Capitals Still Fighting for Playoff Spot
The Washington Capitals stayed in the playoff hunt, successfully
completing a five-game road trip - their last long trip of the
season - by playing .500 hockey (2-2-1).
More impressive, however, is the fact Washington returned home
and beat San Jose and Toronto, extending its home winning streak
to five games. As a result of its newly found consistency,
Washington (24-28-5) trails the Florida Panthers (21-21-15) by
only four points for the eighth and final playoff spot in the
Eastern Conference.
Four teams - Florida, Boston, Montreal, the Rangers and
Washington - are fighting for the final berth.
"It's a huge win," Washington coach Ron Wilson said after his
club defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs, 4-3. "Every team you play
now, they're battling for position in the standings and we're
battling for ours. At this point, you don't have to say too much.
You just keep reminding everybody that all the points are equally
important."
One catalyst of the Capitals recent surge into playoff contention
is Sergei Gonchar. The defenseman, despite missing two weeks with
a wrist injury, has scored 13 goals in his last 22 games.
When Gonchar returned Feb. 18 at Carolina, he picked up right
where he left off, scoring a first period, power-play goal to
help the Capitals keep pace with their Eastern Conference
counterparts with a 2-2 tie. For an encore, he scored two
power-play goals to help down the Sharks, 3-1, and picked up an
assist in Washington's victory over Toronto.
"He's the kind of guy that I'd pay 100 bucks to see play,"
defenseman Enrico Ciccone said. "He's gone for two or three
weeks, and then he scores three goals like he hasn't missed a
day. I wish I had two percent of what he has."
Gonchar ranks fourth in the league in goals scored by defensemen
with 13. St. Louis' Al MacInnis leads with 16 goals.
Tinordi Sprains Ankle
Washington's worst nemesis, the injury bug, is back. Its victim?
Defenseman Mark Tinordi.
Tinordi, who returned to action last month from a groin injury,
will miss four-to-six weeks with a sprained ankle. His latest
injury occurred Feb. 22 when he awkwardly slid into the goal-post
while attempting to stop a second-period breakaway bid by Maple
Leafs defenseman Bryan Berard. If it's any consolation for
Tinordi, the instant replay official ruled he knocked the net off
the marsh pegs before Berard slid his shot past goaltender Olie
Kolzig.
With Tinordi sidelined, the Capitals are down to five defensemen.
Brendan Witt, nursing a sprained wrist, isn't expected back for
another week. And recent call-ups, Stewart Malgunas and Nolan
Baumgartner, are both on the shelf with injuries.
If general manager George McPhee doesn't make a trade or recall a
player with no NHL experience, the Capitals will be forced to
dress five defensemen. That experiment failed once this season in
a 7-3 loss at Pittsburgh on Feb. 15.
Center Andrei Nikolishin also was injured against Toronto. He is
listed as day-to-day with a bruised thumb.
