Stanley Cup of Chowder - Bruins at Caps Complete CoverageDavid Pastrnak is legend.https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/11233/stanley-fave.jpg2015-04-09T00:29:20-04:00http://www.stanleycupofchowder.com/rss/stream/81375422015-04-09T00:29:20-04:002015-04-09T00:29:20-04:00Bruins All Shook Up In DC, Shutout Again by Holtby
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/IEhLleu7dcM_U3zG2xDKXyW813U=/0x0:600x400/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/46078636/thebest.0.0.png" />
</figure>
<p>The Bruins were outplayed overall, but a magical performance by Braden Holtby was once again key in a loss to Washington. A 3-0 defeat to go nicely with the 4-0 and 2-0 ones.</p> <p>Normally, the term "<a href="https://www.stanleycupofchowder.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Bruins</a>-killer" is one that kind of grates on me. "X-killer" as a concept can be a little silly, as simply labeling someone who typically plays well against the Bruins (or your other favorite team) as a "Bruins-killer" without taking into other factors such as 1. how far out of line their performance is with their normal level of play or 2. how often they play against Boston... that just seems out of whack to me. <span>Daniel Briere</span> was a Bruins-killer. A lot of the guys that people refer to as such are probably just, you know, guys who have had a couple good games that happened to be against Boston.</p>
<p>That said, <span>Braden Holtby</span> is a Bruins-killer. No two ways about it. Holtby stopped all 27 shots that the Bruins put on net, completing a season-shutout of the Bruins. This 3-0 victory gave him his third shutout of the Bruins in one season, which is something that only <a href="https://twitter.com/alex_prewitt/status/585994875054776321">Cristobal Huet can claim to have also done since '87-88</a>. Holtby stopped all 88 shots that the Bruins threw at his net this season, and the loss dropped Boston to a virtual tie with Ottawa; only the B's tiebreaker keeps them in the 8th spot.</p>
<p>So, about this loss. Not the overall season series, or the suspiciously unicorn-like appearance that Holtby has displayed versus the Bruins (thankfully captured by Sky in the above picture), or the whole "hot-goalie-ends-streak" story that some will take away from this. Yes, Holtby was damn good, especially in the third period when the Bruins really <i>should </i>have closed to 3-1 at least once, but the Bruins deserved this loss. It wasn't stolen from them or all bad puck-luck, it was getting pretty steadily outplayed and outcoached in a big game.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.japersrink.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Capitals</a> struck first, scoring by way of their top unit 4:49 into the game. Surpisingly it didn't involve <span>Alex Ovechkin</span>, instead coming when <span>Brooks Orpik</span> kept the puck in at the blue line and knocked it down to Nicklas Backstorm. The Caps all-time Assist leader did what he does, working his way down past the face-off dot of the defensive-right circle and firing a dart of a pass to right point-man John Carlson. The delay and pass was so pretty that Carlson found himself wide open, and buried it past <span>Tuukka Rask</span>. 1-0.</p>
<p>While the defensive coverage from the <span>Adam McQuaid</span>-<span>Torey Krug</span> pairing was a bit loose, sometimes you just have to tip your cap to great players making great plays. Not many people put a pass right on the tape in that situation, and Carlson isn't exactly chopped liver either. The problem was that the run of the play, which had been about even in terms of shot attempts in the early going, became unfavorable for the Bruins. For the first time since before the win streak began, the Bruins looked absolutely lost trying to clear their own zone. It's all well and good to "Hit Somebody," as the great Warren Zevon sung, but you need to be able to make a breakout pass afterward.</p>
<p>The barrage of Caps shots finally yielded another goal when <span>Matt Niskanen</span> scored a typical "corgi goal," unloading a slapper from the right point which deflected off Zach Trotman's stick and past Tuukka Rask. 2-0. We can wax poetic about bad luck and whatnot, but when you get pinned down for as long as the Bruins did, something eventually finds a way to the back of the net.</p>
<p>In the second half of the first period, the Bruins got their game back, but 2-0 is a tough hole to dig out of and, while the <span>Patrice Bergeron</span> line in particular had a couple buzzing shifts, they couldn't find a way past Holtby on a couple good looks from the slot. <span>Brad Marchand</span>, battling an illness, had a couple quality wristers snuffed out. The <span>David Krejci</span> line, heretofore quiet, finally got some zone time, as did the new <span>Ryan Spooner</span> line. The Bruins weren't really blown out in this game, you see--but by the time they were competing at about an even level, they were already down 2. The first period finished 16-10 in SOG for WSH, with the Caps retaining the two-goal advantage.</p>
<p>The Bruins needed an answer in the second period and, of course, that was when Holtby really shined. Two different bouts of sustained pressure by the visitors went begging, with Torey Krug facilitating a good deal of chaos for the Washington defense. <span>Milan Lucic</span> probably had the best chance, sent away on a breakaway by a Connolly pass (I believe it was a long shift) and was stopped by Holtby on what was his best save of the night. Notably, <span>Reilly Smith</span> passed up on a possibly open short side at one point that might have actually been the best chance to come out of Krug's play. Smith's possession game was actually pretty good today, but it remains clear that his decision-making is pretty hesitant in the wake of his poor play. Anyway, SPOILER -- the Bruins didn't score then and didn't score on a later decent couple chances for Milan Lucic and the Krejci line. However, <span>Zdeno Chara</span> returned from an apparent injury and was definitely a shot in the arm.</p>
<p>Speaking of the possession game, the Bruins were playing it pretty well towards the end of the second. War-on-ice's chart for tonight shows the surge, with only the note that while the chances might have been pretty even, the Capitals <a href="http://war-on-ice.com/game2.html?seasongcode=2014201521201">had an easy time finding the Boston slot than vice versa</a>. We generally avoid getting hung up on single-game possession stats unless they're representative of a larger trend, but tip of the cap to Ryan Spooner for managing to log +17 in the shot attempt category with his new line. The Bruins had three lines going pretty well for the last couple shifts of the second.</p>
<p>The problem is, when you don't score for almost 38 minutes of hockey and you're pressing for offense, anything can happen (and often does). The Caps effectively iced the game at 17:47 of the second when <span>Evgeny Kuznetsov</span> made one of the better behind-the-net feeds that any of us have ever seen--and one Tuukka Rask did not see, though it's damn hard to blame the goalie on a pass that pretty--to a net-crashing Marcus Johansson. Johansson put it through a still-adjusting Rask. It was 3-0, and Florida was looking good.</p>
<p>The third period saw yet another spirited effort from the Bruins to dig out of a hole (I'm tired of writing this sentence), and another time where they fell short (I'm more tired of writing this part). Lucic-Spooner-Pastrnak was reunited, and immediately had two scores chances; one of which was a decent save by Holtby on #17, another complete highway robbery of a Pastrnak attempt on a rebound. The Bruins, again, did not score a goal in this game, so I'm sorry for the depressing endings to these paragraphs.</p>
<p>Now, it should not be said that Claude Julien did not have his reasons for the line-up he iced tonight, or that they didn't have effective stretches, but the question of <i>was this the right time for a shake-up? </i>That one needs to be asked. While some of it was bad puckluck, mediocre finishing, and Holtby, there were other times where the Bruins simply looked more disjointed than usual, as evidenced by the fact that, despite out shot-attempting the Caps in the end (teams that are chasing a game often end up with more raw corgis), the Bruins were outshot 33-27 in a game that Washington led from five minutes in.</p>
<p>Looking at the performances line-by-line, Marchand-Bergeron-Eriksson unit generally looked fine, as Marchand-Bergeron-X usually look in terms of two-way play. The other lines had their moments, but both David Krejci and <span>Carl Soderberg</span> had subpar games with their new wingers, and Spooner's line suffered from their playmaker's best couple passes landing on the stick of <span>Chris Kelly</span> who, offensively-speaking, is a good defensive center and not much of a scoring winger. On one sequence that was worthy of running to your local liquor store to forget, Kelly missed the net on a 2-on-1 (with some help from Holtby but the puck wasn't on target anyway) and <span>Matt Bartkowski</span> managed to shoot the rebound into Holtby's chest. Holtby's chest was located on the ice. Connolly continues to impress with his overall game, even if his penalty in the closing minutes--a slewfoot of Joel Ward--wasn't exactly a high point.</p>
<p>Despite all of this, tonight wasn't really a a terrible game, just a bad one that involved some patchy offensive work and some depth defensemen being exposed. There's going to be a bunch of bull about Rask's play, but he was fine in a game where the Bruins started making passes ten minutes late. In terms of those lines, the shake-up might work over a longer span than just one night. Heck, the Bruins might adjust and win easily tomorrow, though they face a Florida team that's rested and ready to play. The problem is that the Bruins are flat-out <i>out </i>of times where anyone can be happy with a "good effort" loss. They need wins and, whatever the optimal line-up and whoever they're planning on icing with whoever else, they need a win in a game that starts in less than 24 hours.</p>
<p>With this loss, the margin for error is now razor-thin.</p>
<p>~</p>
<p>The Bruins will be back in action tomorrow night at 7 against the <a href="https://www.litterboxcats.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Florida Panthers</a>. The Panthers and Bobby Lu, who you might have heard were kind of sort eliminated from playoff contention by Boston, have plenty of reason to play spoiler.</p>
<p><i>(Tip o' the cap to Sky for the wonderful Holtbicorn pic. I'm sorry the actual hockey news isn't as funny. ;) )</i></p>
https://www.stanleycupofchowder.com/2015/4/9/8375115/bruins-all-shook-up-in-dc-shut-out-again-by-magical-holtbyNHZ2015-04-08T21:04:28-04:002015-04-08T21:04:28-04:00Overflow Public Skate: We Call Do Over
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/rJdfwnl6mk7Q7r_WiEmSKERcVDY=/0x34:1842x1262/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/46077948/usa-today-8503857.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Capitals 2, Bruins 0 after one. Yuck.</p> <p>Caps goals from <span>John Carlson</span> and <span>Matt Niskanen</span>, <span>Nicklas Backstrom</span> with two helpers. <span>Zdeno Chara</span> looks injured.</p>
<p>Whatever's on tap, might I suggest getting more?</p>
<p>But seriously, it's only 2-0. Let's go <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.stanleycupofchowder.com/">Bruins</a>.</p>
https://www.stanleycupofchowder.com/2015/4/8/8374499/second-period-public-skate-we-call-do-overNHZ2015-04-08T11:03:17-04:002015-04-08T11:03:17-04:00Preview: Bruins at Capitals
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/yryJkQVwb40_IGUkS5jpCt6kVc4=/0x0:2234x1489/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/46074008/usa-today-8448746.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The Bruins are looking to #ScoreAGoal against the Caps tonight.</p> <p>After a wild finish to yesterday's games, the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.stanleycupofchowder.com/">Bruins</a> woke up this morning back in a familiar spot: 8th in the East.</p>
<p>In case you live under a rock and the rock doesn't get good wifi, the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.silversevensens.com/">Ottawa Senators</a> won again last night. The Sens rallied from 3-0 down after 15 minutes to tie the game with about a minute remaining, then won in OT. While the fading <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.pensburgh.com/">Pittsburgh Penguins</a> did salvage a point, the two points leave Ottawa even with the Bruins at 95 points. The Bruins have one in hand, playing today while Ottawa does not. The Sens now have the nothing-left-to-play-for President's Trophy-winning Rangers and the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.broadstreethockey.com/">Philadelphia Flyers</a> left on the schedule</p>
<p>The <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.wingingitinmotown.com/">Detroit Red Wings</a> did their best to contribute to the chaos--as a result of other hockey shenanigans last night, the current playoff structure out West includes the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.matchsticksandgasoline.com/">Calgary Flames</a> and <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.arcticicehockey.com/">Winnipeg Jets</a> but not the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.jewelsfromthecrown.com/">Los Angeles Kings</a>--by trailing Carolina 2-1 in the 3rd. Unfortunately, they woke up and won, possibly because their souls are forwarded to the Hockey demons if they don't make the playoffs for the 683rd straight year.</p>
<p>Anyway, where this leaves the Bruins is essentially where they were before the action of the 7th. Just win, baby. The Bruins have a three-game road trip to close the season, which starts tonight against a resurgent <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.japersrink.com/">Washington Capitals</a> team, one of the four squads in the East to have officially clinched. You might have heard that the Bruins have been shut out twice by these guys. Yadda yadda no one cares.</p>
<p><b>The Orpikian Washington Capitals: 99 Points, 4th in the East (2nd in Metro)</b></p>
<p>The Caps have been a problem that the Bruins haven't solved this year, but it's not exactly a mystery why. One year removed from the Adam Oates regime yanking them out of the playoff structure for first time since 2007, Washington added Barry Trotz, some new defensemen, a massive year from <span>Braden Holtby</span>, and an actual NHL-level system to return to more of the Eastern Conference contender we're used to seeing. Hanging in the first wild card spot for much of the season, a recent 7-2-1 stretch, coupled with injury troubles/a drop in form for the Isles and Pens, have them in 2nd in the Metro.</p>
<p>The question leading into this game is simple: the Caps have one point on the Isles and three on the Pens for a potential home-ice for the 2nd-3rd Metro match-up. Their two games remaining are this one, and a 12:30 PM Saturday match-up against the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.blueshirtbanter.com/">New York Rangers</a>. The Rangers have nothing left to play for. So the question is, do the Capitals come out firing for this game? Or rest Holtby et al?</p>
<p><b>Forward Lines:</b></p>
<p>Offense is down again, and Ovechkin has 52 goals. Yes, a lot of those have come on the man-advantage. No, it does not really matter where the hell your goals come from if you're scoring <i>ten more than the second place player in the NHL. </i><span>Alex Ovechkin</span> and Nick Backstrom are still deadly, and, while the Caps actually have solid depth this season, those guys are the ones you bend over backwards to try and keep off the board. Of course, since I was originally leading with talking about the Backstrom-Ovechkin combo, the Caps are currently in one of those stages where they've separated the two:</p>
<p><b><span>Joel Ward</span> - <span>Evgeny Kuznetsov</span> - Alex Ovechkin</b></p>
<p><b><span>Marcus Johansson</span> - <span>Nicklas Backstrom</span> - <span>Troy Brouwer</span></b></p>
<p><b>Curtis Glengross - <span>Brooks Laich</span> - <span>Jason Chimera</span></b></p>
<p><b><span>Andre Burakovsky</span> - <span>Michael Latta</span> - </b><span><span>Stanislav Galiev</span></span></p>
<p>The only real difference between last year's Caps forwards is the promotion of some younger players and the rental in Glencross.</p>
<p><b>UPDATE 1: </b>Hat tip to multiple Caps people for pointing out that Wilson's injury will keep him out tonight. <a href="http://www.russianmachineneverbreaks.com/2015/04/07/stan-galiev-receives-dream-promotion-to-nhl-likely-to-make-capitals-debut-wednesday/">Stan Galiev will be making his NHL Debut.</a></p>
<p> </p>
<p><b>D-Pairings:</b></p>
<p>The Washington FO imported 1/3rd of the Pittsburgh blue line from last year, with mixed results. Orpik actually hasn't been terrible after a very slow start. This is partly because he's playing with US of A Olympian <span>John Carlson</span>, who's 11-42-53 for the year while playing some fairly tough assignments, so in conjunction with the fact that he's done that while standing near Orpik, probably deserves the Norris.</p>
<p>The Capitals definitely stick to the "one puck-mover, one stay at home guy" set-up through the D-Pairings, with Niskanen (having an underrated year because of lack of power play time) and Alzner, then impending free agent (and still good) <span>Mike Green</span> and deadline pick-up Gleason.</p>
<p><b><span>Brooks Orpik</span> - John Carlson</b></p>
<p><b><span>Matt Niskanen</span> - <span>Karl Alzner</span></b></p>
<p><b>Mike Green - <span>Tim Gleason</span></b></p>
<p>There's a lot of talk about an improved Caps defense. While that's true, a big part of it is a better system and...</p>
<p><b>And In Net:</b></p>
<p>...this guy.</p>
<p><b>Braden Holtby</b></p>
<p><b><span>Justin Peters</span></b></p>
<p>No goalie in the league has started as many games as #70 this year, as Holtby's rebounded from an off-year to have a .922 through <i>seventy-one </i>games. <span>Carey Price</span>, rightly championed as the saver of the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.habseyesontheprize.com/">Montreal Canadiens</a> asses this year, has *only* played 64, for example. Rask has (somewhat infuriatingly) played 67.</p>
<p>Peters is not a good goalie, and if the Caps roll him out there it's a good chance that means they're content with being in a playoff spot.</p>
<p><b>Your Within-A-Stone's-Throw-(Or Goal)-Of-Clinching Boston Bruins: 95 Points, 8th in the East (1 game in hand on virtually everyone)</b></p>
<p>Got to wonder if we see the Bergeron line get hot at "the right time," as they've actually been fairly quiet on the scoring front recently. They'll have Eriksson on the right wing, <a href="https://twitter.com/NHLBruins/status/585463458742820866">if this is any indication</a>. For those of you allergic to clicking links, I'm going by the practice lines which are, of course, subject to Claude.</p>
<p><b><span>Brad Marchand</span> - <span>Patrice Bergeron</span> - <span>Loui Eriksson</span></b></p>
<p><b><span>Milan Lucic</span> - <span>David Krejci</span> - <span>David Pastrnak</span></b></p>
<p><b><span>Chris Kelly</span> - <span>Ryan Spooner</span> - <span>Brett Connolly</span></b></p>
<p><b><span>Gregory Campbell</span> </b><b>- <span>Carl Soderberg</span> - <span>Reilly Smith</span></b></p>
<p>Okaaaaaay. It appears that the Marchand-Bergeron-Krejci experiment is over, which is probably for the best given their lack of scoring at 5s and DK playing his way back into game shape. Marchand-Bergeron-Eriksson worked fine at the beginning of 2013-14 (though FWIW they also didn't score much), and it looks like this is their reunion. Also, this would leave Talbot as a scratch if that holds, which is confusing to me. While I am not the world's biggest Max Talbot fan, I have no idea how he's not considered a better winger option than Soupy considering, you know, he's played wing more and isn't Greg Campbell.</p>
<p>The old third line is now the fourth, only with Campbell rather than Kelly. Spooner is now wearing his Carl Soderberg mask rather than his David Krejci mask. Lucic and Pasta are still on the same line. Did I miss anything?</p>
<p>Also, while I'm sure Krejci moving back to his customary spot will yield dividends, I can't help but be wary of the decision to break up <a href="https://twitter.com/DJ_Bean/status/583078893004935168">Lucic and the Cubs</a> (if you click one link in this stupid post, click that one).</p>
<p><b>D-Pairings:</b></p>
<p>While he's definitely benefited from playing with Z, I'd like to use this space to say that I've been impressed with <span>Zach Trotman</span>. He's not the possession force that Hamilton is <i>and </i>he's already 24, but at six-three and over 200, he's got the size to be a contributor in a Top 4 spot (note that I am not saying this is definitely has future) and, for now, seems to be getting more comfortable about using that size.</p>
<p><span>Dennis Seidenberg</span> was/is sick, and missed practice yesterday. If we assume he misses the game too, this is what the pairings probably look like:</p>
<p><b><span>Zdeno Chara</span> - Zach Trotman</b></p>
<p><b><span>Matt Bartkowski</span> - <span>Adam McQuaid</span></b></p>
<p><b><span>Torey Krug</span> - <span>Joe Morrow</span></b></p>
<p>Hamilton isn't going on the trip, so welcome back to Joe Morrow! The less said about that second pairing, the better. Sometimes it's hard to believe this team has won 41 games with some of the pairings we've borne witness to this season.</p>
<p><b>And In Net:</b></p>
<p><b><span>Tuukka Rask</span></b></p>
<p><b><span>Niklas Svedberg</span></b></p>
<p>This will be the final time that I log my protest towards the wisdom (or lack thereof) in starting your goaltender on back-to-back days. However, with the playoffs on the line I fully expect Rask in on both halves of the back-to-back, and what with the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.litterboxcats.com/">Florida Panthers</a>--tomorrow's opponent--not exactly being an offense powerhouse, it likely won't hurt as much as it could.</p>
<p>~</p>
<p>This is one of those NBCSN games, so we have to wait until 8 PM for hockey. We probably need to make a "Jack Edwards reacts to NBC commentary" bingo card.</p>
<p><b>UPDATE 2: </b><a href="https://twitter.com/vogscaps/status/585836202496024576">Holtby is a go for tonight</a>, so let's assume the Caps do, in fact, want to win.</p>
https://www.stanleycupofchowder.com/2015/4/8/8368431/game-80-preview-bruins-41-25-13-at-capitals-44-25-11NHZ