CAPS GAME REPORT: Caps v. Flyers, Feb. 24, 2009

Third Period

Nylander draws a hooking call from Gagne in the slot. Nyls is having a very good game. Power Play at 1:45. The best opportunity comes from Philly, with Theo completely stoning Knuble on the doorstep.

Knuble holds Ovie trying to get through the zone at 7:23. Time for a power play. Not a very organized effort with the extra man. It passes without incident.

Hartnall ties the game at two with a wicked wrist shot after a neutral zone turnover gave the Flyers a 3-on-2. 2-2 at 9:11.

Jeff Carter break the tie less than two minutes later as he corralled a rebound and beat a defenseless Theodore. Time of goal 10:36. 3-2 Flyers.

And now the Caps are just getting sloppy. Aaron Ashram is allowed to skate through the left wing circle, through the crease, let Theo take himself out and then buries it. Ashram schooled Schultz. 4-2 Flyers at 12:30.

I just heard my first E-A-G-L-E-S, Eagles! chant at 14:45. Ugh.

Fehr takes a slash at 17:01, and that ought to about do it. It was a thoroughly interesting game until mid-way through the third. The Caps wish they could have had a couple of the power plays back, I'm sure.

Final Score: Flyers 4, Caps 2
SOG: WAS-34, PHI-36

Second Period

19 seconds in, Hartnall takes a slash, so as the Nylander penalty expires the Caps go straight to the power play. No real scoring opportunities with the extra man.

Mere seconds after Ovie tipped one off the post on a feed by Green, the puck found its was back to him in the slot, and he made no mistake with it. Its his 44th of the season at 4:19. 2-0 Caps.

Jurcina takes a slash at 7:28 that send the stick flying 30 feet. Back to the PK. Again. With 15 seconds left, Semin throws it off the ice over the Flyers bench. Two more minutes to kill.

With six seconds on the first penalty, Claude Giroux buries a pass from Richards behind Theo. Still over 1:40 to kill the second period. 2-1 Caps.

Laich has two nice opportunities--one a breakaway--on the PK. As Semin came out of the box, the Caps rushed the puck and stormed the goal, and with a scrum in front of the net, Matthew Carle tripped Semin in the slot to give the Caps another power play at 11:32. Caps crash the net hard during the ensuing PP, but just can't get one to drop. Very good work by Nylander and Fehr on the second unit.

Brashear was headhunting on the next shift, looking for someone to bury and he got a bad piece of Lupul, although the replay looked like Lupul dove a bit. Anyway, a scrum occurred and Brash was sent off with Hartnall for roughing. Four on four hockey at 14:21!

Theordore gets a roughing call as Hartnall fell into him in the crease at 17:12. Theo did take a little jab at his head with his blocker, but Hartnall made NO effort to avoid slamming into the goalie. More special teams. And another successful kill. PK very effective tonight. They've killed all the 5-on-4's and just gave up the goal on the 5-on-3.

End of the second period, Caps 2-1. SOG: WAS-24, PHI-26.

First Period

Hard to take the National Anthem being used for battle cries.

Upshall gets whistled for dumping Green in the Caps zone. Caps answer with the goal four seconds later. Fedorov won the draw back to Ovie, who didn't get much on the shot, but Backstrom collects and backhands into an open net. 1-0 Caps at 1:48.

Big glove save by Theodore on Knuble skating in all alone on the left wing. Very quick pace to the first period.

Steckel gets a holding call at 9:32. BIG hit by Richards on Poti behind the Caps net. Nice save by Theo on Lupul. Hartnall gets whistled for a retaliation hit on Green. VERY chippy already--lots of big hitting.

And now on the resulting Caps power play, Gagne throws the puck off the ice for a 47 second two-man advantage. Flyers kill the whole power play.

Awesome play by Jurcina to clear the puck out of the goal mouth. Theo makes another quality save seconds later and Erskine knocks Upshall to the ice with a stick to the "midsection" on the cover. Erskine gets two minutes at 15:50. Caps have the two best scoring opportunities on Philly's PP.

Nylander gets his stick up high and goes off for a slash at 18:20. Back to the PK. Outstanding work by the killers at teh end of the period, coupled by a couple of lucky bounces right at the end of the period. 1-0 Caps.

SOG: WAS-7; PHI-12

Pre-game:

It's noticeably cold in the Verizon Center tonight. GM George McPhee spoke with season ticket holders before the game in one of the Caps' "Chalk Talks". He was interestingly candid about dealing with other GMs, some of the prospects in the system, and the possibility of trading at the deadline. I was sort of surprised no one asked him about the trash talking over the weekend and spilling into Monday.

Here are tonight's scratches: PHI--D Kimmo Timmonen, D Lasse Kukkonen; WAS--D Staffan Kronwall.

Antero Niittymaki gets the start against Jose Theodore.

I'll be back with updates as the game goes on and between periods.