It’s no secret the Washington Capitals go as Alexander Ovechkin goes. The Gr8 carried the Caps on his back over the second half of a short lockout season to help them make the postseason, but the New York Rangers were able to shut him down in the playoffs, holding him to just a goal and an assist in seven games.

As a result, the Caps lost four of the last five games of the series, including a 5-0 whitewashing on home ice in the series finale, and their season is over. Afterwards, Ovechkin told Slava Malamud of Soviet Express that he wasn’t close to 100%, which was no surprise to several of us who cover the team throughout the year. Apparently the injury occurred before the playoffs and it was made known to me that the Gr8 played through injuries much of the season. But that is hockey and injuries are no excuse for losing the series. Neither are the referees, as bad as they were in some of the games.

Where did the Caps fail to win this series? Well it started in game three when they put three pucks past Henrik Lundqvist, but due to penalty trouble and mostly shoddy defensive zone play, they lost 4-3. In game four, they played poorly in their own end again and it cost them despite getting three more goals on King Henrik.

After that, the Swedish goalie was extremely difficult to beat giving up two goals in game five in a Rangers overtime loss and then none over the last 120 minutes of the series. Lundqvist, who was playing so well that the Caps went into overpass mode, and the Capitals defensive miscues did Washington in.

The Caps won the faceoff battle in game seven, like they needed to, 38-26, and they outshot the Rangers pretty handidly (35-27 in shots on net and 79-47 in shot attempts). They even got off to a good start with coach Adam Oates calling it the best the team had in five games. But they failed to get a puck by Lundqvist and when Mike Green got caught in the offensive zone trying to score, the Rangers broke back 4 on 3. Jack Hillen then made a defensive mistake by going down to block fourth liner Aaron Asham’s shot and as a result, Braden Holtby didn’t get a good look at the slapper and it went in the net. That gave the Rangers momentum and when they pumped in two goals early in the second frame as a result of point shots that bounced around, it was all over. Holtby lost his confidence and you could see the wind come out of Washington’s sails.

It was another tough end to a Capitals season and they drop to 2-7 on home ice in game seven’s and 3-9 overall in the final game of best of seven series’.

This one stings but given where the team started, at 2-8-1, it is pretty amazing they made it this far. Ovechkin, Green, and Holtby, for the most part, carried this club to the postseason and a series lead, but they didn’t have enough to get over the hump. The Rangers played better defense and had excellent goaltending and that’s why they won.

Once again Caps fans will ponder the what ifs and in a couple of days we’ll be talking about next season, which will be here before we know it.

But being a Caps fan seems to always end with heartbreak in the spring and this year is no different.

Still, it could be worse on this night, you could be a Leafs fan.

Notes: Ovechkin told Malamud that he did what was needed to play from a medical standpoint…Green took the loss especially hard and had a tough time talking with the media but kudos to him and just about every other player for not dodging the loss and answering the difficult questions…after the series ending handshake the Capitals players, at centre ice, saluted the remaining fans thanking them for their support this season.

The Washington Capitals earned the number three seed in the Eastern Conference by winning the Southeast Division and they get the opportunity to make it pay off with a victory in game seven on Monday night at the Verizon Center against the New York Rangers at 8pm (CSN).

The Rangers won a tightly contested game six, 1-0, on Sunday afternoon that has many Capitals players, fans, and even Comcast’s Alan May fuming over the power play imbalance so far in this series. The Blueshirts have benefitted in the three games in New York with 15 power plays to just 5 for the Capitals and it is 26-14, overall in the series. In game six, it was five to zero!

Anyone who watched that game clearly saw the zebra mistakes from the missed elbow and cross check from Ryan Callahan to Michael Del Zotto’s late hit on Mathieu Perreault to Derek Dorsett’s dirty and suspendable slew foot on Mike Green. Fortunately for Washington, the Rangers didn’t score in their 9:16 of advantage time but that is a ton of time where the Caps can’t get their offensive guys on the ice and it also adds extra fatigue to the squad. Simply put, the officiating has not been fair in this series and the league and the NHL supervisor working this series, Rod Pasma, needs to make sure things are called more evenly on Monday.

As for the game itself, the difference was a goal that went in off of the Capitals defense in a middle frame that New York mostly carried. But how much of that domination was due to the fact that the Caps had to kill three minor penalties in period one?

Both goalies, Braden Holtby and Henrik Lundqvist, were superb with King Henrik finding a way to shut the Caps out. His save on John Carlson at the end of the game typified how fantastic he was in game six.

So the series shifts back to the Verizon Center where the Capitals crowd has been outstanding and a big factor in the first three tilts. They have provided energy for the Caps and the team will need that again to close out a scrappy Rangers team that has gotten the breaks in this matchup. In addition, Coach Adam Oates will have the last change and Washington forwards will get to put their stick down second on faceoffs. In the last three games the home team has won the draws, 34-19, 42-30, and 27-18, respectively. Winning the faceoff means you have the puck and don’t have to waste energy chasing to get it. It is such an important part of a hockey game.

Also, the Capitals need to get some goals from its’ top line. Alex Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom, and Marcus Johansson have been generating good chances, the Gr8 had five shots on net in game six after nine in game five, but they just haven’t finished. How they produce on Monday night will likely be the difference in the series. Ovechkin doesn’t have a point in the last four games, but he has been razor close to doing so in the last two tilts.

The Caps also could use a quality officiated game for once, as well.

It’s a game seven versus the Rangers, but unlike last season, the Caps are playing this one at the Verizon Center. Will that be the difference?

The New York Rangers had the Washington Capitals on the ropes early on in game five on Friday night.

Brian Boyle scored after a vicious forecheck just 53 seconds into the contest and then for the next 10 or so minutes New York was all over Washington. The Blueshirts received two power plays and were dominating play. But Braden Holtby (24 saves) made some big stops and the Caps rode the energy from the crowd at the Verizon Center until they could find their legs.

Then Coach Adam Oates, aided by his assistant coaches, made an adjustment that helped change the course of the game. Oates switched his defensive pairs moving a more mobile Jack Hillen with John Carlson on the second defensive duo while John Erskine slid down and skated with Steve Oleksy to start period two. The move, which Oates credited to assistant coach Calle Johansson, gave the Capitals some better matchups on the ice and they slowly started to take over the game. After trailing in shots late in the first period, 10-5, they would out shoot the Rangers 30-15 over the remainder of contest but it took Mike Ribeiro to tally in overtime to win, 2-1.

After game four I blogged about the importance of home ice, adjustments, and the influence of last change in the matchups. All three were a factor on Friday night. In addition to the defensive pair adjustment personnel wise, the Caps made a minor move on their power play that allowed Joel Ward to score just 14 seconds into their first man advantage and tie the game. Alex Ovechkin (9 shots on goal) was moved closer to the net and that seemed to confuse the Rangers, who were all set to once again deny both Mike Green and the Gr8 shots from higher up in the offensive zone. The shift created a 4 on 3 down low and opened up the passing lanes in the high slot, which is where Ward shot from to score.

Home ice was also critical, not just because the fantastic Verizon Center faithful were extremely loud and provided energy, but the Washington forwards could put their stick down second on faceoffs and Oates could work the matchups in his favor. In game four the Capitals were beaten soundly, 34-19, on draws but in game five Washington held a 42-30 advantage from the dot. Ribeiro was a super 19-8 and that was a big difference in the hockey game. That second line with #9, Troy Brouwer, and Eric Fehr was very strong for the Caps and they received right around 21 minutes of ice time each. Given that the Caps top line had its issues with getting out of their own zone for parts of the game, it was critical that Oates get production from his other lines. The Ribeiro line as well as the third unit of Mathieu Perreault, Ward, and Jason Chimera played well. Chimera used his speed, was a physical presence, and his hit on Ryan Clowe in the first period knocked the big winger out of the contest.

Speaking of physical, Tom Wilson made his NHL debut and looked very good in 6:24 of ice time. The rookie right wing, who was Washington’s 1st round pick (16th overall) last June, had four hits and helped wear down a Rangers defense that looked gassed in the third period and overtime. Oates and Ovechkin both praised #43 afterwards for his play and the Gr8 noted that with Wilson the Caps have four really big and powerful right wings in the lineup.

So home ice is 5 for 5 now in this very close series. Washington was able to withstand the early punches from New York and then wear the Rangers out and get a victory. The Caps fans were a big part of this game as they kept their energy up despite an early Rangers lead.  But you can bet that at Madison Square Garden the Rags will get big time support from their fans, as well. Oates feels that the Capitals will need to survive the first 10 minutes on Sunday in game 6 (faceoff at 4:30 pm).

If Washington wins, it is on to the second round with home ice. If not, game 7 is on Monday night at the Verizon Center.

Home ice has been a big key in this series and the Caps held serve on Friday night.

Now the pressure is on a Rangers team that many picked to go to the Stanley Cup Finals before the season started.

Notes: The Rangers had four power plays to just two for the Caps and the overall series tally is now at 21-14…shot attempts were 71-67  in favor of Washington…Dan Girardi and Ryan McDonagh both played over 29 minutes for the Rangers while Green played 29:16 to lead the Caps in ice time. Green’s partner, Karl Alzner, played 28:27.

The game three playoff nightmares continue for the Caps franchise when taking a 2-0 series lead.

A sloppy effort from the Washington Capitals on Monday night cost them a chance to put the New York Rangers season on the brink and they have noone else to blame but themselves.

Braden Holtby sensed in the morning skate that his team wasn’t focused and he was right (see Steve Whyno’s blog on it). The Caps, after taking an early 1-0 lead, stopped skating and as a result, took far too many penalties. The Rangers had six man advantages before the game was half over and they scored once with the power play while another came right after Joel Ward’s careless high stick expired.

The Capitals still managed to have some good moments at five on five to keep this one even at two heading into the final frame but the penalty killing duty took its toll creating some fatigue and the Rangers scored two goals off of their forecheck, something they struggled to do in games one and two. In addition, Washington’s defensive zone coverage gave New York too much space and the Caps had far too many turnovers. Yes, the ice was bad at that dump of a venue, but it’s the same for both clubs.

Alexander Ovechkin drew a late penalty and the Caps had the final 1:54 to score to tie the game, but with the goalie pulled for a 6 on 4 Washington failed to get a shot on net. Mike Ribeiro had the puck much of the time and he didn’t do a good job of making the Rags pay for overplaying Ovechkin and Mike Green in that sequence.

So now the Caps have a tough game four against a New York team that has new life and momentum. Washington did a lot of things wrong on Monday and lost only by a goal. But they must be focused for this next tilt. They took their eye off of the ball in game three early on and it cost them a potential sweep of a team that they were dominating.

We’ve seen these bad momentum swings go against Washington before in the post season and they have never won a game three up 2-0 in a best of seven series. They had a glorious opportunity on Monday to finally do that and they blew it.

Now they need to get back to work and do the things that made them successful in the first two games and that starts with skating and attention to detail.

This series is there for the taking but on Monday they got into some bad habits they had early in the regular season. Those must cease immediately.

It will be a mental test for this club to avoid the bad waves that come with a sloppy game.

Guess we’ll find out what this club is made of on Wednesday?

Notes: Washington won the faceoff battle 30-27 and out shot the Rags 31-30, but the scoreboard is what matters…Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom, and Marcus Johansson were on the ice for the game winner by Derek Stepan. The trio had chances to clear the zone but couldn’t get the biscuit past the strong Rangers pressure…the Caps goals were scored by Backstrom, Green, and Jay Beagle (Jack Hillen shot went off of 83 into the cage).

Fresh off of a huge 1-0 overtime victory on Saturday afternoon, the Washington Capitals take on the New York Rangers in game three of their best of seven first round playoff series on Monday night at 7:30 pm at Madison Square Garden (CSN, NBCSN). A win for the Caps and it is a 3-0 series lead, and for a Washington franchise that is 39 years old, it would be unchartered waters in a best of seven (the Caps did defeat the Philadelphia Flyers and New York Islanders, three games to none, in best of five first round matchups in 1984 and 1986, respectively).

This Capitals team continues to get better each game under first year head coach Adam Oates. After winning 3-1 in the first tilt, the Capitals played another very good game but thanks to the superb play of Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist (37 saves), the Caps weren’t able to gain the victory until the extra session. But Washington carried much of the play in that contest and despite the Rags getting forwards Brian Boyle and Derek Dorsett back into the lineup for the first time this series, the Caps still have more depth and as a result, have been able to win the first two games. A big difference has been special teams with the Caps going for 2 for 7 with the man advantage while New York is 0 for 7. But that still leaves a ton of even strength time and if you look at the ice times of both squads, it is pretty apparent that Oates has more confidence in all of his skaters while Rangers bench boss John Tortorella relies mostly on three lines and five defensemen. The fact that Tortorella’s skilled guys are playing more at even strength could be a factor in why their power play is not as effective.

But as a former Capitals assistant coach has told me repeatedly, the playoffs are all about adjustments, and you can bet that Torts will do whatever he can in his own barn to get the Rags back in the series. Madison Square Garden will be amped up and with home ice the fiery coach now has last change. Midway through game two he switched up his lines putting Rick Nash with Ryan Callahan and Derek Stepan and that line was the Rangers best. The typical matchup had that unit against the Caps second line of Mike Ribeiro, Martin Erat, and Troy Brouwer. Does that matchup continue in New York? Will Ryan Clowe be back in for the Rangers giving them another top six forward? What can Tortorella do to fix his ailing power play? Those are the easiest things that seem changeable for a Rangers club that the Caps have on the ropes. The Rangers are struggling to generate offense so does New York, which is primarily a defensive team that is coached to mostly play dump and chase, change things up and open up the game? I have a hard time seeing them try that given they haven’t been practicing it all season and they would likely be playing with fire with the Capitals highly skilled top two lines.

As for Washington, even when winning, they make adjustments and that’s another reason why they continue to improve. Oates’ club was much better on their breakouts on Saturday and the number of giveaways and odd man rushes dropped drastically.  The Capitals also seem to have the Rangers tendencies down, especially in the offensive zone. A Rags team that relies heavily on diving to block shots was burnt on the game winner as Ribeiro faked Callahan to the ice before dishing to Mike “Game Over” Green for the winner. Oates might not have any lineup changes but given his penchant for video analysis and his technical savvy, you can bet that he’s given his club some things to help the team be even better.

After minimizing turnovers, which can lead to odd man rushes, another important thing for Washington to do to win in New York is to limit the ability of Rangers defensemen Michael Del Zotto to rush the puck up the ice. It was Del Zotto, along with the traded Marian Gaborik, who really hurt the Caps in last year’s series loss. After Del Zotto, New York really doesn’t have any guys on the blue line who are excellent puck rushers while the Capitals boast Green and John Carlson plus Jack Hillen and Steve Oleksy bring that capability, as well. It is an advantage for the Caps that their defense is more mobile.

Still, you have to play the games and it is critical that Washington doesn’t get overconfident or lose focus on playing one shift at a time. Based on what I’ve seen from Oates, he will have his club ready to go in a hostile environment.

So will this be the year that Alexander Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals finally take a 3-0 lead in a best of seven playoff series?

Caps Coach Adam Oates made it pretty clear on Wednesday that he intended to play the last two regular season games to win to try and keep Washington’s second half of the season momentum going into to the postseason. The Capitals faced a desperate Ottawa club that needed two points to make the playoffs on Thursday but lost in overtime and on Saturday night, against a Bruins squad that needed a win to keep pace with the Montreal Canadiens in order to win the Northeast Division, they scored three power play goals to rally for a 3-2 victory in overtime, as well.

The win against Boston came against one of the East’s best teams and certainly makes Oates’ decision to not rest guys seem like the right choice. No Caps player came out of the game injured and Washington showed that they can handle a physical club, even when they really didn’t have anything to play for. It is very encouraging, especially since Washington will now face the physical New York Rangers in the first round of the playoffs, which will likely start on Tuesday at the Verizon Center (full schedule to be released on Sunday night at 11pm on the NHL Network).

Saturday night was a lesson to teams that if they take penalties, and the referees actually call them, then they are likely to pay the price. The Capitals have the NHL’s best power play and they went 3 for 5 on Saturday night. Mike Green bombed in two man advantage goals and then his shot on a 4 on 3 OT power play went off of Tuukka Rask’s chest and Eric Fehr backhanded it home from the top of the crease.

The win ended the Caps 48 game campaign at 27-18-3 for 57 points. Pretty impressive considering they were 2-8-1 (5 points) after 11 games.

It was a year that started very poorly and took a long time to get rolling. But a healthy lineup and the play of Alexander Ovechkin and Green was so key to the turnaround. The Gr8 didn’t add to his NHL leading goal total of 32, but he had two assists. Ovechkin locked up the Richard Trophy on Saturday night for his goal scoring title and #52′s two markers gives him the NHL goal scoring lead for defensemen, despite missing 13 games. As I said on WNST last week, Green is the “straw that stirs the drink” for the Capitals on the back end. When he is healthy, this is a totally different hockey team.

Speaking of different, the games get that way now. Penalties are typically called at a lower rate and the physical play amps up. I’d bet every dollar I have that Rags Coach John Tortorella is trying to find a way to get some clean shots on Green to disrupt Washington’s attack. Therefore it will be key that Oates continues to make sure Green doesn’t take the big hits like has happened in previous seasons. Clearly the ability of Braden Holtby (34 saves) to play the puck helps minimize that and defensive partner Karl Alzner has done a good job of handling more of the corner play to prevent Green from getting run.

It will be a very difficult series as these clubs face each other in the postseason for the fourth time in five seasons.

I’ll have more on the matchup on Sunday and Monday night, but the fact that the Capitals were able to win again, despite having little to play for, tells me that this team is ready for the postseason.

And they have momentum.

Notes: Washington killed off both Boston power plays on the evening…shot attempts were even at 65 each but the Caps won the faceoff battle, 33-25…Mike Ribeiro had two assists in a solid game. His only major blemish was losing a defensive zone faceoff that led to Milan Lucic’s goal to open the scoring…the Caps signed goalie Michal Neuvirth to a two year contract extension on Saturday morning ($2.4M in 2013-14 and $2.6M in 2014-15)…the Capitals announced that the 2013 Baltimore Hockey Classic will be played at 1st Mariner Arena on Wednesday, September 17th against the Boston Bruins.

Honorable Mention: Boxing-Sergio Martinez vs. Martin Murray (Saturday 8:30pm from Buenos Aires live on HBO), Zab Judah vs. Danny Garcia (Saturday 9pm from Brooklyn, NY live on Showtime); MLS: DC United @ Columbus Crew (Saturday 7:30pm from Columbus, OH live on MLS Direct Kick); Golf: PGA Tour Zurich Classic of New Orleans (Thursday & Friday 3pm live on Golf Channel Saturday & Sunday 1pm live on Golf Channel 3pm live on CBS. All golf from Avondale, LA), Champions Tour Liberty Mutual Insurance Legends of Golf (Friday 12:30pm Saturday & Sunday 1pm. All golf from Savannah, GA), North Texas LPGA Shootout (Thursday 12:30pm Friday 6:30pm Saturday & Sunday 3pm from Irving, TX live on Golf Channel)

10. Rihanna (Wednesday 7:30pm 1st Mariner Arena Monday 7:30pm Verizon Center); Kendrick Lamar (Tuesday 8pm Patriot Center); Dru Hill (Friday 9pm Rams Head Live); Badfish, A Tribute to Sublime (Friday 8pm Baltimore Soundstage), Fabolous/Pusha T (Sunday 8pm Baltimore Soundstage); ALO (Tuesday 7pm 8×10 Club); The Joy Formidable (Tuesday 8pm Ottobar); Chris Cagle (Saturday 9pm Rams Head Center Stage); Sara Bareilles (Thursday 6:30pm 9:30 Club); Aimee Mann (Thursday 7:30pm Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts); Gladys Knight (Thursday & Friday 8pm Strathmore); All Time Low/Pierce The Veil (Sunday 5:30pm Towson Center); Phoenix “Bankrupt” and Frank Turner “Tape Deck Heart” available in stores/on iTunes (Tuesday)

Dru Hill was nearly as significant a part of my childhood as chocolate milk. Perhaps more significant. Baltimore institutions.

I had a college girlfriend that thought the song “Chicks Dig It” was about the greatest song of all time. She was…like…REALLY hot…so I might well have told her I agreed.

Our friends from All Time Low have been tremendous to us. Be tremendous to them and go see them this weekend. They love Baltimore sports as much as you do.

Frank Turner does folk punk. It’s truly phenomenal.

9. Sarah Silverman (Thursday 8pm Warner Theatre), Mike Tyson: Undisputed Truth (Friday & Saturday 8pm Warner Theatre); Jerry Seinfeld (Saturday 7pm & 9:30pm Meyerhoff Symphony Hall); David Alan Grier (Thursday-Saturday Baltimore Comedy Factory); Michael McDonald (Friday-Sunday DC Improv); “Big Wedding” and “Pain & Gain” out in theaters (Friday); “Jurassic Park 3D” and “Gangster Squad” available on Blu-Ray/DVD (Tuesday)

There’s absolutely no reason to not be completely in support of the Mike Tyson show…

You know whose one man show should be coming next?

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Honorable Mention: Boxing-Canelo Alvarez vs. Austin Trout (Saturday 10pm from San Antonio live on Showtime); MLS: Philadelphia Union @ DC United (Sunday 5pm from RFK Stadium live on ESPN2); Tennis: ATP Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters (Tuesday-Friday 4:30am Saturday 7am Sunday 8am from Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, France live on Tennis Channel)

10. Barry Manilow (Saturday 7:30pm 1st Mariner Arena); Hatebreed (Wednesday 7pm Rams Head Live), Kottonmouth Kings (Thursday 6:30pm Rams Head Live), Clutch (Saturday 7:30pm Rams Head Live), Delta Rae/Sister Sparrow & The Dirty Birds (Sunday 7pm Rams Head Live), Sevendust (Monday 7pm Rams Head Live); King Los (Tuesday 7pm Baltimore Soundstage), Big Boi (Sunday 8pm Baltimore Soundstage); America (Friday & Saturday 8pm Rams Head on Stage); Presidents of the United States of America (Tuesday 7pm 9:30 Club), Living Colour (Friday 6pm 9:30 Club), Joy Formidable (Sunday 7pm 9:30 Club); Wiz Khalifa (Friday 3:30pm Unitas Stadium); Macklemore & Ryan Lewis (Sunday 7pm RAC Arena); Blackstreet (Tuesday 8pm Howard Theatre); Faith Evans (Saturday 7:30pm France-Merrick Performing Arts Center at The Lyric); Red Jumpsuit Apparatus (Sunday 7pm House of Rock White Marsh); Willie Nelson “Let’s Face The Music And Dance” and Fall Out Boy “Save Rock N Roll” available in stores/on iTunes (Tuesday)

I shouldn’t love Delta Rae because they went to Duke. But I do. I’ll be at RHL Sunday night to see THIS…

And more importantly to see SS&TDB. When I think of them I think of New Orleans. And I LOVE New Orleans…

LOS really is the King of Charm City…

I’ve been to quite a few Quadmanias in my day. I’ll probably miss these guys this weekend, but their message has my support.

9. D.L. Hughley (Thursday 8pm & 10:30pm Howard Theatre); Kathy Griffin (Friday 8pm Modell Performing Arts Center at The Lyric); Ron White (Saturday 7pm & 9:30pm Warner Theatre), Jay & Silent Bob’s Super Groovy Cartoon Movie (Sunday 8pm Warner Theatre); Ralphie May (Tuesday 7pm Baltimore Comedy Factory), Bobby Slayton (Thursday-Saturday Baltimore Comedy Factory); Jim Norton (Friday & Saturday Magooby’s Joke House); Kevin Nealon (Thursday-Sunday DC Improv); “Django Unchained” available on Blu-Ray/DVD (Tuesday); “Oblivion” out in theaters (Friday)

I’m admittedly a total Jay & Bob fanboy. The new commercial is fantastic. There’s a lot of language, but they were an incredible part of my adolescence. I’ll be eternally grateful for that.

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The most important thing happened for the Washington Capitals on Saturday night. Mike Green lasered one in on the power play in overtime to give the Caps a 6-5 victory over Tampa Bay and now they lead the Southeast Division by four points over Winnipeg with just six games to go.

It was two much needed points but what looked to be a laugher in the second frame with Washington up 5-1, turned into a horror show as Tampa rallied to tie the game with three third period tallies. But Adam Oates’ team can breathe a big sigh of relief after this one thanks to Marcus Johansson drawing a key penatly in the extra session followed by Green’s game winner.

Speaking of Oates, he has a ton of video, good and bad, to show his club the next time they reconvene at Kettler IcePlex (either Sunday or Monday).

The good was the Caps offensive zone passing, which led to some very pretty goals over the first 26 minutes of this contest. Tampa isn’t exactly known for defense and goaltending but the Capitals were playing well and with confidence. Alexander Ovechkin pumped in his league leading 27th tally and also added an assist. Mathieu Perreault’s line scored twice on pretty passing plays in the middle frame with both Eric Fehr and Jason Chimera finishing via tap-ins. Even the fourth line got on the score sheet as Jay Beagle fed defensemen Jack Hillen for a goal while Aaron Volpatti did a super job of going to the net to create traffic. Troy Brouwer notched the first marker on the power play on a sweet feed from Mike Ribeiro.

However, the bad is what the team seemed to be focusing on after the game and that could turn out to be a positive. Washington’s defensive zone was horrible over the last 30 minutes and it primarily had to do with players not moving their feet. When you stop skating suddenly the other team is quicker to the puck and massive open ice appears for the opponent. The high slot was vacated by Washington defenders nearly the entire third period while the wingers were caught down low too often. This made it easy for the Bolts to get point shots with traffic. It was a recipe for disaster and Braden Holtby fortunately made some big saves late otherwise the Caps would have lost. This wasn’t really about X’s and O’s in the final frame, it was all about effort and the lack of skating. That’s easily correctable.

Two points are two points though, and this victory gives the Caps seven wins in a row. They are a hot hockey club and hopefully they don’t lose any confidence from the blown lead and realize this was an effort problem, not a lack of skill or system problem.

If they focus on the effort issue and maintain their confidence level, they’ll be all right going forward.

Notes: Volpatti went down injured after blocking a third period shot and didn’t return…Martin Erat played his first game since being injured last Saturday in Florida. #10 had 15:11 of ice time…the Caps won the faceoff battle 39-29 but were outshot 40-38 and the shot attempts were 67-57 for Tampa….the Caps power play went 2 for 5 while the Bolts were 0 for 2 with the man advantage…Washington held Steven Stamkos without a goal, he trails Ovechkin by one in the goal scoring race…Martin St. Louis, a Cap killer, had two goals for Tampa…the Capitals next five games are against Canadian teams (home vs TOR on Tuesday, then at OTT on Thur, and at MTL on Sat, before coming home to face WPG and OTT the following week). The last game of the year is home against the Bruins on Saturday, April 27th. Only Winnipeg isn’t in playoff position right now but they are playing well so this final stretch is going to be tough for Washington…congratulations to former Capitals assistant Coach Keith Allain on winning the NCAA Hockey Championship as the head coach at Yale.

Honorable Mention: College Hockey-Frozen Four: UMass-Lowell vs. Yale (Thursday 4:30pm from Pittsburgh live on ESPN2), Quinnipiac vs. St. Cloud State (Thursday 8pm from Pittsburgh live on ESPN2), NCAA Championship Game (Saturday 7pm from Pittsburgh live on ESPN); Tennis: ATP U.S. Men’s Clay Court Championship (Friday 7pm Saturday 2pm Sunday 3pm from Houston live on Tennis Channel); Boxing: Nonito Donaire vs. Guillermo Rigondeaux (Saturday 11pm from New York live on HBO); Charm City Roller Girls (Saturday 5:30pm Du Burns Arena)

10. Fleetwood Mac (Tuesday 8pm Verizon Center), Alicia Keys/Miguel (Sunday 7:30pm Verizon Center); Volbeat (Wednesday 8pm Rams Head Live), Crack The Sky (Saturday 8pm Rams Head Live); Cris Jacobs Band (Friday 8pm 8×10 Club); Johns Hopkins Spring Fair feat. Grouplove, Carolina Liar (Friday 8pm Ralph S. O’Connor Recreation Center) Marc Broussard (Tuesday 8pm Rams Head on Stage); Stone Sour (Thursday 8pm Fillmore Silver Spring), Big Sean (Saturday 8pm Fillmore Silver Spring); Black Crowes (Tuesday 7pm 9:30 Club), Cold War Kids (Thursday 8pm 9:30 Club), The Dan Band (Saturday 8pm 9:30 Club), Andrew McMahon (Monday 6:30pm 9:30 Club); Rusted Root (Tuesday 9:30pm Rams Head Center Stage); Edwin McCain (Wednesday 8pm Wolf Trap); Diana Krall (Wednesday 8pm Strathmore); Paramore “Paramore“, Eric Church “Eric Church Live: Caught In The Act” and Dawes “Stories Don’t End” available in stores/on iTunes (Tuesday)

I like Alicia Keys a lot, but I freaking LOVE Miguel. How great is this dude?

I saw Carolina Liar at Recher once (back when Recher held concerts). I honestly found them to be excellent.

The Orioles have a catcher in the minors named Chris Robinson. I heard a rumor he’s “Hard to Handle.”

There’s a chance Dawes will be my new favorite band. Check back later today.

9. Paul Mooney (Friday 7:30pm Howard Theatre); Kathleen Madigan (Thursday-Sunday 7:30pm Birchmere); Amy Schumer (Thursday 9pm Sixth & I Historic Synagogue); Guy Torry (Thursday-Saturday Baltimore Comedy Factory), Ralphie May (Monday 8pm Baltimore Comedy Factory); Wendy Liebman (Thursday-Saturday Magooby’s Joke House); Sebastian Maniscalco (Friday-Sunday DC Improv); Maryland International Film Festival (Thursday-Saturday Hagerstown)

Amy Schumer is a Towson alum. She’s quite funny (and quite pretty)…

You know what, maybe I should just give you a little more of her…

That’s some Faith Hill-level leg by the way.

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