Bruce Beadreau made the right call inserting rookie goaltender Varlamov into the starting line up over Theodore yesterday and it wasn't much of a gamble. Beadreau has been known to bench and scratch players over the course of the season. Theo's performance and post game comments most likely sealed the deal for his benching.
Theo wasn't the reason why the Capitals won the Southeast division nor was he the reason why they became the 2nd seed in the Eastern Conference. He was merely along for the ride. He also wasn't the hired mercenary brought in as the final piece of the puzzle to win the cup. Theo wasn't a franchise leader like an Olie either. Bruce wouldn't have inserted Varlamov into the lineup if he wasn't confident that he'd perform well. Varlamov hasn't had a track record anywhere in his career for giving up soft goals unlike Theo.
The Caps owned the first twelve minutes of the game until a fateful 2-1 break away occurred. The results left the Caps down 1-0 which is how the game ended. Washington rattled Lundqvist's cage yesterday hitting in the mask twice - once in the 1st and another in the 3rd period. Unlike the first game he coughed up lots of juicy rebound, but no one was home to put them in the net.
Varlamov made a couple of excellent stops and did exactly what Bruce needed. Stop the shots he was expected to stop and make a few that he wasn't. This would allow the rest of the team to go out and win the game. It wasn't to be the case yesterday afternoon.
After Ovie, Semin, and Green just what is the Caps true identity? It's a high scoring machine, but front end loaded. Beadreau has talked about secondary scoring and increasing the level of production 5 on 5, but this is the most different team in Caps history. It's not built on defense or around Olie's goaltending, but scoring.
The Caps are in unchartered territory. It's the classic case of David and Goliath only this time the Caps are Goliath. Traditionally the Caps were the team out manned and thin on talent left to rely on perfection of their assignments and accomplishing the little things to win. In this series the roles have been reversed. The Caps greatest asset as a bully was taken away yesterday as the extra man advantage had few opportunities and with little success against one of the best penalty killing units in the league.
Caps fans shouldn't be so quick to panic. The Penguins rebirth into the playoffs found them learning how to win in the playoffs all over again too. The team has gone from trying to make the playoffs to expecting to go deep into the playoffs based on their talent, but they also have to learn not just about playoff hockey but winning playoff hockey. The open space end to end action is trimmed. It's time for the players to ban together and go back to what made them so successful during the middle of the year.
Role players carried out their assignments. Currently players are rushing up ice, dropping passes, and taking shots as they cross the blue line which normally would be great, but players like Brooks Laich don't have a strong shot. They must do what they do best. In Laich's case he's not a shooter, he's a rebounder. Most of his goals have been chip ins. Players must drive to the net to move the defense for a clear shot. It will move Lundqvist in net. He's now giving up rebounds and with someone there to capitalize the secondary scoring will come. Once a lead is opened up, the Rangers will have to open the ice up a bit to get back in the game creating the open ice hockey the Caps prefer.
Changes in the lineup should be expected such as putting a worker and grinder like Aucoin back on the 1st line. He's proven he can score on that line and with a feisty player like that crashing the net good things will happen. Nylander could also find himself a healthy scratch. Down 2-0 isn't the end of the world, but lots of work must be done to battle back. That's why the series is set at seven to give the better seed a greater chance of not being upset.
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