The-Hogs.net - Washington Football Discussion, Redskins to Commanders Era

Ovie Shoots and scores; 2-1!

Man... 2-1.. lets go lets go!.

but officially i neva saw anything so this has gotta work!!!

<--in smack area...

what can you say about the game tonight? The Rags goalie is playing out of his mind, Ovie and Feds hit posts, Rangers scored two lucky goals. A few bounces the other way and it is 3-1 Caps. Let's just hope we can pull it together, take game five and head back to the garden looking to tie the series.

Young Guns: The Second Season – Washington ’s four best players in the regular season – Alex Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom, Alexander Semin and Mike Green – have also been carrying the scoring load for the Caps in the postseason. They are the only players on the team with more than one point in the playoffs and have combined for 16 of Washington ’s 23 points. Semin and Ovechkin each have five points, while Backstrom has four and Green has two. Semin and Ovechkin have combined for four Washington goals as the Caps have outscored the Rangers 8-7, but still trail the best-of-seven-series 3-1. The foursome has also combined for 12 of Washington ’s 15 playoff assists. However, the quartet will need to elevate their game to another level tonight as the Caps try to stave off elimination and force a Game 6 back in New York on Sunday afternoon.



Hoping for history – Washington, which forced a Game 7 after falling behind 3-1 in last year's first-round series, is seeking to make a similar comeback against the Rangers. Teams have trailed 3-1 in a best-of-seven series a total of 229 times and have come back to win the series on 20 occasions (8.7%). The last team to come back from 3-1 to win a series was 2004, when Montreal beat Boston in seven games.



Five More Notes No Media Person Should Be Without

Round of shooters – Washington has outshot the Rangers 149-99 in the series (37.3-24.8 average) and fired at least 35 shots on goal in each game, including a series-high 40 in Game 3 (matching a Caps playoff record for shots in a regulation road game). The Rangers did not allow 35 shots on goal in three straight games all regular season. Washington 's 19 second-period shots in Game 4 tied a club record for shots in a period in a playoff game.



Entering Thursday's games the Capitals rank second in the NHL in shots per game and shots against per game, trailing only San Jose in both categories.



Survival guide – Washington was 2-1 when facing elimination in last year's playoffs.



Stingy Caps – The Capitals, who have allowed just three goals in the last three games, rank fourth in the playoffs in goals against per game (1.75). They are the only team among the top eight in that ranking with a losing record thus far (entering Thursday's games).



8's stage – Alex Ovechkin scored his first goal of the series in Game 4 and fired 11 shots on goal, his second double-digit shot total in the series. He shares the team lead with five points in four games and has had multiple-point games in six of the 11 playoff games he has played in his career.



For the record – The Capitals are 7-17 all-time in playoff Game 5s, including a 4-10 record at home and a 2-5 record when trailing in the series, 3-1.

LPJ - Don't worry about watching on not watching this one, my new Brooks Laich jersey arived bringing all the new jersey mojo with it!

Fellow Caps fans be sure to follow my live blog tonight from Verizon Center.

http://www.the-hogs.net/blogs/category/w ... -capitals/

Tell the bartender that i'll have what Matt Bradley's having!

2 goals on ice!

Up 2-0! Keep up the good work Jake! wish i could be there with ya!

Thanks, Bob. Me, too. This has been an amazing game so far.

man oh man what a game! I'm really proud of the way this team respond tonight. And what about Ovie with the highlight reel goal tonight! Let's keep it going in game 6 Caps, DON'T STOP BELIEVING!

UNLEASH THE FURY!!!!

Jake wrote:UNLEASH THE FURY!!!!

At least from TV, Verizon looked nuts. That must have been really cool to be there.

It was amazing. It was one of the best sporting events I have ever been to. The crowd was electric the whole night. Whenever they scored, I couldn't even hear myself think.

It just makes me wish FedEx Field could be more like that. ALL read everywehere. It is just plain impressive.

By the way Caps fans, my article is now up in the same Blog section. Check it out!

On my way to read Jake's article, but have to pause to say, WOW.

I was watching MSG, Sam Rosen and whoever replaced John Davidson. "Whoever" predicted that the Caps would fold as the second period started: "They can be had".

After Ovie's goal, he same "Whoever" asked Sam, "Who's you MVP?" Rosen answered, "You know who...Ovechkin is incredible".

Whoever: "That was a goal by a pretty fair hockey player."

Sam: "Pretty fair?"

Whoever, laughing: "Well, if you had to pick a team to win a game, the first player you'd pick is Number 8. No question!"

Way to go Caps fans!

The Rangers will be without their Bench Boss today as Mr. Tortilla (or however you spell his name) is suspended

http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/playoffs/ ... id=4101189

Leading the way – Washington is 4-1-0 in win-or-go-home games the last two seasons and faces another this afternoon at Madison Square Garden . And while the team’s stars tend to be young, seasoned veterans have a way of making big contributions in these situations. Clearly Alex Ovechkin, 23, and Simeon Varlamov, who will be 21 tomorrow, will need to be among Washington’s best players today, but keep an eye on the likes of Sergei Fedorov, Matt Bradley or Tom Poti. Fedorov, who ranks second among all active players in playoff points, had the game-winning goal in the regular-season finale last year that vaulted the Capitals into the playoffs. Friday night it was Bradley, playing in his 22nd career playoff game, who scored twice in the first period.

Note of the Night

Scoreboard? – The Capitals have outscored the New York Rangers in this series, 12-7, but still trail in games, 3-2. Washington has two wins, both by 4-0 scores, while the Rangers have won all three of their games by a single goal.



Five More Notes No Media Person Should Be Without

Hoping for history – Washington, which forced a Game 7 after falling behind 3-1 in last year's first-round series, is seeking to make a similar comeback against the Rangers. Teams have trailed 3-1 in a best-of-seven series a total of 229 times and have come back to win the series on 20 occasions (8.7%). The last team to come back from 3-1 to win a series was 2004, when Montreal beat Boston in seven games.



Blank stare – There have been three shutouts in this series (two for Washington, one for New York ), the most ever in a Capitals' playoff series. Simeon Varlamov has tied the Capitals playoff series record with two shutouts (matching Olie Kolzig's two vs. Ottawa in 1998), the 10th and 11th playoff shutouts in franchise history.



Welcome Matt – Matt Bradley scored his first two career playoff goals in Game 5, the 22nd playoff game of his career. Bradley, who had five goals in the regular season, started the scoring with the first Capitals playoff shorthanded goal since Steve Konowalchuk on April 19, 2000, vs. Pittsburgh . Only three active NHL forwards entered Friday's games with more career playoff games than Bradley without a goal (Craig Adams, Paul Gaustad, Steve Begin).



D-termined – Washington ranks second in the NHL (entering Saturday's games) in goals against per game in the playoffs (1.40) and has allowed just three goals in the last four games. The Capitals have held the Rangers to just 23.8 shots per game, the fewest in the NHL.



Survival guide – Washington is 3-1 when facing elimination in the playoffs in the last two seasons and 4-1 when you count the Capitals' do-or-die win in the 2008 regular-season finale.

As luck would have it, I'm on the job again today, but I have the DVR recording this one for when I get home. LETS GO CAPS, UNLEASH THE FURY!!!!!!!

Why couldn't this game have started two hours ago after we already made our first pick and had the big gap in between selections???? Grr... Now I have to follow both.

1-0 Caps!

whoops. 1-1

Just seconds after my brother in law texted me "GOOOOOAAALLLLL" the Rangers scored one of their own. Damn it.

Brashear totally pulled a dumbass Avery move right there. If they lose it will be because he pissed off the already chippy Rangers.

2-1 Caps! One of the NBC announcers is a Rangers fan