‘Russia vs. Czech Republic’
courtesy of ‘s.yume’
A beat-up Capitals squad hit Nashville last night and stumbled out with a 3-1 loss to the Predators. Don’t let the score fool you; the game remained scoreless for over 55 minutes. Early in the third, Troy Brouwer wristed a perfectly-placed cross-ice pass from Marcus Johansson past Preds goalie Pekka Rinne and the game looked like it would finally break open in the Caps favor. Thirty seconds later, Martin Erat solved Tomas Vokun and it went downhill from there. Colin Wilson’s game-winning goal came with less than 30 seconds on the clock, and Shea Weber’s empty netter five seconds later was the nail sealing the coffin.
The good:
- Tomas Vokoun was stellar for most of the evening. Stopping 28 of 30 shots, he was in top form with some specatular saves.
- The Caps second line (Jason Chimera, Brooks Laich, Alexander Semin) accounted for 14 of the Caps 40 shots.
- Marcus Johansson and Cody Eakin continue to shine on the third line.
The bad:
- The power play went 0-for-3; the team has the 7th-best power play in the league.
- The Caps are now 1-3-1 in their last 5 and 3-5-1 since their red-hot start.
- The team dominated through two solid periods but once Brouwer’s goal tallied in, it seemed like there was a complete shift in tone. Erat’s tying goal came when the Caps thought there was an offsides but with no whistle, the Predators played on. As a result, Erat scored. The Caps never seemed to recover from that momentary lapse and the Preds made the most of it.
The quote:
“I think guys are as upset as I’ve seen,” said Mike Knuble. “That was frustrating. We really battled to get that lead. They tied it right away, but the least we should have done was force overtime.”
Having lived in the DC area for ten years, Ben still loves to wander the city with his wife, shooting lots of photos and exploring all the latest exhibits and galleries. A certified hockey fanatic, he spends some time debating the Washington Capitals club with friends – but everyone knows of his three decade love affair with the Pittsburgh Penguins.
A professional writer, gamer, photographer, and Lego enthusiast, Ben remains captivated by DC and doesn’t plan on leaving any time soon.
