Godzilla's Return!

The Capitals received some good news earlier this week as Olaf Kolzig looks to get the nod in tonight's game against the Boston Bruins. It seems Kolzig has fully recovered from a torn MCL, an injury he has been sidelined with for the past month or so.

Here's what he told Washington Post's Tarik El-Bashir:

"I was frustrated," Kolzig said of the shot that beat him. "I have to remind myself that I've been off the ice for four weeks, and my timing isn't going to be the way it was before. You know me. I don't let things fester inside. I let it out."

Kolzig currently sits 17th in the league with a .909 SV% at 45 games played.
Also, the Capitals have assigned Frederic Cassivi to Hershey.

Why are we really losing?

With the season coming to a close, I can’t help myself to think back to when we were playing great, entertaining hockey. At the time, the Capitals were in a playoff position, something Cap fans weren’t expecting out of what was to be a “re-building year.”
What did we have then compared to what we have now? Danius Zubrus? Well yes, the Zubrus deal did see the Capitals lose one of their top point getters, but is Zubrus’ departure the reasoning behind our recent losing ways?
Not technically! Although the trade did break-up one of the best line combinations in the NHL, the Caps haven’t missed a whole lot of Zubrus’ scoring touch.
If you tally up how many goals were scored seven games prior to the deal and seven games after the deal you will notice they are both at 15.
Not to harp on Brent Johnson for a second time in two nights but our losing ways haven’t come because of Zubrus’ departure (although Ovechkin has been in a slump) it has to do with goaltending. At the time of Kolzig’s injury some may argue that the Capitals were already out of the playoff race, but I think just by looking at the standings right now and seeing where Boston and Florida stand you can’t really count anyone out two months before the playoffs. I’ve noticed the media look at Ovechkin’s recent play for our severe drop in the standings, but a team that holds a 3.44 GAA (2nd worst in NHL) and a 2.89 Goals per Game Average (11th in the NHL) clearly states that their problems stem from the back.
Before I blame all of this on Johnson, I should point out that our defence holds a huge part in this. Watching Green & Eminger pretty much hand the Thrashers two of their four goals scored Monday night wasn’t pretty, but for a goaltender to win only one game out of the 13 he’s filled in for is simply awful!

Caps plug away with Johnson

It pains me to constantly think that whenever Kolzig goes down, Johnson has to be stuffed infront of the cage only to watch pucks go past him.
Living in Toronto I don't get to see the Caps play much, let alone Brent Johnson. But over the stretch of Kolzig's injury I have had the opportunity to realize Johnson is a complete plug!
I really don't know what Caps management liked in Johnson after last season. Well, I'll take that back. He did show up for a few contests, and I did notice confidence building in Johnson's play.
But at 26 games played, Brent Johnson's GAA sits at a terrifying 3.67; only better than Dan Cloutier.
I understand that Johnson has become somewhat of a better goaltender after arriving in Washington, but to think that the Caps are totally sold on Johnson by extending his term in DC is scary.
One netminder in particular that I would like to see in a Capitals uniform is Fred Brathwaite. (May be Atlanta Thrashers' property)
Watching Johnson today against the Thrashers truly made me believe he isn't capable of playing in the NHL.
I'm guessing the Caps are looking to keep Johnson around for quite a bit so all I can do for now is hope Dave Prior can enrich Johnson with some serious goaltending techniques.