Caps vs Islanders: Can Ovi hit 700?
The Washington Capitals play the rival New York Islanders on this damp rainy Monday. There are a bunch of questions, fans and the coaching staff have, heading into this game.
First, and most important, will the Caps be able to play as a team, and not as individual players? Over the last few games, the defense has barely been playing mediocre hockey. On offense, its been ‘take random shots on goal’ instead of passing the puck around and finding a seem to score a goal.
Another question, is will head coach Todd Reirden prove he is a good coach, by making changes on the fly, and benching players that don’t hustle or show team effort? Reirden has on occasion, switched players up from different lines to try to get a spark going, but he doesn’t seem to have the discipline to control the team.
One glaring problem has been the lack of defense that the Caps have played with. The defense has been sub par, or lackluster. Honestly, you can take any negative word and insert it for the lack of defensive play. The Caps have called up Martin Fehervary, from Hershey and are keeping him in the lineup to see how he’s developed. He had an assist in the last game. Radko Gudas is sitting this game, in favor of Nick Jenson, to try to get a spark going on the defensive side.
The power play, has also been less than stellar. The Caps are leading the league in short handed goals given up. With the Caps giving up goals, with a man advantage, they are playing from behind. This will hinder their chance at another run at Lord Stanley’s Cup.
Lastly, Alex Ovechkin sits two goals away from career number 700. While, Ovi is on a goal scoring tear recently, he didn’t record a point against Philly on Saturday. This would be a cool milestone to hit against the Islanders, for a few reasons. One, is it would take the pressure off Ovi to hit the mark. The second reason, is Barry Trotz. Trotz coached the Caps to a Stanley Cup, is coaching the Islanders, and I believe he would appreciate the moment.
