Washington Capitals: Match ratings from Week Two

As the NHL season rolls on, the early returns for the Washington Capitals have been mixed. How did they fare in Week 2, and what could it mean going forward?

After only playing two games in Week 1, the Washington Capitals did not have a much heavier workload in Week 2, with only three games total and another set of back-to-back games. The result was a 1-2-0 week that leaves the team with some questions going forward.

If you are a Caps fan, chances are you are pretty frustrated with how the team played last week. But you will still watch them next week because hockey is fun. It is one of the most entertaining products there is, which is what drew us all to the sport in the first place.

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Beyond the entertainment aspect, it is not too early for patterns and storylines to have developed surrounding this team. When the season is over in June, one of the games that was played this week may be relevant for some reason at that point.

The purpose of this article, part of a weekly series, is to examine this week’s Washington Capitals games to determine how the team is playing right now and see if any patterns are developing. It is also, as noted, to rate the entertainment value of each game.

The hope is that at the end of the season, a fan interested in coming back to specific games will be able to. Whether they are concerned more with team performance or with the game’s entertainment, this article will analyze both.

While I would like to branch out the scope to more teams, I am unfortunately only able to watch Washington Capitals games with any consistency, so these articles will only look at those games. Without further ado, let us look back at Week Two for Washington!

Game 3: 10/10/18 vs. Vegas

This was the first meeting between these two teams since the Washington Capitals won the Stanley Cup back in June, and the rematch did not disappoint. The Capitals held on to knock off the Vegas Golden Knights 5-2 in an exciting game.

The score may appear lopsided, but the game itself was anything but. Braden Holtby made some outstanding saves, and the game featured a lot of back-and-forth action. Marc-Andre Fleury‘s struggles against the champs continued, as the home team held on.

Washington looked quite good after the nearly week-long break since their game against Pittsburgh, and their fresh legs helped keep the offense rolling. The bend-not-break strategy employed in the playoffs last season helped Washington counter the Vegas attack.

In terms of entertainment, this was a lot like the playoff series these two teams had: fast, lots of chances, and a good amount of goals. If Fleury had been able to make an extra save or two, there would have been even more drama entering the stretch run of the game.

This was a good bounce-back performance for the Washington Capitals after the Pittsburgh loss, and this was one of the most entertaining games of the young NHL season so far.

Performance: 8/10

Entertainment: 8/10

Game 4: 10/11/18 @ New Jersey

Woof.

This game stunk, plain and simple. The Washington Capitals, on the second half of a back-to-back, looked dead on the ice against a well-rested New Jersey Devils team playing only their second game of the season.

The Devils flew around the Washington defense, terrorizing Pheonix Copley, who made his first start as a Capital and played relatively well considering. The visitors could not get their offense going at all, and succumbed to a humiliating defeat.

Washington’s performance in this game was horrendous. Some of that is to be expected given the lack of rest, but they just did not appear to show up at all. Perhaps they were looking forward to the Saturday game, because they were drastically outplayed.

From an entertainment standpoint, there was nothing redeeming about this. Maybe for Devils fans, given it was the home opener, there was some fun to be had, but otherwise, this was a case of one team showing up, and those don’t typically make for exciting games.

I highly doubt anybody will be coming back to watch this one at the end of the season. Burn the tape and move on.

Performance: 2/10

Entertainment: 2/10

Game 5: 10/13/18 vs. Toronto

If this is how every game between these two teams will be, sign me up for a playoff series next spring.

This game was fun, fun and more fun, as two of the league’s best offensive teams went back-and-forth in what may end up being the best game in the NHL this year. In the end, the Toronto Maple Leafs rode a strong third period to the road win over the Washington Capitals.

Speaking of storylines, there is one that appears to be manifesting for Washington early: their ability to neutralize an opponent’s speed. This was a strength in the playoffs, and they did a decent job here, but it is worth noting that their three losses so far are against fast teams.

The Capitals did not play poorly, and were actually the better team through two periods. They were unable, however, to take advantage of a porous Toronto defense that allowed many chances, and fell prey to the vaunted Leafs offense a few times too many.

If you were watching this to be entertained, though, you got your money’s worth. The scoring may not have been at the level of the Pittsburgh game last week, but this was just as exciting, with the game flying by at breakneck speed, and just enough scoring to keep things interesting until late.

Washington did not play poorly here, but they will need to play better to beat a team as good as Toronto. At least the game we did get was a lot of fun.

Performance: 6/10

Entertainment: 9/10

Overall, the second week of the Washington Capitals season was not as good as the first. There are already some issues arising with the team that should be addressed. Still, it is way too early to panic, and it is possible that this next week will see an improved performance.

The New Jersey game sucked, but the other two were very, very fun games to watch. They may be worth keeping a tab on to come back and watch once the season is over.

This column will be back next week, with more games to look back on. Until then, enjoy hockey!