Post-Mortem: Washington Capitals

Via: washingtonpost.com

The Washington Capitals were the final victim of the first round, cut loose last night by the New York Rangers. But before we lay them to rest after another season of failing to meet expectations, let's take a look at what went wrong.

Let's be clear about one thing before we even begin: as Alex Ovechkin goes, so do the Caps. In 2011-12, Ovechkin had one of the worst statistical seasons of his career and couldn't adjust to defensive match-ups and a new system brought in by coach Dale Hunter.
With this in mind, general manager George McPhee decided to make a coaching change during the summer, bringing in Adam Oates to replace the departed Hunter. The reasoning behind the decision is that Oates, one of the premier offensive forwards in league history, would be able to relate to Ovechkin, help him get his scoring back to the level it should be, and improve a power play that had grown stagnant.

At first, it seemed as those the changes weren't working. Ovechkin was again struggling with a new system, as well as a move to right wing instead of his more comfortable left side. But then towards the end of February, Ovechkin started to find his groove and he went on an absolute tear for the rest of the season. He ultimately ended up finishing with 32 goals to win his record 3rd Rocket Richard trophy, and earned a Hart trophy nomination as well. The Ovechkin we all knew and loved was back. Aided by offseason acquisition Mike Ribeiro (49 points), Nicklas Backstrom (48 points) and a resurgent Mike Green (12 goals), the Captials finished among the goal leaders in the NHL yet again. The big red machine was back.

However it may have been the play of their young starting goaltender which gave Washington the biggest boost that they needed. Braden Holtby is just 23 years old and finished with a .920 save percentage, 4 shutouts and 23 wins. He was even better in the playoffs with a 2.22 goals against average and .922 save percentage. So how exactly did the Captials manage to get eliminated when their goalie was keeping them in every game?

The answer is as simple as it is disturbing for Caps fans, they just couldn't score. Mike Green led the team with 2 goals and 2 assists in their first round series against the Rangers. Depth players such as Joel Ward and Mathieu Perreault also did what they could, chipping in four points each. Beyond that is where the news turns sour; Ovechkin one goal, Backstrom one goal, Ribeiro one goal, Troy Brouwer (who finished 2nd behind Ovechkin in regular season goal scoring for the club) one goal, and nothing for trade deadline addition Martin Erat. For all the speed and dynamism of the Caps attack, they just couldn't penetrate the Rangers defense, and when they could, Henrik Lundqvist was there to shut them down. The Capitals were eliminated by the Rangers in game seven for the second year in a row.

So what now? Fans in Washington are growing impatient and change may be coming. The Captials have won 5 of the last 6 Southwest division titles, won the President's trophy in 2010, and haven't been able to make it past the second round despite all that success. The blame can't be put entirely on coaching, Oates is the third coach in three seasons to get the same results with this core group of players. You can't really point the finger at the goaltending either, as Holtby seems to have established himself as a quality starter. It seems obvious that the offensive core of this team is what needs to change. When going up against defensive teams in the playoffs, they just can't break through and compete with them. With the exception of UFA Ribeiro, the top nine forwards on the Caps are all locked up for next season and beyond, and I'd have to think that at least a few of them get moved at some point. Even Ovechkin, with his $9.5 million dollar lifetime contract shouldn't be considered untouchable at this point.

More than anything though, this team needs an influx of young talent. The leaders of this team are all approaching the end of their prime years and will need those new faces to start stepping in and helping out. Perhaps someone like, oh I don't know Filip Forsberg, is exactly what they need.