97 – Number of Caps shot attempts that missed the net in Round 1, most in the League. Per war-on-ice.com, that’s 97 misses on 408 all-situation shot attempts (with another 125 blocked), which leaves 186 shots on goal, on which the Caps scored 14 times for a decent 7.5 shooting percentage… but one that’s well below the 9.9 they shot during the regular season (thanks in large part to a 4.8 shooting percentage at five-on-five, down from the regular season’s 8.3%).
Bottom line: the Caps took a lot of shots in Round 1 (the highest all-situation shot rate in the League), missed a lot (the most in the League), and hit the back of the net at a lower-than-expected efficiency. Graphically, that all looks like this:
If the Caps can keep pumping the shots at the same rate in Round 2, they’ll be in great shape… because that shooting percentage won’t stay low forever, particularly at five-on-five, where they’ve been getting plenty of chances:
2016 NHL Playoffs (through 4/24 games)
Team Scoring Chance Rates pic.twitter.com/cgltY3jDrw— Ian Fleming (@imfleming16) April 25, 2016
2016 NHL Playoffs (through 4/24 games)
Team High-Danger Scoring Chance Rates pic.twitter.com/ZLhjRUN4Uu— Ian Fleming (@imfleming16) April 25, 2016