Biggest Game in Capitals History?
Is time running out on the Capitals Great Eight era?
Washington has made the Stanley Cup Finals once before; it was a surprise run in 1998 where everything that had to go right did — until the end.
The Capitals pushed their way passed Boston, Ottawa and Buffalo to set up a Finals date with the highflying Detroit Red Wings. The Wings didn’t disappoint. They swept the Capitals in four straight to claim their second straight Stanley Cup. Those four games in the Finals were the biggest games that the organization has ever played — until today.
Today is the biggest game that the team will play with the greatest player the franchise has ever seen.
The Alex Ovechkin era in Washington has been filled with regular season success. With numerous personal and team awards and record setting point and win totals, the Capitals have been a force since Ovechkin entered the league. Over the last few years the Capitals have gone into every season or postseason as serious Stanley Cup contenders, if not the favourites. That was more true this year than any other. The narratives had already been in place — the Capitals “learned to lose” last year and they are now “battle tested,” they’ve “matured over the summer;”
We’ve heard all the clichés — this is their year.
In typical Capitals fashion, they blitzed the rest of the league during the regular season, going 55–19–8 to win the President’s Trophy as the league’s best regular season team (insuring home-ice advantage throughout the post season). They geared up ahead of the playoffs by adding a huge piece to an already stacked blue line, Kevin Shattenkirk, who was without a doubt the biggest player to acquire on the trade deadline day. They were ready.
The playoffs began with a tough first round battle against the young and quick Toronto Maple Leafs. The Leafs gave the Capitals everything they could handle, even taking the series lead early on. The media was in a full fledged panic. Is this team ever going to make it? But the Capitals pulled together and ousted the Leafs in a very close six game series. Next up, the Capitals face the reigning Stanley Cup champions and arch-rival Pittsburgh Penguins. The Penguins grabbed an early 3–1 series lead and opened the floodgates on the Capitals once more.
The Capitals have resorted to drastic changes: they moved Ovechkin down to the third line to balance scoring and they dressed 7 defensemen to give Pittsburgh a different look. These adjustments have worked shockingly well. The Caps won the next two games and forced tonight’s game seven.
The biggest game in franchise history, and the biggest game in the life of the man that wears number eight.
Washington is at the end of their window to win now. Veteran contributors TJ Oshie, Justin Williams, Kevin Shattenkirk, Karl Alzner and Daniel Winnik are all unrestricted free agents. Washington cannot bring them back. It’s very clear that the Capitals broke the bank to win it all this year.
They added all these players to help Ovechkin and give him the support he needs to win the Cup. They need to win this game. With the recent fall of powerhouses like Chicago and Los Angeles, we’ve seen how hard it is to keep a Cup challenging team together for a long time. Washington has not tasted the success that their contemporaries have, but they have one last chance to make it happen.
How poetic is it that the hockey gods gave the Capitals the Penguins this year? Also, how perfect is it that game seven will be played in Washington (the first game seven of these playoffs). The Capitals have been all over the Pens this series; they are right there, they just need to go out and grab it.
This is Washington’s year. Management believes it, the fans believe it and the players believe it. Ovechkin himself (who the media paints as a playoff flop) believes it. He has taken the demotion to the third line with grace. He has sparked fire in the players around him while still producing himself.
When games matter, Alex really has been The Great Eight. In 20 career games where his team has faced elimination, he has 20 points. He is second and third all-time in percentage of team goals and percentage of team points respectively in the playoffs. He is not one to shy away from the limelight, and when the Caps need him most in their biggest game ever, I hope we see Alex Oveckhin and the Washington Capitals deliver.
Oh yeah, Sidney Crosby and Pens might have something to say about all this.
Buckle up for one hell of a game seven!
Jacob is a hockey contributor for The Ocho. He is a Toronto Maple Leafs fan to a career debilitating level and likes talking sports and all else on Twitter. Follow along at @JacobMessih
