Washington Capitals

This season, shortened though it was, marked the first time in recent memory that there was no question to who was the top choice in net for the Capitals. Braden Holtby not only earned the vast majority of starts, but … Continue reading →

Golf is a healthful, enjoyable activity that can enrich your life far into your senior years. Nearly anyone can play golf, you just need to begin. The following article will give you advice to improve your knowledge. You can determine the best golf stance for yourself by doing this. It is so crucial for you to have a stance that works well with your individual build and style, but also accomplishes a good swing while allowing for precision. A good stance will do a lot for your game. In any sport like golf your body plays a pivotal factor in your performance. It is important not to rely on just the arms, but instead to utilize both the upper and lower body together as a solid unit. Your whole body is instrumental in completing a swing. When your shot is powered by your body, you can usually get more distance without having to use as much power from your arms. A helpful tip when it comes to golf is to walk, instead of renting a golf cart. This will exponentially increase the amount of exercise that you get on the course, and turn it into an extremely beneficial way to improve your health! It also helps you keep your large muscle groups warm and ready for your next shot. The key thing to consider when looking for a powerful swing is using both your upper and lower body to create momentum through the ball. Beginning golfers rely too much on their arms for swinging power, which causes them not to hit all that far. Moving your whole body will transfer the strength and motion from your legs and torso through to your ball. Wiggling your toes while getting ready to swing will tell you if your posture is correct. If you are able to move your feet without difficulty, you are probably not leaning in far enough. You need to lean into your ball so your feet are able to move a little bit, just not extremely far. Be sure that all of your attention is dedicated towards your next shot. Whether you have been hitting well or poorly so far doesn’t matter – you’re only as good as your next shot. Fretting about mistakes will affect your swing; just forget about them and move on. You may want to ask the advice of a golf pro when deciding which new clubs to buy. This is a good idea because a pro will be able to analyze your swing and stance to see what clubs are likely to improve your game the most. The rules of the sport are easy to understand, and the mental, social and physical benefits of golf are many! Having read the advice in this article, you should be ready to go out and start playing some golf.

Japers' Rink Player Card (click for hi-res version; data via Behind the Net, Hockey Analysis, CapGeek and NHL.com; h/t Habs EOTP): Beagle and his most frequent linemates: 2013 Capitals 5v5 Forward Usage, via Hockey Abstract: Beagle's Past Two Seasons (via Hockey Analysis): Previous Rink Wraps: 2011-12 (7.80 rating) 2010-11 (5.45 rating) Key Stat: Jay Beagle had a tough time in the playoffs against the Rangers, his lone tally in Game 3 notwithstanding. He was on-ice for 14 even-strength goals-against in 48 regular-season games, but six in seven first round contests. Beagle skated to a -1 rating in five of those contests, four of which occurred in games the center received less than ten minutes of total ice time. Interesting Stat: Beagle tallied a single game-winning goal on the season, a Jeff Schultz rebound that he shoved under Lightning goaltender Mathieu Garon in the third period on Valentine’s Day. Riding that confidence, Beagle would fire four shots on the Rangers' cage in his next game out, giving him seven shots over two games, the most trigger-happy two-game he had all season. The Good: Beagle dressed in all 55 Capitals games in 2013, the three-year regular skating on the fourth-line with Matt Hendricks and Joel Ward or Joey Crabb for most of the journey, and playing big minutes on the penalty kill. A dependable bottom-six forward, Beagle was clutch in the faceoff circle down the stretch, winning more than half of his draws in 14 of the last 16 regular season contests and 58% of his defensive-zone face-offs overall on the campaign. When a team's fourth line can control the puck (whether it be in the offensive or defensive zone) off of the linesman’s hand, it has a chance to dictate the puck’s direction for the first couple seconds of each shift. Beagle also increased his offensive output a bit under Adam Oates, his .17 points-per-game up a tick over the past two seasons. While not close to some high preseason predictions, Beagle kept his nose to the grindstone each night to improve, and ended up being rewarded with a career-high 12:06 of ice-time per night. The Bad: The Capitals were finished by the Rangers in seven games because of the team’s inability to pierce New York’s defense and goaltender Henrik Lundqvist. While Beagle can count one of the team’s 12 goals in the series as his own (tipping Jack Hillen’s shot in for a third period lead in Game 3), it was his, and his linemates’, ineffectiveness in their own half of the ice that helped the Rangers skate into the second round. While the top-six forwards struggled to puncture New York below their own blue line the Capitals’ bottom-six had trouble returning the favor against the Rangers’ offense, and Beagle ended up being on the ice for those half-dozen even-strength tallies against, and just the one goal-for. The fourth-line didn't lose the series for the Caps... but it sure didn't help much to not lose it. The Vote: Rate Beagle below on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the best) based on his performance relative to his potential and your expectations for the season - if he had the best year you could have imagined him having, give him a 10; if he more or less played as you expected he would, give him a 5 or a 6; if he had the worst year you could have imagined him having, give him a 1. The Discussion: Beagle performed reasonably well for the team's investment and gave them big minutes on the penalty-kill, but there's room for improvement in his game - can he continue to improve his offensive production, or, at 27-years-old, is this what he is? If so, is that enough of a contribution for a regular on a team with aspirations? What would it take for you to give him a "10" next year? Poll How do you rate Jay Beagle's 2013 season? 10 9 8 7 6 5

Of the players who saw regular time on the Capitals’ roster this season, three are set to become restricted free agents and the team obtains negotiating rights simply by submitting a qualifying offer. Washington has the right to match any … Continue reading →

Jack Hillen"Each man delights in the work that suits him best."-- HomerIf you stopped a Washington Capitals fan on the street and asked him or her, “name six Capitals defensemen,” you might hear the name “Jack Hillen,” but if you did, it would not be the first one…or the second…or perhaps even the third.Those same Caps fans might not know that Hillen finished third among Caps defensemen in goals and points, finished third in plus-minus, was one of only two Capital defensemen with game-winning goals, and had the second best shooting percentage among defensemen. He did it in only 23 games. Seven Capital defensemen played in more games in the 2013 season.What is perhaps more impressive about Hillen’s numbers is that he achieved them largely in the last ten games in which he appeared in the regular season. His season got off to something less than an auspicious start when he lasted only 3:29 in the season opener, suffering a shoulder injury courtesy of a hit from Tampa Bay’s Vincent Lecavalier. He missed the Caps’ next 25 games, then managed to record only one assist in 12 games after his return.In his last ten games of the regular season, though, Hillen went 3-5-8, plus-8, while averaging 16 minutes of ice time per game. Those last ten games reflected a change in pairings for Hillen. Over the course of the season Hillen spent 90 percent of his 5-on-5 ice time split primarily between two players – John Carlson (53 percent) and Steve Oleksy (37 percent). It was with Oleksy that Hillen scored all three of his goals and recorded half of his six assists for the season. What is perhaps surprising is that among Capital defensemen having played in more than five games, Hillen had by far the best goals against/on ice per game, and only John Erskine had a better goals against/on ice per 60 minutes at 5-on-5. He had more advantageous zone starts (only Tomas Kundratek had a higher percentage of offensive zone starts) and benefited from both better quality of teammates and lesser quality of competition (numbers from behindthenet.ca). These factors moderate the defensive statistics somewhat, but Hillen could be credited with having taking advantage of those situations.The “Southeast Division” effect seemed less pronounced with Hillen than with many of his teammates. That might be as much a function of his missing 25 of the season’s first 26 games, when the Caps struggled (11-14-1 overall, 4-11-1 outside the Southeast Division). Nevertheless, Hillen was 1-3-4, plus-7, in nine games against the Southeast and 2-3-5, plus-2, in 14 games against other Eastern Conference teams.Odd Hillen Stat… The Caps were 16-5-2 in games in which Hillen appeared in the 2013 season. He averaged almost three more minutes of ice time per game in wins (18:31) than he did in losses (15:32).Game to Remember… April 9th vs. Montreal. In what amounted to a “statement” game for the Caps – the Caps had gone 22 straight games without winning a game against a playoff qualifier in regulation time – Hillen assisted on the go-ahead goal and scored the game-winner himself in the Caps’ 3-2 win over the Canadiens at Bell Centre. The two points for Hillen gave him four over two games, the first time he accomplished that feat in his career.Game to Forget… January 19th vs. Tampa Bay. Sure, it was a modest contract by free agency standards – a one-year deal for $650,000 – but there is still the desire to impress one’s new employers that they are getting value for their dollar. Hillen lasted six shifts in his first game. His first shift ended after 13 seconds when the Lightning took a penalty, and the power play unit came on for the Caps. His second shift ended after 44 seconds when Vincent Lecavalier scored for the Lightning to make the score 2-1, Tampa Bay. His fifth shift lasted four seconds when the Lightning took another penalty, and his sixth – and last shift for the evening – lasted 30 seconds until Lecavalier deposited Hillen into the boards, ending his night a

Your savory breakfast links: Adam Oates on the season, in three parts. [CSNW (Part I, II and III)] In a similar vein as what we wrote last week, The Boss chimes in on "success" and success. [Ted's Take] What to expect when you're expecting realignment. [CSNW] The (maybe) five-plus-million-dollar question: should the Caps bring back Mike Ribeiro? [WaPo] Breaking down the team's other UFAs. [WaPo] A look back at Mike Green's 2013. [Peerless] If the Caps could change one thing before the puck drops next October, what would it be? [DSP] Eric Fehr is a PoY finalist. [Caps Outsider] Happy Dynamo Day, Alex Ovechkin and comrades! [KHL, RMNB] The Reading Royals are one win away from the Kelly Cup. [Caps Outsider] Sergey Kostenko is ditching North America. Oh. [RMNB] Finally, happy 57th birthday to Tom Rowe.

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Mike Green"Happiness is brief. It will not stay. God batters at its sails."-- Euripides Over the last five years the NHL scheduled 376 regular season games per team. Mike Green played in 259 of them – 69 percent. That includes the 35 games he played of a 48-game season in 2013 – 73 percent. Those 35 games played in 2013 did not prevent Green from leading all NHL defensemen in goals scored (12), his best goals-per-game pace since he recorded 31 goals in 68 games during his Norris Trophy-nomination season in 2008-2009.But as much as the goals, it was the missed time – again – due to “lower body injury” issues. Green missed 13 games this season to those issues, likely an extension of the groin injury issues that have been the primary reason for his missing 55 of the last 116 regular season games played by the Washington Capitals.One wonders what wonders a healthy Green could do for the Caps. In the 13 games he missed, the team was 6-7-0 and averaged 2.69 goals scored per game. In the 35 games in which Green appeared the team was 21-11-3 and averaged 3.17 goals per game. 13 games of a decent, but not extraordinary offensive production (2.69 goals per game would have finished 11th in the league in scoring offense), 35 games of superior production (3.17 goals per game would have finished second).And nowhere was Green’s absence more keenly felt than on the power play. In the 13 games Green missed the Caps were 10-for-44 with the man advantage, a 22.7 percent conversion rate. That was actually quite good, a conversion rate that would have finished third in the league over a full season. But with Green in the lineup for 35 games the Caps converted power plays at a 28.3 percent rate (34-for-120), and their 20-for-65 conversion rate for power plays after he returned to the lineup for good on March 21st was a 30.8 percent power play conversion rate. He had a hand in ten of those 20 power play goals (3-7-10). Green was on ice for 15 of those 20 power play goals including the last 14 power play goals scored by the Caps in the regular season.That power play performance is one side of a coin, though. Over the last three seasons, only 10 of Green’s 23 goals have come at 5-on-5. His shooting percentage is 6.29 percent over that span, which is almost what it is over the last six years combined (6.36 percent). What Green had been experiencing at 5-on-5 in recent years leading up to this season is a steadily dropping shooting percentage at 5-on-5 – 7.89 percent in 2008-2009, 6.80 percent in 2009-2010, 5.45 percent in 2010-2011, and 0.00 percent in 2011-2012 when he did not record a 5-on-5 goal on 45 shots. The 2013 season was a nod from the gods in a sense, his seven 5-on-5 goals on 59 shots (11.86 percent) representing his career high in 5-on-5 shooting percentage, following his career low (0.00 percent).Part of Green’s problem is that he appears to be the sort of offensive defenseman who flourishes with a dependable defensive anchor. In 2011-2012 most of his 5-on-5 time was spent with Roman Hamrlik (53 percent of his 5-on-5 ice time). Another 27 percent of his ice time was spent with Jeff Schultz, a partner with whom he did well in the past, but a player who struggled in the ice time that he received in 2011-2012. In 2013, 78 percent of Green’s 5-on-5 ice time was spent with Karl Alzner, the epitome of a stay-at-home defenseman. It did not necessarily lead to a renaissance for Green at 5-on-5, but it was a substantial improvement over his 2011-2012 output.Odd Green Stat… In his last 15 games of the regular season Green was 9-9-18, yet he was still minus-5. Part of that is the fact that Green was 4-7-11 on the power play in those games. On the other hand, he was on ice for 14 of the 26 even strength goals scored against Washington in those games.Game to Remember… April 27th vs. Boston. Mike Green had not recorded a three-point game since October 22, 2011, in a 7-1 win over the Detroit Red Wings, a span of 59 games. But on

Hopefully, Volpatti's role will continue to shrink. (Faceoff) As the Washington Capitals’ 2013 season has come to a close, and many words have been written about the team as a whole, it’s now time to look at this club at an individual level. As such, we will be taking a look at each player who played a significant role on the club this season and what they could bring in the future. First up is winger Aaron Volpatti. Season Summary: Volpatti joined the Capitals after 16 games in Vancouver to open his season on a waiver claim, a curious move at the time and a curious move now. Volpatti is a fourth line player, and was such for Washington in terms of production, posting one assist in his 17 games for the club despite seeing some time on the top line with Alex Ovechkin. He was a very poor possessor of the puck, posting a corsi rating of -9.75 and a corsi relative of -9.2. Despite that, he saw time over Wojtek Wolski in the lineup before finally seeing his run in the lineup end when Washington traded for Martin Erat. He returned briefly when Erat got hurt again, but did not play in the postseason. Grade: C- Role Play: When Volpatti arrived, it seemed as though his role would be to provide a physical edge on the roster, which he did to an extent. He played the majority of his minutes on the fourth line and did what most fourth liners do: he hit people, saw a little bit of special teams time, and hit people some more. He didn’t play those minutes particularly effectively, however, and was an absolute disaster when asked to play up on the higher lines. Grade: C- Playoffs: Volpatti did not see postseason action. Grade: N/A Future Potential: Volpatti was signed to a two-year contract extension worth $575,000 per season late in the year, which to be honest seems rather silly given his limited skill set. Still, he’s an NHL level player who can fill in for a game or so, and it’s not like they were going to get someone like that for much cheaper, especially with the salary cap crunch Washington has coming. In short, don’t expect him to play many minutes or effective minutes, but he’s a body who can play some minutes. Grade: C Harry Hawkings is a college student credentialed to cover the Capitals for RtR. Follow him on Twitter here for all your news needs this season.

The Washington sports media is like an abstract representation of the Energizer Bunny. It plows on always, mallets in hand beating on the dual drum heads of indignation and self-righteousness. And nothing charges up those derisory batteries like the conclusion of a local team’s season. And because the Jason Collins story is an antediluvian three-weeks old, and because the coverage of Robert Griffin III’s Twitter timeline, his knee, his wedding registry, his preferred Subway sandwich, is completely saturated, the Energizer Bunny turned its sights on the recently and unceremoniously eliminated Washington Capitals. If you were able to cut a hole through the blanket of taciturn agony that invariably seizes Capitals fans in the days after a playoff elimination, you saw, you read, and you heard as the local media did their best impression of a territorial dog, sniffing around the base of a fence until finding the stale scent of one of its kind, and then adding its fresh product to the reeking urinary cocktail. Not everyone is guilty of this. The beat writers and radio stations that show up day in and day out to cover this team do tremendous work. Even some more regular columnists have wrangled themselves enough of a familiarity with the team that their work holds water. Praises from these parties are sung with something like honesty, and their criticisms are not so vapid or untenable. But the ones who are guilty, well, they're astoundingly guilty. I don’t mean to liken the local rags and radio shows to animal urine, but think about it. They are hungry beasts, clamoring around the locker rooms. The players feeding quotes to the undulating bouquet of microphones is equivalent to a tourist tearing pieces of bread from a loaf and tossing them to the ducks of the Potomac. The ducks digest their little morsels, happily rustle their feathers, and with their own excrement fertilize the very grounds upon which the players-represented-by-the-bread-tearing-tourist walk. Most recently, one such duck got her hands on one such morsel (though it had sadly been digested and expelled many times over already), and came to some sweeping conclusions about the Capitals. That conclusion, in summary, is that Alexander Ovechkin and George McPhee are bannermen for the Referees Against Washington conspiracy theory, and that their tinfoil-hat wearing is an indictment of the organization’s overall philosophy. The quotes, in case you managed to miss them, came from Ovechkin after Game 7, who said, "Not saying there was a phone call, but [the NHL] wanted Game 7. You know, lockout, escrow, league must make profit." Two days later, the General Manager came to his captain’s defense, saying, "I don’t think there’s a league conspiracy, but it sure didn’t feel right." Now, according to what’s put in black and white and thrown onto driveways every morning, these two quotes are evidence that the Washington Capitals’ biggest problem is a state of mind, and not some detail of their on-ice product. That’s…a real stretch. A sanctimonious swing and a miss. Is there something wrong with the Capitals’ organization? Anyone who has held their head in their hands after six straight eliminations could tell you as such. None of these people, I’d wager, would presume to find the root of that problem in the midst of the most despondent locker room of the season. One doesn't need to possess an innate familiarity with a club to make a valid point about them, but if they're going to put the culture of a team in their crosshairs, perhaps a bit more diligence than simply parachuting in to get a glimpse of the players cleaning out their lockers is in order. In the wake of yet another disappointing conclusion to the season, what we’re getting in the stead of honest assessments of the team from informed parties are sensationalist diatribes derived from the paltry nuggets of information that