1. Man cannot live
by talent alone- The Caps rival the defending Stanley Cup champion Detroit Red Wings
when it comes to talent but talent without consistency and maturity equals an early
exit from the playoffs. The Flyers showed the Caps last year that talent alone
does not translate into wins.
2. Ugly goals count - Due
to the high level of talent the Caps are guilty of trying to score the pretty
goal instead of living with a bit of ugly that will get you through the lean
times. It was only when the Rangers went up 3-1 did we see the Caps start throwing
everything at the net. Funny thing is "the King", Henrik Lundqvist
has not looked so royal after getting ousted the last two games. The Caps
change of fortunes can be directly linked to their increased amount of shots no
matter how ugly they are.
3. Go to the net - The
Caps have tons of snipers but in the playoffs all of the goalies are pretty
darn good. Chances are if they see a shot they are going to stop it. The best
thing to do is to go to the net and create chances with rebounds etc. Once the
Caps started going to the net the goal sheet was loaded with names other than
Alexander Ovechkin and Alexander Semin.
4. A good goalie
solves a lot of problems - With Jose Theodore in
net there was always the fear of the bad goal given up at the absolute worst
time. Simeon Varlamov's play thus far has given his defense confidence that
even if they have a lapse he has their back and the results speak volumes. The
Caps defense has taken it up a notch and they are playing Stanley Cup level
hockey.
5. The Ovechkin
Factor - The fact is this kid would skate through a brick wall if it
meant winning. Alexander Ovechkin is going to win a Stanley Cup by sheer force
of will and he will drag his teammates along kicking and screaming if
he has to. There are very few players that can either will their teams to
win or intimidate his opponents to the point where it affects their play.
Michael Jordan seemed to have cosmic powers not only over his teammates but
also over his opponents. Now that Ovechkin has a good goalie the sky is the
limit for this Washington Capitals franchise no matter what happens Tuesday.