Caps: Round 2, Game 3

It always helps when the Refs are biased... I mean, I'm biased too... but 6 power plays in a row for the Penguins? Seriously? Not to mention most were weak calls, and the rest I didn't see what they called at all. Including the one that the Pens scored on. Semin got called for something when all I saw him do was get in Malkin's way and get his stick under Malkin's to disrupt him. Both legal.

I think the most legitimate call was the crosscheck on Ovie against Crosby, and even that was weak, especially for the playoffs. I mean, it would be one thing if they made weak calls both ways, but they didn't. The one call they did make on Pittsburgh was very blatant, even if the commentators were too blind to see it. I miss Joe and Craig calling the games.

Honestly, the Penguins did outplay the Caps in this one... well, they outplayed every skater. Varlamov was absolutely awesome in this game, and he was the only reason that the poor officiating was the difference. If it hadn't been for him, the bad calls wouldn't have mattered, this would have been a blowout.

The defense was slow and got beat to the puck regularly. They just weren't pushing for the puck almost every time they needed to. Several times when it got knocked behind the goal line, they moved as if it was an icing and no one was pursuing. Except it wasn't icing and a Penguin, usually Malkin, was coming hard.

On offense, the passing was off all night, and they struggled to hold on to the puck. Both the offense and defense regularly gave the puck away. The Penguins struggled to maintain possetion towards the end of the third and in OT, but every time they turned it over, the Caps immediately returned the favor it seems.

Malkin stepped up big time in this game. He worked hard for every puck and drove the net over and over. He demonstrated in this game how he led the league in scoring: with a combination of hard work and good hands. This is also why he is the best player in a Penguin uniform, not Crosby.

The bright spots for the Caps were Varlamov and Steckel. Varlamov continued to just dominate in the crease, making over 40 saves. Just amazing. If the Caps make it to the finals, he'll be a shoo-in for the Playoff MVP award. Even should the Caps not make it much furthur, he would still have an argument for it. This kid is going to be nasty for years to come, and with him backstopping the team, I see next season being better than this one.

My other star of the game for the Caps, as I mentioned, was Steckel. He has raised his game to another level in this series. He didn't score in this game, but he was one of the best performers on offense and was absolutely key on the PK, which was a very respectable 6 of 7. He has been hustling to the puck, playing hard and rough in front of Fleury and on the PK, and been dominating the faceoffs.

On less positive side of things. Mike Green has been absolutely terrible this offseason. He has been making terrible decisions with the puck, and bad reads when he doesn't have it. He's pressed at the wrong times and been caught at times, having to be bailed out by fellow defensemen (and Varly in particular) facing two on ones or solo fast breaks. For some reason though, he still led the Caps in ice time. Granted, towards the end of this game he did get a bit better defensively, but he needs to be getting much less time in favor of Jurchina, Poti, Pothier, and even Sloan. Sloan, fresh up from Hershey, made some key defensive plays tonight and even saved a goal in all liklihood.

Moving forward, the Caps need to regain the enthusiasm and work ethic they had in games 1 and 2. Hopefully Federov will be fine and ready to play in game 4. If Ovechkin plays with Federov and Kozlov, that causes a defensive nightmare for the Penguins, because even if they match up their best D with the number one line, then they have to worry about Semin, Backstrom and Laich coming in and facing their winded first line defense. Mostly, it comes down to puck control. If the Caps can control the puck as they did in games 1 and 2, they should be able to win game 4 and go back to Verizon Center with a 3-1 series lead, and close out the series in 5.

Until next time,

-TES