TropicalFruitGirl26

And there we are...dagger!
Played with fire (or knives!), and got burnt/stabbed.

RNH with the insurance goal....Oilers now lead 4-2 with just over 3 minutes left to play.

Kings losing it now as the game comes down to the last 5 or 6 minutes.
With the Oilers already up 3-2, Los Angeles keeps taking one penalty after another, and granted, they've been killing them off, but it sure doesn't help their bid to try and tie the game.

And with all the PP time given to the Oilers, that is simply fueling the offensive confidence of McDavid and company.
Right now, that 3-2 lead may look like 5-2 to the Kings!

2 minutes ago, SaucyJack said:

Well yeah…they’ve been pretty fair of late.  They have two chances:  catch Tampa or Detroit for a wild card, or catch Philly for 3rd in the Metro!

 

They’ve edged past the Pens, Devs, and Isles, and could tie the Flyboys by winning their two games in hand.  Somebody in the not-too-strong Metropolitan Division is gonna finish 3rd  and get in.

 

Big game in Motown tomorrow.

 

 

Well, their big win against the Sens puts them just 4 points behind Philly, and 6 behind TB.
Games in hand are fine....as long as they win them of course.

I just wonder though....the wild n woolly type of defense they played against the Sens (or some might say lack thereof), if they get away with a more structured team.
There were times when I thought Ottawa SHOULD have gotten a goal here, there, and there again, only to come up Senator Empty, then give one up the other way.

But yea....Caps do seem to have a realistic shot at catching either The Fly or The Bolts....although, if TB ever squares away their turnovers, they could be hard to catch, and perhaps shoot further up the standings.

And THAT didn't take long.
Draisaitl expertly redirects an innocent looking shot from the point just seconds into the EDM PP to square the score at 2.

3:50 left in the frame.

Kings' defense has looked a bit weak this period in particular....maybe the Oilers smell royal blood right about now.

Holy Apple Carts....

Edmonton to the PP, BUT, it is only their first and we are winding down the 2nd period.
Has LA REALLY played that clean a game?
Or have the Oilers not driven hard enough at the net to draw penalties (like they just did now)?
Or maybe the refs and linesmen's last names are all Magoo??

Either way, the Oilers get the man advantage to try and tie the score....

Funny seeing both Corey Perry and Evander Kane sharing the same bench without wanting to spear each other  

Big pressure by the Kings on their latest PP, but the EDM PK'ers held firm....and now, 5 on 5, the Oilers are pushing back, attacking the Kings' zone.
No surprise McDavid's line is leading that particular attack.

Game is  sitting at 2-1 LA.

And now, something else for the Oilers to be steamed about...
Trevor Moore puts LA up 1-0 as the Kings crash the net and somehow the puck gets snuck by Skinner for the lead.

After the Caps' 6-3 win (which vaulted them over NJ in the standings BTW, and now sit just 4 points behind PHI for 3rd), decided to flip on over to LA at EDM.

Seems the Kings and Oilers have developed a genuine "dislike" for one another.
A pair of playoff series in the recent past will do that.
Game is a bit chippy already.

Oilers none too happy with the LA franchise.
LA has two Cups in the last 10 years while the Oilers are still searching since the 80's...
As mentioned, the two tough playoff matchups in recent history adds to that.

Oh yea, then there is the Gretzky theft by LA from EDM the Oilers are still steamed about... 

All makes for great TV! 

4 minutes ago, Math said:

Watch that Stankoven guy in the near future...

NHL debut I see.

Terrific WHL and AHL numbers.
Small frame for a center....perhaps Brayden Point-like?
Will see if he can translate his minor league success to the bigs

8 minutes ago, Math said:

I'm watching that game with one eye (Stars are playing the Isles right now too) and I'm still wondering how the Stars managed to lose against Ottawa...

Senators are a team, it seems, that plays off the other teams' mistakes to make their bread so to speak.
If a good team, like Dallas, doesn't execute, then the Sens have a chance to beat them like they did.
If the Stars play their game to the letter, it gives Ottawa almost no chance.

Then you have games like this one against the Caps where Washington wants to HAND them goals....and the Senators can't seem to take advantage.

Pretty much the Ottawa season summed up

And AGAIN!

Ottawa with all sorts of dominance in the offensive zone...get NOTHING....then screw up a defensive assignment, and the Caps rush down the ice, odd man rush, and score to make it 6-3 now!

And somehow I don't think these teams are done scoring.

Ottawa just skating at will in the Washington zone and the Caps are doing very little to deter Senator romping in the zone!
No attempted big hits, no stick checking....  just putting bodies in the way hoping they can disrupt Senator players.

I don't know how the Sens didn't come away with a goal just now. They had every opportunity...giftwrapped with a bow on top by Washington!

Second period now, and as the Ottawa booth said, "Goals are coming fast n furious" in what has become a 5-3 lead for the Caps.
Seems to be, like the other night with the Pens and Flyers, another defense optional game....

For you fantasy players with Anton Forsberg and Darcy Kuemper on your rosters, your numbers MIGHT take a bit of a beating...

This Rempe dude (6'8!??) really is making the rounds on the hockey outlets.
I mean, that is great n all, big strong young guy wanting to make his impact in the league, but I did some digging into his career in the minors, and well, other than racking up the PIMs, there doesn't seem to be much else to him.

If he can be a unicorn type player that can hit, fight, defend and contribute to offense, then the Rangers may have something in the 7th rounder.
But to make your living like he has so far....and with every swingin richard challenging him now every time he steps on the ice....man, that is just a brutal way to make a living.

@Brewin Flames said mush brains by 30?
Not at this clip...maybe more like 25 for this young man, if he can even last that long.

The league being what it is, I fear this 21 yr old will find that unless he at least becomes a good PK'er, or a feared checking bottom sixer, he will be relegated to 'yesterday's news' sooner than later and replaced on the NHL roster faster than you can say "Brain Injury"

Original call was "no goal" due to high stick, BUT, upon further review, it was overturned and thus, determined, in no uncertain terms, and pretty decisively, that this was, in fact, a legitimate goal that should be counted for the Senators of Ottawa...Canada's capital city!

In other words...good %$@ing goal, and we have a tie game at 2!  

Shane "Ford" Pinto scores the game tying goal for Ottawa?
Maybe...maybe not....high stick into the net?
Waiting on review....

Hang on now...

I keep forgetting...these ARE the Washington Capitals, and for some reason, Darcy Kuemper gets caught behind the net with a batch of players...Ottawa wins the puck, Darcy scrambles to get back in net, but the Sens use the chaos to get on the board!

Drake Batherson with the marker cutting Washington's lead to 2-1

Well now...that didn't take long!

Seconds into the PP, John "Don't call me Erik" Carlson scores to not only pad the Caps' lead to 2-0, but passes Sergei Gonchar for second place in franchise history for goals by a defenseman, according to the Ottawa booth.

Settling in to watch a little bit of Ottawa at Washington....yea, yea, I know...WHY??

Seriously...the Caps seem to think they have a shot at the post season still....and so do the Senators for that matter!
Gotta love the thought process behind these teams even if the mathematics are very much against them!

So, the Sens start the game hot, get lots of chances based off their speed and pressure, but get nothing to show for it....then screw up keeping the puck in the offensive zone ONE TIME, and the Caps led by some dude named Protos (sounds like a Marvel villain or something!) scores on the odd man rush the other way.... and he looked somewhat Yzerman-like doing that what with the approach, dekes, and finish!

That of course, puts YOUR Washington Capitals up 1-0 early on.

Washington now gets a chance to add to the lead, going on the PP after Jake Chychrun heaves the puck out of the zone without touching glass, which IS against the rules after all!  

4 hours ago, CoachX said:

I fcking hate TB! 

Soooo....does that mean you won't be sending me a card for Easter?  

Yea, Buffalo is technically under .500 still....and likely will stay that way.

If I am the front office, I examine every aspect of the team and see where the regressions were and see what can be done to not have this happen again next season.....and while they are at it, of course, try to get whatever they can for older players or expiring contracts they know they aren't really interested in keeping long term.
Get the analytics guys in on that too, they'd probably be a world of help looking at trends and helping to predict future performance based on personnel.

I think with 20+ games left, and the Sabres 11 pts behind the wild card spots, their best bet is to look past this season starting now.
The players on the ice, of course, should try to continue to win......their job isn't to worry about the future of the franchise and long term competitiveness. Only to win when they step onto the ice if they can.

Front office though? Definitely some hard looks need to be made at this team.

1 minute ago, JR Ewing said:

 

I'll go with stick-optional.

 

Or as some Wild fans used to say about Matt Kassian or Derek Boogaard years ago...
"A pair of fists equipped with skates"  

2 hours ago, JR Ewing said:

 

So far, he's played 3:45 and has 27 PIM.     lol

 

Would you say that makes him a...ahem... 'high energy player'?  

Blues must have gotten an earful during the intermission, as they came out playing MUCH better in the 2nd.....even came up with a goal to make things 4-1 Detroit, but this time with Hofer in goal instead of Binnington...though I must say, being the non-Binny fan I am, I can't really blame the goalie as his skaters were butt-awful in front of him.

However, all that feel-good stuff for the loaded Blues was short lived.
Red Wings aren't done embarrassing the Blues just yet and have answered the Blues' lone goal with two more in quick succession.

6-1 Wings is the current damage as the teams head into the second intermission.

Too bad the Blues don't have Berube in the locker room anymore to tell them they "must score, defend, and tend goal harder...."