RED ALERT: So who's in Net?

The coach is still silent, he knows, but won’t say, to anyone, not even the goalies.  The fans are still wondering as well, as it dominated most fan discussions.  Who will start in goal on Saturday for the Washington Capitals.  Jose Theodore believes he gets to start Game 2 of the Caps/Rangers playoff series.  

As for Theo, he is taking it all in stride, speaking the rationale reality that, it was just one game. 

“It’s the first game,” he said.

That first game, though, left a lasting impression, and the Capitals –
down 1-0 to the New York Rangers in their Eastern Conference
first-round playoff series — used yesterday to begin evaluating the
position that might determine whether they advance: goaltender.
Theodore allowed four goals on 21 shots in Wednesday’s 4-3 loss, and
Boudreau addressed his impending decision thusly: “I’m not going to
share it one way or another.”

The problem is — Theo was on a short leash from before the first game began.  It is no secret that some int he Washington Capitals front office believe the time has come for rookie net minder 21 year old Simeon Varlamov.  Others believe that you have to go with the veteran glove.  Only Bruce Boudreau knows who it will be, and he isn’t saying — yet.  But, don’t think Boudreau is taking his decision lightly.  (Related Article:  DC Examiner)

I think all aspects of that, whether it’s what’s better for the team,
how [does] it affect the player, how [does] it affect the dynamics of
the room, all of those things always come into play,” Boudreau said. “A
lot of my thoughts go into what you asked, but I mean, there’s an
expectancy that they understand as well.

Not sure if this is a signal or just a show of confidence, but Boudreau and Caps goalie Coach Prior have voiced confidence in the 21 year old Russian.

His one loss
came in overtime against Buffalo, when, as Boudreau said, “We put three
of them in our own net.” Prior said Varlamov has “immense physical
talent,” and he has improved the technical aspects of his game since
arriving from the minor league Hershey Bears. Boudreau, too, played
down Varlamov’s lack of NHL experience.

“He has played in the Russian elite league, and he’s played in the
world championship in front of big crowds,” Boudreau said. “So it’s not
like he’s going to be a star-struck young guy if we went with that
decision.”

But, it goes beyond who is in the net.  There may be some avenues and signs for other changes on the way. 

One, team captain Chris Clark has been cleared to play, after missing much of the season from wrist surgery.  Donald Brashear is ready to go after missing two weeks with a knee sprain.  Brashear may be what is needed to bring some brashness and toughness to the ice, maybe even to harass the NHL all-pest, Scott Avery. Then, there is the defense and Brian Pothier.  Pothier should be an obvious.  Jeff Schultz was horrible, absolutely horrible.  Come on coach, put Pots in, please!

Good article from Corey Masisak on Sergei Fedorov’s impact in Washington.  And, I think we forgot to mention, but the Times writes on it, Victor Kozlov’s goal on Wednesday night was his first playoff goal in his 14 year NHL career.  Kudos to Victor! 

The Caps/Rangers opener was a ratings boom for Comcast Sportsnet.  

Comcast SportsNet’s coverage of last night’s Capitals-Rangers
first-round Stanley Cup playoff game delivered a 3.3 household rating,
reaching approximately 76,000 households, in the Washington, D.C.
market, topping all other national and local cable sports networks for
the evening including ESPN and MASN.  CSN’s Caps audience peaked during
the 9:30-9:45 p.m. quarter hour when approximately 105,800 households
(a 4.6 rating) tuned in. Last night’s game posted a 4.5 average
household rating in the critical advertising demographic of men aged
18-49 

Some Game Two thoughts …

*  Caps need to ignore, yet take on Scott Avery.  Is this a job for Brash?

*  Let’s get serious about defense.  Start with benching Jeff Schultz and putting in Brian Pothier. 

* 
Caps need to get more than just Brooks Laich in front of Rangers G
Henrik Lundqvist.  No one is surprised that King Henrik is difficult to
score on, so the way to do it is traffic, traffic, traffic. 

Caps Blog Clips…

Hooray for CapsChick, finally some rationale thoughts.  Allt he talk of a huge playoff upset, Caps are paper tigers, Caps are overrated, phooey.  JP hit the same point yesterday.    Nice article.  JP breaks down two breakdowns.  Change your bookmark, Capitals Kremlin moved to a new format.   Musing Hockey Mom agrees, hey Bruce, sit Schultz, play Pots!  Puckhead’s Thoughts
looks at the good points of Game 1, and we agree, the Caps were not
that bad against the Rangers number 1 penalty kill.  Good read. 

Hershey Bears — Calder Cup Playoffs update …

As we reported on Twitter
last night, the Hershey Bears opened up their first round Calder Cup
playoff series against Philadelphia in Philadelphia and walked out with
a 1-0 series lead, defeating Philly 4-2.  The win had to thrill Coach
Bob Woods, because the scoring came outside the high scoring Line 1
(Giroux, Aucoin, and Mink).  The Bears got goals from Andrew Gordon,
Kyle Wilson, Oscar Osala, and Jay Beagle to over power the Phantoms. 
Michal Neuvirth took the win in net for the Bears. 

Series:  Bears lead 1-0.  Next Game: 4/18/09 at 7:05PM in Philadelphia      

NHL Playoffs Update …

Boston/Montreal:  Boston took a 1-0 series lead behind two goals from Phil Kessell.  Bruins beat Habs in the opener 4-2.

Detroit/Columbus:  Chris Osgood stopped 20 of 21 shots to lead the Red Wings to a 4-1 series opening win over the Blue Jackets.

Chicago/Calgary: 
Martin Havlat scored twice, including the game winner just 9 seconds
into overtime to lift the Blackhawks to a 1-0 series lead and a 3-2 win
over the Flames.

San Jose/Anaheim:  The Ducks
stunningly take a 1-0 series lead shutting out the high powered Sharks
2-0.  Wonder if the media will spell doom for the Sharks like they did
the Caps?