The lines are made up and the points don't matter

You can say that we beat the Bruins. You can also say we got a quick snapshot of what the caps lines may look like. The preseason points don't matter....I don't know if anyone even keeps track of points in the preseason. It doesn't matter right now and thank god it doesn't. But nonetheless the caps and Barry Trotz are tinkering with line combinations and seeing who has the best chemistry and what molds together well and what doesn't. Right now the offense looks like it finally may have a solid groove. Even with playing with a partial staff I saw some things Friday evening that really gave me some hope in what the regular season will be like.
No change in the domination of the power play. There is a little bit more movement when it comes to where Ovechkin is playing at in the formation. He got two goals Friday and looked like his normal usual self. Michael Latta tallied a goal as well as rookie center Liam O'Brien. O'Brien tallied a goal and an assist as well as five PIM's. He really stepped up and gave capitals a little shot of the future this kid can play and is going to be formidable. Winning the game in overtime came from Troy Brouwer. The offense looked decent. The time spent in the offensive zone will need to drastically increase and the passing will need to be better to keep the cycle rotating inside of the zone. Shots need to tighten up and be placed on goal rather than blindly being thrown out there. The one thing I did see was creativity. The movement of the puck was constantly being thrown forward and the plans being drawn up on the fly as well as the caps finding open ice was very exciting to see. All in all things need to be tightened offensively. Goaltending was iffy. Four goals were let in total two each by Grubauer and peters with 9 and 10 saves on the night. In my opinion I don't think the goals were completely their fault. The defense looked shaky at best. Niskanen allowed one goal to occur due to a poor turn over in the defensive zone.
When I sat in my seat in section 109 I listened to everyone complain about how bad we are going to be this year. All I wanted to do was scream ITS PRESEASON!!!! This is the time of the year that the lines are made up and the points don't matter. Like really people. Let Trotz be able to play with the lines. We can lose every single pre season game for all I care just to get the lines tweaked to how they should be. Everyone including myself needs to relax. Just sit back and enjoy the games. Watch the rookies play and impress us. Watch the different lines and think about what could be. All in all just relax.

There are a couple story lines from the night that are needing attention. It is extremely encouraging to see Laich play at the beginning of the season and be productive. He was placed on the front line with Ovechkin and Backstrom. He played 21:26 and had two assists. This is a huge key for the start of the capitals season. Niskanen did let a goal in but he also tallied assist. Still not convinced with him on defense. Maybe a pairing with mike green may do him well. Potential Calder cup winner Kuznetsov tallied an assist but his timing on passes was not there one bit. I'm still predicting him to be the rookie of the year. The main storyline in following right now is that if Mike Green. The former dominant offensive defenseman is in a contract year. Guarantee that he is going to be looking to score big on his contract at the end of this season. He tallied one assist and 2 PIM in Friday's game. I do not, repeat DO NOT, expect him to be with the capitals the entire season. He is injury prone. When he gets frustrated on the ice he makes mistakes and commits penalties that cost the capitals in the long run. He needed to be traded three seasons ago. I do not see the value and think that his trade potential is severely low this year. But hey I'm not the GM and our current GM can impress me by trading a beloved player who does not benefit the team. Don't get me started. My distain for Semin was just transferred to Mike Green. I have seen what he can do and yet there's nothing there anymore. He needs to reinvent himself or his paycheck will not be signed by Leonsis anymore. I just don't see a value in keeping green. Get rid of him while he has value. I expect him to be gone by the end of January.

For the first week of the season the caps have four games in seven days. Three home games agains Montreal, San Jose, New Jersey and the away game being played in Boston.

Montreal will be a good early test for the caps. Their defense is always been their strength. I see the caps winning this one 3-1.

@Boston will be a fun road game. These games are always chippy and if Wilson is back expect the fisticuffs to be flying. Boston gets this game 4-2.

San Jose is normally a dominate team in the west. But they are getting older. The competition level will be very high and these inter-conference games will be very important this year. Caps win this one 3-2 in overtime.

And finishing the first week you have the New Jersey Devils. They Devils will be a breeze for the caps. I don't expect big things from them this year. Now I could be wrong...usually am...but I think the Devils will not live up to expectation this year. I do have the caps winning 3-2 in this one.

For the first week I have the caps going 3-1 for six out of eight points. Enjoy the season.

Next on Capital Nonsense... Who knows well see what come up. Possibly taking a look at the injuries that are current on the capitals.

Its 78 and I'm dreaming of ice

Soon, 3 millimeters of steel will be speeding around on top of painted frozen elements. Grown toothless men with scarred faces will be throwing themselves full force into their opponents. Ionized rubber will be shot at blistering speeds with the hopes of finding holes just large enough to get past anyone brave enough to stand in front and stop it. In DC evenings will now be seen in a sea of red exiting the metro. People dancing and singing on the sidewalks from the tunes that street performers will be doling out. There will be the beauty of seeing the rink for the first time in the season. Walking into the stadium with strangers then hearing the horn blow and turning to hug and high five those same strangers. Fists will fly in aggravation and intimidation with opposition on the ice and in the stands alike.
In ten days warriors from around the world will start the 2014-2015 NHL season and fans from around the world will be glued to their televisions, computers, and radios in anticipation of seeing greatness from their teams.
This season the Capitals are hoping for greatness to strike with force. The fan base is hoping for the new coach and new general manager to bring Lord Stanley to the district.
This is hockey in the Nations Capital. The nonsense that hockey bring will turn businessmen, politicians, and blue collar people into rabid voracious fans where getting two points is all that matters in the short time frame of three hours. This is hockey and this is what we love.

In the next blog in Capital Nonsense we will go over this past Friday's pre season game against Boston and look toward the first week of the regular season.

Let's try this again

...well the NHL season is here once again and needless to say the Pucher household is excited. Since the Capitals fall from grace my house has experienced drastic changes. There is now a Mrs. Pucher hanging around the house now. June 7th she signed on to the madness that is Caps hockey in my house. We moved into our own place in northern VA. We have a pug that is our child. The new place is decorated in the finest of tastes but there are two unique decorations that are placed in our living room; hanging above the entrance to our bedroom on the door frame hangs my new mike green signed stick that the was given to me by my brother in law for a wedding present. And then there is my 2011 winter classic game used puck.
It shouldn't need to be said but since becoming a married man the jerseys are no longer hanging on the walls. Ovechkin's fathead is rolled up and in storage. And the NHL network was replaced by hallmark, pbs, and Disney movies. And I am the happiest person in the world. She now is the proud owner of a caps jersey. She wants to go to as many games as she can except for the beloved winter classic.
So with that update said, Capital Nonsense will be bringing you the daily rants of a beleaguered fan who is in desperate need of Lord Stanleys Cup to make a home in the nations capital. Please share these posts with friends and comment on anything worth your two cents.

Location:VA

Final Countdown

Guess what day it is... Guuuueeeesssss

            Yep that’s right. Were not counting in months anymore but now in days. Hockey Preseason (Where everything is made up and the points don’t matter….just like rules against PED’s in baseball) starts in eighteen days and the regular season starts in thirty five days. We have made it! Thankfully we are just waiting with anticipation of a guaranteed full season of hockey this year. Anyone remember what we were doing last year? Everyone was stressing out wondering if there was even going to be a season at all. But yet it came, and we rejoiced. In 18 days a large group of fanatics of watching some puck being played are going to be happier than a midget getting stilts for Christmas.

            Even though the pre season doesn’t matter, training camps haven’t even started yet, and we have no idea of final rosters for the teams its still fun to sit back and play “Arm Chair Oates” and see what the month of September holds for us.

            The Pre season starts out with Winnipeg but instead of the Nut house of a stadium it can be the game is one of those red headed step-child preseason games that isn’t at a normal rink. Looking at Winnipeg from last year we all know the danger they can be. They have come out strong and then fizzled off due to injuries. Look for Winnipeg to have a firm foundation under their feet this year as well as their stadium to be even crazier. (14 September Away)

            The Flyers are next up and are going to most likely be without their captain for the pre season in my opinion. (Which again means absolutely nothing in the large scheme of things.) Laviolette will be coaching a team without Bryzgalov in goal. The Space Cadet had his contract bought out this summer and is still looking for an institution that is willing to take the risk…….And the beat goes on. Expect Emery to start in goal for Philly. I just don’t think Mason is going to outshine Emery, but I could be wrong. Sadly this pre season game is in Philadelphia…..Which means one thing: DON’T GO IF YOU LIKE YOUR HOCKEY JERSEY!!! Save getting beer thrown on you for the regular season. The Caps will see Philly at home on the 27^th so chuck all you want at someone dressed like a fat Halloween jack o lantern. They throw snowballs at Santa…they are free game the rest of the year. (16 September Away) (27 September Home)

         Finally the Capitals play at home…well sort of. McPhee and Leonsis in their infinite wisdom are having the Caps play the Bruins in Baltimore. Not only do Caps fans not like Boston and their ogre of a player Chara, but the city of Baltimore hates with a passion the city of Boston because of baseball and football. Nice strategy Ted! Good thinking, If I’m going to have to go to Baltimore to watch my team play and risk losing my life just walking to the stadium I’m glad there are going to be a large group of people who hate the bruins and Boston as well. Look for the bruins to not play super physical. Its pre season no one wants to get hurt. The caps will win this one but nobody jump and shout just yet. They see the Bruins for a second time just six days later in Boston (17 September Baltimore) (23 September Away)

         The defending Stanley Cup champions the Chicago Blackhawks fly in tow by superman (Kane) into Washington. Look for the first of these matchups to be a mega yawn factor. The second game is the last preseason game for each team before the regular season. And guess what the regular season opener is for the caps this year….that’s right 1000 pts. to the man who guess “Chicago.” The season opener and last preseason game looks to be the caps first road trip and you can definitely say the caps first real test of the season. If both teams want to fire on all cylinders, pending no injuries from the pre season of course, I can say that Ovechkin will be displaying his prowess early. (20 September Home) ( 28 September Away) (1 October Season Opener Away)

         The final team is Nashville. Yep there used to be only two reasons I wanted to watch the Predators play: To see a Shea Weber slap shot crush someone’s jaw, and to see if Carrie Underwood was watching her husband play hockey. But now playing Nashville even in the pre season holds a much bigger meaning. Matt Hendricks a well-known enforcer in the league and long time former capital is now a Nashville Predator. All in all with respect to Matt, I hope he has an amazing career but hope Ovechkin “Rick Rolls” him with a good ole fashioned hip check just to say hi. The other reason this game because more dramatic is the fact that one of the dumbest trades that McPhee ever did in his career is going to slap us in the face that game. Filip Forsberg is on Nashville lest we forget the *insert sarcasm here* amazing player in Martin Erat we picked up. But all in all drama creates a little bit of sparks so who knows this game may have something to it after all.

          Well that’s it. That’s as much as preview of the pre season that really matters. We will see what even becomes of the pre season and what the capitals do. All in all I am expectant of a better year than last year. (I say this every year to no avail) Oates has a good system, his players like him, and they will actually have time for a real training camp. Interesting drama will take place. Don’t use the preseason to judge how the capitals will stack up during the regular season in the metro division….just not worth wasting your time crunching all the numbers.

Shake 'N Bake

Realignment

            Just four months after the game of hockey returned to the ice Gary Bettman shakes the pot up again….and he shook it like a salt shaker. But for the most part, it seems to be a smarter move all around for everybody. Business wise its genius. Geographically it makes more sense than any other set up that we have seen yet.

            Rivalries will take on a whole new meaning this year, especially in the Metropolitan Division. Each of the 82 games will play such a key role in just making the playoffs. So here’s how the NHL is broken down this year:

Western Conference

Pacific Division

            Anaheim

            Calgary

            Edmonton

            LA

            Phoenix

            San Jose

            Vancouver

Central Division

            Chicago

            Colorado

            Dallas

            Minnesota

            St. Louis

            Nashville

            Winnipeg (Came from the Eastern Conference Southeast Division)

Eastern Conference

Metropolitan Division (Metro??? Who came up with this idea for a name?)

            Carolina

            Columbus (Came from the Western Conference Central Division)

            New Jersey

            NY Islanders

            NY Rangers

            Philadelphia

            Pittsburgh

            Washington

Atlantic Division

            Boston

            Buffalo

            Detroit (Came from the Western Conference Central Division)

            Florida

            Montreal

            Ottawa

            Tampa Bay

            Toronto

            

            So far this set up looks smart on paper financially. But since this is a Washington Capitals blog there is really only one division that we need to look at….The Metropolitan division. Ok, I get it. I understand the fact that each team in the “Metro” division, with the exception of Carolina and Columbus, have teams in large metropolitan areas. Really though, a sport like hockey with its violence, passion, and fans are really going to want to be called the 2014 Metro Champs! Might as well just make the Division Trophy a giant fairy for heaven sake.

            The Metro division is going to be one of the closest watched divisions. The rivalries are already well established from years past. Its basically the Atlantic division and just throw Washington in there. The added Capitals element will prove to play a vital role in the amount of teams that make the playoffs from the Metro division.

            As of now the set up for the season goes as follows (For the Metro Division): Each team will play 30 Divisional Conference Games (Five games against two teams and then 4 games against 5 teams), 24 Non Divisional Conference Games (3 games against each team), 28 Non Conference games (2 games against each team). The amount of games being played and the amount of stars in the Metro division alone makes for an incredible opportunity for fans to see the top stars in the game play. With four of the top five fantasy rated players in the Metro division alone it has become molded into an environment that is poised for drama, excitement, and a whole lot of fighting.

            The playoffs becomes an interesting issue as well. The way to make the playoffs this year comes down to a very simple set up. The top three teams in each division will make the playoffs. This will fill 12 slots total for playoff spots. The final four spots will be filled by the next highest point accumulation for the regular season. So it is definitely possible for the Metro division to send five teams to the playoffs.

            This entire realignment may actually be the first thing in a long time that NHL fans have agree with Gary Bettman on. We are all still mostly very bitter at how the season played out in the NHL last year. But we can be sure of one thing. This year will have alot of excitement. Its still August and you can just feel the anticipation building. Its basically the old Patrick division coming out to play which will definitely create some drama. Expect to see Ovechkin, Crosby, Malkin, the Staal family, and Tavares in the news ALOT! Then just think about the goalie matchups we will see:Lundqvist, Brodeur, Nabokov, Thomas, Holtby, and Fleury all going up against each other. 

            This being said every point is important. Every injury takes on a whole new meaning. Every day brings about a new challenge for the capitals on their quest for their first Stanley cup.