Hockey Musings

I guess it's been a while since I posted anything. Honestly, there isn't much terribly interesting happening at the moment. I have become much more accustomed to life here. I have more friends, including Chinese ones, and that alone has allowed my daily life to evolve beyond the work-gym-sleep routine. However, I know that many of you miss listening to me pontificate about hockey, so I will dedicate this post to just that. I have watched every minute of the Washington Capitals' playoff run thus far, and would like to share some of my thoughts with you.

1) Holtby

The number one story for the Caps this postseason has been the play of Braden Holtby, who in the first round managed to outplay reigning Vezina and Conn Smythe winner Tim Thomas. Was this a surprise? No, I saw it coming. Just kidding. Of course it was a surprise. Not one of the Caps' goaltenders was expected to outplay Thomas, let alone the 3rd stringer. I will say this though. Last season, when the Caps were platooning Neuvirth and Varlamov, I did get to watch a bit of Holtby. He went 10-2-2 with a 1.79 GAA and a .934 SVP. And from what I saw, he's not much different of a goaltender now. He's big, he's aggressive, he's pretty fast for his size, and he's calm. He gives up a lot of rebounds, but most of those seem to end up in relatively safe areas. The question now is whether he is simply the updated version of 2009 Varlamov or the long-term solution in goal the Washington Capitals have been missing since Olaf Kolzig.

2) Defense

This should be the number one story. How in the hell are the Caps blocking shots so effectively? The penalty kill has stood out the most to me. Yes, Holtby has been great, but the saves he is being asked to make are rarely spectacular. The defense is doing a great job blocking shots and not allowing any second chances off rebounds. It's a refreshing change from the days of watching Jeff Schultz get dangled by 3rd liners. Alas, Mike Green still makes at least 2 bone-headed passes per game that get picked off, but oh well.

3) Backstrom

Yeah Ovechkin isn't getting much ice time. Blah blah blah. Who cares. He's stil leading the Caps in points, he still plays on the powerplay, all that jazz, so he'll be fine. More importantly, Backstrom is back. Make no mistake, Backstrom is the best player on the Washington Capitals. He's the only center who seems to be able to motivate Semin. His return allows Marcus Johansson to move to the wing, a position to which he is better suited, creating a strong first line. Having two good scoring lines helped a lot against Boston, as it forced Seidenberg/Chara/Bergeron to play against Ovechkin, leaving the Backstrom/Semin/Johansson line relatively free to do some damage. Backstrom missed much of the regular season with a concussion, and the Caps were written off come playoff time. His importance to this team is paramount, and a healthy Backstrom makes the Washington Capitals much better than your typical 7 seed.