Is there a soul out there who thought the Washington Capitals had a legitimate shot at a playoff berth in 2007-08?

We’re talking about a rebuilding Washington franchise that finished ahead of only one Eastern Conference club in points in both of the last two seasons. This year, the Capitals started 6-14-1, collecting four fewer points than any team in the league before firing coach Glen Hanlon on Nov. 22.

The Caps had won just three of their last 18 games when the front office summoned Bruce Boudreau from their AHL affiliate in Hershey to take over the club. The turnaround has been startling.

Washington’s Improvement under Boudreau

Category. . . . . . . . . . . Under Hanlon. . . . . . . . . .Under Boudreau
Team Record. . . . . . . . . . .6-14-1. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-8-4
Goals per Game. . . . . . . . . .2.2. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3.4
Goals Allowed/Game. . . . . . 3.0. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3.1
Power Play Pct. . . . . . . . . 14.6. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20.8
Power Play Kill. . . . . . . . . .78.2. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82.1

Washington returns to action following the All-Star break with a 23-22-5 record. That’s good for second place in the soft Southeast Division, one point behind the first-place Hurricanes. Even looking beyond the division, Washington is just three points from the eighth and final playoff berth in the East.

The Capitals take the ice in Montreal Tuesday night with seven wins in their last nine contests. That stretch includes a 4-2 win over the East’s points leader, the Ottawa Senators, which completed Washington’s four-game sweep of the season series.

“It’s come directly from Bruce,” Caps center Brooks Laich said. “He’s a confident guy, and he preaches that to his players, and his players are playing with confidence. He makes the game real easy to play. It’s a lot different around here now than it was before.”

It hasn’t been all fun.

“He doesn’t make it comfortable around here by any means to make us feel satisfied with what we’ve done,” noted Mike Green, whose 14 goals lead all NHL defensemen.

There could be a payoff, of course. A playoff spot this spring would be Washington’s first in five years.

Posted by Thom Henninger at 10:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Once again, the Northwest Division race is a volatile one with teams frequently swapping first place.

Hey, it’s the division’s history. Last season, the Vancouver Canucks claimed the Northwest crown by a single point over the Minnesota Wild. The Colorado Avalanche did the same to the Canucks in 2002-03, and the Canucks returned the favor the following season.

The Calgary Flames won the division title with an eight-point cushion in 2005-06. Otherwise, it’s usually a division race with more than two contenders who flirt with first place deep into the season’s final days.

Maybe history helps explain the last 10 days. Calgary, Minnesota and Vancouver were tied atop the division on Jan. 13, with all five Northwest clubs scheduled to play on that Sunday. Since then, four of the five teams have held at least a share of first place, with only the last-place Edmonton Oilers unable to move up the standings.

First place should be up for grabs all season. Here is the points standings heading into Wednesday night’s action.

Northwest Division, 2007-08

Team. . . . . . . . Team Points
Calgary. . . . . . . . . . . . 58
Minnesota. . . . . . . . . . 57
Colorado. . . . . . . . . . . 56
Vancouver. . . . . . . . . . 55
Edmonton. . . . . . . . . . 49

Four times in the last seven days, one of the contenders has taken over sole possession of first place. The top spot has changed hands each of the last two nights.

On Monday, Minnesota jumped over both Calgary and Colorado into first place, with a 4-2 victory in Vancouver, in the opener of a three-game road trip for the Wild. Pierre-Marc Bouchard scored two goals and assisted on the other two, and Niklas Backstrom outshined Vancouver’s Roberto Luongo with 38 saves.

Next up for Minnesota were stops in Calgary and Denver. On Tuesday, it was the Flames hosting the Wild, and Calgary claimed a 2-1 win to secure sole possession of first place for the second time in five days. Josh Harding kept the heavily outshot Wild in the game with 35 stops, though veteran center Craig Conroy put the game-winner past him midway through the final period.

The Wild will visit the Avalanche Thursday, and they could take over first again by beating the Avs on their home ice. Then the Northwest clubs get a brief break from one another. When they begin pairing up again in mid-February, you can be sure first place will still be on the line.

Posted by Thom Henninger at 6:36 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The Anaheim Ducks lost to the Stars in Dallas Sunday afternoon, 5-2, ending a six-game winning streak and slowing a month-long surge in which the Stanley Cup champions had gone 12-2-1. The Ducks had defeated Dallas at home five days earlier, but Sunday they lost for the first time since Jan. 5.

A month ago, speculation began that the Ducks were struggling with the “Stanley Cup hangover.” Cup champions celebrate all summer and often don’t start well early in the next season.

“The Stanley Cup hangover is not a myth,” Ducks general manager Brian Burke recently said to Charley Walters of the St. Paul Pioneer Press.

Recent history suggests that’s true. The playoff fate of last year’s Stanley Cup finalists is far from decided, but the eight teams that appeared in the previous four Stanley Cup finals didn’t fare well the following season. Four of the eight failed to make the playoffs, and not one team won a first-round matchup the year after playing for the Cup. Last season, neither Carolina nor Edmonton -- the finalists a year earlier -- advanced to the postseason.

A month ago on Dec. 18, the reigning champs had lost three of four and were 15-15-4. A few nights earlier, they had allowed four power-play goals in a single period and dropped a 5-2 decision to Minnesota, a team that had scored just four goals in its previous four games.

On the 18th, the Ducks began their 12-2-1 surge by shutting out the Sharks in San Jose, 2-0. Corey Perry scored his 18th goal of the season for the only goal that mattered in the end. He found the net a team-high nine times in those 15 games. The 22-year-old wing, whose 26 goals lead Anaheim, is on course for 42, and he’s already surpassed his career high of 17 in 82 games last season.

Perry has a seven-game point scoring streak going into Wednesday night’s game, when the Red Wings stop in Anaheim during a West Coast swing. He continues to build on his breakout season, with five goals and seven assists in his seven-game run.

Another 22-year-old, Ryan Getzlaf, has a 14-game point scoring streak. He’s recorded six goals and 15 assists during his run. With a team-leading 57 points on the season, Getzlaf is one shy of tying his career high, set a year ago. His 38 assists are a career high and rank eighth in the league. Getzlaf is six days older than Perry, and both hope to be in the midst of another Ducks championship run when their mid-May birthdays roll around.

With the young kids putting up the points, no team won more games or picked up more points than the Ducks during their month-long surge.

Team Leaders in Points, Dec. 18-Jan. 18

Team. . . . . . .W-L-OTL. . . Points
Ana. . . . . . . . .12-2-1. . . . . . .25
Pit. . . . . . . . . 10-3-1. . . . . . .21
Det. . . . . . . . .10-4-1. . . . . . .21
Atl. . . . . . . . . .9-6-2. . . . . . .20

The Ducks moved back into the Pacific Division race in the last month, though Sunday’s loss to Dallas allowed the Stars to secure first place from the Ducks by a single point (61-60). The only other Western Conference club with more points is the Detroit Red Wings, with a league-best 74 that is 10 more than any other NHL club.

The Red Wings come calling Wednesday on a 20-4-2 run dating to Nov. 27. It’s a big test -- against a key conference rival -- to see if the Ducks have ditched the Stanley Cup hangover and are nearly ready for playoff hockey.

Posted by Thom Henninger at 6:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Sidney Crosby, who led the NHL with 120 points last season at age 19, is the star in Pittsburgh. The Penguin known in some circles as The Next One is on course for his third straight 100-point campaign after being the first overall pick in the 2005 draft.

Crosby can’t help but overshadow teammate and 2004 second overall pick Evgeni Malkin, but it’s the 21-year-old Russian who has netted a team-leading 12 goals during Pittsburgh’s current 10-1-1 surge. Of course, Crosby assisted on eight of them, including two of his three goals Monday night in a 4-1 victory over the Rangers.

The hat trick was the second in 11 days for Malkin, who has 23 goals and 52 points through 45 games in just his second NHL season. He is the third player to net a pair of hat tricks in 2007-08, though the 11-day span suddenly looks far less impressive.

Players with Two Hat Tricks, 2007-08

Player. . . . . . . . . . . Date. . . . . . .Outcome. . . . . . . . . Date. . . . . . .Outcome
Ilya Kovalchuk, Atl. .11/1/07. . . . . 4-6 Ott (L). . . . . . . . 11/3/07. . . . . 6-4 TB (W)
Joffrey Lupul, Phi. .12/11/07. . . . .8-2 Pit (W). . . . . . . . 12/15/07. . . . 5-6 Car (SOL)
Evgeni Malkin, Pit. . .1/3/08. . . . . 6-2 Tor (W). . . . . . . . 1/14/08. . . . .4-1 NYR (W)

Joffrey Lupul of the Flyers recorded two tricks in five days last month, and Atlanta’s Ilya Kovalchuk topped that in November. The Thrashers wing, who leads the NHL with 37 goals, scored three in back-to-back games with a single day off in the middle.

On Nov. 1, Kovalchuk tallied three third-period goals, but they weren’t enough to erase a 5-0 deficit in Ottawa. Two nights later, the Thrashers trailed Tampa Bay 4-1, but Kovalchuk scored three of Atlanta’s five unanswered goals for a 6-4 victory.

Posted by Thom Henninger at 9:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The playoff chase intensifies this time of year, and solid goaltending can be the difference-maker as contenders push for postseason berths. As the All-Star break approaches, several NHL goalies have been on top of their game for an extended period. All finished strong in 2007 and are off to great starts in 2008.

With Miikka Kiprusoff in net, the Calgary Flames have moved atop the Northwest Division with a 10-1-2 surge over the last four weeks. Kiprusoff claimed all 10 of those wins, the most victories among his peers in this span.

Kiprusoff doesn’t rank among the league’s best in goals-against average and save percentage during this four-week stretch, but he didn’t need to: his Flames are generating plenty of scoring. They have averaged four goals a game in a five-game winning streak that will be on the line Tuesday night against Phoenix.

The Vancouver Canucks are just a point behind the Flames in the Northwest race, and much of the credit goes to netminder Roberto Luongo. Over the last four weeks, he has posted the best save percentage among goalies, and he ranks second to Chris Osgood in GAA.

Let’s take a look at some of the better performers in net since Dec. 10, 2007, ranked by their save percentage.

Goalie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . W-L-OTL. . . . . GAA. . . . . . . . .SvPct. . . . .Sup/60 Min
Roberto Luongo, Van. . . . . 6-2-0. . . . . . . 1.49. . . . . . . . .948. . . . . . . . . 2.61
Chris Osgood, Det. . . . . . . 6-1-0. . . . . . . 1.43. . . . . . . . .947. . . . . . . . . 3.58
Ty Conklin, Pit. . . . . . . . . . 7-0-0. . . . . . . 2.00. . . . . . . .939. . . . . . . . . .3.19
Ilya Bryzgalov, Pho. . . . . . . 6-3-1. . . . . . . 2.14. . . . . . . . .934. . . . . . . . . .2.63
Martin Brodeur, NJ. . . . . . .7-3-0. . . . . . . 1.99. . . . . . . . .932. . . . . . . . . 2.09
Miikka Kiprusoff, Clg. . . . . 10-1-2. . . . . . . 2.78. . . . . . . . .905. . . . . . . . . .3.63

Luongo is 6-2-0, aiding the Canucks to six wins in eight games, even though the offense has provided just 2.61 goals per 60 minutes with their No. 1 guy between the pipes. Thirty-five goalies have received more offensive support than Luongo in this span.

In the last four weeks, New Jersey’s Martin Brodeur has received even less support on the scoreboard. Fifty-one goalies have received more on average, as the Devils have barely averaged two goals for every 60 minutes Brodeur has been in net. For the season, only the Islanders and Blues have scored fewer goals than the Devils, who lead the Atlantic Division with the Penguins and Rangers in hot pursuit.

Coyotes goalie Ilya Bryzgalov also has excelled despite a recent lack of support. He’s posted an impressive .934 save percentage against the likes of the Sharks, Rangers, Canucks, Red Wings, Avalanche and Ducks since Dec. 10, en route to a 6-3-1 record. On Saturday, he stopped 29 of 31 shots in a 3-2 shootout victory over the defending Stanley Cup champions. Bryzgalov didn’t allow a goal in three shootout attempts.

There’s a surprise among the group. Ty Conklin has been hot as Pittsburgh’s primary goalie with starter Marc-Andre Fleury sidelined. In the four weeks Fleury has been out with a high ankle sprain, Conklin has gone 7-0-0. He has shut out Buffalo and Florida in his last four starts, a stretch during which Conklin has allowed just three goals and a 0.74 GAA. He chases his eighth straight win on the road against the Panthers Tuesday.

Maybe less surprising is the recent performance of Detroit goaltender Chris Osgood. The Red Wings are 17-2-1 in their last 20 games, and Osgood is 9-1-0 in this stretch. He has a .959 save percentage in his last four starts -- all wins. Osgood’s Red Wings lead the NHL in wins (32), points (67), goals (151) and fewest goals allowed (90).

Posted by Thom Henninger at 11:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The weather took a wintry turn in December, clobbering much of the country with major snow storms and colder-than-normal temperatures. At the same time, a number of NHL players turned up the heat during the final month of 2007.

No one can top the 14 December tallies recorded by Calgary’s leader in goals and points, Jarome Iginla. He has 29 goals and 55 points on the season, good for third place in both goals scored and points. He trails Ilya Kovalchuk (33) and Alexander Ovechkin (32) in goals, Vincent Lacavalier (58) and Kovalchuk (57) in points.

Most Goals in December

Player. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gm. . Goals
Jarome Iginla, Cal. . . . . . . .14. . . .14
Ilya Kovalchuk, Atl. . . . . . . 16. . . .12
Alexander Ovechkin, Was. . 13. . . . 11
Mike Ribeiro, Dal. . . . . . . . 14. . . .11
Joffrey Lupul, Phi. . . . . . . 13. . . . 10
Jason Spezza, Ott. . . . . . . .14. . . .10
Dany Heatley, Ott. . . . . . . .14. . . .10
Vincent Lecavalier, TB. . . . 14. . . .10

Iginla recorded a league-high seven power-play goals in December, and only he and Washington’s Alexander Ovechkin scored three game-winners last month. On Saturday with the scored tied 3-3, Iginla netted a late-third period goal to secure a 5-3 win over the Stanley Cup champion Ducks. His scoring touch has carried into January, as he’s scored four goals in his last two games.

Kovalchuk used his December surge to take over the league lead in goals scored, and he continues to pile up points. In his last four games, Kovalchuk has four goals and 10 points.

Ovechkin helped the Capitals to a home-and-home sweep of the Ottawa Senators in the last week. He tallied four goals in Saturday’s 8-6 win in Ottawa, and assisted twice in Washington’s 6-3 victory at home on New Year’s Day.

Veteran center Mike Ribeiro is enjoying a breakout season. The Stars forward has already surpassed his single-season career high with 21 goals in 38 games, and he’s been held without a point in only three of his last 15 games. Nashville and Detroit kept Ribeiro off the scorecard in his last two games.

On a team with numerous offensive weapons, Jason Spezza has been as hot as any Senators forward. He had a 10-game point scoring streak -- with nine goals and 20 points -- before he failed to get on the scoreboard in Tuesday’s loss to the Capitals. Spezza also was the points leader in December.

Most Points in December

Player. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Gm. . .Pts
Jason Spezza, Ott. . . . . . . 14. . . .25
Pavel Datsyuk, Det. . . . . . .15. . . .22
Dany Heatley, Ott. . . . . . . 14. . . .22
Mike Ribeiro, Dal. . . . . . . .14. . . .20
Kristian Huselius, Cal. . . . .14. . . .20
Jarome Iginla, Cal. . . . . . . 14. . . .19
Daniel Alfredsson, Ott. . . . 14. . . .19
Ilya Kovalchuk, Atl. . . . . . .16. . . .19

Spezza’s teammate, Dany Heatley, has been held without a point only once in 12 games since the start of December. He has a goal and seven assists in his last four games.

Dating to late November, another Senator, Daniel Alfredsson, has been held without a point only once in 16 contests. He has four goals in four games going into Friday night’s game in Buffalo.

Posted by Thom Henninger at 12:38 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)