If the Caps were going to win a game in this series, it felt like maybe this was the one they would win…alas, that was going to be hard enough to do with a fully healthy, and seemed nearly impossible with the ongoing absences of Rasmus Sandin and Nick Jensen, and eventually the loss of Trevor van Riemsdyk.
(More on that in a sec…)
At five on five, the Caps were actually not bad – they out-attempted, out-chanced (including high danger chances) the Rangers, but special teams burned them again. The Caps had six power-play chances and yet the only goal scored during those power plays was scored by the Rangers…who also added a power-play goal of their own. If the Caps can keep the next game at even strength, they could maybe still pull out a win. Maybe.
Three Takeaways:
- Probably the biggest story of the game was the late, high hit by Matt Rempe that removed Trevor van Riemsdyk from the game. Honestly, it’s hard to see how that wasn’t a major – it’s almost exhausting to say at this point but if Tom Wilson does that he’s suspended for the next 40 games. At any rate, losing TVR left the Caps with five defensemen, three of whom have, combined, fewer than 10 NHL playoff games of experience. If Jensen and/or Sandin don’t come back, that leaves first-time North American player, Hardy Haman Aktell, as the next man up.
- With van Riemsdyk out, it also left the Caps with a roster with almost $22M in cap space. That’s wild. So if you want to get mad at the Caps just remember it’s nothing they can really do. They are missing a lot of money on the ice that would make this series a lot more interesting.
- It will be interesting to see what Coach Carbery does going into his first elimination game on Sunday. Will we see new lines? Maybe a special team mix up? Stay tuned…
They Said It: