And so it’s set.
Caps vs. Penguins. Red, white and blue vs. black and gold. More playoff meetings than you’d ever want to remember (with one memorable and happy one out of the bunch). Alex Ovechkin vs. Sidney Crosby until the end of time. Petr Nedved‘s four-overtime dagger. Dueling hat tricks. And… we could go on, but there’s no need to remind Caps fans about the speckled and often heartbreaking playoff history between these two clubs.
This is a new year, though, and a new team, and it’s time to write a new chapter.
First things first – the numbers. Below are the Caps team and individual stats for the five games this season against the Penguins.
Head-to-Head:
| Game 1 vs. PIT | L, 3-1 |
| Game 2 @ PIT | W, 4-1 |
| Game 3 vs. PIT | W, 3-2 |
| Game 4 @ PIT | L, 6-2 |
| Game 5 vs. PIT | L, 4-3 (OT) |
| Record | 2-2-1 |
| GF/Game | 2.60 |
| GA/Game | 3.20 |
| Goal Diff/Game | 0.60 |
| Powerplay Success | 12.5% |
| Powerplay Opportunities | 16 |
| Powerplays Per Game |
3.20 |
| Penalty Kill Success |
94.4% |
| Times Shorthanded | 18 |
| Times Shorthanded Per Game | 3.60 |
| Shooting Percentage | 8.5% |
| Save Percentage | .892 |
| 5v5 Save Percentage | .897 |
| 5v5 Corsi-For Percentage | 47.1% |
| Score-Adjusted 5v5 Corsi-For Percentage | 45.5% |
Capitals Skaters vs. Pittsburgh
Capitals and Penguins Skaters, With and Against You (click to enlarge)
Capitals Goalies vs. Pittsburgh
| GP | GS | MIN | W | L | O | GA | GAA | SA | SV | SV% | SO | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Braden Holtby | 5 | 5 | 290 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 14 | 2.90 | 160 | 146 | .913 | 0 |
| Philipp Grubauer | 1 | 0 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4.71 | 5 | 4 | .800 | 0 |
Capitals Centers’ Face Offs vs. Pittsburgh (minimum ten draws)
| GP | FOW | FOL | TOT | PCT | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mike Richards | 3 | 21 | 12 | 33 | 63.6% |
| Jay Beagle | 5 | 30 | 31 | 61 | 49.2% |
| Nicklas Backstrom | 5 | 50 | 53 | 103 | 48.5% |
| Evgeny Kuznetsov | 5 | 29 | 31 | 60 | 48.3% |
| T.J. Oshie | 5 | 6 | 8 | 14 | 42.9% |
| Marcus Johansson | 5 | 9 | 14 | 23 | 39.1% |
| Team Total* | 5 | 156 | 162 | 318 | 49.1% |
| Team Total (PP) | 5 | 13 | 18 | 31 | 41.9% |
| Team Total (PK) | 5 | 21 | 21 | 42 | 50.0% |
| Team Total (Offensive Zone) | 5 | 43 | 64 | 96 | 44.8% |
| Team Total (Defensive Zone) | 5 | 60 | 55 | 115 | 52.2% |
| Team Total (Neutral Zone) | 5 | 53 | 54 | 107 | 49.5% |
*Includes players who did not meet the minimum for inclusion in the table
And now, for getting through all those stats, your moment of zen: