Shorthanded Caps Outshoot Panthers 38-19, Go 0/8 On The PP, Lose And Fall To 35-9-4

Weird, weird game for the Caps last night. Playing just their 2 game in 15 days because of the snow storm directly followed by the All Star break, the Caps were not in any sort of rhythm. It didn’t help that they were playing without Braden Holtby in net, Ovechkin was suspended for missing the All Star Game, Marcus Johansson is hurt, and Chorney only played 4 minutes because he has the flu. He told them before the game he couldn’t play because he has the flu, but still had to suit up because it was too late. That’s how shorthanded the Caps are playing right now. Still without Beags and Orpik as well. And the mix of 2 games in 2 weeks plus injuries caught up to them last night as they lost to the Panthers 5-2.

It was just a weird game for the Caps. It’s not like they weren’t playing well- they outshot the Panthers 16-8 in the first period, and then only allowed 11 more shots on net combined over the next 2 periods. But their PP was non-existent. They didn’t score on two separate 5 on 3’s, and all together went 0/8 on the PP. The good news is that will literally never happen again. Al Montoya played a hell of a game and was seeing the puck like a beach ball, the Caps weren’t crisp, Grubauer played poorly, and for the team it was just one of those days. The loss drops them to 35-9-4, so yeah, it’s not the end of the world.

With the snow cleared and the All Star Game behind them, the Caps can finally get back into rhythm. Islanders come to town tomorrow, followed by back-to-back matinee games vs the Devils and the Flyers. I expect the Caps to bounce back big time and make a statement against the Isles and Devils, before playing a huge game on Sunday vs Philly, who are currently in a 3 way tie for 11th in the East. If you follow Jordie on Twitter you would know regular season games vs the Caps are the biggest games of the season for him, and the #JordieCup is currently tied at 1-1.

So they’ll dust themselves off, Holtby and Ovi will return, and all will be good again in DC.