Be Careful What You Ask For

Coach Boudreau had lost the players long before he lost the head coaching job. Nothing against Coach Boudreau, he was, is and will continue to be a great coach. But the truth of the matter has always been there. There was something missing with his style and or ability with the organization and players on the team which prevented the Caps from achieving their ultimate goal; an NHL Championship.

Recent history has shown that Boudreau has been asked to change things up, to alter his approach, in order to get more production out of the team. For whatever reason(s), that did not happen. In fact, in the end, the players had lost confidence and failed to follow their leader.

My guess, in all that went into this decision to fire Boudreau, is that a conversation or two happened with the front office and some of the players similar to the following:

We don’t like/believe in his approach anymore and can no longer be motivated to play for him. We need/want a coaching change to someone we can and will follow. We want somebody else.

Well, be careful what you ask for. Now you got your wish. The puck is in your court Caps players. If you continue to fail now, maybe it wasn’t all Boudreau’s fault.

Below is a clip of McPhee addressing the media regarding the coaching change. I don’t believe I have ever seen anybody more nervous and uncomfortable discussing a managerial change before in my life. But, as he said in the interview, the tank was empty.

Good Times, Eh?

Recently both the Washington Capitals and Washington Redskins made disastrous road trips to the great white north.

Remember my recent post about the Caps going perfect for seven games, mostly because they had five of the seven games at home, and I said the good times couldn’t last?  I also pointed out that the next seven games were the complete flip flop of the first, with five of the seven being difficult road games.

Not that I’m saying I predicted it, but .  .  .

Caps lost to Edmonton.
Caps lost to the Canucks.
And then there was my post about Beck getting the nod over Grossman after Sexy Rexy tossed four picks and was benched.   Beck and Rex went back and forth with “you da man” because they both realized whomever was going to be in there was going to get a hurting with the injuries to the starting line and backfield.  “Da Bills” certainly proved that right buy sacking Beck NINE TIMES in Toronto!

Sorry guys, I’m afraid it isn’t going to get much better and I definitely have that sinking feeling about the rest of the Redskins season. Hey Shanni’s, are you feeling it too?

 

Should we call for a lifeline yet?

 

Believe me, I know the feeling.  All I have to do is take a look at my Borderless League record with the Fun Bunch and I can easily say, I’m right there with ya!

 

The way both of our seasons are going, it’s enough to make one drink.  At least the Caps are playing good exciting hockey (even when they lose).  I’ll drink to that!

Hmmm, now that I think of it, perhaps there is one good thing about Canada and the Great White North . . .

The Alcohol.

And maybe these guys . . .

What Does Perfection Look Like?

 

The Washington Capitals are perfect through the first seven games of the season.  In fact, after dominating the only remaining undefeated team, the Detroit Redwings, they are now the ONLY undefeated team in the entire NHL.  PERFECT!

Good play, good luck, and a great schedule have certainly helped.  In fact, 5 of the first 7 games have been home games.  They have not had such a favorable home ice start in well over 10 years.  The next 7 games feature just the opposite.  Five of them are on the road.  So it will be interesting to see if they can continue the streak.  I’m not expecting them to go undefeated, but hey 7 – 0 is a great start.

Congratulations Caps!

Opening Night!

Tonight is opening night for the Washington Capitals. This is the year, like every year for the past 2 or 3 years that folks are saying they are the one of the favorites to win the cup.

 

They certainly have the talent. But do they really have the dedication? Even their star player and team captain, Alexander Ovechkin, admitted that he and others were not in the best mental and physical shape of their careers last year.

Even former Capitals player Matt Bradley dissed the caps by saying some of the prevailing attitudes were not conducive to success.

So, what have they done to make themselves better?

The Caps have some very key and interesting additions to the team this year.
Troy Bouwer, Joel Ward add good scoring potential as forwards.
Tomas Vokoun adds depth at goal and Roman Hamrlik complements their defensive line.

These additions will provide potential leadership, stability and depth at key positions.

I mention potential leadership as the key to success for this team. They need leadership to impose a new attitude of winning, especially championship winning. Bringing in key players is good, but as Bradley mentioned, the leaders and coaches of this team need to bring in new attitudes.

Hopefully this will be the year. The year the team comes together and lives up to expectations and brings home the championship. It all starts tonight against a young and up and coming Carolina team. A team that always seems to give us trouble.

Lets go out and set the tone for the game, the team and the upcoming championship season with a well orchestrated, dedicated and passionate win!

Lets Go Caps!

Presidents, Warriors and Bears; Oh My!

What do Hockey, Wilt Chamberlin and President Dwight D. Eisenhower have in common?

Hockey Season Starts!

No, the past 82 NHL Hockey Games were NOT the Hockey Season.

The Stanley Cup Playoffs ARE the season.

This is the time that every hockey player, team, coach, owner, fan dreams about when watching those 82 games.

This is the time that the level of play is at an entirely different level and anything can happen.

Everyone starts at 0 – 0 and the first one to win 4 out of 7 moves on to the next round.

With the NFL in lockdown and the Nats in buildup and the Wizards … (who knows where they are) , the DC area is ready for some real hard hitting playoff action and that is certainly what we will get up against the NY Rangers.

Here is hoping we advance with a 6 game or less opening series!

Let’s Go Caps !

Rollercoaster

The great thing about this chart is that it is equally true for both sports and stocks.

Especially here in Washington.

And strangely appropriate for the day after opening day.

And for going into the Final Four weekend. . .

So, where are you on this emotional rollercoaster?

And where do you think you will be come September?

The Streak is Over

No, not the Wizards away game losing streak, though that would be newsworthy.

But rather, our winning streak. My sons, and occasional daughters, and I try to go to at least one professional sporting event a year. Sometimes it is a Redskins game, other times The Nationals, or The Capitals.

Every time we have gone, the home Washington team has won. Even the Redskins. . .

Yesterday Mark, Eric and I went to the Caps game against the LA Kings. I am sorry to say that even our good Karma was not enough to get a win.

The Caps were HORRIBLE. As I said on my Facebook page. They gave a clinic today . . . on how NOT to play hockey.

Little did we know that the open pre-game warm-up would have the best shots of the game and some of them were taken by fans such as us with a camera 😉

Yes, I think Ovi is posing instead of stretching or practicing . . .

But I can’t blame him, after all, he did score the Caps one and only goal.

Actually one other thing I wish we would have been able to watch was the conversion of the Verizon Center floor from hockey to basketball. The Caps game was at 12:30 pm and over by 3 or so and the Wizards were scheduled for an 8 pm game later that evening. That’s Ice to Wood in less than 5 hours !

Here is a cool example from Boston. . .

After the open pre-game warm up we went up to our section (yes I buy the cheap seats) which was up behind the goal. I actually prefer this location for hockey games because from here you can see the entire ice and watch the plays develop , or break down. Yes, there is something to be said for being down behind the glass and feel the speed and thunder of the action, but I am more of a big picture kind of guy and the kids don’t seem to mind either.

Even though they lost, we still had a decent time. It’s just unfortunate that our winning streak is over.

Is it Thursday yet?

Just some thoughts running through my tiny little brain…

– How many carrots can the Redskins dangle out for draft picks?
Campbell, Haynesworth, McIntosh, Landry…

– Define Voluntary…
(See Mandatory)
The Mike Shanahan practices have started.

– When asked about Shanahans new rules…
The standard answers from the players are: “I Like it” , “It’s like a breath of fresh air” , “Just what the team needs”
I wonder if their answers are Voluntary?

– Everyone says “Defense wins Championships”
Can the Capitals prove them wrong?

The Real NHL Season Starts Today!

Yes folks, don’t be fooled, the previous 82 games were just the preseason.

The NHL playoffs are where championship teams are born. It is not only a test of the most talented, best scoring, best defensive, and yes sometimes even luckiest teams, players and coaches out there; but it is a test for survival.

This year the odds on favorites by many, from bookies to sports experts, pick the Washington Capitals to win the cup. They have, perhaps the most talented group of offensive scorers assembled and finish as top record and point holders for the previous 82 games.

They even won the Presidents Award.

So the bookies have the Caps as favorites to win.
The Caps finish the 82 game season with the best record and the most points.

They are a gimme for the cup right?

WRONG!

First of all, anybody who knows me, I never bet on the favorite person, team or horse to win a race. And the playoffs are just that, a race.

Secondly, if you believe the stats, only 7 of the last 23 President Award winners have gone on to win the cup.

So, in a way, the Caps are the underdogs, so that means I can bet on them to win. Except I rarely bet and most likely will not for the playoffs.

But I can route for them to win it all!

Lets Go Caps!