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Washington Capitals Game 36 Recap: Kuznetsov shines as Caps beat Sabres

December 30, 2015 by

CAPITALS WIN NINTH IN A ROW; BACKSTROM, BEAGLE INJURED

(Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)

(Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)

After a physical game on Monday in Buffalo, everyone expected more of the same Wednesday night at Verizon Center in the rematch. Those looking for physicality weren’t disappointed, but Evgeny Kuznetsov and Jack Eichel showed the potential for the next generation of skill players, as both players registered a pair of assists.

In the end, Alex Ovechkin scored a pair of goals, Marcus Johansson added a goal and assist, and Braden Holtby made 25 saves as the Washington Capitals dispatched the Buffalo Sabres for the second game in a row, this one by a 5-2 margin.

The biggest story line, though, could turn out to be undisclosed injuries to Nick Backstrom and Jay Beagle, who both left the game to not return, and the status of John Carlson, who missed his second game in a row. [Read more…]

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Washington Capitals Game 35 Recap: Caps keep rolling with shutout of Sabres

December 28, 2015 by
(Photo by Bill Wippert/NHLI via Getty Images)

(Photo by Bill Wippert/NHLI via Getty Images)

Whatever the reason for this recent dominance by the Washington Capitals, they have a number of key players to thank.

For starters, goalie Braden Holtby is playing like the top netminder in the world, with another shutout helping the Capitals to a 2-0 win over the Buffalo Sabres on the road Monday, for their eighth win in a row. Of his 31 saves on the night, he had one that immediately launched itself to the top of his highlight reel. [Read more…]

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Washington Capitals Game 71 Recap: Caps outlast Sabres, “win” in shootout

March 16, 2015 by

One night after playing “playoff atmosphere” hockey to shut out the Boston Bruins, the Caps came out flatter than Stanley, needing a shootout to secure two points from the Buffalo Sabres, a team trying to secure its standing in line for the opportunity for the first pick in next year’s NHL draft.

The Caps (38-23-10) are four points ahead of Boston for the seventh seed in the East and nine clear of Ottawa, which is the first team outside of playoff seeding currently. Boston now has two games in-hand over the Caps and the Senators have three.

Evgeny Kuznetsov was the only player in the shootout to score.

[Read more…]

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Washington Capitals Game 67 Recap: Capitals hand 6-1 loss to struggling Sabres

March 7, 2015 by

­The Buffalo Sabres started the scoring against the Washington Capitals, but the game quickly slipped away from them as the Caps scored six unanswered goals to win 6-1. It was the Sabres’ fourth consecutive loss.

Alex Ovechkin scored an NHL-leading 44th goal on Washington’s second power play attempt of the night. Ovechkin was also awarded a penalty shot later in the game after Andre Benoit was called for holding on a breakaway, but did not convert on the attempt. [Read more…]

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Three Stars: Washington Capitals vs. Buffalo Sabres 11/22/14

November 23, 2014 by

This one wasn’t as bad as it looked. The Capitals outshot and outplayed the Sabres, basically everything but outscore them, which is kind of how you win games.

Matt Niskanen

He scored the lone Capitals goal (his first in a Capitals sweater) in the 2-1 loss, registered 4 shots on goal, and played 24:16 (tied with John Carlson for team-high TOI). The goal came on the power play, where Niskanen filled in capably for Mike Green, who left the game after taking only one shift in the third period.

Braden Holtby

Holtby keeps getting better and better. This one loss didn’t mar his SV% too much (he finished the night with a .923), and he’s looking more like the goaltender that the Caps need and expect him to be each night.

Alex Ovechkin:

He didn’t score a goal in the loss, but he registered 8 shots on goal and 5 hits. He played 20:06, which was second to Nicklas Backstrom’s (who played 21:56) TOI for forwards.

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Washington Capitals Game 20 Recap: Enroth leads Sabres to 2-1 win over Capitals

November 22, 2014 by

“I think we believe we can beat any team in this league, and honestly, any team in this league can play really well on a given night, so you can’t just say because of the Buffalo Sabres’ record, it’s a gimme, and obviously it showed tonight,” said Washington Capitals goaltender Braden Holtby after the team’s 2-1 loss to the lowly Buffalo Sabres.

The Capitals lobbed 44 shots and the kitchen sink at Buffalo’s Jhonas Enroth, but a one-timer from defenseman Matt Niskanen, his first of the season, was the only puck that made it to the back of the net.

Niskanen was filling in at the quarterback position on the power play for Mike Green, who left the game after taking only one shift in the third period.

Barry Trotz told reporters after the game that he didn’t think Green’s injury was serious, but was planning on checking with trainers at some point to confirm.

Holtby stopped 26 of 24 shots, but the blame for the loss could hardly be put on him. Both Buffalo goals were of a fluky nature. Matt Moulson’s second period goal bounced off the boards and over Holtby’s paddle. Holtby called it“one of those freak goals.”

“I was leaning far to my left to be able to see it, the initial shot. I kind of had to move to my right to begin with, and I took a strange hop, lost my footing somehow. I think it went off Carly’s stick and bounced over mine,” he said.

It’s hard to believe it took 20 games for Matt Niskanen to score his first goal as a Capital, but that can be chalked up to not getting as much power play time as Green or John Carlson. If Green is out for any length of time, expect Niskanen to continue filling Green’s spot at the point on the first power play unit.

Niskanen thought that while there were some good takeaways from the game, the Capitals could have done a few things better, like get traffic in front of the net.

“A lot of pucks hit the net. We could get more bodies in front of the crease,” said Niskanen. “Their goalie was good tonight, but I think he saw too many. More than we would like. We’ve got to start working that into our game. We’re doing a lot of good things, but goalies in this league, if they see shots, they’re going to stop them most of the time.”

Nicklas Backstrom, who registered only one shot on goal in the loss, thinks the team is better than their record shows.

“I think we are playing better at home than the results look like. We’ve got to find a way to start winning home games as well,” said Backstrom.  “We have to show teams that this our barn and this is where we are going to take most of our points. We need to change that for sure.”

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Washington Capitals Game 53 Recap: “Game Over” Green beats Sabres in OT 5-4

January 28, 2014 by

OVECHKIN, GREEN SCORE TWICE AS CAPS WIN SECOND IN A ROW

Mike Green scored twice, including the game-winner in overtime, to lead the Washington Capitals over the Buffalo Sabres 5-4 on Tuesday.

The win is the Caps’ (24-21-8) second in a row following a 7-game losing streak.

The Caps jumped out early, with Alex Ovechkin hammering home a faceoff win on the Caps first power play, his 37th of the season and 14th power play goal — both league leading. Martin Erat drew the penalty as he was tripped by Matt Ellis on his way through the neutral zone.

Just 53 seconds later, after a breakdown in the Buffalo defensive end, Mike Green blasted a shot that deflected off Ovechkin’s pants and past Jhonas Enroth for his second of the night.

Buffalo halved the lead at 13:45. Tyler Ennis carried the puck in along the left boards and tossed it on net. Holtby made the first save on Matt Moulson, but defensemane Christian Ehrloff skated right around John Erskine and got two whacks at the loose puck, with the final one chipping the puck past Holtby to make it 2-1.

Dmitry Orlov took a bad tripping penalty just 52 seconds into the second period, and the Sabres made the Caps pay. A cross-crease pass by Moulson found Cody Hodgson all alone on the far post and he roofed it over Holtby’s right shoulder to tie the game at two.

Following a tremendous shift by the Erat-Beagle-Wilson line, Green took an Orlov pass, skated to and behind the Sabres net, and scored on a wraparound for his 100th goal in the NHL.

But has been the case all season, the Caps couldn’t live with prosperity. Just 1:02 after Green’s goal, a systematic defensive breakdown left Sabres rookie Philip Varone alone on the far post to score his first NHL goal. It’s the 24th time this season the Caps have allowed a goal less than two minutes after scoring one this season.

But the Caps answered before the end of the period to regain a one-goal lead. With Henrik Tallinder off for hooking, Ovechkin found Martin Erat below the goal line, who fed Troy Brouwer in the slot for a one-timer past Enroth for his 10th goal of the season.

Hodgson tied it up at 6:48 of the third. Jason Chimera was going to be called for holding, and he stopped skating to argue the penalty, which allowed Hodgson to fake out Karl Alzner and drive to the net. John Carlson wasn’t able to cut him off, and Hodgson’s backhanded shot eluded Holtby to make it 4-4.

The Capitals were outworked in the third period but managed to get the game to overtime, where a terrific passing sequence from Erat to Ovechkin to Green resulted in Green’s second goal of the game and a 5-4 win.

CAPS NOTES: The Caps recalled Ryan Stoa from AHL Hershey before the game de to Brooks Laich being questionable for the game, but Laich suited up. Stoa was screatched, along with Mikhail Grabovski and Aaron Volpatti.

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Washington Capitals Game 45 Recap: Capitals drop lackluster 2-1 outing to Sabres

January 12, 2014 by
Photo by Patrick McDermott

Photo by Patrick McDermott

 

“I thought our execution was off,” said Washington Capitals coach Adam Oates after their 2-1 shootout loss to the basement-dwelling Buffalo Sabres on Sunday afternoon. It echoed his earlier sentiment that the Sabres “lull teams to sleep” with their passive style of play. It was the first time the Sabres had won on the road since November 5, 2013.

Sunday’s game was the third in four days for the Capitals, who beat the Tampa Bay Lightning and Toronto Maple Leafs in regulation on Thursday and Friday nights, respectively. It makes sense that fatigue is a factor, but when every standings point counts–especially when the upcoming schedule is the toughest competition the Capitals have faced all season–the team should be rising above simple excuses. “We were tired” simply isn’t going to cut it.

Buffalo’s goaltender Ryan Miller has now stopped 77 of 79 shots the Capitals have thrown his way. The Capitals came into Sunday’s game knowing they had to get better traffic in front of Miller and generate quality scoring chances to win.

“You want the points,” said Oates. “You want to get points every single time you can because it will bite you later in the year. We wanted two points, no question, but the way the game was going I’m glad we got one.”

“We were hoping to put together a little run here a little bit. It’s tough for sure. We did salvage a point, which is good thing,” said Joel Ward.

The “I’m glad we got one” attitude, reflected by both Oates and Ward after the game, isn’t going to help in the long run, either. Yes, one standings point is better than zero, but if you aren’t upset at yourself, your teammates, and your players for putting up another lackluster performance against a team that allows the most goals per game in the league, you’re essentially giving everyone a pass.

The Capitals did face a bit of hard luck: Miller deftly swatted a potential go ahead goal from Mikhail Grabovski out of the crease; and Karl Alzner’s goal was waved off because of a Nick Backstrom tripping penalty – all within the last two minutes of regulation. The Capitals subsequently started the overtime period on the penalty kill.

If you need a gauge of just where the Capitals are at this point in the season, think about this: they have lost to the worst team in the league, the Buffalo Sabres, twice in the last two weeks.

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Washington Capitals Game 39 Recap: Capitals fall 2-1 to Sabres in shootout

December 29, 2013 by
BUFFALO, NY - DECEMBER 29: Matt Ellis #37 of the Buffalo Sabres defends against Alex Ovechkin #8 of the Washington Capitals at First Niagara Center on December 29, 2013 in Buffalo, New York. (Photo by Rick Stewart/Getty Images)

BUFFALO, NY – DECEMBER 29: Matt Ellis #37 of the Buffalo Sabres defends against Alex Ovechkin #8 of the Washington Capitals at First Niagara Center on December 29, 2013 in Buffalo, New York. (Photo by Rick Stewart/Getty Images)

This season, the Capitals have been lucky to win games solely on their goaltender’s merit on several occasions, and haven’t faced another truly “hot” goalie until their trip to Buffalo on Sunday night. They peppered Ryan Miller with 50 shots on goal, but lost 2-1 in a shootout to the struggling Sabres, who only managed 17 shots on goal. It was the first time the Capitals have outshot an opponent in their last six games.

Troy Brouwer answered the Sabres’ late second period tally with one of his own in the third, the Capitals’ only goal of the game. “I thought that was the best game I’ve seen (Troy) Brouwer play,” coach Adam Oates told reporters after the game. In addition to his goal, Brouwer had five shots on goal, and went 83 percent in the dot, winning 5 of 6 faceoffs. [Read more…]

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