Spank That Donkey

 Way to go Washington Capitals my favorite NHL team since birth.

This message is for the lousy fans & management, who watched the team be dismantled after the Jagr experiment had it's run it's course but became such a forlorn effort that we had to cut him and the rest of the team loose, only to keep paying Jagr's salary for what an extra four years after he was gone?

Who stayed with the Hapless Caps?  Ollie Kolzig.  He was still in his prime and fought desperately for the Capitals in net, and tried to keep a cellar dwelling team respectable for the following seasons.

He kept the Caps in it this season as they climbed out of the cellar with the Russian Stars Ovie, and Semin finally coming into their own.  Only to be crapped on by the new coach and management.

Yeah, I am talking about you boudreau and Ted Leonsis.  I just went to look for Ollie's stats since boudreau took over, they have been pulled, really classy.  How many games did he win for you before huet arrived with the team?   Let me give you a hint, alot, and he carried your team.... boudreau.

Boudreau you better hope huet signs with the Caps #1, as he is a unrestricted free agent, and number 2 doesn't crap out on you, as you still try to get a bunch of rookie defenseman to play responsibly.

I tell you what, my hope was the Caps would extend every thing they could to keep a goalie who has only played for our franchise his entire career with the team at least one more season.  One more season, you lowly, big headed, ungrateful, calculating, losers of games 2,3,4, and 7.

Hey boudeau do you think you should have put in the rested Kolzig for any one of those games, while the flyers pushed around your new little golden boy?  Think he was tired after his big run?  If you think for one minute that you were right boudreau it was your ego talking.... ego....

Egos are dangerous things, especially when you are taking a risk with your fan base.  You better deliver.... Your ego is on the line... Think about that as the story line, Mr. Cinderella Kid.....  Long time fans are watching..... WE don't like being spit on.... Kolzig didn't spit on our team, you did boudreau, and so did management on another long time favorite of the Capitals....

 I am thinking Larry Murphy.... Scott Stevens..... Peter Bondra, and now Kolzig.....

Real Classy act, NOT!  

(Click on AO)

 History did repeat itself last night.  Twenty years later I was at another Caps -flyers Game 7 with the Capitals having erased a 3-1 series disadvantage, and looking to advance with a win in the seventh and final game.  The game did go to over time, but with a different result than in 1988 when we won.  This is the bottom line on the controversial Flyers goal that tied the game at 2-2:

According to a statement issued on the league's Stanley Cup playoffs Web site, "Washington's Shaone Morrisonn plays the puck, and Philadelphia's Patrick Thoresen lays a legal body check on Morrisonn. No Philadelphia player makes contact with Washington goaltender Huet (Rule 69). This play is not reviewable."

The exact situation occurred in the Caps' second-to-last regular season game — Washington's Tomas Fleischmann knocked Tampa Bay defenseman Matt Smaby into goalie Karri Ramo — and the officials disallowed the ensuing goal by Laich. No penalty was called on Fleischmann.

The nhl had two referees assigned to the game last night, but didn't see or call it?  Get this Gary Bettman, my playoff's are over.  I will not be clicking onto nhl.com, I will not be watching any of the rest of the playoffs. You can beat us fair and square, but I'll be darned if you will cheat us.  The flyers were allowed to run into our goalie, Huet every game, and you never had your refs. crack down on it.  No wonder when he's knocked out of the goal mouth, and a flyer gets a shot on an empty net.... I see why you are boo'd at the on draft pick day when the fans get a chance to tell you what they think of you.

On the upside, I saw a cool shirt design by Concretepond.com.  It is a great play off of Che; the murdering communist, but instead has Alex Ovechkin's chicklet missing grin in his place.  I like the way these guys think.  Knowing a thing or two about t-shirt design, (but little about running a company), I give these guys an A+.  I'm gonna have to buy one!

 Southeast Division Champs!

Get Your Tickets Here! 

Our opponent will not be known until tonight, so All Caps Fans need to purchase now to make sure we fill the seats and not our friends from nearby cities.

It's nice to take their money, but not during the playoffs!

GO CAPS! 

(Click on a Great Goal Tender)

 Well Capitals Fans, how much more evidence do I need to back up this post?

Some Capitals bloggers and fans have been blaming losses on our Veteran goal tender Olie Kolzig.  Today's 4-2 loss to the Pittsburg Penguins, on the heals of yesterdays 2-1 loss to the Boston Bruins while our newly acquired Cristobal Huet was in goal should tell you something.

That something is that it is not the goalie, but the team in front of the goalie!  Huet played well in both games, but as usual had to face odd man rushes, and break downs in our defense.  Heck, the winning goal was put in by one of our own players, 19 year old, ROOKIE, Nicklas Backstrom.  He literally put the puck in the net, not on a deflection, but with the puck on his stick.   He flipped it into the net, as Pittsburg obviously had him panicked in front of the goal, with less than one minute left in the game.

A streak ended today.  The Capitals had a forty game streak without consecutive losses in regulation.  A streak that happened to be the longest in the entire league.   This streak was accomplished not only by the Capitals, but also with Olie Kolzig and Brent Johnson as the goal tending duo.

Now I ask you, if this streak were broken in back to back games with Cristobal Huet in goal, is that Olie Kolzig's fault?  No, I am afraid you can not blame that on Olie, who happens to be 13-5-3 in his last games according to the Capital's Game Notes.

The Capitals have a very young team, who will only get better and better as they mold into a group of veterans that know how to stay patient, composed, and close out hockey games in the years to come.  I hope General Manager George McPhee can convince newly acquired veteran Sergei Federov to stay one more season and help fellow Russian players Alex Ovechkin and Alexander Semin mature as NHL players.  The Capitals have a bright future in front of them, and Olie Kolzig should be part of that near future.

He will know himself when it is time to go.  I can't tell you how sick to my stomach it makes me feel when I see a supposed Caps fans attacking a veteran player who has really been the 'Heart and Soul' of this franchise for so long.  Some have said, he is blaming other players for losses when he points out errant play.  Maybe you should take this perspective, Kolzig knows errant play when he sees it, because he has blamed himself when he has been the perpetrator.

Go CAPS!

 Olie Kolzig has been the starting Washington Capitals Goalie since 1994, and been in the organization since 1989.  He and the outstanding New Jersey Devils goalie Martin Brodeur hold the distinction of having won over 250 games with the same team.

The Capitals acquired (stole) goaltender Cristobal Huet from the Montreal Canadians this week at the NHL Trade Deadline, and as fate would have it he, not Olie started in the next game against the NJ Devils.  The Devils are the #2 team in the Eastern Conference, and #2 in the tough Atlantic Division.  They have scored 172 goals while giving up 156. More on the game after further background stats.

The Capitals have scored 187 goals and given up 200.  During that time Kolzig has a record of 22 W -20 L - 6 ties with a Goals Against Average ( GGA, avg scored on him per game) of 2.98, and a save percentage of .890 (overall shots taken on him).  Martin Brodeur's record is W 31 - L 25 -5 (ties), with a GAA of 2.17 and a 9.19 save percentage.

The Capitals Defensive Corps has three players that have more than 3 years experience in the NHL, and one of them has been out of the lineup (Brian Pothier) 24 games!  Meanwhile the Devils have 5 players with 4 years or more of experience, four with six years or more.

Onto Huet's first start in NJ, which saw the Capitals h0ld the Devils to 18 shots, and we won a 4-0 victory in New Jersey.  The Capitals played so well in front of Huet they only had 3 shots on him in the third period.

 Last night Olie started at home against the Toronto Maple Leafs #12 in the Eastern Conference, and #5 in their Northeast Division.  A veteran team that their own management tried to blow up at the Trade dead line but five veterans with 'No Trade' clauses refused to be traded.  They were coming off a 3-2 overtime win in Tampa the previous night, and should have been tired, and easy prey for the Capitals.  Not that veteran team, who came back from being down 2-0 to Tampa to tie and win that game in overtime.

The veteran Maple Leafs came back from a 1-0 deficit, while putting 25 shots on Kolzig for a 3-2 regulation win over the Capitals.  Note here the Capitals offense stifled against the #12 team, but put up 4 goals against the #2 team in the Conference?

What's the point of this post?  I am getting tired of supposed Capitals fans attacking Olie Kolzig, and blaming him for the teams losses, when it is more than obvious he has been the one Veteran player on the Capitals that held the team together.  The Capitals started a miserable 6-14-1, before the coach was replaced with Bruce Boudreau, who has shepherded the team to a respectable 24-14-7 since taking over.  It was Kolzig standing on his head that got the Capitals thru the hard times, and the good this year.

 It was Olie Kolzig who should have begged for a trade when management blew up the Washington Capitals in the 2003- 2004 season.  He has been the Veteran who has back stopped the Capitals for the last three miserable years that the Capitals have stayed in the cellar of the NHL!  If he would have asked for a trade he could have gone to a winning team and had a chance at a Stanley Cup, and obviously improved his overall games won, GAA, and Save Percentage.

No, Olie Kolzig decided to stay faithful to the Washington Capitals and the city of DC, and it's fans I might add.   Listen to this ungrateful fan's comment on Capital's owner Ted Leonsis blog:

"I started the "Kolzig Sucks" chant last night at the Leafs game. Did you hear it? It will become the next generation "Fire Hanlon" chant. Are you listening?"

 Unbelievable, now I guess I can empathize with the Hillary stalwarts vs. the Obama upstarts...  Now I am not say Huet is anything as inexperienced like Obama, he is an excellent goalie.  What I am saying is that the Capitals fans need to take an over all look at Kolzigs record, which happens to be 11-6-3 in the last twenty games.

One blogger is casting about saying that Olie is blaming everyone else when the Caps lose, and taking all the credit when they win.  Talk about, "What have you done for me lately" syndrome...  Meanwhile he blames the Caps woes on the Kolzig?  Earth to hockey blogger, it's a team effort.

Here is a less ungrateful blog's discussion of the matter.