The Washington Capitals won their 14th in a row yesterday, besting the Stanley Cup Champion Penguins 5-4 in overtime. The Capitals find themselves atop the entire NHL with 88 points, have only lost 6 times at home (3 times in regulation) and have the best player in the world in Captain Alex Ovechkin at the top in points and goals.
Sounds great doesn’t it?
Well, as someone who has been a fan of the Capitals since the mid to late 90’s knows, the Washington Capitals have a “history”. And, come April when the NHL Playoffs get under way, the Capitals are not only going to be battling whatever opposing team is on the ice, but they will be battling their “history” as well.
The recent success of the team has brought a whole slew of new fans into the Verizon Center, and has boosted Comcast SportsNet’s Capitals television ratings 150 percent.
What these new fans are unaccustomed to is the history that I speak of.
You can’t start talking about the Capitals past without bringing up their first season in the NHL in 1974-75. Their record that year was 8 wins, 67 losses and 5 ties for a grand total of 21 points in an 80 game schedule. To put that record into perspective, currently the Capitals have won 14 in a row, which is 28 points and 7 more than the 1974-75 team. It is the worst record in NHL history to this day. The Capitals failed to get more than 70 points for their first 8 seasons of existence.
Before the 1982-83 season, the Capitals decided change needed to be made. So, a blockbuster trade occurred (some regard it as the biggest trade in franchise history) and it sent defenseman Rick Green and center/left wing Ryan Walter to the Montreal Canadiens for center Doug Jarvis, right wing Craig Laughlin, defenseman Brian Engblom, and defenseman Rod Langway. Langway would blossom in Washington and the team would qualify for the playoffs for all 11 seasons he was with the team.
So the 1982-83 season began, and the Capitals finished third in the Patrick Division and made the playoffs for the first time in their franchise’s history. They ended up bowing out in the first round though, losing to the New York Islanders 3 games to 1. The Islanders went on to win their fourth straight Stanley Cup that year.
In 1983-84, the Capitals finished second in the Patrick Division with 101 points, the first time a Capitals team surpassed the 100 point mark, and won their first playoff series versus the Philadelphia Flyers (3 games to none). They then lost to the Islanders yet again (in 5 games) in the Patrick Division Finals. Still, there was something to cheer about in Washington, DC with some playoff success.
1984-85, the Capitals would surpass the 100 point mark yet again, but also lose to the Islanders (again), this time in the first round. Fans in DC were starting to see a trend here: regular season success did NOT equal postseason success.
1985-86 saw the Capitals, winners of 50 games in the regular season, beat the New York Islanders after three previous playoff series losses. They swept them 3 games to none in the first round and outscored them 11-4 in the three games. But, the next series was versus the other team in New York, the Rangers, and they ousted the Capitals in 6 games. The “history” and pain we know today was starting.
In 1986-87, the Capitals would qualify second in the Patrick Divison with 38 wins, 32losses and 10 ties. They would face the New York Islanders for the fifth consecutive year in the postseason, and would lose what many Capitals fans consider one of the toughest series losses in team history. The Capitals had the better record going into the playoffs, so they had home ice. The teams would end up splitting the first two games in DC, and the series was headed to Long Island tied 1 to 1. The Capitals would then take games 3 and 4 and have a 3 games to 1 lead going back to DC. All they had to do was win one of the next three games to take the series. It was not to be, as the Capitals dropped three straight games, including the epic 4 overtime game 7. My dad was actually in attendance for this game, and he remembers the game lasting until after 2 in the morning. After the Islanders Pat LaFontaine shot the puck at the net and it clanged off of the post and into the net, thousands of tired DC fans shuffled out the doors and made their way home in a hush. Maybe the team was cursed?
For the next few years the Capitals had many successes, coming back when down 3 games to 1 to the Flyers in 1987-88 to win in seven games but then losing to the New Jersey Devils 4 games to 3 (dropping ANOTHER game 7 on home ice). They also saw hatred for the Penguins, losing in 1992-93 and 1994-95 after being up 3 games to 1. Good feelings were quickly turned to heartbreak for fans of Capitals. Why could we not go all the way?
Well, some call it a curse. Others call it a case of “choking dogs” as Washington Post writer Tony Kornheiser coined after the horrific 1996 playoff series loss to the Penguins after the Capitals were up 2 games to none.
Then in 1997-98, led by goaltender Olie “the goalie” Kolzig, the Capitals finally made their first appearance in the Stanley Cup Finals. Kolzig played out of his mind, singlehandedly stealing victory after victory for the Capitals. But, the Detroit Red Wings would prove to be too much in the Finals, and they swept the Caps 4games to none.
Then, it was downhill. The Capitals would make the playoffs three of the next 4 years, only to lose to the Penguins twice and the Tampa Bay Lightning once. Because the Capitals finished in last place in the NHL in 2003-04, they possessed the first overall pick in the NHL Entry Draft. With that pick, they chose a Russian left winger named Alex Ovechkin. Ovechkin would have to wait a full year to play in the NHL as in 2004-05 the NHL had its first lockout.
When the NHL resumed their games in 2005-06, DC had better things on their minds then hockey. It showed too, as night after night the Capitals would take the ice to a 50 percent or less crowd in Verizon Center, sometimes with more fans of the opposing teams than the Capitals themselves. Not only were no fans there to watch, but the team itself was not very good winning only 29 games and finishing last in the Southeast Division. But, they did have one shining star: their first round pick Alex Ovechkin was lighting up the score sheet leading all rookies in goals and points, and finishing third overall in NHL scoring with 52 goals and 54 assists. He would go on to win the Calder Trophy for Rookie of the Year, beating out Pittsburgh Penguins star Sidney Crosby (first overall pick in the 2004-05 NHL Entry Draft).
Then, in 2007-08 the Washington Capitals, with their new uniforms incorporating the old red logo, would shake things up and General Manager George McPhee would fire then head coach Glen Hanlon and move minor league coach Bruce Boudreau into “interim” status. The word “interim” was short-lived as the Capitals won the Southeast Division on the last day of the season and made the playoffs. Verizon Center was “Rockin’ the Red” and DC was starting to notice that they did in fact have the best player in the world playing for their hockey team. Ovechkin would finish the regular season with 65 goals, an NHL best for left wingers. They would lose to the Flyers in seven games on home ice, but it is worth noting that they were down 3 games to 1 before tying the series back up. Still though, when would this team catch a break?
Last year saw the Capitals won their first playoff series since their Stanley Cup Finals appearance in 1997-98, beating the Rangers in seven games after being down 3 games to 1. FINALLY, there was some playoff success in Washington and something to cheer about yet again. Finally they caught a break. The old fans from the late 70’s were cheering. The new fans who love to root for a winner were cheering. DC was becoming a hockey town.
Well, in waltzed the Pittsburgh Penguins and Captain Sidney Crosby. This was what the NHL wanted: two of the most dynamic hockey players on the planet, on the same sheet of ice, in the playoffs. It did not get any better than this. The series did not fail to deliver.
Game 1 was a wild one, and the Capitals survived 3-2. Memorable from this game was goaltender Semyon (Simeon at the time) Varlamov’s diving stick save on Crosby, robbing him of a tip in goal. Game 2 saw both Ovechkin and Crosby trade off hat tricks, but the Capitals would win the game 4-3. Pittsburgh would then take the next three games and go up 3 games to 2. That choking feeling was returning in Washington. Well, game 6 was a do or die situation and the Caps would win in overtime off of a goal by Dave Steckel to send it back to DC for an epic game 7.
Well, by “epic” I did not mean a 6-2 series loss. What a series it was, but to have it end that way was once again heartbreaking. The arch nemesis Pittsburgh Penguins had come into DC in a game 7 must win, and they won. The game was all but over after the first period and you could almost feel the air being let out in Verizon Center.
“History” is something the Capitals will have to face until Ovechkin is hoisting the Cup over his head. It is something that is almost seemingly impossible to beat (just ask the Chicago Cubs), but something that is doable (just ask the Boston Red Sox).
Can they do it this year? It’s going to be a wild ride.
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