Can the Washington Capitals win the Stanley Cup?
Their is no point in asking if the Washington Capitals will be able to make the playoffs next year, or win their division, or challenge for the conference and league title, because the answers are obvious. The Capitals will make the playoffs easily. They will handle the watered down Southeast Division and rack up an impressive number of points as they once again challenge the San Jose Sharks for the leagues Presidents Trophy.
The problem with Washington is that these regular season accolades do not matter any more. The club has experienced a great deal of regular season success, but has been stunted in the post-season. They have now made the playoffs three years running, two of them with home ice advantage. The first of the two they lost to the Pittsburgh Penguins in the conference semi-finals, and last year to the Montreal Canadiens in the first round.
Why have they not been successful?
For a team that has been so great in the regular season, the Capitals have not been able to translate that success to where it matters most, the post-season.
The Capitals do not play good hockey in the playoffs, and as the game becomes less about offence and more about who is willing to battle for pucks and play hard on the defensive side of the puck, they get worse. It is no secret that the Capitals play a run-and-gun style of offence, one their line-up is built to play. However, in the post-season this has not been the answer, as teams with impressive goaltending and a commitment to team-defence generally progress the furthest.
In addition, the Capitals suffer from a couple play-off ghosts. Alexander Semin seems to disappear in important games, not going to tough parts of the ice, and playing the entire game on the periphery. Similarly, Mike Green, who is a master at the offensive end of the ice, forgets about his defensive responsibilities, leaving the Caps exposed at the back end.
Can the Caps win this year?
There is no doubt that this team has one of the most skilled line-ups in the entire league. They possess more offensive skill than perhaps anyone else in the league, certainly in the Eastern Conference. Nonetheless, that may not matter come playoff time.
The concerning thing for Capitals fans is the fact that the team looks pretty much exactly the same as they did last year. Add a couple more rookies into the defensive-six and remove Jose Theodore and replace him with a less experience net minder, and you have the 2010-11 Capitals.
General Manager (GM) George McPhee is obviously counting on his squads experiences in the last two finals to encourage them to victory. This would be a good plan, had the Capitals showed any real promise over the past two seasons.
The Penguins came back and won the Cup, but that was after they lost to the Detroit Red Wings in the Cup Final the year before. That type of experience cannot be compared to losing to the eighth place Canadiens in last year’s first round.
McPhee needed to make some changes this off-season, something that, with all the expiring contracts at the end of the season, he will be forced to do next July. The Capitals are simply not skilled enough at the back end and in net.
Semyon Varlamov could be the answer down the road for Washington, but as of right now, he just does not have enough play-off experience, or success. In addition, the defensive core is just not there. Green is its best player, and he barely plays defence.
When the back end is compared to the reigning Stanley Cup Champions, the Chicago Blackhawks, it is laughable. Mike Green and Jeff Schultz are no Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook, that's for sure.
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