- 7 minutes ago
Fifteen games into the season, Washington’s overhauled lineup is finally showing flashes of its true identity. Spencer Carbery pulls back the curtain on the quiet turning point that changed everything.
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00:00Last game, nice comeback win against the Panthers at home
00:03after falling into a 2-1 hole.
00:05Take us through how the team recovered from that
00:08and rallied in that game.
00:10Yeah, I thought our start was good.
00:14I thought the 12-30 afternoon game,
00:18but I thought we were ready.
00:21Liked early shifts in that game.
00:23If you remember, what happens is Willie gets called
00:26for the five-minute majors.
00:29In the first period, you lose a key player like Willie,
00:33and then also you've got to kill off a five-minute power play
00:37that even though they score a minute into it,
00:39that doesn't end for people who don't know the rule.
00:43Like five minutes, you can score as many power play goals
00:45as you possibly can.
00:46It doesn't expire just because you score one or two.
00:49So we had to kill off the next four minutes
00:52to make sure they didn't get multiple goals on that power play.
00:54And so it felt like we did a good job there of keeping it to one.
00:58And then, yeah, we just stuck with it.
01:01I mean, in the second period, our best period of the game,
01:03to grab a lead there and sort of,
01:07and the third period, even protecting the lead.
01:09I thought we were aggressive.
01:10We had multiple looks.
01:12We extend the lead to 4-2.
01:14So a really good 60-minute game
01:17considering all the adversity with the penalties and whatnot.
01:20So PLD sets up pro for the go-ahead goal
01:24in that win over the Panthers.
01:26Caps are 7-3 with Dubois in the lineup this season.
01:30He's a guy that's critical to have out on the ice
01:32and healthy to help lead the Caps to wins,
01:33and we saw that on display on Saturday.
01:36No doubt.
01:37And he scores like a great goal.
01:39Well, the fourth goal was a huge goal
01:43because they end up, you know,
01:44tightening that game up six on five.
01:46But it was a great finish in tight.
01:49He's got poise there.
01:50He holds on, goes around Schmeid, the Florida goaltender,
01:54and the poise to set up pros goal.
01:57Those are two big, big high-end plays from Duby
02:00to create goals where he holds it an extra second.
02:04Leno makes a great play on the forecheck,
02:05gets it out to Duby, and finds Protoss.
02:09A lot of guys would shoot that puck.
02:10They'd get the puck right in the slot,
02:12and they would just, it'd be on and off their stick,
02:13and they would shoot it,
02:14and there's a chance it would go in.
02:16But Duby had the poise to know that Pro was on the back door,
02:20and Pro has an empty net right there.
02:22If he can get it to him, it's a great play.
02:24Kind of wanted to ask you big picture.
02:26So you've played 15 games,
02:27and we knew that you guys were going to probably be working
02:30through some chemistry and things like that
02:32with all the new players.
02:33Do you like where you're at at this point in the season,
02:38and how far do you have to go to get where you want to be?
02:42I like where we are.
02:44I think early on, you know,
02:47even though we were winning some games,
02:49I felt like our game was still a little bit in flocks,
02:52and we were still, like you said,
02:54trying to find a little bit of chemistry.
02:56The injuries didn't help with it,
02:59and I'm not even talking wins and losses.
03:01I'm just talking with chemistry, lines, getting that together.
03:03So Dubois, I'm going through that, and Sordy for a few games.
03:07But now with our forward group relatively healthy,
03:09I know we've got Desjardins and Sandin on the back end,
03:13but I feel like the last six, seven, eight games,
03:18it's starting to come together, probably since the L.A. game.
03:21Even though the L.A. game we lose at home,
03:23did a lot of really good things.
03:26And the film and our underlying numbers since then
03:28are really, really strong overall.
03:32And so, you know, we've gotten some results.
03:35We dropped a few at home,
03:36but played well against Minnesota and Dallas.
03:38So I think we're going in the right direction
03:40with our identity as a team
03:42and what we want it to look like.
03:43And if you consistently play the way that we have been
03:46over the last eight games,
03:48we feel pretty confident that we're going to win a lot of games
03:50and the results will fall.
03:52We definitely still have work to do.
03:54Special teams is something that power play, penalty kill,
03:57we're going to continue to hone in on
03:58and try to fine-tune those details.
04:02But like where we're trending right now
04:04and going in the right direction.
04:06So Coach Leno's about to hit his 100th career game
04:09as a Washington Capital tonight in Ottawa.
04:11It's funny to see you reflect on him getting taken out
04:14by Ovi and the teammates to a bar on the B.C. campus
04:17before he made his Caps debut against the Bruins.
04:20I mean, it was to the point where he was basically,
04:22he got a text from Ovi saying,
04:24hey, we're going out.
04:24And he showed it to his teammates.
04:26He's like, is this real or is this a prank?
04:28And they're like, no, that's real.
04:29You got to go out with Ovi.
04:30So what's it been like watching him develop
04:32as a young player from that first game
04:35now to game 100 tonight in Ottawa?
04:37And he's going to be one of the future leaders
04:39of the Caps team.
04:40No doubt.
04:41And it's incredible.
04:42100 games already.
04:43I can literally, like it was yesterday,
04:45we were in Boston and he was playing his first game
04:48and then playing in the Stanley Cup playoffs that year.
04:51And then last year, just going through his true rookie campaign.
04:56And yeah, he's just, he's been a pleasure to coach.
05:02And what I love about Leno
05:04and why I think he's just going to be so successful in his career
05:07and so successful as a cap for years to come,
05:11it's just his competitiveness.
05:12And you guys see it when he plays.
05:14He's just a fiery competitor.
05:15He's got an edge to him.
05:17And then the other part, which as a coach,
05:19you really appreciate because I see it behind the scenes
05:21is just his willingness to be coached
05:23and wants to get better and wants information
05:26and wants, you know, to take information
05:31and consistently tries to get better and better and better.
05:34And that you have a lot of confidence as a coach
05:37when players are like that,
05:39that they're going to reach their full potential
05:41and become real, real quality players in this league.
05:43So I feel like I have to ask you about Ovi.
05:46Just one goal through 15 games.
05:48That is shocking to us fans.
05:49What are you seeing on the ice from Ovi?
05:53I think he's been really good like the last few games
05:57in his role and what he's been giving us
06:00a bunch of good chances last game.
06:02I think he's a little snake bit
06:03and he's a little frustrated.
06:05A few of these haven't been going in for him.
06:08But I've liked everything about how the films looked
06:11and how his shifts have looked
06:13over whatever it's been the last three, four games.
06:17And eventually they'll come
06:19and hopefully it comes in bunches
06:20and once one goes in, there's more to follow.
06:25But as we all know,
06:27and as I try to stress with this,
06:28like O and this year
06:30and his role on our team
06:33and it goes so much further than the stat line
06:36and the goals and assists.
06:38And so he's doing a great job
06:40when it comes to leadership,
06:41being our captain,
06:44embracing the role that he's in,
06:45trying to help us on the power play,
06:47try to help sort if as a young player
06:50and playing on his line right now.
06:51So there's been a lot of positive signs
06:53the last few games.
06:54We're joined by Caps head coach,
06:56Spencer Carberry.
06:57So Willie avoids further suspension
06:59following his hit on Panthers,
07:01D-man, Sandus Vilmanis.
07:03Were you worried that the NHL's
07:04Department of Player Safety
07:05was going to suspend him
07:07and give further discipline for that hit?
07:10I mean, I saw it the way that sort of
07:13it sounded like that they saw it
07:15from the no suspension.
07:17I just felt like those hits are tricky.
07:20I know the end result doesn't look great
07:22and I know you never want to see someone
07:25leave a game or be injured from a hit.
07:29But those ones around the boards
07:30where, you know, you freeze it,
07:33whatever it is, a second and a half
07:34or three quarters of a second
07:36or however the timing is
07:37and everything looks fine.
07:39And then all of a sudden,
07:40the person with the puck
07:41makes a move to turn his body.
07:44Those are really, really tricky.
07:46And so I know the league
07:47has put a lot of the onus on the players
07:50that when you have the puck
07:51and you're looking at someone
07:53and then you all of a sudden turn directions
07:55and show them you're back,
07:56there's a little bit of onus
07:58on that puck carrier.
07:59And I just felt like
08:00that was one of those situations
08:01where Willie's going as fast
08:04as he possibly can.
08:05He's going to make contact
08:06and then all of a sudden
08:07there's a turn from the guy
08:09that has the puck.
08:10And I just, it happens so quick.
08:12It's really hard to pull up
08:15in those situations
08:15when all of a sudden
08:16you just see a guy's back
08:17because he just turns.
08:18All right, Coach.
08:19So you're heading into a short road trip.
08:21You go to Ottawa,
08:22then I think it's Jersey.
08:24What's kind of the focus
08:25for these next couple games?
08:26And, you know,
08:27is it more, you know,
08:29how is it different
08:30when you have to kind of like prepare
08:31while you're on the road?
08:35I don't think it's much different
08:37from a preparation standpoint.
08:38I think it's just different
08:39of us now being out on the road
08:42and it's just our team, right?
08:43Now you're in the hotel,
08:45you're on the buses,
08:46you're on the plane.
08:48Um, and, and you're also playing
08:51in, you know, hostile environments
08:53on the road, the, the crowd,
08:55we don't get last change.
08:56And so I think it just changes
08:58a little subtle differences there,
08:59but now we're, we're just out
09:01on the road and trying
09:02to establish our road game
09:03and making sure that we're doing
09:04a lot of those things
09:05that I talked about
09:06over the last seven, eight games.
09:08Yeah.
09:09We're doing those on, on the road.
09:12And this is going to be a good test.
09:13Like another tough week.
09:14We had a tough week at home
09:15with Dallas, Minnesota, Florida,
09:17three really good teams.
09:18Now we're going to go
09:19two out of the three on the road.
09:22Uh, okay.
09:23In Ottawa against a really good team.
09:25Then we go into Jersey
09:26against everybody knows
09:27what Jersey's doing right now.
09:29And they just added one of the,
09:31the best goaltenders on the planet.
09:33And so really good test
09:34for our group, uh, these three
09:36games this week.
09:36All right.
09:37So it starts tonight,
09:38like you said, in Ottawa,
09:39with the Canadian tire center cakes.
09:42Yeah.
09:42That's where they are.
09:43Got to get the sponsors in, baby.
09:45So the, the centers have played
09:47three more games than you guys.
09:49They've played 18 games already.
09:50They're six and two, uh, at home
09:52at the Canadian tire center.
09:54Um, just kind of talk about,
09:55and they've won a couple in a row,
09:56I believe.
09:57So just kind of talk about
09:57the strengths and weaknesses
09:58of, of Ottawa.
09:59And they could be getting
10:00their stud goalie back tonight too.
10:02Oh, okay.
10:03Possibly.
10:03Yeah.
10:03There's a chance Omar plays tonight.
10:05Absolutely.
10:06Just, I think they're a team
10:07that's, um, they were,
10:08they were kind of rebuilding
10:09over the last,
10:10however many years.
10:11And over the last few years,
10:13they've started to kind of
10:15hit their prime
10:16with their young players.
10:17Um, Jake Sanderson,
10:19really good defenseman
10:21was on team USA,
10:22the Olympic team,
10:23Tim Stutzel, who, um,
10:26it was a young player for years,
10:27but now all of a sudden
10:28he's played five,
10:29six years in the league
10:30and is a really quality
10:31center man, German.
10:32Um, so they're now
10:35sort of hitting their stride
10:37of, of, they're really
10:38comfortable with their
10:39identity as a team.
10:40Got a lot of players
10:41that are just sitting
10:43right in their prime
10:44right now.
10:45And they just beat a real
10:46good Ottawa team
10:47in their building.
10:47So this will be a really,
10:49uh, real physical,
10:51hard, similar Florida.
10:52Like if you were like
10:53K carbs, what's the team
10:55like what, this is like
10:56a Florida, it's going
10:57to be a hard for checking.
10:58You got a battle for space,
11:00competitive, physical, um,
11:02net front ugly.
11:04Like that's the type of,
11:05uh, opponent we've got
11:07tonight.
11:07Hey coach, those hometown
11:09remix jerseys seem to be a
11:11hit with the fan base.
11:12Do some of the younger
11:13players, do they have any
11:14idea about the color scheme
11:16and the logo with the
11:17Washington, with the
11:18Capitol on the front,
11:19the date back like 20
11:20plus years?
11:21Like, are they like,
11:22what are these uniforms?
11:24What are these all about?
11:25I think they've seen
11:26picks and they've shown
11:28like guys have seen
11:29like all the different,
11:30I think I saw social media
11:32posts of like all the
11:33different years of caps.
11:34These guys are, are pretty
11:36active on that stuff and
11:37see that stuff too.
11:38I think they did a great
11:39job and I've seen like
11:40some of the fan reaction
11:41and even some of the fan
11:43reaction from around the
11:45league are ours are right
11:46up there of, of being
11:47ranked fairly high of like
11:49the best rendition of
11:50those remixes.
11:51Yep.
11:52All right.
11:52Well, best of luck and get
11:53those two points in Ottawa
11:54and we'll talk to you again
11:56next week.
11:56Thank you, coach.
11:58Thanks guys.
11:59Have a great week.
12:00Yeah, you too, buddy.
12:00It's Caps head coach,
12:02Spencer Carp.