Clyde's Shots: Capitals-Panthers, February 9, 2013

Better Caps play makes better Caps photos!

Capitals-Panthers Postgame Quote Sheet

Via the Caps, post-game quotes after their 5-0 win over Florida:

Washington Capitals coach Adam Oates on his team playing a full 60 minutes…

"I thought tonight that we had a really good rhythm for the whole game. We’ve had it at times, but tonight I felt comfortable just rolling [all four lines]."

Washington Capitals coach Adam Oates on Braden Holtby’s power-play assist…

"It was a great play, and a big goal. It obviously hurt that [Pittsburgh] had scored one of those against us. It’s a pass down the ice; that means [Holtby] is involved in the game."

Washington Capitals forward Joel Ward on preparing for this game…

"We had a team meeting with the guys just to press the reset button and to calm down and go out there and support each other and make plays. Today we made a good effort."

Washington Capitals forward Alex Ovechkin on the importance of the win…

"It was a very important game – a divisional game. One game and it is over and we need to focus on the next one."

Washington Capitals forward Alex Ovechkin on the mood of the team before the game…

"I had a feeling right away that we were going to play well. Everybody was focusing and not joking around. That’s how we have to play. The first goal was huge for us. The whole team was better. We didn’t give them any easy breaks and Holts [Braden Holtby] made some big saves."

Washington Capitals goalie Braden Holtby on his saves tonight…

"The traffic in front of the net tonight was non-existent today. Our D (defense) and our forwards really took it to heart this last little while that we need to bear down on our end and it was outstanding tonight. We’re going to need that to keep moving forward."

Washington Capitals goalie Braden Holtby on having a fresh start…

"I think any win at this point is what we’re looking for. We already gave ourselves a big enough hole with being complacent but right now we’re not going to step off of the gas for the rest of the year. That’s our plan and we’re going to do it."

Florida Panthers head coach Kevin Dineen on whether or not his team was tired at the end of a road trip…

"It’s not an excuse [playing on the end of a road trip] but it sure looked like we did that. I think sometimes your mind can tell you that and I think we played a tired game. Whether we are or not, that’s a moot point. You’ve got a hockey game to play. I’m certain we didn’t have the energy to give ourselves a good enough chance to win."

Florida Panthers head coach Kevin Dineen on tonight’s game…

"You don’t like to end [the road trip] like that because you ended on a sour note. We got outworked tonight. Everybody didn’t have enough to give tonight for us to be successful."

Florida Panthers forward Kris Versteeg on Verizon Center not treating the Panthers well of late…

"Sometimes buildings are good to you, sometimes they’re not. You can’t use that as an excuse. [The Capitals] played a really solid game over there tonight. They were obviously the better team tonight, but we’ve got to find a way to come back and be ready to go."

Florida Panthers forward Kris Versteeg on the Capitals still possessing the talent to beat teams like they did tonight…

"[The Capitals] have a good bunch over there, they’ve got a good team. Their record doesn’t show the talent they have on their team. Any team can beat any team on any given night."

Florida Panthers defenseman Brian Campbell on the Capitals capitalizing…

"[The Capitals] have skill and if you give them opportunities, they’re going to capitalize and that’s exactly what we did tonight."

Florida Panthers defenseman Brian Campbell on how the Panthers mistakes came back to haunt them…

"When there are goals scored, there’s normally breakdowns and sloppiness and things like that – mistakes. I think there were multiple mistakes that compound it and then [the puck] ends up in your net."

Recap: Caps 5, Panthers 0

The Caps finally pick up win #3 on the back of a Braden Holtby shutout.

Third Period Open Thread

The usual misery of the second period is not to be tonight, as the Caps added two goals to their total courtesy of Messrs. Brouwer and Ward. Caps up 3-0, third period ahead...

Second Period Open Thread

Not the prettiest of periods, but John Carlson - or perhaps Troy Brouwer('s posterior) - has given the Caps an early 1-0 lead. Second period ahead...

Tonight's Lines: Erskine, Perreault In, Johansson Out

Per Katie Carrera, John Erskine will return to the Caps lineup after serving his three-game suspension for elbowing Wayne Simmonds in the head, and Mathieu Perreault will replace Marcus Johansson as the Caps get ready to face the Panthers tonight.

Per Mike Vogel, here are tonight's lines and pairings:

Jason Chimera - Mike Ribeiro - Alex Ovechkin

Wojtek Wolski - Nicklas Backstrom - Troy Brouwer

Eric Fehr - Mathieu Perreault - Joel Ward

Matt Hendricks - Jay Beagle - Joey Crabb

Karl Alzner - Mike Green

John Erskine - John Carlson

Jeff Schultz - Tomas Kundratek

That leaves Johansson and Roman Hamrlik as healthy scratches, Brooks Laich and Jack Hillen out with injuries, and Tom Poti perhaps somewhere in between (he missed the last game with an upper-body injury and took the pre-game skate tonight, but didn't get a sweater).

Capitals vs. Panthers Game Thread

Washington looks to get its season on track as it hosts Florida