It’s getting hard to keep track of what to think about the Capitals this year. At the beginning of the year, they won three straight games, and even spent an hour as the league’s first place team. Then they lost a few, won one, and tried losing again. Last night, in what should have been a hopeless battle against a hot team, they put together a seven to one victory over the grammatically challenged Toronto Maple Leafs (sic). Although no one announced it as such, the victory would have made a beautiful tribute to Peter Bondra, who retired yesterday to manage the Slovakian national team.
The win included two goals from Alex Ovechkin, three assists from Michael Nylander and goals from Matt Bradley, Brian Sutherby and Jeff Schultz. You may remember Bradley, Sutherby and Schultz as the guys who were probably supposed to make the team, but didn’t amaze anybody in training camp and have been healthy scratches for most of this year. You may also remember Peter Bondra as the Caps’ all time leading scorer, who twice led the NHL in goals and is currently not a Capital due to alleged petty grudges over business matters.
Checking line forwards Matt Pettinger and Boyd Gordon also chipped in their first goals of the season. Coach Glen Hanlon has tried several different forward combinations to try to help everybody click offensively. Hanlon likes to shuffle lines as games progress, and get a look at how different players work together. Thus, Gordon’s goal was assisted by Ovechkin, while Pettinger and Schultz got help from Nylander. Although this was most likely a temporary shakeup, it is not unusual for offensive players to contribute in checking roles or vice versa.
Caps captain Chris Clark played on checking lines in Calgary before joining the Caps and fighting his way onto the first line. Similarly, five hundred goal scorer Peter Bondra became a dependable checker in his last couple years in the league, helping the Atlanta Thrashers and Chicago Blackhawks to defend against other teams, while still contributing expert offense on their power plays. Though the Caps’ power play remains mediocre this year, the players should feel confident that last night’s showing was a fitting tribute to Bondra.
