-covered nachos thrown on the ice while Oilers winger Corey Perry scored on him in Edmonton on Tuesday night.

www.espn.com

 

[Fred22406Capsfan]

Good morning all! Curious about the reduction in shots on goal. Do you think this is straight up trouble with our offense or are teams adjusting to the Caps' style and collapsing bodies towards the net - blocking more shots? First to say I could be way off base but I was thinking how crowded it seems in front on the offensive end lately.

 

[Fred22406Capsfan]

Lol take a peek at the title of the Oiler post game thread.

Made me curious. That was an 'entertaining' read. Is this a thing for all Canadian fan bases?

 

[Blades Ov Steel]

Good morning all! Curious about the reduction in shots on goal. Do you think this is straight up trouble with our offense or are teams adjusting to the Caps' style and collapsing bodies towards the net - blocking more shots? First to say I could be way off base but I was thinking how crowded it seems in front on the offensive end lately.

I personally think teams have adjusted to us, and the Capitals seem to prefer cycling the puck until they can set up a screen, with shots coming from the point instead of just throwing pucks at the net from anywhere. It seems to me that we frustrate the other team and wear them down throughout the game, and we've been very good at capitalizing when necessary because we do have 4 lines who can put the puck in the net. The PP and PK are keeping us chugging along.

I know this has changed lately but overall season average:

The Caps rank 25th in the league with Shots For/Game
The Caps rank 21s in the league for Shots Against/Game

NHL Stats

The official source for NHL Stats including skaters, goalies, teams stats and more.

www.nhl.com

 

[marcel snapshot]

Made me curious. That was an 'entertaining' read. Is this a thing for all Canadian fan bases?

They’re up in arms about unsustainable PDO, how we’ll get bonked in the playoffs, and that the expected goals score was 5-2 Oil. They seem really triggered by the fact that the games aren’t played on paper.

Also, what is the matter with Bouchard? His defense is extra-sucky and he seems in Carlson-sativa mode on O