WASHINGTON, DC - Two steps forward, one step back.
It's been the story of the Devils' season. And it's the of for any young team. It's a story of incremental progress, inch-by-inch, with the occasional accompaniment of a slight digression here and there.
Tonight was one of those digressions as some old bad habits - turnovers, poor decision-making - allowed Washington to skate easily to a 4-0 victory against New Jersey Friday night at Capital One Arena.
The Devils had been trending in a very positive way for most of the month of March. They had a 4-1-1 stretch, and even in games they lost, they were competitive.
Tonight, however, was just one of those off nights. The Devils' matchup with the Capitals was their fifth game in a seven-day span, and fatigue may have been a factor in their defeat.
"We lacked energy for sure. I don't know if the schedule caught up to us or what, but it was team wide," head coach Lindy Ruff said. "When you don't have energy, you're not skating as well, you're not executing as well. We made some poor decisions early before we could even get into the game, and those decisions hurt us dearly."
When a team is fatigued, decision-making and execution become critical.
"Days like that you just have to make sure your execution is high so you're not wasting energy chasing pucks or battling when you don't have to," forward Travis Zajac said. "We competed to the end. We just didn't have enough to finish the job."
"I asked the team to empty the tank after the first period," Ruff said. "I thought we got the most we could out of everybody.
"When you play five games in seven nights I really believe you can see some bad hockey."
Here are some other observations from the game...
* If you're looking for silver linings, New Jersey's penalty kill went 2-for-2 on the night and 4-for-4 in the last two games against a deadly Washington power play. The unit has surrendered just three power-play goals in the last 10 games (25-for-28, 89.3%). That crew has done the job and held the forte as of late.
* A perfect example of why the Devils have struggled to finish in this season series, and all season long, came on their power play in the second period. Jack Hughes made a great pass through the middle of the Capitals' box and onto the stick of Jesper Boqvist. The 22-year-old caught the puck, corralled and then sent it toward the net. Washington goaltender Samsonov, who made 24 saves for the shutout, raised his glove and snagged the puck.
Initially on the pass, Samsonov desperately slid across his crease. But when Boqvist, who is playing in his first game since Jan. 31, opted to hold onto the puck, it allowed the goaltender to reset himself and make an easy catch. Boqvist needs to get that puck on net much faster. That half-second hesitation cost him a goal. And he knows it.
"Great pass by Jack and I had an open net," he told MSG+ during intermission. "(Samsonov) was pretty fast over there. Good save, but I have to shoot faster."
This is all part of learning. Next time Boqvist, who is playing in only his sixth game of the season and 41st of his career, is in a similar position, expect him to snap off a shot quickly on the goal.
"I think if he had it back, he would have one-timed it or got it away a lot quicker," Ruff said after the game. "The goaltender is going to recover. You've got a split second to get it away. To me it was similar to (Jesper) Bratt's goal (Thursday). Bratt one-timed it last night. Today, (Boqvist) we caught it, stick-handled it for a second and the goalie was sitting there for the save. That's part of the learning experience."
And Boqvist wasn't the only player guilty of not getting off his shot fast enough.
"If you watch some of the execution, some of the shots, we were slow to release," Ruff said. "A couple power-play shots that normally I think we finish. We just took too long to get off. Those types of plays, to me, are just fatigue in your game."
* For comparison now, look at the Capitals' first, second and fourth goals. The first two came on passes through the slot, the last a pass to the circle. The common theme, Alex Ovechkin (twice) and Nicklas Backstrom shot immediately and scored. No hesitation. No waiting. Just head down, puck at the net, red light.
* Another thing you may have noticed on those two goals is that both passes came through New Jersey's "house" area, right atop the crease. It was a problem all night for the Devils. The Capitals made a few more plays through that house area that resulted in either mishandles or shots. The Devils are lucky that Washington only scored twice on those plays.
* The Capitals were really pressuring the points in the defensive zone. The Devils defensemen handled the pressure with aplomb. But on a few occasions New Jersey ended up having a forward as the deep-man back, and those forwards couldn't handle the pressure.
The forwards tried to stick-handle their way out of pressure and gave up the puck. A Hughes turnover resulted in a breakaway chance for Jakub Vrana, which hit the post. A Boqvist turnover resulted in an odd-man rush with Vrana - yes him again - missing the near post on what would have been an empty-net goal.
"You have to understand when there's fatigue in your game don't put high-risk in your game," Ruff said. "We put some high risk, which cost us."
* Hughes had a rough opening period. On his first shift was the aforementioned turnover. His second shift was Ovechkin's goal and his third shift was Backstrom's goal. It was his final shift of the first period, playing just 1:27 of ice time.
"Admittedly, Jack's first three (shifts) led to a breakaway, a goal against and another goal against. It was a tough first period for him. I decided to not play him. The hope there was to see what response I would get."
The response Ruff got was a much-improved Hughes. His defensive play was better. He setup a great chance for Boqvist, again mentioned above. He also stick-handled into the circles for a quick shot on goal in the third period. He just missed a shot glove side.
"I got the response I was looking for in the second period," Ruff said. "I thought he played a lot better period. If you asked him, I think he'd be pretty disappointed in the start of the game. It's a learning experience. You take that and you have to move forward."
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GAME STORY: Capitals 4, Devils 0 - NHL.com
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