POSTGAME NOTEBOOK: Sabres 5, Caps 2

Better Days - All day Thursday and right up to the opening puck drop of Thursday night's game against the Buffalo Sabres, the Caps honored and feted their longtime center Nicklas Backstrom on the occasion of his 1,000th career game. Caps social media channels, local media and others chimed in to display appreciation for his magnificent career, one that is eventually going to land him in the Hockey Hall of Fame.

The crowning touch was a video tribute that Backstrom was able to watch on the overhead scoreboard screen with his family just before the game, the presentation of the traditional silver stick to commemorate his 1,000th game, a gift of an all-expenses-paid golf trip from his teammates, and a team photo at center ice.
Everything went swimmingly right up to puck drop, and very little went right thereafter. Washington was slow out of the gates and never managed to get quite right, falling 5-2 to the Sabres as Buffalo earned its first regulation win in Washington in more than six years, since Nov. 22, 2014.
The Caps fell behind late in the first and answered back less than a minute later, so they were all even going into the second. But they just didn't seem in synch at any point in the game. Turnovers led to a couple of Buffalo goals and a 3-1 Sabres lead, which Anthony Mantha cut into with his second goal in as many games since joining the Caps in a Monday trade with Detroit.
Vitek Vanecek entered the game with a 5-0-1 record against the Sabres this season, but he was pulled in favor of Craig Anderson just after the midway mark of then middle period. Vanecek yielded four goals on 21 shots.
"The score is what it is [4-2] at that point," says Caps coach Peter Laviolette. "I don't think that we were very good in front of our goaltender, so we made a change."
The Caps had a couple of third-period power play opportunities to climb back in, but never really threatened. They've had few dull performances this season, but this was one of them, and Buffalo was dialed in for the full 60 minutes. The Sabres played a strong game throughout and have now earned points in eight of their last 10 games (5-2-3).
"The bottom line is we didn't play well enough to win," says Laviolette.
Fittingly, Backstrom earned an assist in his milestone game, and nothing can detract from the luster of what he has done for this franchise for the last decade and a half.
"For Nick, it was a tremendous accomplishment to get to a thousand games," says Laviolette. "It's the mark of longevity, of doing things the right way and playing the game the right way. He's been such a valuable and important piece for this organization for so many years. To take a minute and honor him for what he's done and what he's accomplished I think is important."
Teen Dream -When the Caps drafted Backstrom with the fourth overall pick in the 2006 NHL Draft, he was an 18-year-old who had played 65 games at the senior level of the Swedish Hockey League. But even at that early stage of his budding career, scouts had a strong read on his potential and the type of player he would become.
We're dusting off the Wayback Machine and taking a look at the pre-draft scouting reports on Backstrom from a number of sources. These reports were written some 15 years ago, and yours truly composed the brief intro portion of this Backstrom draft day profile. This piece was originally posted here on washingtoncaps.com on June 24, 2006, the day Backstrom was drafted.
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Nicklas Backstrom - Center
Born:Nov. 23, 1987, Gavle, Sweden
Height: 6-foot-0
Weight: 183
Shoots:Left
Rankings:
Central Scouting Bureau:#1 among European skaters
International Scouting Services:#4
McKeen's:#2
Red Line Report: #5
The Hockey News:#5
TSN: #5
Over the years, the Washington Capitals have had great Swedish players such as Bengt Gustafsson and Calle Johansson. After choosing 18-year-old Swedish center Nicklas Backstrom with the fourth overall pick in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft on Saturday, the Caps hope he will become the next in that line.
At the IIHF World Championships in Riga, Latvia last month, Backstrom played under Gustafsson, the head coach of gold medal-winning Team Sweden. In doing so he became the youngest player ever to play for Team Sweden at the Worlds.
Backstrom not only played with and among men in the Swedish Elite League as an 18-year-old in 2005-06, he led his Brynas team in scoring and was the league's rookie of the year. A competitive player with great hands and puck skills, Backstrom was also coveted for his high level of hockey sense. Many scouts see him as the most NHL-ready of all the players selected in the 2006 draft.
The Capitals believe Backstrom is ready to play in the NHL now, but it is possible he will spend one more season with Brynas before beginning his North American pro career. Backstrom figures to be Washington's first-line center and a power play fixture.
What others are saying:
CENTRAL SCOUTING BUREAU
A mobile good skater with acceleration, speed and balance ... incredible hockey sense and hands ... a solid all-around player with terrific overall skill level ... good offensive talent, excellent playmaker and passer ... a natural scorer with a quick release and a good selection of shots ... smooth hands ... effective at face-offs ... a creative offensive talent with excellent work ethic ... finesse player who can play tough, can take and give a hit ... has a very good attitude, comes out to play on every shift ... in excellent shpae but does need more strength ... could improve on first-step quickness ... played both junior and senior hockey with Brynas in 2004-05 ... named best forward on Brynas in the Swedish league in 2005-06 ... named best forward on Swedish Under-20 at World Junior Championships ... named rookie of the year in the Swedish league in 2005-06.
INTERNATIONAL SCOUTING SERVICE
Report Card
Size/Strength - B
Skating - B+
Shot/Scoring - B+
Puckhandling - A
Hockey Sense - A
Leadership- A+
Poise - A-
Defense - B+
Skill: Plays with intensity at all times. A scoring threat whenever he is on the ice. Competes hard. Outstanding vision.
Scouting Report: His lofty ranking here at ISS may surprise some experts, however, after watching his development over the past few years we feel he has the potential to be a star. Is a sound two-way player with excellent playmaking instincts. He boasts tremendous heart and leadership qualities. He is compared to Peter Forsberg when it comes to his passing game. He has a uniquely high hockey IQ. He has great hands and is great in 1-on-1 situations. His play this season has earned him the admiration of the scouting community and a steady rise up the ISS rankings; named best forward on Brynas in the Swedish league in 2005-06 … named best forward on Swedish Under-20 at World Junior Championships … named rookie of the year in the Swedish league in 2005-06 … was named to the Swedish team for the (world championships) in Riga.
NHL Potential: He is a world-class player, the kind of character guy that wins championships.
Style compares to: Peter Forsberg
RED LINE REPORT:
"Always plays full throttle with high energy. Runs the PP and directs traffic - a take-charge guy. Sees the ice well and takes hits to make plays. Anticipates well and gets to open ice. Creates lots of chances. Wonderful vision and a variety of touch saucer passes and backhand flips. Goes to net looking for rebounds, competes well at both ends and is strong on faceoffs. Outstanding hockey sense in all zones. Very tricky around net with excellent patience. Antipicates passes and steps in to pick them off and transitions to instant offense. Terrific playmaker with quick stick and hands. Handles tough passes in tight with ease. Keeps feet moving in corners. Leading scorer for Brynas in SEL and was expected to be the team leader at 18, yet was oblivious to any pressure. Played so solid all year against men that he earned a spot on Sweden's gold medal squad at the World Champs."
Projection:Top line playmaker
Style compares to:Henrik Zetterberg
THE HOCKEY NEWS:
Sweden Elite League's rookie of the year is often mentioned in the same breath as Peter Forsberg.
It's not that Nicklas Backstrom is the next Peter Forsberg - if he was he would be the undisputed top pick in the "Class of '06" - but the way he handles the puck and battles is the reason for the comparison.
Backstrom shows great patience with the puck on his stick. He'll hesitate for a nano-second before he makes a tape-to-tape pass. "He has great, great hockey sense," says one scout. "He has great hands and makes great plays."
Backstrom also played a key role in helping Brynas finish seventh in the Elite league. He also played in Sweden's elite junior league. "He's not as tough as Forsberg, but how many players have that skill and are as tough?" said a scout. "He plays heads-up hockey all the time. You see him go into a corner and he comes out with the puck. He has no problems with physical play."
NHL translation: Offensive forward
By The Numbers - John Carlson led the Caps with 23:11 in ice time … Alex Ovechkin led the Capitals with six shots on net and 14 shot attempts … Zdeno Chara and Tom Wilson had four hits each to pace the Caps … Chara and Mantha each blocked two shots to lead Washington … Lars Eller won 10 of 14 face-offs (71%).