That defense is very weak. Understand the reasoning but there is no way The Caps are going to sit Orpik with Kempny out.

The Jackets have a distinct advantage on the backend and it is showing. Should be a fun series.

Beagle's presence was definitely missed tonight. I hope he is ready to go in Game 2 because he would have been huge on the PK tonight. I think the top 9 lines are good (Devo had a good game in my opinion even when he didn't have the puck). If Wilson gets a suspension from the hit on Wennberg then Id say put Devo on the top line, and add Gersich to the 3rd line. However if Wilson is only fined, then keep the top 9 the same, and take out Chiasson when Beagle enters the lineup. I'd love to see Gersich play but I don't think he has quite enough experience or know the system well enough to be given a regular playoff spot. Next year after he has a season under his belt, then he should get the playing time. Connolly did score 15G this year so that's why I'd leave him in.

However Id keep Orpik in over Bowey. I know he didn't clear Vanek out of the crease on the 2nd goal but I felt like Grubi could have played that a bit better too and maybe with Jay in the lineup Dubois wouldn't have had all that time to make that pass to Vanek. As far as I can tell that was Orpiks big mistake tonight. However a younger defensive defenseman should be a target this off season in order to get the Orpik off the ice because that is the biggest hole I think the Caps have, is defense. But with Kempny likely having a concussion, Id say his spot is replaced with Djoos since he's played more than Bowey.

As for the goalies, Id play Holtby in Game 2. That way he gets a home start and can hopefully feed off the crowd a bit. I think a rotating the goalies could be a good thing, it keeps them fresh, but I think it could also keep Columbus off their game a bit since they won't be "used to" Grubauer as the series continues. They won't learn his tendencies as much that way I think? The only bad thing that would come out of this is neither goalie could get into a groove and maybe that would mess with the team dynamic, I don't know. But given the recent playoff history, riding Holtby didn't help us advance and so maybe it is time to try something else, keep the pressure from building? And the success to enter the playoffs worked well with them rotating. So if the playoffs are just like game 1 and game 82, then the rotation might keep them going like they did in the regular season.

Id like to think Washington shutting down Panarin and Dubois should be the top priority on defense and should see either 6/74 or 9/2 out when that line is out because that is their top line and Panarin had a 3pt game tonight. Id like to focus on them and shut them down (again Beagle would greatly help this) and make Vanek/Foligno/Jones beat us since they are a bit older, not as explosive, and didn't score as much (with the exception of Jones in this case, I only through him in this category due to him being defense).

Hopefully they get the special teams working again and come back and take Game 2! As well as Beags dressing. It was promising to see Vrana, DSP, Kuzy, Burky all playing hard and contributing to the score sheet without having to rely on Ovechkin and Backstrom. The Caps outplayed CBJ and with a few tweaks I think they can string some wins together if they play disciplined.

GO CAPS!

I know they aren't going to put Bowey in over Orpik, but it makes sense. Orpik made three or four boneheaded turnovers in his own zone, which is unacceptable. He had poor positioning on penalty kills and got manhandled in the crease multiple times, not just on the Vanek goal.

Jones and Murray both gave the Caps a lot of trouble, and we have no counter for it right now. We need to start opening seams up in the middle of the ice, especially on zone entries. And little things like saucer passes to avoid passes being intercepted would go a long way. But kudos to Columbus, they were able to control the middle of the ice defensively and generate offense from the wings.

Connolly doesn't generate any offense. He is simply the beneficiary of his linemates. I'd yank him and put in someone productive with the puck like Gersich, who forechecks hard and has good offensive upside, where Connolly has little.