Over the past week, much has been made of the Pittsburgh Penguins‘ psychological edge over the Washington Capitals.
The Penguins lead this series 3-1 and have an opportunity Saturday to once again wipe their feet on their favourite post-season doormat, many would have you believe, because they’re in their heads.
Belief and his ugly cousin, Doubt, can sway an athlete’s performance, no question.
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But there is a very physical and measurable element to this series flying under the radar, and it deserves more ink: Pittsburgh’s relentless, selfless, systematic shot-blocking showcase.
If possession metrics alone determined outcomes, the Capitals would already be lounging around playing MarioKart and awaiting the winner of Senators-Rangers.
Washington has drastically out-attempted Pittsburgh in each of the four games, sometimes by as much as double. Game 3’s 63-55 attempt score — ironically, the one game Washington won — was the closest Pittsburgh has come to evening the count.
Alex Ovechkin & Co. have out-attempted Pittsburgh by a grand total of 306-180. This is the series in which Corsi took its bye week.
In New York and Vancouver, Penguins coach Mike Sullivan assisted under John Tortorella, arguably the hockey suit most synonymous with the shot block. Sullivan’s troops have been diligent with closing lanes this series.
“We’ve defended extremely hard,” said Sullivan, who’s operating without No. 1 defenceman Kris Letang. “That’s going to be important for us moving forward. I think we’ve tried to cut down the quality of the chance that we’re giving up.”
In doing so, they’ve often created their own quick-strike chance going the other way. Watch penalty-killer Matt Cullen‘s shot block (and hustle) to give Pittsburgh the lead in Game 2:
“You’ve got to get shots through. That’s something we talked about,” Capitals coach Barry Trotz said. “It was the same last year. They were blocking a lot of shots. Somehow you’ve got to get through them. You have to crowd the net and get some second chances.”
Pittsburgh’s devotion to the shot block — led by Ian Cole and Ron Hainsey — has suffocated one of NHL’s most lethal power plays. It’s given the Capitals fits and forced them to adapt.
Praise is due to Marc-Andre Fleury, the series’ ultimate shot blocker, but there is a force field surrounding the goaltender.
“They’re very willing to block shots. They leave their feet to block shots,” Kevin Shattenkirk said.
“It’s not going to be easy to just wrist them in there. They’re very good at, not that first layer, but that second layer of finding the puck and finding the blocks.”
Washington players have talked about purposely shooting wide or using pump-fakes to freeze and counter the clogging Penguins. Tom Wilson told us weaseling shots through has been a focus of Washington’s lengthy video sessions.
“That’s part of it, systematically, for them. They have a double layer. Their centreman is a secondary layer and they look to block everything. It’s no different than Toronto; it’s no different than us,” Trotz said. “When you don’t have it, you don’t want it at your net, so sacrifice.”
The Pens have drastically out-blocked the Caps in all four games thus far, sometimes by a three-to-one margin, and lead all playoff clubs with an average of 22 blocks per night.
Total BS this series: Penguins 104, Capitals 43.
“They’re doing things we need to be doing,” Washington wing Justin Williams said.
“Give credit where it’s due. They’re blocking a lot of shots. Just like any chess match, you have to do something to alter that: shoot for tips, shoot wide, change shooting angles. They’re blocking a lot of shots, absolutely. I don’t know what the stats are, but we’re not getting them through.”
Here’s a couple stats: The Capitals top all active playoff teams in shots on goal at 35.3 per game (six more than the Penguins), but they also lead all teams in missed shots, with 155.
Early in the series, Trotz tried downplaying Pittsburgh’s human wall. And, yes, all good teams block shots. But not all teams block this good.
“I don’t think there’s a team that doesn’t try to block shots. If there is a team, I can be pretty sure that they’re not in the playoffs,” Trotz said.
He wasn’t talking about his own group when he said it, but unless the Capitals are willing to match Pittsburgh’s willingness to sacrifice, the statement might apply.
