I don't have a lot to say about last night's Caps game, but I do have a few thoughts.
One, the shot totals would seem to indicate that the game was much more even than it felt like.
Two, I think the shot totals are misleading; now looking, and the Isles had many more missed shots.
Three, the power play needs to adapt a bit to NY's aggressiveness.
Four, tape-to-tape passes are critical. It did get better as the game went on, but there were way too many giveaways. The Isles are too good to be giving them the puck for free.
Five, there is no world in which Beagle should be playing over Bura. No excuse for that. Heck, I'd rather have Galiev up there over Beagle. Possibly over Chimmer, too.
Six, the Caps miss Wilson's ability to draw (even matching) penalties.
Seven, MarJo had a hell of a game.
Eight, OV didn't seem like he was accomplishing much (outside of hitting), but his Corsi and Fenwick numbers were very good. And his 11 shot attempts were also quite good. Not sure what was going on, there.
Nine, the young Islanders having very little playoff experience didn't seem to hurt them in any way. They got a little bit lucky, but they still solidly outplayed the Caps.
This is well short of the time to panic, but things definitely do not look good. Hopefully, Barry can come up with some effective counters to the Islanders' tactics (Bruce never managing that was the biggest reason for the Caps not doing well in the playoffs under him. And why I don't expect him to make it out of the second round (maybe not even first) this year).
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