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Washington Capitals: This Team Can Win Them All

By Kevin Marland

Jan 10, 2016; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) is surrounded by teammates right wing T.J. Oshie (77), center Nicklas Backstrom (19), defenseman Matt Niskanen (2) and defenseman Karl Alzner (27) against the Ottawa Senators during the third period at Verizon Center. Mandatory Credit: Rafael Suanes-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 10, 2016; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) is surrounded by teammates right wing T.J. Oshie (77), center Nicklas Backstrom (19), defenseman Matt Niskanen (2) and defenseman Karl Alzner (27) against the Ottawa Senators during the third period at Verizon Center. Mandatory Credit: Rafael Suanes-USA TODAY Sports /
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Barring a catastrophe, the Washington Capitals are heading towards the NHL Playoffs with a full head of steam. How they’re winning bodes well for their chances.

The Washington Capitals did it again Sunday night in their match against the Ottawa Senators. The 7-1 rout with scoring emulating a shark-feeding frenzy (plus a backup goaltender in home net) put an exclamation mark on a night – even a half season – with a lot of exclamation marks already behind it. The Washington Capitals can win hockey games. Exclamation mark. How they’ve proven it is now almost beyond exemplary. Let’s review.

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In front of a home crowd and with millions more tuned in on out-of-town National media, Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin scored his 500th and 501st goals in the National Hockey League at the age of 30. Congratulations to Alex on his accelerated incredible feats. He’s the fifth-fastest to 500 ever. Just how fast was that? Colorado Avalanche forward and very esteemed hockey player Jarome Iginla just scored his 600th last week in what may be the twilight of his career. He’s 38, by the way. But, there’s never comparison with Alex Ovechkin.

"“We always talk about ‘team,’ ” Caps coach Barry Trotz agreed via NHL.com. “And this is actually an individual achievement. But I think when one person has success, it reflects on everybody. Ovi couldn’t do it alone. He’d look over to [Nicklas] Backstrom a lot and other people. But that was a moment that was great for the team to share, because it takes a village to have success.”"

After the special moments fade for a personal victory, the Capitals are still managing a season full of superlatives – and more importantly – wins. In fact, 32 out of 42 and another three games that produced a point in a loss. And while the 67 standings points lead the NHL and pace in front of the Dallas Stars now by five points (with two games in hand), it’s how the team is winning that really impresses me. No adversity is too formidable. No goal is unattainable. All boxes are being checked.

Against an Ottawa Senators team that waltzed into the 2014-2015 postseason in Cinderalla fashion on the coat tails of netminding darling Andrew Hammond and Norris-trophy winner Erik Karlsson, the Washington Capitals got points from ten different forwards. By the end, the Senators seemed demoralized. The Capitals’ offense was simply too synced-in to lose. On defense, Philipp Grubauer and a blue line corps that is still missing top-defenseman Brooks Orpik kept all but one goal out of the net. It was a completely dominant team effort. And it came against yet another good team.

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Jan 9, 2016; New York, NY, USA; New York Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist (30) skate off after giving up the game winning goal to Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) during overtime of an NHL hockey game at Madison Square Garden. The Capitals defeated the Rangers 4-3 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 9, 2016; New York, NY, USA; New York Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist (30) skate off after giving up the game winning goal to Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) during overtime of an NHL hockey game at Madison Square Garden. The Capitals defeated the Rangers 4-3 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports /

Chalk that one up with a different, but altogether just-as-satisfying victory over Metropolitan Divisional rival New York Rangers, where the Capitals blew an early lead only to come back in a glorious 4-3 overtime session that sent fans rejoicing into their weekend. It was, symbolically, a tough pill to swallow when the Rangers scored three unanswered goals in the third period to reverse an early Washington lead. The team, however, dug deep and answered in kind. It was exactly what you wanted against a team that knocked the team out of the post-season last year.

"“We’ll take it.” Trotz told the NHL, “I thought it was a good learning lesson for us. It showed us if we had any resiliency. We could have easily said, ‘Hey, they came back,’ and not much push. But we had a good push and got it tied up, and obviously won the hockey game.”"

The common thread between games, and I would argue, the season, is that the Washington Capitals are asserting their will against their opponents. While each opponent brings their own wrinkle and style of play against the team, the Capitals have responded. We’ve seen it in blowouts like the one against Ottawa last night. We’ve seen it in ‘come-back’ games where the Capitals have to dig deep to answer a late opposing push. We’ve seen it all kinds of ways. In fact, let’s take a quick review of some of the more recent examples.

Against the Boston Bruins last week, the Capitals finished a game with a ‘hang on’ mentality in the third period where the surging Bruins mounted a late push with the goaltender pulled. The Capitals closed ranks defensively. Holtby was brilliant. The offense found a way to help out and achieve a 3-2 victory where Caps teams of the past might have faltered. Rising star Evgeny Kuznetsov explained his part of the strategy after the game.

"“I can try to find somebody and I just make sure I give it to somebody and I want to keep pucks in our hands and try to make the plays,” Kuznetsov told the NHL, “I think it’s good when we play in offensive zone and carry the puck and somebody think we killed the time, but no, we try to find a better spot for our play.”"

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Against the Buffalo Sabres in late December, the Capitals had to step up on defense after injuries had thinned their ranks. The result was a 2-0 shutout win where combined efforts on defense and goaltending were enough to make the difference – surviving 31 shots on goal. Against a slew of bad officiating (mostly against agitator Tom Wilson), the Capitals turned what should have been a tightly-contested bout against the New York Islanders into a 4-1 blowout. The Capitals survived yet more adversity to find a win.

We’ve seen them come on top in emotionally filled games – like the 4-1 drubbing against the Pittsburgh Penguins on December 12th – where Mike Sullivan made his coaching debut (a must-win for Pittsburgh). We’ve also seen the Capitals ride a long streak of success, perhaps punctuated by their 3-1 win over Montreal, or 7-3 victory (again) over the Rangers.  They beat last years’ Eastern Conference champion Tampa Bay Lightning 5-3 with the exact same volition. This is Capitals hockey.

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As a lifelong ‘cautiously optimistic’ fan of the Washington professional sporting landscape, the Capitals have made me believe this season. We can win more than one type of game. Trying to make those declarations in previous season’s has not been this easy (or fun). While the playoffs are still another three months away, the Caps team taking the ice this season is more resolved than ever to get the job done. They’ve shown us all what they’re capable of.
Feel free to chime in about your favorite Capitals moments this season in our comments below!

LET’S GO CAPS!!

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