Washington Capitals vs Bruins: Trip Down Memory Lane
By David Trice
The Washington Capitals newest big name defenseman Zdeno Chara gets a trip down memory lane, let’s hope the Capitals as a team do not.
This will mark Zdeno Chara‘s first trip back to his old digs in Boston with a matchup against the Boston Bruins. This is also the Capitals first time seeing the Bruins since their loss to them in early February.
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Coincidently the Capitals hope not to go down memory lane, the last matchup against the Bruins occurred after the team had gotten three wins in a row. That of course was halted there, since then the Capitals have just now found their rhythm to find another three game win streak.
With this new three game win streak, the Washington Capitals find themselves in the lead of the East Division again. The team they managed to unseat were none other than the Bruins, while it’s only by 2 standings points at this time it could be lengthened with an extension of the win streak over this game and the next. How exactly have the Capitals regained their rhythm?
The best way to describe their success over the last three games is that everyone is pulling their weight. The scoring is coming from all over the lineup, if one person who had been hot suddenly cools down others jump in to take their place. Prior to the 3 game win streak it appeared that TJ Oshie was the hot hand, but as he cooled off Nicklas Backstrom found his scoring touch again from early in the year.
Overall across the three games the Capitals have gotten goals from 9 different players. Surprisingly, only one of the goals can be attributed to the best in the business at scoring them in Alex Ovechkin. With hot runs for Lars Eller, TJ Oshie, Tom Wilson, Jakub Vrana and Nicklas Backstrom; we are finally seeing what a balanced offense could look like.
The only area where you could draw some concern with is the lack of scoring from the blueline group. While John Carlson has been making his name on the assist front, and a few others have here and there with Schultz and Dillon getting a couple assists apiece. While you want to see defensemen do more to stop the opposition, for a team like the Washington Capitals they are a vital component to a balanced attack. In facing the recent top team in the East, are there any other areas the Capitals should be concerned?
The one constant it seems this year for the Capitals has been their penchant to remain in the penalty box game after game. In each of the three games, while they have come out on top, have had them either leading in penalties or tying with the opponent. For this big of a game they will need to figure out ways to avoid the box, as the Bruins hold the sixth best PP% in the league at 26.79.
And even when the Capitals gain the advantage, it may not feel like one given they face the 3rd best team at covering their mistakes with a Bruins PK% of 87.88. By comparison, the Capitals sit at 15th in the league at 80%. While we all can enjoy some bone crunching hits from your favorite opposition enemy, Tom Wilson will need to pick and choose his moments. And the remainder of the team will need to come ready with their skating legs to avoid many of those bad positioning penalties.
Will we see some old fashioned Chara action with him in familiar grounds? Can the Capitals expect new scorers to contribute? Will Tom Wilson be able to impose his will on our pest, Brad Marchand, and avoid the box? Here is how to find out:
Date: March 3, 2021
Time: 7 p.m.
Where: TD Garden
TV Broadcast: NBC Sports Network
Radio: Caps Radio 24/7
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