[10-APR-2016] It's the end of the regular season road...

As-predicted several months ago, his hat trick against the St. Louis Blues puts Ovi in sole possession of the 33rd slot overall for career goals scored. He reached that 525 career goals mark in his 839th career game. It took Brian Trottier 1279 games to reach the 524 goal mark. Since Ovi would need to score 8 goals tonight to catch Francis Mahovlich, I'm projecting he will end the season in 33rd place overall for goals scored (unless he somehow pulls off The Ovechtrick... (not bloody likely!)  Joe Malone's 1920 record 7 goals in one game has been standing for damned close to 100 years. If anyone in the NHL could break that standing record, it'd be Ovi.*-

#OviWatch

525 career goals in 839 career games is quite the mark. If Ovi gets 50 goals next season, he will hit 575 career goals. I am right now predicting that Ovi will have no fewer than 45 goals next season, which will put him at 570 career goals, just ahead of Mats Sundin, and just behind Mike Bossy. 53 goals (minus however many he scores tonight against Anaheim) will put him ahead of Mark Recchi for #20 overall. As I've said all season, we'll see what happens!

20 - Mark Recchi - 577 goals in 1652 games played
21 - Mike Bossy - 573 goals in 752 games played
22 - Mats Sundin - 564 goals in 1346 games played
23 - Joe Nieuwendyk - 564 goals in 1257 games played
24 - Mike Modano - 561 goals in 1499 gams played
25 - Guy Laflueur - 560 goals in 1126 games played
26 - John Bucyk - 556 goals in 1731 games played
27 - Ron Francis - 549 goals in 1731 games played
28 - Michel Goulet - 544 goals in 1089 games played
29 - Maurice Richard - 544 goals in 978 games played
30 - Stan Mikita - 541 goals in 1394 games played
31 - Keith Tkachuk - 538 goals in 1201 games played
32 - Francis Mahovlich - 533 goals in 1181 games played
33 - Alex Ovechkin - 525 goals in 839 games played

#HoltBEASTWatch

Braden Holtby has tied Marty Brodeur's single season win record. The next record of Brodeur's that he could potentially topple is the youngest player to 300 career regular season wins. Brodeur achieved that record at 29 years, 7 months. Holtby was born on 16-Sep-1989, making him at present 26 years, 6 months old. He has played in 244 career games (started 236) and has 149 wins in that span. That leaves him needing to win another 152 games over the next three years to pass Brodeur. That's going to take some doing... A lot of doing... 

2016-17 - 51
2017-18 - 51
2018-19 - 50

We'll see what happens. Holtby's wins are not his alone; he has to have a team playing well in front of him, too. Coach Trotz and Coach Korn are both great coaches, so I'll still call it possible. It's possible.

#TeamWatch

1995-96 Detroit Red Wings (62W in 82 GP)

2005-06 Detroit Red Wings (58W in 82 GP)

2015-16 Washington Capitals  (56W in 82 GP)  

2010-11 Vancouver Canucks (54W in 82 GP) 2013-14 Boston Bruins (54W in 82 GP)

2013-14 Anaheim Ducks (54W in 82 GP)

2007-08 Detroit Red Wings (54W in 82 GP)

2009-10 Washington Capitals (54W in 82 GP)

2014-15 New York Rangers (53W in 82GP)  

2005-06 Dallas Stars (53W in 82GP)

2008-09 Boston Bruins (53W in 82GP)

2005-06 Ottawa Senators (52W in 82GP) 

2000-01 Colorado Avalanche (52W in 82GP)  

2005-06 Buffalo Sabres (52W in 82GP)  

2009-10 Chicago Blackhawks (52W in 82GP)       

2005-06 Carolina Hurricanes (52W in 82GP)  

2013-14 Colorado Avalanche (52W in 82GP)  

[04-APR-2016] Four to go... #HoltBEASTWatch #OviWatch etc.

The Caps are down to their last four games of the regular season... 

• Tomorrow, they face the New York Islanders at home.  
• Thursday, it's the hated Penguins, also at the Phone Booth. 
• Saturday, they go to St. Louis to take on the Blues. 
• And Sunday, it's back home to finish up against the Anaheim Ducks.

The Isles are currently the #1 wildcard in the eastern conference, closely followed by the Flyers. The Isles have a 42-26-9 record (93 points) and a game in hand on the Flyers, whose record is 39-26-13. Boston (41-30-8) is chasing Philadelphia. It's still possible for the Islanders to overtake the Rangers (43-26-9), for the third spot in the Metro division, but it seems unlikely anyone will unseat Pittsburgh from their #2 spot. Those flightless fowl have come a long way since the beginning of the season and sacking of their coach. Let's hope our coach is smarter than theirs. 

Shut out by the 'Yotes (with Grubauer in net), unless Holtby doesn't win two of the four remaining games, Brodeur's record will stand. He'll need to win three to reach 50 wins. It's a tall order, especially with the last two games of the season being back-to-back. None of these teams we're facing are going to be pushovers... 

#HoltBEASTWatch

 








47 wins in 63 games played-in. Holtby is now in sole possession of the #2 slot on the goalie single season wins chart. Fingers are crossed very, very hard.

01 - 2006-07: Martin Brodeur (48W in 78GP) V*
02 - 2015-16: Braden Holtby (47W in 61GP) 

#OviWatch

Our beloved Captain scored a goal against the Avalanche, bringing his total to 520 career goals in 836 games played. He needs two goals in four games to tie Pat Verbeek, four goals to tie Brian Trottier, and five goals to take sole possession of the #33 spot on the all-time goal-scorers list. Earlier this year, I had him scoring 50 goals; he's at 45, so it'll be close. 

33 - Brian Trottier - 524 G, 1279 GP
34 - Pat Verbeek - 522 G, 1424 GP
35 - Alex Ovechkin - 518 G, 830 GP  

We're coming down to the wire now... 

 

[29-MAR-2016] Math and the Playoff Picture

The Western Conference is all but sewn up, with only the wildcard slots left to be decided... positioning may shift, but six of the eight playoff teams are known.

IN:

• Dallas Stars (99 points, max 111)
• St. Louis Blues (99 points, max 111)
• Chicago Blackhawks (95 points, max 107)
• Los Angeles Kings (95 points, max 107)
• Anaheim Ducks (94 points, max 108)
• San Jose Sharks (90 points, max 102)

Potentially in:

• Nashville Predaors (91 points, max 103)
• Minnesota Wild (85 points, max 97)
• Colorado Avalanche (82 points, max 94)
• Arizona Coyotes (75 points, max 87)

OUT:

• Calgary Flames (70 points, max 82, low wild card has 85)
• Winnipeg Jets (69 points, max 81)
• Vancouver Canucks (67 points, max 81)
• Edmonton Oilers (67 points, max 73)

However, apart from the teams that decidedly won't be playing past April, the Eastern Conference is still in a dogfight, both for position and for the wild card slots).

IN:

• Washington Capitals (113 points, max 127)

 Potentially in:

• New York Rangers (95 points, max 107)
• Pittsburgh Penguins (92 points, max 106)
• Florida Panthers (93 points, max 107)
• Tampa Bay Lightning (93 points, max 105)
• Boston Bruins (88 points, max 100)
• New York Islanders (89 points, max 105)
• Philadelphia Flyers (87 points, max 101)
• Detroit Red Wings (87 points, max 99)
• Carolina Hurricanes (81 points, max 93)
• New Jersey Devils (80 points, max 92)
• Ottawa Senators (77 points, max 89)

OUT:

• Montreal Canadiens (74  points, max 86, low wild card has 87)
• Buffalo Sabres (72 points, max 84)
• Columbus Blue Jackets (68 points, max 80)
• Toronto Maple Leafs 65 points, max 79)

[29-MAR-2016] #HoltBEASTWatch #Roaring20s #CapsWatch

#HoltBEASTWatch

With victories in Braden Holtby's last two starts, the HoltBEAST inches closer to Martin Brodeur's single-season win record. He needs two more victories to tie that record, three more to best it, and there are seven games remaining in the season.

01 - 2006-07: Martin Brodeur (48W in 78GP) V*
02 - 2015-16: Braden Holtby (46W in 61GP)
       2007-08: Evgeni Nabokov (46W in 77GP) V*
03 - 2008-09: Mikka Kiprusoff (45W in 65GP)
       2009-10: Martin Brodeur (45W in 77GP) J* 
04 - 2014-15: Carey Price (44W in 66GP) J* V*
       1974-75: Bernie Parent (44W in 68GP) V*

#Roaring20s

With an empty-net goal last night, Nicklas Backstrom joins the Roaring20sClub alongside several other Caps:

Alex Ovechkin (stalled at 43)
TJ Oshie (24 - career high)
Justin Williams (22 - career high is 33)
Evgeny Kuznetsov (20 - career high)
Nicklas Backstrom (20 - career high is 33)

Just south of the 20-goal plateau are three more Caps, who have seven games to reach that mark. 

Jason Chimera (18 - career high is 20)
Andre Burakovksy (16 - career high)
Marcus Johansson (15 - career high is 20) 

#CapsWatch

With that totally embarrassing loss to the St. Louis Blues, who are in fact a pretty good team, the Capitals have lost their opportunity to have the best scoring record since the 1995-96 Detroit Red Wings. They can still catch (and surpass) the 2005-06 Red Wings' record, with the same number of victories the HoltBEAST needs to catch and surpass Marty Brodeur. 

[24-MAR-2016] 10 to go... (Updated 29-MAR-2016)

Here's what the Caps have to face in their last 10  games:

3/25 at New Jersey (1-0 SOW)
3/26 St. Louis (4-0 L)
3/28 Columbus (4-1 W) Clinched Presidents' Trophy!
3/30 at Philadelphia
4/01 at Colordo
4/03 at Arizona 
4/05 New York Islanders
4/07 Pittsburgh 
4/09 at St. Louis
4/10 Anaheim

New Jersey Devils

The Caps' first game against the Devils was our season opener. The Caps won that game, 5-3.

The second game (on 2/06), the Caps won 3-2 in the shootout.

The third game (on 2/20), the Caps won 4-3 in regulation.

The Devils sit two places out of the wildcard race, with a 35-31-7 record (77 points) and a -23 goal differential.

St. Louis Blues

The Caps have yet to face the musical team from St. Louis this year; the Blues' record is very good, though, at 43-22-9 (95 points, 3rd place in the League). Those two games will be a great test for the Caps for the post-season! The Blues' goal differential is +10 vs. the Caps' +61 (which included the Pittsburgh Debacle where they were scored on six times in one game - ugh!)

Let's hope they play better against the Blues than they did against their semi-archrivals!

Columbus Blue Jackets

The Caps' first game against the Blue Jackets (10/30) was a 2-1 Caps win.

In the second game, the Jackets returned the favor on 2/2 and won 5-4 in the shootout.

The third game was a 6-3 win for the Caps.

Columbus sits well out of the playoff picture, at 30-35-8 (68 points) in 73 games played, with a -34 goal differential.

Philadelphia Flyers

The Caps' first game against the Flyers was a 5-2 win for the good guys in red.

In the second game, the Flyers prevailed, 4-3 in overtime.

The third game was a 3-2 Washington win in regulation.

The Flyers are currently the second wildcard team in the Eastern Conference, having knocked Detroit out of that position. Their current record is 35-24-13, good for 83 points, but  their goal differential is -5.

Colorado Avalanche

On 11/21, the Caps beat the Avs 7-3, laying a touchdown on the mile high hockey club. This will be the second of two games.

Arizona Coyotes

Following up on 11/22, the Caps beat the Yotes 3-2. This will also be the second of two games.     

New York Islanders

The Caps' first game against the Islanders was a 4-1 victory on 1/07.

Second up, on 2/04, the Caps again prevailed, 3-2 in regulation.

The third game required overtime to settle, but again, the Caps prevailed, 3-2.

The Islanders are currently sitting in the first wildcard spot in the Eastern Conference, with a record of 39-24-9 (87 points) and a +18 goal differential.

Pittsburgh Penguins

Ugh.

The Caps' first game against the Penguins, on 10/28, ended as a 3-1 loss.

The second game (of five), though, the Caps came back on 12/14 and won 4-1.

The third game, on 3/1, was another Caps victory, 3-2.

And we don't want to think about the fourth game, in which the Penguins grew fangs and slaughtered the Caps on 3/20, with a final and very ugly score of 6-2.

After a godawful start, the Penguins now sit third place in the Metropolitan Division... Their record is 40-24-8 (88 points) with a +25 goal differential.

St. Louis Blues

We'll know more here after the 4/9 game... 

Anaheim Ducks

On 3/7, the Caps were victorious, 3-2 in the shootout. We'll see what happens with this last vestige of winter and the end of the fallout from Snowpocalypse II.
   

[24-MAR-2016] Well, THAT was a little patch of the ugly...!

With ten games left, Captain Chaos (AKA Alex Ovechkin) needs seven more goals to hit 50 goals on the year. Two nights ago, he scored his 518th goal in 830 career games.
#OviWatch

With 518 goals in 830 games, Ovi puts himself in a tie with Dale Hawerchuk for the 35th-best goal scorer of all time. With four more goals, he will tie Pat Verbeek, and with six, he will tie Brian Trottier. Earlier this season, I projected Ovi to surpass Trottier's total, but a nagging lower-body injury could prevent that. I'll modify my expectations to figure he will at least catch Verbeek, and hope for the best in the last ten games. Usually, when Ovi scores, he scores in bunches, so here's hoping!

33 - Brian Trottier - 524 G, 1279 GP
34 - Pat Verbeek - 522 G, 1424 GP
35 - Alex Ovechkin - 518 G, 830 GP
35 - Dale Hawerchuk - 518 G, 1188 GP
37 - Pierre Turgeon - 515 G, 1294 GP
38 - Jeremy Roenick - 513 G, 1363 GP
39 - Gilbert Perreault - 512 G, 1191 GP
40 - Jean Béliveau - 507 G, 1125 GP
41 - Peter Bondra - 503 G, 1081 GP
42 - Joe Mullen - 502 G, 1062 GP
43 - Lanny McDonald - 500 G, 1111 GP
44 - Glenn Anderson - 498 G, 1129 GP   

#HoltBEASTWatch

Braden Holtby, on the other hand, only needs to win half the remaining games to surpass Martin Brodeur's single-season record of 48. Here's where the HoltBEAST stands:

Apart from a 6-2 drubbing at the hands of the Flightless Fowl, Holtby's SV% had been trending the right direction of late. His current .921 is well off the pace he set earlier in the season, and he sits in 7th place in that regard, league-wide, among goalies who have played in 40 or more games this season.

As for his 2.25 Goals-Against Average.... we won't talk about that part. Yuck. 17th in the league isn't pretty, but the win column is... 10 games to go.

01 - 2006-07: Martin Brodeur (48W in 78GP) V*
02 - 2007-08: Evgeni Nabokov (46W in 77GP) V*
03 - 2008-09: Mikka Kiprusoff (45W in 65GP)
       2009-10: Martin Brodeur (45W in 77GP) J*
04 - 2015-16: Braden Holtby (44W in 59GP)
       2014-15: Carey Price (44W in 66GP) J* V*
       1974-75: Bernie Parent (44W in 68GP) V*

#KuzyaWatchin'

While Kuzya didn't catch Datsyuk yet, he did record a couple of primary assists in the last few games. He now has 41 in 71 games played, 6th overall for the single season. He has 10 games left to record 10 primary assists to catch Crosby's 51...

 






2008-09: Sid Crosby (51 in 77 GP)
2009-10: Henrik Sedin (46 in 82 GP)
2010-11: Martin St. Louis (46 in 82 GP)
2011-12: Evgeni Malkin (46 in 75 GP)
2007-08: Pavel Datsyuk (44 in 82 GP)
2015-16: Evgeny Kuznetsov (41 in 71 GP)
2013-14: Joe Thornton (36 in 82 GP)
2014-15: Daniel Sedin (35 in 82 GP)
2012-13: Sid Crosby (29 in 36 GP - season shortened by lockout)

#Roaring20s


TJ Oshie (21) - career best is 21 in 2013-14 (tied)
Justin Williams (21) - career best is 33 in 2006-07 
Evgeny Kuznetsov (20) - already his career best (11 last season) 
Nicklas Backstrom (18) - career best is 33 in 2009-10
Jason Chimera (18) - career best is 20 in 2011-12 
Marcus Johansson (15) - career best is 20 in 2014-15 
Andre Burakovsky (15) - already his career best (9 last season)

#CapsWatch

Well, the Caps will have to go 10-0-0 to catch Detroit's 1995-96 62 wins... but they could definitely catch the 2010-11 Vancouver's 54 (with two more wins) and could potentially catch the 2005-06 Red Wings' 58 (with six)... 

 


1995-96 Detroit Red Wings (62W)
2005-06 Detroit Red Wings (58W)
2010-11 Vancouver Canucks (54W in 82 GP) 2013-14 Boston Bruins (54W in 82 GP)
2013-14 Anaheim Ducks (54W in 82 GP)
2007-08 Detroit Red Wings (54W in 82 GP)
2009-10 Washington Capitals (54W in 82 GP)
2014-15 New York Rangers (53W in 82GP)
2005-06 Dallas Stars (53W in 82GP)
2008-09 Boston Bruins (53W in 82GP)
2015-16 Washington Capitals  (52W in 72GP) 
2005-06 Ottawa Senators (52W in 82GP) 
2000-01 Colorado Avalanche (52W in 82GP)  
2005-06 Buffalo Sabres (52W in 82GP)  
2009-10 Chicago Blackhawks (52W in 82GP)  
2005-06 Carolina Hurricanes (52W in 82GP)  
2013-14 Colorado Avalanche (52W in 82GP)       

We'll just have to see what happens...

[15-MAR-2016] Whew!

#OviWatch


FINALLY! Our hero, Alexander Ovechkin has scored his 517th goal! It was an OviTime Game Winning Goal tonight, against the Carolina Hurricanes, and with that trip to overtime, the Caps have clinched a playoff berth! 

Our Captain and hero scored his 517th goal in his 826th game, after a 5-game scoreless streak (his longest of the season). This is his league-leading 42nd goal of the season. With one more goal, Ovi ties Dale Hawerchuk. He'll have his next opportunity on Friday when the Caps face the Nashville Predators.

 








33 - Brian Trottier - 524 G, 1279 GP
34 - Pat Verbeek - 522 G, 1424 GP
35 - Dale Hawerchuk - 518 G, 1188 GP
36 - Alex Ovechkin - 517 G, 826 GP
37 - Pierre Turgeon - 515 G, 1294 GP
38 - Jeremy Roenick - 513 G, 1363 GP
39 - Gilbert Perreault - 512 G, 1191 GP
40 - Jean Béliveau - 507 G, 1125 GP
41 - Peter Bondra - 503 G, 1081 GP
42 - Joe Mullen - 502 G, 1062 GP
43 - Lanny McDonald - 500 G, 1111 GP
44 - Glenn Anderson - 498 G, 1129 GP 

#KuzyaWatchin'

Evgeny Kuznetsov achieved his league-leading 38th primary assist tonight when he fed a pass to Ovi for the OTGWG. He is now sixth-best in the last several seasons in that regard (and everyone ahead of him played a full season). 

2008-09: Sid Crosby (51 in 77 GP)
2009-10: Henrik Sedin (46 in 82 GP)
2010-11: Martin St. Louis (46 in 82 GP)
2011-12: Evgeni Malkin (46 in 75 GP)
2007-08: Pavel Datsyuk (44 in 82 GP)
2015-16: Evgeny Kuznetsov (38 in 69 GP)
2013-14: Joe Thornton (36 in 82 GP)
2014-15: Daniel Sedin (35 in 82 GP)
2012-13: Sid Crosby (29 in 36 GP - season shortened by lockout)


#HoltBEASTWatch

Braden Holtby's league-leading 42nd win came in his 56th GPI (game played in). Coincidentally, this also puts him at 6th-best, this time in League history - faster than Ken Dryden and Mike Richter got their 42nd wins! 

05 - 1999-2000: Martin Brodeur (BOS - 43W in 62GP)
       1992-93: Tom Barrasso (PIT - 43W in 63GP)      
       1997-98: Martin Brodeur (BOS - 43W in 70GP) J*
       2011-12: Pekka Rinne (NSH - 43W in 73GP)
       2005-06: Martin Brodeur (BOS - 43W in 73GP)
       2002-03: Martin Brodeur (BOS - 43W in 73GP) J* V*
       1990-91: Ed Belfour (CHI - 43W in 74GP) V*
06 - 2015-16: Braden Holtby (WSH - 42W in 56GP)
       1975-76: Kenneth Dryden (MTL - 42W in 62GP) V**
       1993-94: Mike Richter (NYR - 42W in 68GP)

#WatchCaps

The Caps just won their 50th game of the season, in 69 games played. They have 13 regular season games remaining, and already have a playoff berth, the first team in the league to clinch. 105 points, and a flipping +60 goal differential? Yes, their last 10 games have been a bit of a crap-shoot (6-3-1 record), but good GRIEF! Let's hope this game against the Hurricanes has helped to right the ship before the playoffs start. Holtby needs 8 more wins to hit 50; Ovi needs 8 more goals to hit 50... And Kuzya needs 12 more primary assists to hit 50. Let's see what can happen in 13 games!

#Ugh

As a side note, to my reader(s), today, I learned that I broke my collarbone back in December... yes, it really is March 15th, and yes, I JUST learned this, despite six other doctor visits. It hurts like a bitch! #JustSayin'... #LetsGoCaps!