It’s funny, I was just about to fire off a nasty e-mail to all of my blogger playoff pool participants who have yet to pay up...when I realized I hadn’t even written my love letter to the Caps. Oops. Now some would say that this entire blog is a giant love letter to the Caps sprayed with perfume and sealed with a kiss, and should therefore serve as adequate payment for falling short in my own pool. I’m guessing those people aren’t among the others who are stuck writing schmaltzy stuff about a team they pay little or no attention to...so here goes.
I was born into this crazy, mixed-up world of Caps fanaticism, a product of a hockey-mad father whose devotion to this team of ne’er-do-wells is practically etched in the annals of Washington sports history. Legend has it that while in the womb I kicked to the strains of “Let’s Go Caps”; that I was born already wearing a tiny Caps jersey; that my first words were “what the Caps really need is a good scoring-line center”...
...but I digress.
It’s not just a product of my raising that has me writing innocuous rants about a hockey team at two in the morning – after all, my younger sister hasn't known a player's name since Joe Reekie wore the eagle and my older sister, while a thoroughly passionate Caps fan in her own right, still maintains some semblance of normalcy in her fandom. It is that normalcy, that sanity, that seems to have skipped over me altogether and left me to pour out my hockey-related hopes and dreams here day after day amid the indifferent masses of our nation’s capital.
Washington, DC is not a traditional sports town. You have in this city of roughly 600,000 people residents from up and down the east coast, across the country, around the world (and approximately 95% of the city of Pittsburgh). With that transience comes a lack of unity, particularly when it comes to sports. To be a product of the DC area is a rarity; to be a lifelong fan of a local sports team, even more so. Throw in hockey fan to that equation and you might as well be one of those stuffed dodo birds at the Smithsonian.
It’s never fazed me, though. Sure, I get the funny looks and I’ve heard the knee-slappers about going to a boxing match and seeing a hockey game break out (ha...ha.). But it doesn’t matter. Because something about this team has gotten under my skin. I don’t just mean this particular crop of youngsters who will skate out onto the ice in their shiny new threads come October; I mean the entire team – the history, the heartache, the hope, all of it. I can’t shake it, and I have no desire to do so.
My earliest memories are of Rod Langway, Scott Stevens, Mike Ridley, Mike Gartner, and Bengt Gustafsson; of white pom-poms with plastic handles and organ music; of pizza goals and the Patrick Division. Of playoff hopes and playoff losses. Of lying on my stomach in front of the TV, watching in awe as my team took the ice, knowing that they couldn’t lose while I watched...no matter how many times they did.
There is something special about a franchise that can frustrate you to the point of tearing out your hair then in one fell swoop suck you right back in again. It is an indefinable quality that brings us back year after year, but “it” is there. It’s how the team survived those disastrous first few years of existence. It’s how they fill the arena on opening day despite the heartbreaking end to the previous season just a few months before. It is the downfall of a team one year, only to see it reawakened by an influx of youth and vitality the next; the departure of one superstar only to see him replaced with a brighter one.
These days it isn’t easy to be a Caps fan. There’s a lot of hurry up and wait, a lot of rebuilding and evolution and growth, a lot of talk about the future when all we want is to see the present. There are promises being made and expectations being set – and whether those expectations are realized remains to be seen. We won’t know the outcome until the puck drops in the fall, or until the final whistle blows to signal the end of another season.
But when is it ever easy to be a Caps fan? That’s not why we love this team. If we wanted to pick a winner, we’d have jumped on the Red Wings bandwagon, ridden the coattails of the Hurricanes, flown in a ‘V’ with the Ducks...but we didn’t.
Instead we stand by our team, fully aware that someday our ship will come in and victory will be that much sweeter because we earned it. We enter each year with collective amnesia, forgetting the horrors we have witnessed in the past and approaching a new season with the bright eyes of an eternal optimist. We revel in the veteran leadership of Olie Kolzig and Chris Clark, in the grit and work ethic of Matt Pettinger and Brian Sutherby, in the skill and youthful exuberance of Alex Ovechkin and Alexander Semin...and in the future hopes of Niklas Backstrom and Karl Alzner.
And we wait for another year to begin.
Thursday, June 28, 2007
I Heart the Caps
Friday, June 22, 2007
History Lesson Complete
Whew! Getting down to the wire, folks - just a few more hours before we find out who the newest Caps will be...and where they'll come from. Will we horde our draft picks and stockpile more fresh-faced youngsters? Will we bundle off one of the boys with our #5 pick and subject someone else to the new jersey? Only time will tell. In the meantime, let's dive into the juicy drafts of the last four years:
2003 Draft
1. Marc-Andre Fleury
2. Eric Staal
3. Nathan Horton
4. Nikolai Zherdev
5. Thomas Vanek
6. Milan Michalek
7. Ryan Suter
8. Braydon Coburn
9. Dion Phaneuf
10. Andrei Kostitsyn
16. Steve Bernier
17. Zach Parise
18. Eric Fehr
19. Ryan Getzlaf
28. Corey Perry
29. Patrick Eaves
45. Patrice Bergeron
47. Matt Carle
83. Stephen Werner
148. Lee Stempniak
182. Bruno Gervais
205. Joe Pavelski
261. Shane O’Brien
262. Joey Tenute
271. Jaroslav Halak
287. Nick Tarnasky
Lots of sparkly names in there, and again, the closer we get to the present day the harder it gets to tell just who will be a success. A lot of the guys I've pinpointed here were virtual unknowns just a year ago. In some cases, even more recently. (Jaroslav Halak, anyone?)
Steal of the Draft: Jaroslav Halak, 271st Overall
2004 Draft
1. Alex Ovechkin
2. Evgeni Malkin
4. Andrew Ladd
13. Drew Stafford
15. Alexander Radulov
20. Travis Zajac
21. Wojtek Wolski
23. Andrej Meszaros
27. Jeff Schultz
29. Mike Green
33. Chris Bourque
97. Johan Franzen
98. Dustin Boyd
227. Chris Campoli
238. Yutaka Fukufuji
262. Mark Streit
It seems hard to believe it was only three years ago that we drafted a smiling Russian kid who would go on to break records and hearts all over the place. But Ovie wasn't the only draftee - the potential future of the Capitals blueline rests in the hands of Jeff Schultz and Mike Green, while Chris Bourque's recent improvements are leading to murmurs of a place in the NHL within the next few years. As for the rest? Well, I guess there was this other Russian kid taken 2nd...but no one cares about him, I promise.
Steal of the Draft: Mark Streit, 262nd Overall (this is a purely biased choice because he's a Hab and I know very little about the other late draftees)
2005 Draft
1. Sidney Crosby
3. Jack Johnson
5. Carey Price
6. Gilbert Brule
11. Anze Kopitar
14. Sasha Pokoluk
44. Paul Stastny
45. Guillaume Latendresse
Pfft. This one so doesn't matter. Sidney who? Next.
Steal of the Draft: Unknown
2006 Draft
1. Erik Johnson
2. Jordan Staal
3. Jonathan Toews
4. Niklas Backstrom
5. Phil Kessel
So recent these guys still have the price tags on them, and only two of the top five have even dressed in the NHL. My money's on that Niklas guy, he could turn into something someday...
Steal of the Draft: Unknown
And that takes us up to today - hope to see a lot of smiling faces at KCI later tonight, but if you can't make it tune into Comcast SportsNet for (*gasp*) coverage of the Caps' uniform unveiling and other events. And if you are among the handful with access to Versus you can see what will probably be purloined TSN coverage tonight and tomorrow...so you know it will be at least halfway decent.
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
Draft Madness: The Detour
In keeping with my historical attempts to deflect the fact that I know nothing about this year's draft, I stumbled upon ESPN.com and found something (gasp!) passing for hockey coverage - a list of the best and worst picks in NHL history, active and all time. I doubt anyone will be surprised to see that the Caps appear on this list and not in a good way...and if you are surprised, well...you must be new around here. Welcome to DC.
Here is what they call one of the five worst value picks of all time:
• Alexandre Volchkov, RW, Washington, 1996, (fourth overall): The 1996 draft wasn't a great one, but as it turned out, there were better choices than Volchkov. The Capitals could have gone after "too-small" center Daniel Briere, who was selected by Phoenix with the 24th pick. Volchkov played three NHL games before returning to Russia to finish his professional career.
I'm not going to question the total bust that was Volchkov's stint here in DC. But come on, was little Danielle really the only example they could have picked out? What about Ruslan Salei? Marco Sturm? Marty Reasoner? Zdeno freaking Chara? Danielle's teammate (for now, at least) and former Cap Dainius Zubrus?
Hey, how about Jaroslav "Yogi" Svejkov-...oh, wait. They did pick him. 1996 was a rough year for the Caps.
If you don't believe me, look who else we picked: Jan Bulis (aw, poor Buli) and a slew of household names - Sergei Zimakov, David Weninger, Shawn McNeil, Justin Davis, Matt Lahey, A.J. Van Bruggen, Mike Anderson, Oleg Orekhovsky, and Chad Cavanagh. For these superstars we passed over Tomas Kaberle, Willie Mitchell, Fernando Pisani and our boy Kiwi, all taken in the 8th round.
The Caps' odd relationship with the 1996 draft class gets better, too:
- Who remembers Alexei Tezikov? Drafted 115th overall by Buffalo who 3 years later pawned him off on us for, get this: Joe Juneau. Next they'll try and sell us the Brooklyn Bridge. Or Jiri Novotny. Oops.
- Josef Boumedienne, our newest, ahem, "Boomer"-ang (these are the jokes, guys)? Drafted 91st overall by the Devils.
- Here's a blast from the past, what about #216, Ivan Ciernik - we picked him up off of waivers from Ottawa, he scored a few goals, and last I heard he was somewhere over in Germany.
- Oh, and let's not forget the man drafted 70th overall, the man for whom the term "Cap-killer" was invented, Jon Sim. How many games against the Flyers, Panthers and Thrashers would the Caps have won with him on the side of good instead of evil? Okay, still probably not that many, but the scores would have been lower.
Incidentally the Caps also have ties with another of the worst picks on ESPN's list, this time among active players (and I'm guessing they're using the term 'active' loosely) - good ol' RRRRico Fata himself, taken 6th overall in 1998. Poor Suavé.
I won't go into the 1998 draft in too much depth because it has to be hands-down one of the worst drafts in Caps history. Forget the fact that Washington didn't pick until the 49th spot when they chose Jomar Cruz (Jo-who? Exactly.) Let's just say that only three of the Caps illustrious selections even dressed in a game for Washington, and that's about all they did. Dress.
Boy, Caps history is sprinkled with fun, isn't it?
Draft Madness, Part 3
Okay, enough with the new jerseys. I'm going to let sleeping dogs lie and get on with my riveting look at the past ten years of draftees - all leading up to the big event, Friday's NHL Draft live from Columbus, Ohio. I can hardly contain my excitement, I swear.
On with 2001 and 2002:
2001 Draft
1. Ilya Kovalchuk
2. Jason Spezza
4. Stephen Weiss
7. Mike Komisarek
8. Pascal Leclaire
13. Ales Hemsky
19. Shaone Morrisonn
20. Marcel Goc
21. Colby Armstrong
22. Jiri Novotny
30. Dave Steckel
32. Derek Roy
40. Fedor Tyutin
55. Jason Pomminville
63. Peter Budaj
71. Tomas Plekanic
98. Jordin Tootoo
99. Ray Emery
101. Cory Stillman
127. Christoph Schubert
133. Jussi Markkanen
151. Kevin Bieksa
175. Ryan Clowe
179. Andrew Alberts
192. Jussi Jokinen
193. Brooks Laich
202. Derek Boogaard
214. Cristobal Huet
223. Brandon Bochenski
227. Marek Svatos
232. Martin Gerber
238. Ryan Hollweg
241. Milan Jurcina
This year was chock full of big names...and big muscles, too, with Komisarek, Tootoo, Bieksa, Boogaard and Hollweg all getting drafted. Lots of goalies, lots of Caps property (5, at least for now), and everyone's favorite benchwarmer Martin Gerber. And of course, primadonna extraordinaire Kovalchuk grabbing the number one spot away from smiley boy Spezza. Life's just not fair...
Steal of the Draft: 3-way tie – Cristobal Huet, 214th Overall; Marek Svatos, 227th Overall, Milan Jurcina, 241st Overall
2002 Draft
1. Rick Nash
2. Kari Lehtonen
3. Jay Bouwmeester
4. Joni Pitkanen
5. Ryan Whitney
6. Scott Upshall
7. Joffrey Lupul
12. Steve Eminger
13. Alexander Semin
14. Chris Higgins
16. Jakub Klepis
17. Boyd Gordon
20. Daniel Paille
21. Anton Babchuk
23. Ben Eager
24. Alex Steen
25. Cam Ward
29. Hannu Toivonen
36. Jarret Stoll
44. Matt Greene
57. Matt Stajan
58. Jiri Hudler
63. Tomas Fleischmann
69. Erik Christensen
*90. Matthew Lombardi
95. Valtteri Filppula
117. Cam Janssen
240. Petr Prucha
The return of Matthew Lombardi sees him going earlier than his first go-round, snapped up at 90th and still a bargain. Five years later we're now at the point when these guys are starting to hit big if they haven't already, and we're only just starting to see what some of them can really do - Ben Eager, Erik Christensen, Chris Higgins, and our own quintet of talented players, all the future of the NHL. As for #117, let's hope he's not in that equation. For those of you wondering, yes, the Caps hold the dubious distinction of giving him his first (and possibly last) career NHL goal. Yay us.
Steal of the Draft: Petr Prucha, 240th Overall
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
Useless Caps Trivia
Just a quick note - a while back someone asked what the names of the parking lots were back at the old Caps Centre and I was stumped. Well, helpful commenter Caroline provides the answer: liberty, stars and stripes, capital and eagle. Sounds right to me, but I put the question to my faithful readers for confirmation.
Incidentally she also poses a new query: Where did the Caps practice before moving to Piney Orchard?
Now that's going to bug me for a while, so hopefully someone knows the answer. Anyone know? Toss it in the comments...
Poor guy...now that's a scary picture for a lot of reasons, not the least of which includes the creepy "I'm going to hypnotize you and steal your money" expression on his face.
Draft Madness, Part 2
We continue our look at the last ten years of draftees with 1999 and 2000:
1999 Draft
1. Patrik Stefan
2. Daniel Sedin
3. Henrik Sedin
5. Tim Connolly
7. Kris Beech
8. Taylor Pyatt
26. Martin Havlat
40. Alex Auld
42. Mike Commodore
44. Jordan Leopold
76. Frantisek Kaberle
91. Mike Comrie
94. Chris Kelly
115. Ryan Malone
138. Ryan Miller
213. Alexandre Giroux
217. Garnet Exelby
222. George Parros
It's fascinating to look back on this draft class after the most recent season and postseason, for a few reasons. One, you wonder at Patrick Stefan (he of the botched empty net play fame) going above the Sedin twins after their stupendous regular season and playoff performances. And two, a name like Chris Kelly that maybe wasn't known before this season is suddenly a little more familiar with Ottawa's recent Cup quest. On the Caps front, you have our own little boomerang, Kris Beech, and Alexandre Giroux, who has shown flashes of brilliances but may end up being a career AHLer like...well, like Kris Beech, sadly.
Steal of the Draft: Ryan Miller, 138th Overall (It's not like I was going to say Exelby...please.)
2000 Draft
1. Rick DiPietro
2. Dany Heatley
3. Marian Gaborik
4. Rostislav Klesla
5. Raffi Torres
6. Scott Hartnell
16. Marcel Hossa
18. Brooks Orpik
21. Anton Volchenkov
26. Brian Sutherby
28. Justin Williams
43. Matt Pettinger
44. Ilja Bryzgalov
46. Jarret Stoll
62. Paul Martin
68. Joel Lundqvist
97. Niclas Wallin
124. Michel Ouellet
159. John-Michael Liles
205. Henrik Lundqvist
215. Matthew Lombardi*
220. Paul Gaustad
An interesting draft, with the Lundqvist twins, Dany Heatley, and our boys Sutherby and Pettinger, but no pick is more fascinating than the number one selection of goalie, banana cream pie lover, and general dreamboat (sorry, but come on) Rick DiPietro. The Islanders raised some eyebrows making him their first pick and what do you know, they continue to raise eyebrows with him to this day. One thing is for sure - looks like Ricky's got this team wrapped around his little finger.
Steal of the Draft: Henrik Lundqvist, 205th Overall; I would say Matthew Lombardi, but as you'll see tomorrow, his story does not end with the 2000 draft.
Next up: 2001 and 2002...
Monday, June 18, 2007
Draft Madness
The 2007 draft is quickly approaching and in just five days we'll find out who the newest victims Capitals are. So to commemorate this momentous occasion, it's time to take a look at ten years of draft "successes" (and I reserve the right to use that term loosely).
Let's start with 1997 and 1998:
1997 Draft
1. Joe Thornton
2. Patrick Marleau
3. Olli Jokinen
4. Roberto Luongo
5. Eric Brewer
12. Marian Hossa
13. Dan Cleary
23. Scott Hannan
27. Ben Clymer
47. Kristian Huselius
48. Henrik Tallinder
69. Maxim Afinogenov
78. Ville Nieminen
83. Joe Corvo
84. Adam Mair
161. David Aebischer
164. Todd Fedoruk
175. Johan Holmqvist
177. Ladislav Nagy
208. Andrew Ference
215. Scott Clemmensen
229. Karel Rachunek
With Thornton, Marleau and Hannan, this was a good year for the San Jose Sharks. Throw in Tallinder, Afinogenov and Mair, it wasn't bad for Buffalo. But come on, Caps fans - we know who the real success story of the 1997 draft class was...our very own Ben Clymer!
Steal of the Draft: Andrew Ference, 208th Overall
1998 Draft
1. Vincent Lecavalier
2. David Legwand
3. Brad Stuart
4. Bryan Allen
5. Vitali Vishnevsky
6. Rico Fata
12. Alex Tanguay
18. Dmitri Kalinin
19. Robyn Regehr
21. Mathieu Biron
22. Simon Gagne
27. Scott Gomez
29. Jonathan Cheechoo
32. Stephen Peat
39. John Erskine
44. Mike Fisher
64. Brad Richards
71. Erik Cole
72. Dmitry Afanasenkov
75. Francois Beauchemin
82. Brian Gionta
87. Alexei Ponikarovsky
91. Josef Vasicek
117. Jaroslav Spacek
135. Andrew Raycroft
150. Trent Hunter
161. Chris Neil
162. Andrei Markov
164. Ales Kotalik
168. Antero Niitymaki
171. Pavel Datsyuk
216. Michael Ryder
230. Karlis Skrastins
This was a huge year for the Southeast Division. Of the 33 players I've singled out, 11 of them were drafted by and/or have played for one of the illustrious teams below the Mason-Dixon Line. For the Caps, that includes my boy RRRRRico Fata, fan favorite Stephen Peat, professional traffic cone Mathieu Biron, and the only remnant of the draft here in DC, John "Caveman" Erskine.
Steal of the Draft: Michael Ryder, 216th Overall
Next up: 1999 and 2000...
Friday, March 23, 2007
Movin' On Up
There’s an old saying that goes the darkest hour is just before dawn. Looking back at the history of the NHL or the history of any professional league for that matter, we see that this cliché often rings true. The speed with which franchises can turn their fortunes around can sometimes cause whiplash. One year a team is out of the playoffs early, their record way under .500; the next year they’re making a run at the Cup.
Now there are of course those teams that seem perpetually stuck in darkness, and I know sometimes it seems like the Caps are one of them. But let’s not forget it wasn’t so long ago that this team, while not necessarily a powerhouse or Cup contender, was at least a perennial playoff participant. So was Philly, by the way, something quickly forgotten when you see them wallowing at the bottom of the league. LA also made a splash for many years, albeit thanks to the help of a certain #99.
And it works both ways. Just think back to how pitiful most of the Southeast Division used to be – after all, even the Caps used to beat those teams fairly consistently. It all goes in cycles. Draft position, key free agent pickups, coaching changes, all can be the impetus for a team to rocket to the top...or plummet to the bottom.
I was doing a little digging and I came across Mike Vogel’s season review from the 2003-04 campaign. Ah, the year of the fire sale. Lowest prices, biggest deals...everything MUST GO! If you've somehow blocked it out, here's a recap:
- The Caps started the season with a payroll just over $51 million (!!)
- After winning the season opener, they would drop the next 8 and would never crack the .500 mark
- First to go was Konowalchuk, who was traded to Colorado for Bates Battaglia and prospect Jonas Johansson
- On December 10, Bruce Cassidy was replaced by Glen Hanlon as coach of the Caps but it failed to ignite the team
- By mid-January the team was 13 games under .500 with the second worst record in the NHL
- Jan 23 - the Caps exorcised some evil, sending Jagr to the Rangers for Anson Carter
- Feb 18 - Peter Bondra was sent to Ottawa in return for Brooks Laich and a 2nd round pick in 2005
- Feb 27 - Robert Lang traded to Detroit for Fleischmann, a 2004 1st round pick and a 2006 4th round
- Mar 3 - Gonchar sent to Boston for Morrisonn, '04 1st and 2nd round
- Mar 4 - Nylander followed Gonchar to the Bruins, returning a 2nd round pick in 2006
- Anson Carter was then sent to LA for Jared Aulin, followed by Mike Grier's trade to Jakub Klepis
- Despite the roster shake-up the Caps won only 2 of their last 14, limping into the lockout-induced break
“This spring marks the second straight year that two teams have come from nowhere to compete for the Western Conference championship. Last year the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim improved by 26 points and came within one victory of winning their first Stanley Cup title. The Ducks went up against the Minnesota Wild in the conference championship series. Minnesota improved by 22 points and reached the conference finals in its first-ever postseason appearance. Both Anaheim and Minnesota went from missing the playoffs to competing for the conference title in the span of just a year.”It’s an interesting stat. It becomes more interesting when you look at the paths of the Flames in 2004 and the Oilers two years later. Then think about the fact that right now the two finalists from last year are on the cusp of being or have already been eliminated from the postseason – which if it happens, as I mentioned before, would be an NHL first. It’s a graphic representation of how quickly things can change.
How quickly? Well, let’s do a little case study, shall we?
CALGARY FLAMES
- in 2002-03 the Flames finished with a record of 29-36-13-4 for 75 points and 5th place in the Northwest Division, missing the playoffs
- in 2003-04 they finished with a record of 42-30-7-3 for 94 points, good enough for 3rd place in the division. They then completed an improbable playoff run, pushing the Tampa Bay Lightning to Game 7 in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
IMPROVED BY 19 POINTS, STANLEY CUP FINALISTS
TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING
- in 2001-02 the Bolts had 69 points, posting a 27-40-11-4 record and finishing 3rd in the division out of the playoffs
- in 2002-03 they finished with 93 points for first in the division, going above .500 for only the second time in franchise history and subsequently going to the postseason for only the second time in franchise history. They lost in the second round to the Devils.
- in 2003-04 Tampa finished with a franchise record 106 points. They posted a record of 46-22-8-6 for first place in the division and rode the wave all the way to the Stanley Cup
FROM 1997-98 TO 2002-03 THE LIGHTNING WENT FROM 44 POINTS TO 93 POINTS
EDMONTON OILERS
- in 2003-04 the Oilers missed the playoffs; the following year they pulled a Calgary and made a surprising run all the way to the Finals, where they also forced a Game 7 against the Hurricanes
CAROLINA HURRICANES
- in 2003-04 the ‘Canes finished under .500 with a record of 28-34-14-6, earning 76 points and finishing out of the playoffs
- in 2005-06 Carolina improved to 52-22-8, picking up 112 points for the Southeast Division title and winning the Stanley Cup in 7 games
36 POINT IMPROVEMENT IN ONE SEASON
OTTAWA SENATORS
- in 1995-96 the Sens finished with a record of 18-59-5, earning 41 points and coming in dead last in the Northeast Division
- in 1996-97 they picked up 77 points with a record of 31-36-15, earning their first playoff berth in franchise history
36 POINT IMPROVEMENT IN ONE SEASON
BUFFALO SABRES
- in 2003-04 the Sabres ended the season with 85 points and in 5th place in the division, missing the playoffs for the 3rd consecutive season – that’s the first time they missed the postseason in consecutive seasons since 1985-87and the they longest streak in franchise history
- in 2005-06 they set a franchise record for wins with 52, posting 110 points and losing to the eventual Cup Champs in the conference finals
25 POINT IMPROVEMENT IN ONE SEASON
NASHVILLE PREDATORS
- the Preds missed the playoffs the first five seasons of their existence
- in 2002-03 they finished 4th in the Central Division with 74 points
- in 2003-04 they improved to 91 points and earned their first playoff berth, losing in the first round
- in 2005-06 they posted a franchise-best 106 points but again lost in the first round
- this season they already have 101 points with 7 games remaining, clinching a playoff spot and battling for the Presidents’ Trophy
17 POINT IMPROVEMENT OVER 1 SEASON, 32 POINT IMPROVEMENT OVER 2 SEASONS
PITTSBURGH PENGUINS
- After losing in the conference finals in 2000-01, a season that saw the Penguins finish with 96 points and a record of 42-28-9-3, the Penguins began trading away players, starting of course with Jagr
- from 2001-02 to 2005-06 the Pens finished last in their division and never had more than 69 points over those four years – that includes the last two seasons where they had 58 points each year
- as the 2006-07 season draws to a close the Penguins are fighting for 1st in the division and are on pace for a 3rd-5th place finish
ON TARGET FOR AT LEAST A 40 POINT INCREASE IN ONE SEASON
And that brings us to...
WASHINGTON CAPITALS
- the Caps picked up 19 wins through their first 160 games and missed the playoffs in each of their first 8 seasons, never cracking the 70 point level
- in 1981-82 the Caps had a record of 26-41-13 for 65 points, 5th in the Patrick Division and out of the playoffs for the 8th consecutive year
- in 1982-83 they finished 39-25-16 for 94 points, their first season with a record over .500. They finished 3rd in the division and earned their first playoff berth, kicking off 14 consecutive seasons of postseason appearances
- that streak ended in 1996-97 when the Caps finished 5th in the Atlantic, posting a 33-40-9 record for 75 points
- the next year they bounced back and completed an incredible run to the Finals, where they were swept by Detroit
After this season the Caps will have missed the playoffs 4 of the last 5 seasons. The climb to the top takes patience, good draft history, and a little bit of luck. Most of the pieces are in place, though. The question becomes what will the club do in the offseason and throughout the next season to insure that the evolution continues...
