Time CAPSule - Caps Force Game 7 in DC - April 22, 2008

Earlier this season, we posted a lengthy piece on Alex Ovechkin's early years in DC and another shorter piece on Nicklas Backstrom's five-year contract extension. In the process of crafting those stories and talking to the subjects themselves and many others, we were reminded of how exciting and thrilling the 2007-08 NHL season was in these parts.

It stands as Ovechkin's career year, it was Backstrom's rookie year, Bruce Boudreau took over behind the Washington bench on Thanksgiving Day, and the Caps made the playoffs for the first time in five years, winning 15 of 19, 11 of 12 and seven straight at season's end to come back from a dismal 6-14-1 start to win the Southeast Division title.

That season and that run into the playoffs augured in the "Rock The Red" era of hockey in DC, the beginning of 11 playoff appearances in a span of a dozen seasons. At this time a dozen years ago, the Caps were in the midst of that wild run. With the NHL's 2019-20 season "paused" for the foreseeable future, we're going to spend the next month looking back at the day-to-day of that remarkable late-season run, revisiting some of our coverage at the time with some fresh hindsight mixed in. On the off days between games, we will revisit some events from earlier in that landmark season. Enjoy!

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

This was a busy time for the Caps, a dozen years ago. After forcing a deciding Game 7 with a 4-2 win over the Flyers in Philly on Monday night, they hurriedly dressed and flew home to host Game 7 on this date in 2008. Down 3-1 in the series, the Caps rallied to put themselves in a position to advance to the second round with a win in front of the home folks.

Game 6 was a real thriller, a memorable rollercoaster ride. Philly went up 1-0 early in the first on a Mike Richards power-play goal, and the Flyers doubled that advantage on another extra-man tally from Daniel Briere - his sixth goal in as many games in the series - at 1:18 of the second. Briere's goal came four seconds before Alexander Semin was scheduled to exit the penalty box for Washington.

Caps goalie Cristobal Huet was excellent, making four stops on yet another Philly power play shortly after the Briere goal, on Washington's third bench minor of the series. Huet kept his team within two until the Caps could get their offense cranked up. Just ahead of the midpoint of the middle period, they finally did so.

From deep in his own end of the ice, Steve Eminger snapped a sharp breakout pass to Brooks Laich, who led the Caps into neutral ice on a 3-on-2 rush. Upon gaining the Philly line, Laich left it for the trailing Semin, who made a couple quick exchanges with Nicklas Backstrom. Backstrom finished it off from in tight, beating Martin Biron to make it a 2-1 game at 9:34 of the second.

Washington tied it on a frantic shift late in the second. The Caps prevented the Flyers from clearing the zone, and Semin went to the net and patiently potted the rebound of a John Erskine left point drive, making it a 2-2 game with 1:57 left in the middle period.

Philadelphia limited Alex Ovechkin to one goal - the game-winner in Game 1 - in the first five games of the period, but he came through when it mattered most on this night. Early in the third, Viktor Kozlov sprung Ovechkin on a breakaway, and he chipped it under the bar at 2:46 to give the Caps their first lead of the night, 3-2.

Just past the midpoint of the third, Ovechkin struck again, this time on a Washington power play when the Flyers were busted for having too many dudes on the ice. Laich put it on a tee for Ovechkin, who blasted a one-timer from the left circle to make it 4-2, bringing Washington all the way back in the series and forcing a seventh and deciding game.

Here's our postgame notebook for Game 6, our preview for Game 7, and a blog entry on that Game 7, their first in more than a decade, and the first of many to come in the Ovechkin-Backstrom era.

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The Eight Train - Coming into Monday night's Game 6, Caps left wing Alex Ovechkin had but one goal in the series, the game-winner in Game 1. Although he went without a goal for the next four games, he made his presence felt in other ways: making plays, picking up assists, laying the body, creating screens in front of the net. And as always, making more room for his linemates.

Anyone who has witnessed even part of his first three seasons in the league knew his goal-scoring prowess would not remain dormant for long.

Flyers goaltender Martin Biron made a nice stop on an Ovechkin bid early in the first period of Game 6, and Ovechkin finished the first frame with two shots on goal. He had another two blocked.

In the second, Philly's continued insistence on putting their best defenders out against Ovechkin (who can blame them?) finally began to work against the Flyers. Washington's second line of Nicklas Backstrom with Brooks Laich and Alexander Semin worked the Flyers for a pair of goals to dig the Capitals out of a 2-0 hole.

And then the Eight Train left the station with a head of steam.

Taking a perfectly feathered feed from Viktor Kozlov, Ovechkin broke free of Flyers defensemen Braydon Coburn and Kimmo Timonen - the two Philly blueliners who had been so effective at keeping him in check for five-plus games. He put the moves on Flyers netminder Martin Biron and beat him to give Washington its first lead of the night at 3-2.

Just under eight minutes later, he found himself all alone in the high slot on a Caps power play. Sergei Fedorov put on a burst to beat a Flyer to the puck along the wall in the Philly end. He chipped it to Laich, who spotted Ovechkin and teed him up for a one-timer.

4-2.

The "Other" Alex - With a goal and an assist in Monday's Game 6, Semin is now Washington's leading scorer for the playoffs with eight points (three goals, five assists). He has scored a goal in each of the last three games.

The Double-E - John Erskine and Steve Eminger comprise what is ostensibly Washington's third defensive pairing. During the regular season, Erskine skated an average of 15:43 in 51 games and Eminger averaged just 11:08 in only 20 games played.

The duo was solid on Monday. Erskine laid five of Washington's 17 hits on the night, and led all skaters on both sides in that department. He also picked up an assist on a key Washington goal, a tally that tied the game with less than two minutes in the second period. Erskine skated 19:10 in the game and was plus-3 on the night.

Eminger was mysteriously buried on the Caps depth chart for most of the regular season, but he has stepped up and played some very good hockey for Washington when it has mattered most. His perfect tape-to-tape breakout pass fueled the rush that led to Washington's first goal of the night, and the prettiest of this game by either side.

Eminger was also a plus-3, and his 17:36 of his time is the most he has skated in any regulation length contest since the tail end of the 2006-07 season.

Late Thunder - In a game that featured multiple turning points and plot twists, one of the biggest goals of the season went criminally underappreciated.

Backstrom put what he later termed "my first big hit in the NHL" on a tired Derian Hatcher, who had been on the ice for a while (73 seconds), futilely chasing the Caps around in the Philly end of the ice.

Erskine got the puck and put it on net. Biron did an Edward Scissorhands bit with his glove hand, and Semin scooped up the rebound and deposited it into the yawning cage. In a series in which Philadelphia has made a habit of scoring goals late in periods, the Caps got one of their own with just 1:57 on the clock in the second period.

That goal was the difference between going into the third period down 2-1 or being even at 2-2.

Turnabout - Game 4 of this series turned in Philly's favor when the Flyers capitalized on Washington's second too many men infraction of the night. The Flyers scored the tying goal on the ensuing power play and then won the contest in double-overtime.

In tonight's Game 6, the Caps used a power play from a too many men call on the Flyers to give them some third period breathing room. Washington was whistled for another too many men infraction earlier in the game, its third of the series.

First Goal Wins - Well, not any more. Until Philly drew first blood in Game 6 but failed to win, the team scoring the first goal in each game of this series had gone on to win. Washington reversed that trend tonight with its second successful comeback from a two-goal deficit in this series.

Target Practice - In each of the first four games of this series, Ovechkin had more shots that were either blocked or missed the net than he had shots on goal. Entering Game 5 with the Caps down 3-1 in the series, Ovechkin had 13 shots on goal. He had also had another 15 attempts blocked and had missed the net altogether with 16 other tries.

In the two games since, Ovechkin has honed his radar. He has 15 shots on goal in the last two games, with only four shots blocked and three misses.

Killing Comeback - The Caps were nicked for a pair of goals on Philly's first two power play chances of the night, marking the first time in this series that the Flyers have netted multiple power play goals in the same contest. For the last couple of games, it seemed as though Washington was enduring Philadelphia power plays more than it was actually killing them. The Flyers had 11 power play shots on goal in their first three extra-man opportunities on Monday.

With the Caps clinging to a 3-2 lead in the third and enjoying a power play chance, Laich got a high-sticking minor in a battle with Coburn in front of the net. That brought the manpower to 4-on-4. Seconds later, Shoane Morrisonn took a slashing minor. That gave the Flyers a 4-on-3 advantage for 35 seconds, a 5-on-3 for 49 seconds after that, and a 5-on-4 for another 36 seconds after that.

With the game and the series hanging in the balance, Washington atoned for its early-game penalty killing woes. It continually kept the Flyers to the outside, got sticks into passing and shooting lanes, and managed to get key clears and personnel changes. The kill deflated the Flyers and a hopeful crowd.

Within two minutes of the end of that killing sequence, Ovechkin had his second goal of the night and the Caps had some needed breathing room.

Game 7 - Washington has not played a Game 7 since May 18, 1995 when it dropped Game 7 of an opening round series with the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Caps squandered a 3-1 series lead against the Pens that year.

The Capitals have not won a Game 7 since Dale Hunter beat Philadelphia's Ron Hextall in overtime of Game 7 on Apr. 16, 1988 to bring the Caps all the way back from a 3-1 series deficit.

Washington has won only one of six Game 7s in its history.

Down on the Farm - The ECHL's South Carolina Stingrays were looking to close out their best-of-five series with the Gwinnett Gladiators tonight. After winning the first two games of the set at home, the Stingrays dropped Game 3 on the road by a 4-1 count. Travis Morin scored the Stingrays' lone goal in a game that was tied 1-1 after 40 minutes.

The two teams hook up in Gwinnett on Tuesday for Game 4.

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April 22 vs. Philadelphia Flyers at Verizon Center

Game 7, Eastern Conference quarterfinal series (series even, 3-3)

Time: 7:00 pm

TV:Comcast, TSN

Radio: WJFK 106.7 FM, WFED 1050 AM, XM

Pre-Game:Pre-Cap Podcast on www.WashingtonCaps.com at 3 p.m.

Washington Capitals (43-31-8, 94 points in regular season)

Philadelphia Flyers (42-29-11, 95 points in regular season)

The last time the Caps came back from Philadelphia, they were down 3-1 in their best-of-seven series with the Flyers and in need of two wins - one in each city - to force a Game 7 on Tuesday in the District. Four days later, the Caps jet back to D.C. to get ready for that Game 7 date after their 4-2 comeback win evened the series in Philadelphia on Monday.

Washington will be playing its first Game 7 in almost 12 years, and the first Game 7 on Washington home ice since May 1, 1992.

Monday marked the first time in the series that the team that scored first did not win the game. Philly scored on each of its first two power play chances in the game to go up 2-0, but the resilient Capitals rebounded to win after being down by two for the second time in the series. The Capitals trailed Game 1 by a 4-2 count in the third period before they rallied for a 5-4 win.

While the Caps were trailing, Washington goaltender Cristobal Huet kept his team in the game with some key saves. Those stops would prove to be big ones later on.

Caps star left wing Alex Ovechkin scored a pair of third period goals - his first since Game 1 - to break a 2-2 deadlock and send the series back to Washington. Six games into their first ever Stanley Cup playoff series, each of Washington's "Young Guns" - Ovechkin, Alexander Semin, Mike Green and Nicklas Backstrom - has three goals.

Washington poured 40 shots on Flyers goaltender Martin Biron in Game 6, the most the Caps have mustered in any regulation game in the series. After firing 13 shots on goal in the first four games of the series, Ovechkin has launched 15 on net in the last two tilts.

From the start of the series, Philadelphia coach John Stevens opted to put his top defensive duo of Braydon Coburn and Kimmo Timonen out against Ovechkin's line. Caps coach Bruce Boudreau countered by moving center Sergei Fedorov to Ovechkin's line and moving Backstrom to a line with Semin and Brooks Laich.

As the series has gone deeper, the Backstrom line has begun to feel its legs. Semin has scored in three straight games, and he now leads the Caps in playoff scoring. Backstrom also has a goal in three straight games. Laich has a point in each of the last four games, the longest scoring streak of his NHL career.

"We want to make sure we're not too fancy in front of our home crowd," says Laich, in discussing how the Caps must play if they are to win Game 7. "We want to keep it simple, and we saw tonight when we don't play our way what happens and we saw what we can do when we do play our way. When we can get pucks below the goal line, and get on the body and initiate, take pucks to the net, I think we're a hard team to defend. We want to be less risk and more simple plays that are productive for our forecheck."

With its second line clicking and Ovechkin now finding the range as well, Stevens is starting to back off with a couple of his beleaguered veteran defenders.

Derian Hatcher averaged 21:06 during the regular season - third among Philly defenders - and 22:21 through the first five games of this series. Hatcher led all Flyers defenders with 8:11 in the first period of Game 6, but he was badly exposed on Washington's second goal of the night, Semin's game-tying tally. Hatcher logged just 4:31 in the third period.

Philly captain Jason Smith skated 16:47 in Game 5, and was cut down to 11:56 - six minutes less than his regular season average - in Game 6. Those are the lowest ice time totals Smith has logged in his six games in this series.

In their last nine periods of hockey in this series, the Flyers have totaled just two even-strength goals. One was Mike Knuble's overtime game-winner in double-overtime of Game 4; Knuble is now sidelined for the series with a hamstring injury. Hatcher has the other even-strength strike during that span.

Both the Caps and the Flyers will be playing Game 7 on short rest; they'll be playing for the second time in as many nights and for the third time in four days. Washington took the train to Philadelphia for Games 3 and 4, but flew to Philly on Sunday for Monday's Game 6. The Caps quickly flew home afterwards, hoping to maximize their rest before Tuesday's tilt.

Finally, neither goaltender has had much experience at starting both games on back-to-back nights during the course of his NHL career.

Biron is 8-21-6 with a 3.30 goals against average and an .879 save pct. lifetime in the second of starts on back-to-back nights. He is 5-17-3 with a 3.52 goals against average and an .869 save pct. when the second of those back-to-back starts comes on the road.

Since the lockout, Biron is 2-7-1 with a 4.85 goals against average and an .845 save pct. in the second of starts on back-to-back nights. Biron's most recent start in that situation came on Mar. 14 in Pittsburgh when he allowed three goals on eight shots in just 24 minutes of work in a 7-1 loss to the Penguins. His last win in the second of starts on back-to-back nights came seven starts ago, on Nov. 11, 2006.

Huet is 2-8-2 during his career when starting the second of consecutive starts on back-to-back nights. He has a 3.24 goals against average and an .899 save pct. in such situations.

The last time Huet had such a start was also against Pittsburgh, on Mar. 9. He gave up three goals on 25 shots in a 4-2 loss (one goal was an empty-netter. Huet's most recent win when starting the second game in as many nights came on Dec. 28, 2007 when he stopped 40 of 41 shots in a road win over the Panthers.

"I feel good physically," says Huet, when asked about starting games on consecutive nights for the first time in more than a month. "Obviously we're going to do whatever it takes to be top-notch for [Tuesday], take care of the body. We're a group of guys with young legs and good legs, and we're going to be ready to go."

It's a one-game series now, and the winner moves on to the next round.

"You have to win four games to do it," warns Laich. "They've won in our building before, so we have to be prepared. We can't think we have anything wrapped up here. This series isn't over."

Notes:The Caps were 8-7-3 in the second of back-to-back games during the regular season. The Flyers were 7-8-2 in the second game of back-to-back contests during the regular season.

Fun Fact: - It was 20 years ago (Apr. 16, 1988) when Washington last won Game 7 of a playoff series. That was also the only time in franchise history that a Caps team rebounded from a 3-1 series deficit to win a Stanley Cup playoff series. Everyone knows that the Caps beat the Flyers that year, and that Dale Hunter supplied the overtime game-winner for the Caps in Game 7.

When the Caps won Game 5 of that series to pull to within 3-2 and force the series back to Philadelphia for Game 6, it was Washington defenseman Kevin Hatcher who netted the game-winner in the Caps' 5-2 Game 5 win. Hatcher's younger brother Derian is now a member of the Flyers.

Injuries

Philadelphia Flyers

Defenseman Mike Rathje has a back/hip injury and is out indefinitely.

Right wing Mike Knuble has a hamstring injury and is out for the series.

Left wing Simon Gagne has a mild concussion and is out indefinitely.

Washington

Defenseman Brian Pothier has an upper body injury and is day-to-day.

Defenseman Jeff Schultz has an upper body injury and is day-to-day.

Center Michael Nylander underwent shoulder surgery and is out 3-6 months.

Right wing Chris Clark has a groin injury and is day-to-day.

Possible Line Combos and Defensive Pairings

Philadelphia Forwards

19-Hartnell, 48-Briere, 40-Prospal

9-Upshall, 17-Carter, 15-Lupul

25-Thoresen, 18-Richards, 20-Umberger

32-Cote, 34-Dowd, 24-Kapanen

Philadelphia Defensemen

5-Coburn, 44-Timonen

2-Hatcher, 6-Jones

21-Smith, 28-Kukkonen

Goaltenders

30-Niittymaki, 43-Biron

Washington Forwards

8-Ovechkin, 91-Fedorov, 25-Kozlov

21-Laich, 19-Backstrom, 28-Semin

24-Cooke, 39-Steckel, 10-Bradley

87-Brashear, 15-Gordon, 14-Fehr

Washington Defensemen

26-Morrisonn, 52-Green

3-Poti, 23-Jurcina

4-Erskine, 44-Eminger

Goaltenders

37-Kolzig, 38-Huet

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Best Of One

A series this dramatic and compelling with this many storylines deserves to go the distance, and so it does. A few hours from now, Washington will host its first Game 7 Stanley Cup playoff game in nearly 16 years, and it will attempt to win its first Stanley Cup playoff Game 7 in more than 20 years.

The Caps fell into a 3-1 hole in this series, but Washington bench boss Bruce Boudreau made adjustments even before that, and those adjustments have been paying dividends for a few games now. Flyers coach John Stevens elected to put his top defensive duo of Braydon Coburn and Kimmo Timonen on Caps star left wing Alex Ovechkin. That duo has done a wonderful job of keeping Ovechkin in check. Until last night, they had not been out on the ice for an even-strength goal against in the series.

But while the Flyers swarmed Ovechkin, players like Nicklas Backstrom and Alexander Semin began to find their playoff legs. Brooks Laich put together the longest scoring streak of his NHL career. And with Ovechkin finding the range twice last night, the Caps now have two dangerously bona fide lines working.

Much was made of Philly's scoring depth and physical play before the start of the series, but Washington has matched the Flyers in both those departments. The Flyers might have had a goaltending edge early in the series, but that pendulum has swung back in the Capitals' direction over the last three games. Special teams seem fairly even.

In a one game series, what will make the difference between these two teams?

We won't profess to know, but here's something that we've noticed. In the last few games, as the Capitals' secondary scoring has heated up, Stevens has started to back off the ice time given to some of his veteran defenders. Derian Hatcher skated more than eight minutes in the first period of Game 6 to lead all Flyers defensemen. Some of us believed if he continued to see that much ice, he'd be a liability. He didn't, but he was anyway. Hatcher got worked for Washington's second goal, and he was on the ice for just 4:31 of the third period.

Jason Smith has been a frequent site on the ice after Washington goals in this series, skating off with sagging shoulders. He ranks among playoff leaders in blocked shots, but his minus-6 is worst on the team and second worst among all 323 playoff skaters (New Jersey's Paul Martin finished at minus-8, good for the golf course, but not for the ice). Smith skated just 11:56 in Game 6, exactly six fewer minutes than he averaged during the regular season.

Now faced with a Game 7 just one night after his team dropped its second consecutive contest in Game 6, it will be interesting to see how Stevens handles his blueline tonight. Will he scratch Hatcher and/or Smith and go to youngster Ryan Parent (14:59 a night in 22 regular season games) and/or Jaroslav Modry (minus-15 in 24 regular season and playoff games combined)? Modry's father just passed away in his native Czech Republic, and we're not even sure if he's available to play. But you can see the conundrum that faces Stevens.

On the other side of the coin, Boudreau's confidence in the defensemen at the back of his depth chart seems to be going in the other direction. John Erskine averaged 15:43 in 51 regular season games, and Steve Eminger skated just 11:08 in 20 regular season tilts. Both players were plus-3 in Game 6, and both made significant contributions. Erskine led all skaters on both sides with five hits, and Eminger placed a perfect breakout pass on Laich's stick to start the rush that led to Washington's first goal in Game 6, the goal that started the comeback from a 2-0 deficit.

Erskine logged 19:10 in Game 6 and Eminger skated 17:36. Washington's defensemen figure to be a bit fresher tonight, and they're also younger. Philly's defense could be vulnerable against the Caps forecheck and cycling game low in the offensive zone. They were in the first half of Game 5 and in the second half of Game 6. The trick for the Caps, who obviously also played last night, will be getting that hard forecheck going on a consistent basis.

Then there's Philly's power play. They've scored six times with the extra man in the series, including two times last night. They love that back door play and work it well. Washington has been "enduring" Flyers power plays almost as often as it has actually "killed" them in this series. That said, the Caps power play has struck on seven occasions. And both teams have been burned by having too many men on the ice. Discipline, as always, will be a factor.

Finally, the goaltending. Martin Biron is 0-5 in the second half of back-to-back starts this season, and he has not won a game in that situation since Nov. 11, 2006. Cristobal Huet is 1-2 in the second of back-to-back starts this season; his most recent win was a few months ago, on Dec. 28. Furthermore, Biron is 2-7-1 with a 4.85 GAA and an .845 save pct. in the second of starts on consecutive nights since the lockout.

Washington has allowed just one even strength goal in the last two games, and just two in the last nine periods of hockey. We mentioned that Biron might have had a goaltending edge early in the series, but Huet has a .929 save pct. in the last three games while Biron is at .907 over the same span.

None of the above matters, of course. Only what the coaches and players do behind the benches and on the ice in front of our anticipatory eyes a few hours from now does.

Game 7. It's been a while. Savor it.