Reality Check

Ok.  Deep breath.  Now exhale.  Life will continue on.  It’s ok.  Shhhhh…. everything will be all right.

WHAT IS GOING ON???

I have no idea what the issue is.  This is not a bad team.  It’s not an amazing team, it may not even be a great team, but it’s not a bad team.

There is only one way to describe this team:  lost.  This team is lost.  Like they have no idea what is going on, where each other are on the ice, and when to shoot the puck.  Our trusted players don’t seem to be clicking.  Take a look at our “shutdown superstars” Alzner and Carlson.  Just ugly so far.

But, I’m going to tell you that for now, it is ok.  This is three games.  I hate it, you hate it, the Caps hate it, but the wins will come.  We’ve only played 6% of our games.  The Rangers, Flyers, Detroit, Florida, Carolina, LA, and the Coyotes aren’t doing that well either, right?

But, I gotta admit, our losses do seem different.  It’s because we are getting DESTROYED.  Our games haven’t even been close.  Our shots get blocked, some seem forced.  Like Green for example.  Watch him take a shot.  He is thinking to much, it’s like he is pushing the puck, not shooting it.  It’s almost like the Caps aren’t comfortable out there.

And can you blame them?  Look at our lines.  We have Ovie and Backstrom on the first.  That is obvious.  Tonight they were joined by Wolski.  Wojtek Wolski played 31 games last year, and is making $600,000 this year.  He played in the AHL last year for a period of time.  AND HE IS ON OUR FIRST LINE.

But, who are we supposed to replace him with?  Not Mojo, not Chimera (the correct answer is Brouwer).  Brouwer is the only true top 6 winger that we have thats name does not rhyme with Bovechkin.

But wait, there’s more.  Hendricks is on the second line.  I love Hendricks, my favorite player since he put on a Caps uniform, but he is a 3rd liner at best.  And take a look at the 4th line.  It had Mojo and Matty P.  I understand there may have been some punishment for Mojo, but we gotta get those grinders that can change the momentum of the game on there, not little Matty P and Mojo.  I mean, look at how good a 4th line would be with Crabb, Hendricks, and Fehr.  So much heart.

This is not our year, plain and simple.  It is a team that squeaks into the playoffs at best.  But, I’m here to tell you that there are some very good things to look forward to in the very, very near future:

- With Poti, Hamrlik, Erskine, and Hillen becoming free agents this year, the Caps have an opportunity to revamp their God awful defense.

- Filip Forsberg, Tom Wilson, and Evgeny Kuznetsov will be here to save the day.  That is two-top six forwards in Forsberg and Kuznetsov, and a beast of a third (maybe second) line winger in Wilson.  Kuznetsov said he will come to DC after the olympics.  Forsberg is comparable to Johan Franzen, Wilson to Milan Lucic, and Kuznetsov to Alexander Semin, and I mean that in a good, skilled Sasha way.

- Philipp Grubauer could possibly be our third option at goal if Holtby and Neuvy end up striking out.  I mean, how many times could we fail at drafting goalies?  By the way, I don’t think either Holtby or Neuvy is the problem.  In fact, I think Neuvy played pretty well for a while tonight.  But, Grubauer could be trade bait at worst.

- We have a legitimate shot at the number one pick!  Hello 6’3 Seth Allen!

Keep the faith.  It’s not the end of the world.  Good teams have lost 3 in a row.  There is still time.  We are getting close to panic time, but it is not here yet.  Let’s Go Caps!

Oh, and Joel Ward is currently ranked 19th in goals scored this season.