Could this be the Year?

By: Justin Creech
On Saturday afternoon I went to the Men’s Wearhouse in Woodbridge to get fitted for a tuxedo for my best friend’s wedding this June. Just a few stores down from the Men’s Wearhouse is a Best Buy, so after getting fitted for my tux, I decided to walk down to the Best Buy and see what dvd’s they had.
I went straight to the sports section and began looking at World Wrestling Entertainment dvd’s where I found a dvd of the greatest Intercontinental Championship matches, the Hart family anthology, and a retrospective dvd of Shawn Michaels.
Almost hidden in the corner of one of the shelves was the newly released Washington Capitals 10 Greatest Games dvd. Disc number three in the set of ten is the original broadcast of Game 6 of the 1998 Eastern Conference Finals; a game that will live in infamy in Caps history.
On June 4, 1998, Joe Juneau banged home a rebound of a Brian Bellows shot under the left arm of then Buffalo Sabres goaltender Dominic Hasek at 6:24 of the first overtime period. The goal gave the Capitals a 3-2 win after coming back from 1-0 and 2-1 deficits and the franchise’s first trip to the Stanley Cup Finals.
I remember the game like it was yesterday. My father had angrily gone to bed twice as each Buffalo goal brought back memories of past playoff failures. He didn’t even come back to our den until the start of overtime; missing Peter Bondra’s late third period goal, until a good family friend of ours called our house at 10:15 to ask me to explain to her what icing means.
But, down the stairs he came, and his new found faith was rewarded about 20 minutes later when Juneau’s shot eluded Hasek and clinched the series.
Seeing that date on the back of the box that contained the dvd’s caused me to think; could this be the year? Could this be the year they finally do it? Could this possibly be the year the Capitals put their past behind them, a past that includes just one playoff series win in the last 11 seasons, a past that includes consecutive first round exits in 2000 and 2001 after consecutive Southeast Division championships, a past that includes seven series losses to the hated Pittsburgh Penguins; four of which saw the Capitals blow two game leads.
Could this be the year the Capitals take the lessons from the last two springs which saw them loss two heart breaking Game 7’s at the Verizon Center and finally put it all together and raise Lord Stanley’s Cup?
My answer; a resounding yes.
The Capitals have all the pieces. Star winger Alex Ovechkin gets the most attention, but center Nicklas Backstrom is a rising star as well, and Alexander Semin is not far behind Ovechkin and Backstrom. Backstrom just wrapped up the most productive season of his young NHL career by finishing fourth in the league in scoring with 101 points (33g, 68a) and Semin just recorded the most goals and points he ever has in a single season, finishing with 40 goals and 84 points.
Ovechkin finished tied for second in the league in points with 109 (50g, 59a) despite missing 10 full games due to injury or suspension, and parts of four others due to ejection or injury. However, the most impressive for Ovechkin this season is his plus/minus ratio. Ovechkin finished the regular season a plus 45, second only to teammate Jeff Schultz who led the league with a plus 50. Ovechkin’s previous high for plus minus was in 2007-2008 when he finished at plus 28.
The Capitals also have a new dimension they have not had the last two years which is depth and grit. Yes, this not the first year that Brooks Laich has scored 20 plus goals as he has scored 21 and 23 each of the last two seasons. But, Laich also finished a plus 16 this year, the first plus season of his career.
The same holds true for Tomas Fleischmann. Fleischmann finished with 23 goals this season after scoring 19 last year, but also finished with a plus-plus/minus ratio this year, plus-9, for the first time in his career.
The offseason acquisition of right wing Mike Knuble from the Philadelphia Flyers has given the Capitals the net presence they lacked last season. Knuble rewarded the Capitals with 29 goals and 53 points. The midseason trade for Jason Chimera, and the deadline acquisition of Eric Belanger has given the Capitals even more grit, evidenced by Chimera getting into several fights since joining the Capitals on December 28th.
For all the offensive weapons the Capitals have, there have also been improvements on the defensive side. Mike Green, who has built his reputation as an offensive defensemen finished the regular season with a career high plus 39 plus/minus ration. Coupled with defensive partner Schultz, and the Capitals have a duo that is capable of stopping any teams top forward line.
Washington also finished the regular season with the top four plus/minus players this season in Schultz, Ovechkin, Green, and Backstrom. Backstrom finished a career best plus-37.
With all the fancy statistics the Capitals have put up this season, the one that may prove to be the most valuable this post season is the number 0; which is the number of regulation losses Jose Theodore suffered his last 23 regular season starts.
After a December slump which saw Theodore temporarily loss the Capitals number one goaltender spot, Theodore has rebounded to put together one of the best stretches of play in his career. In his last 23 starts, Theodore has posted a 2.58 goals against average and a .922 save percentage. In his last 10 starts he posted a .911 save percentage, which is up from his .889 save percentage his final 10 starts last season.
But, even more impressive then that is his third period play over his final 23 starts. Theodore allowed just 9 third period goals on 229 shots faced, which will help the Capitals leaps and bounds if he can keep it up over the next two months.
Unlike in 1998, the Capitals are the favorites to win the Stanley Cup. Winners of the President’s Trophy and the most potent offense in the league, all the pieces are in place for the Capitals to add another chapter to the history book they began writing in April of 2008.
June 4, 1998, an unforgettable day in Capitals history. June of 2010; could it be another unforgettable chapter?