Empty Thoughts: Capitals 3, Penguins 1

Observations from the Penguins’ 3-1 loss to the Capitals:

Special teams really did the Penguins in during this game.

To be clear, the penalty kill was actually pretty good as it went 5 for 5 and snapped a skid of seven consecutive games in allowing an opposing power-play goal.

But being on the penalty kill that much, especially in the second period four times, was tough. The game story covers that issue.

On the flip side, the Penguins’ power play was 0 for 3. But the numbers don’t relay how good it actually looked.

The top unit moved the puck around pretty well and actually created some things in tight around the crease early in the game.

In fact, that group had two shots clunk off posts early in the contest. First, at 4:10 of the first period, defenseman Kris Letang chopped a slapper from the right point that forward Sidney Crosby tipped. The puck clapped off a post.

Then about 16 seconds later, Crosby took a pass to the right of the net and whacked a forehand shot off the near post.

After that, the Penguins rarely looked like a threat to take control of this game.

If they get a goal on either of those shots, this game probably takes a different route.

“The beginning of the game, I thought we had the start we wanted,” coach Mike Sullivan said. “I thought our power play was really good. We hit two posts. If we score there, I think the complexion of the game changes drastically. I thought the power play was really good early in the game. … The puck didn’t go in the net for us.”

What happened

Following a scoreless first period, the Capitals’ third line struck first 4:52 into the second period. Taking the puck deep into the Penguins’ right corner, Capitals defenseman Nick Jensen fended off a check from Penguins defenseman Marcus Pettersson but briefly lost the puck. Capitals forward Richard Panik was positioned to the right of the cage and claimed the puck, moving a subtle pass to the right circle for ex-Penguins forward Conor Sheary who gripped and ripped a wrister past Jarry’s right shoulder on the near side for his third goal of the season. Assists went to Panik and Jensen.

It became a 2-0 game at 11:31 of the second. After Capitals forward Nicklas Backstrom gained the offensive zone on the left wing, Capitals forward T.J. Oshie lugged it deep up the right boards and whipped a backhand seam pass to the right circle. Capitals forward Jakub Vrana took the feed and sizzled a wrister past Jarry’s glove hand, again on the near side, for his fifth goal. Oshie and Backstrom were credited with assists.

Somehow, that sequence featured three Penguins defensemen from three different pairings in Cody Ceci, Mike Matheson and P.O Joseph.

Washington added an insurance score 1:09 into the third period. From the Penguins’ right point, Capitals defenseman Zdeno Chara golfed a one-timer that struck Panik, positioned in the right circle. Settling the puck, Panik sneaked a pass across the front of the crease for Capitals forward Lars Eller, open on the right of the blue paint. With Jarry scrambling, Eller easily whipped a forehand shot into the mostly vacant cage for his second goal. Panik and Chara had assists.

The Penguins broke up the shutout bid at 15:05 of the third period. After a strong offensive zone entry by Penguins defenseman John Marino, Penguins forward Teddy Blueger lugged the puck deep up the right wing and fed a tight backhand pass to the right circle for forward Zach Aston-Reese who snapped off a wrister past goaltender Vitek Vanecek’s blocker for his third goal. There was a brief review of the score as Marino crashed into Vanecek but the score stood. Blueger and Marino were credited with assists.

Statistically speaking

• The Capitals dominated shots, 42-27.

• Eller led the game with seven shots.

• Forward Evgeni Malkin led the Penguins with six shots.

• The only Capitals skaters who failed to record a shot on net were Backstrom and Chara.

• The only Penguins skaters who failed to record a shot on net were Ceci as well as forwards Mark Jankowski and Colton Sceviour.

• Letang led the game with 26:09 of ice time on 28 shifts.

• Defenseman John Carlson led the Capitals with 25:42 of ice time on 24 shifts.

• Faceoffs were even, 29-29 (50%).

• Capitals forward Nic Dowd was 9 for 11 (82%).

• Blueger was 8 for 13 (62%).

• Letang as well as Capitals defensemen Justin Schultz, Brenden Dillon and forward Evgeny Kuznetsov each led the game with two blocked shots.

Randomly speaking

• Even if he lost, this might have been Jarry’s best game of the season. He was aggressive. He looked more confident than he has at any point of this season. And he had to be given how poorly his teammates played in front of him. Despite the result, this was another step forward for Jarry.

• Sullivan really mixed things up late in the second period. Kasperi Kapanen was bumped from the second line to the third line. Brandon Tanev and Sam Lafferty then got some shifts on the second line sporadically throughout. And on defense, Pettersson was moved up to the top pairing with Letang while Joseph was moved to the third pairing with Ceci.

• The second line — at least the original version of it that involved Kapanen, Malkin and Zucker — was just really quiet. Sure, Malkin had a ton of shots, but it would be a stretch to say any of them were a major threat.

• Joseph has really leveled off after such an outstanding start to his career. Perhaps the adrenaline of getting his first NHL games has worn off, but he’s been mistake-prone a bit more as of late.

• That said, moving him off of Letang’s pairing might have been a mission of mercy more than anything. Playing with a guy who takes as many chances as Letang can be taxing, even for a veteran such as his regular defensive partner, Brian Dumoulin.

• The Penguins got relatively little from their fourth line. In fact, the most notable contribution by that group came when Lafferty dropped the massive Chara with a big hit on a forecheck in the second period behind Washington’s net. Beyond that, the trio of Lafferty, Jankowski and Sceviour was inert.

• Yes, there were a lot of special teams and that always jumbles things up a bit but the fourth line barely saw the ice. Jankowski has a role on both special teams units so his total ice time was goosed a bit at 10:13 on 15 shifts. But it really dropped off with Lafferty (5:48 on nine shifts) and Sceviour (4:25 on nine shifts).

• It won’t be on a replay anywhere, but Blueger had a really intelligent play midway through the first period. A rebound slid to him above the Penguins’ left circle. With his back to the blue line and Dillon bearing down on him, Blueger spun to his left and backhanded a soft clearing attempt off the near boards that ricocheted to the high slot of the Capitals zone. He avoided a turnover as well as an icing infraction and allowed his teammates to get a change.

His intelligence for the game is something to behold.

• Pettersson returned to the lineup after missing nine games due to an undisclosed injury. He logged 14:19 of ice time on 19 shifts and had two shots on two attempts. He was also on the ice for two goals against.

• Eller might be the best third-line center in the NHL these days. Probably has been for a few years. A first-round pick in 2007 by the Blues (No. 13 overall), he’s got plenty of skill. But he also has some size (6-foot-2, 205 pounds) and while he’s not some big banger and crasher, he doesn’t mind contact. He wins draws (53.8 % conversion rate this season). And he regularly draws assignments against the opposition’s top centers.

Eller really makes life easier for Washington’s top two centers, Backstrom and Kuznetsov.

Historically speaking

• Sheary now has five goals in seven career games against the Penguins.

• Panik recorded his 100th and 101st career assists.

Publicly speaking

• Sullivan on the second period:

“We self-inflicted there. It’s tough. We took four penalties. Eight of the 20 minutes were in the penalty box. So almost half of the period, we’re killing penalties. It just takes guys out of the game. It takes guys out of the flow. It gets tough against a power play as good as Washington is to try to defend that. It gives Washington momentum, even when they don’t score. We certainly didn’t help ourselves with the amount of penalties that we took.”

• Blueger on penalties doing in his team during the second period:

“It felt like the whole second period, we were short-handed. We’d kill one off then a couple of shifts later, get another one. So it was just tough to generate momentum. They kept playing offense shift after shift after shift on the power play. So it was tough for us to generate any offense for us or to sustain pressure that period. That’s kind of when they really took the game over and had a really good spell. We just never really recovered from it.

“I thought the first period was pretty good. Hard fought. Some good battles. That second period was when it got away from us. The third period, we kind of struggled to generate any momentum. It’s tough when you’re always defending. A lot of guys aren’t playing that don’t (penalty) kill. They’re out of their rhythm.”

• Sullivan called for more conductors and a few less passengers:

“We need more guys to step up and make an impact on the game. That’s how teams become teams in the truest sense of the word. Everybody needs to go into games thinking that they’re going to make a positive impact on the game in some way shape or form. And sometimes that means scoring goals. When teams win consistently, usually the offense is spread throughout the lineup. They get timely goals from role players then they get consistent play from their core. We just need to make sure we get more guys making a positive impact on the game.”

• Sullivan liked what he got out of Jarry:

“He was pretty good tonight. He made a lot of big saves for us. There was significant zone time when their power play was on the ice as often as it was. So we saw a lot of shots. He was pretty solid. Hopefully, for us and for Tristan, that will be a boost of confidence again. He’s put a couple of solid games together for us.”

• Capitals coach Peter Laviolette lauded his third line of Eller, Panik and Sheary:

“They’re all a little bit different but they’re powerful. When Richard is on his game, he’s hard to handle. I think Lars is a really smart guy to be in the middle with them. And, again, he’s a powerful guy. And Conor, I think, has been really on point with his game. He works tenaciously to (recover) pucks and to work with those two. When all three of them are going like that and playing that powerful game, it becomes hard to handle for lines that play against them.”

Historically speaking

• Game summary.

• Event summary.

• Highlights:

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