The Washington Post 082 20101011

MONDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2010 HOCKEY

Johansson’s strong start isn’t without growing pains

Capitals rookie has looked seasoned at times, shaky at others

BY TARIK EL-BASHIR Washington Capitals center

Marcus Johansson has, at times, resembled a seasoned veteran, killing penalties, speeding past opponents and distributing per- fectlyplacedpasses toteammates. Inothermoments,he’s lookedlike the 20-year-old he actually is, a wide-eyed rookie facing the big- gest leapofhis young career. An example of the latter came

less than twominutes into Satur- day night’s 7-2 thumping of the New Jersey Devils. Johansson, on his first shift in front of the home fans, snagged a loose puck, then casually flipped a backhanded pass though the middle of Wash- ington’s zone. The puck, though, never reached Eric Fehr. Instead, it was intercepted by Patrik Elias, and a split second later, Devils center Jason Arnott banged a re- boundinto theCapitals’net. “It was a terrible play,” Johans-

son said. “Iwas a little bit nervous in the beginning. But after that, I felt pretty comfortable out there. I just gotmad atmyself and played better.” When Johansson returned to

the bench, veteran teammate Ja- sonChimerahadwordsof encour- agement forhis young linemate. “ ‘Keep your head up, keep go- ing,’ ” Chimera recalled telling Jo-

hansson. “ ‘It happens to the best of ’em. Wayne Gretzky gave away the puck tons of times.’ Marcus really respondedafter that.” Johansson almost made up for

his costly miscue moments later. In a dazzling display of his smooth-skating stride and deft puck handling, he cut to the slot and forced Martin Brodeur to make a splendidsprawling stop. “He had some chances to score

and did a good job,” Coach Bruce Boudreausaid. Through his first twoNHL con-

tests, the good has indeed out- weighed the bad.Although he has nopointsenteringMondaynight’s game against the visiting Ottawa Senators, Johansson is averaging 14 minutes per game, which is morethanlinematesChimeraand Eric Fehr, and about the same amount of ice time fellow Swede Nicklas Backstromreceived in his firstmonth as a rookie center. He also put two shots on net against the Devils after being shut out in Atlanta. “Withyoung players, the begin-

ning of the season is nerve rack- ing,” Boudreau said. “You want to do good for your team and show you belong. It’s going to take a few games forMarcus andKarlAlzner and John Carlson to settle down and play theway they are capable ofplaying.” Unlike Alzner and Carlson,

though, nerves aren’t all Johans- sonmust overcome.He’s simulta- neously adapting to a new culture off the ice while adjusting to a different style of play onit.Things unfold faster on the smaller NHL

ice surface,ashewas remindedon his first shift Saturday. His learningcurveinthefaceoff

circle is also steep. In Friday’s 4-2 loss to the Thrashers, Johansson lost seven of his draws. He was, however, significantly better Sat- urday,winningsevenof 13faceoffs for the best percentage among the Capitals’ centers. “In Sweden, [faceoffs are] all

about skill,” Boudreau said. “There’snofootworkandnobody- work.” Boudreau said he also expects

to see less “circling” fromJohans- son as the season progresses. While often praised for his defen- sive responsibility, Johansson sometimes plays too cautiously and backs off when pursuing pucks instead of stopping and en- gaging opponents. “It’s very similar to Nicklas

Backstrom’s development,” Bou- dreau said. “Nicky started out slow, and I thinkMarcuswill find his groove and, as he feels more comfortable,he’llplay better.” Capitals note: New Jersey en-

forcer Pierre-Luc Letourneau- Leblond has been suspended one game without pay by the NHL after being assessed an instigator penalty inthe final fiveminutes of Saturday’s game.Leblond,who at- temptedto fight Johanssonwith4 minutes 7 seconds remaining,also was assessed slashing, fighting and a gamemisconduct penalties. Hewill forfeit $2,822.58 in pay. In addition, Coach John MacLean hasbeenfined$10,000.TheDevils host theCapitals onNov. 22. elbashirt@washpost.com

TONY DEJAK/ASSOCIATED PRESS Al Thornton, who had 13 points against Cleveland on Thursday, stays close to Jawad Williams.

Thornton remains uncertain of what role he’ll be playing

Three-guard lineup could limit forward’s time on the floor

BYMICHAEL LEE In one of the more bizarre

training camp incidents, Al Thornton managed to hurdle a car traveling about 20 mph on George Mason's campus and came away relatively unscathed, with Coach Flip Saunders jok- ingly calling him, “Superman.” ButThorntoncouldn’t avoidget- ting hurt on Sunday after grab- bing a rebound during the Washington Wizards’ grueling three-hour practice and landing on JaValeMcGee’s foot. Thornton hobbled up the

JOHN MCDONNELL/THE WASHINGTON POST

“I thinkMarcus will find his groove and, as he feels more comfortable, he’ll play better,” Capitals Coach Bruce Boudreau said of rookie centerMarcus Johansson, left, who is two games into hisNHLcareer.

NHLSTANDINGSANDSUMMARIES

EASTERNCONFERENCE SOUTHEAST W L OL PTS. GF GA Carolina

Tampa Bay Atlanta

Washington Florida

2 0 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 1 1 0 0 1 0

1 0 1

N.Y. Islanders 0 0 New Jersey Pittsburgh

0 1

1 0 0 1 1

4 6 4 2 5 3 2

7 2 9 0 2 3

ATLANTIC W L OL PTS. GF GA Philadelphia N.Y. Rangers

0 2 0

Montreal Ottawa

2 0 0 1 1 0 1 1 0 1 1 0 0 2 0

3 4 4 2 6 3 1 4 5 1 5 11 0 4 6

NORTHEAST W L OL PTS. GF GA Toronto Boston Buffalo

4 8 3 2 5 5 2 5

2 5 5 0 2

WESTERNCONFERENCE CENTRAL Detroit

4

Nashville St. Louis

Columbus Chicago

2 4 2 2

1

W L OL PTS. GF GA 2 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 1

7 2 1 1

2 5 5 1 5

NORTHWEST W L OL PTS. GF GA Edmonton Colorado Calgary

Vancouver Minnesota

PACIFIC Dallas

San Jose

Los Angeles Phoenix Anaheim

2 0 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 1

1 1

1 4 7 2

2 4 3 2 3 5 1

1 2 1 4 6

W L OL PTS. GF GA 2 0 0 1 0

4 9

1 1 0 1 1 0 0 2 0

One point awarded for OT losses.

SUNDAY’S RESULTS Boston 3, Phoenix 0 (in Prague) at Calgary 3, Los Angeles 1 Edmonton 3, Florida 2

MONDAY’S GAMES

Ottawa atWashington, 7 N.Y. Rangers at N.Y. Islanders, 1 Anaheim at St. Louis, 2 Pittsburgh at New Jersey, 4 Chicago at Buffalo, 7 Colorado at Philadelphia, 7 Florida at Vancouver, 10

TUESDAY’S GAMES

Colorado at Detroit, 7:30 Atlanta at Los Angeles, 10:30

SATURDAY’S RESULTS Dallas 5, N.Y. Islanders 4 (shootout) Los Angeles 2, Vancouver 1 (shootout) Phoenix 5, Boston 2 Columbus 3, San Jose 2 (OT) N.Y. Rangers 6, Buffalo 3 Toronto 5, Ottawa 1 Montreal 3, Pittsburgh 2 Washington 7, New Jersey 2 Tampa Bay 5, Atlanta 3 St. Louis 2, Philadelphia 1 (OT) Nashville 4, Anaheim 1 Detroit 3, Chicago 2

FLAMES3,KINGS1 Miikka Kiprusoffmade 21 saves and

1

3 5 5 2 3 3 2 5 5 0

8 7 7

7 6

BRUINS3,COYOTES0

Newcomer Nathan Horton scored a second-period goal and added an assist to help lift Boston to a victory over Phoenix and split the teams’ two-game, NHL season-opening series in Prague. The Bruins’ Tim Thomas recorded a

29-save shutout in his first game of the season, replacing Tuukka Rask.

SCORING BOSTON ................................... 0

PHOENIX .................................. 0 SECOND PERIOD

2 0

1 — 3 0 — 0

Scoring: 1, Boston, Lucic 1 (Horton, Krejci), 12:11. 2, Boston, Horton 3 (Recchi, Krejci), 19:27.

THIRD PERIOD Scoring: 3, Boston, Seguin 1 (Ryder, Thomas), 9:14.

7 7

SHOTS ON GOAL BOSTON ................................. 15

PHOENIX .................................. 8

12 8

10 — 37 13 — 29

Power-play opportunities: Boston 0 of 4; Phoenix 0 of 1. Goalies: Boston, Thomas 1-0-0 (29 shots-29 saves). Phoenix, Bryzgalov 1-1-0 (37-34). A: 12,990 (18,000). T: 2:24.

CAPITALS’NEXTTHREE

vs. Senators Monday, 7 Comcast SportsNet

vs. Islanders Wednesday, 7 Comcast SportsNet, Versus

at Predators Saturday, 8 Comcast SportsNet

Radio: WFED (820 AM, 1500 AM)

6Read updates on the Caps all day at washingtonpost.com/capitalsinsider

CAPITALS’SCHEDULE

OILERS3,PANTHERS2 Dustin Penner, Ryan Jones and

Shawn Horcoff scored in a 5:47 span early in the second period to help Ed- monton beat Florida. Nikolai Khabibulin made 26 saves

Panthers.

Monday: vs. Ottawa, 7 Wednesday: vs. N.Y. Islanders, 7 Saturday: at Nashville, 8 Oct. 19: vs. Boston, 7:30 Oct. 21: at Boston, 7 Oct. 23: vs. Atlanta, 7 Oct. 27: at Carolina, 7 Oct. 28: at Minnesota, 8 Oct. 30: at Calgary, 10

three nights after stopping 37 shots in a 4-0 home victory over Calgary in the first game under Coach Tom Renney. It was the season opener for the

SCORING FLORIDA .................................. 0

EDMONTON ............................. 0 SECOND PERIOD

2 3

0 — 2 0 — 3

Scoring: 1, Edmonton, Penner 1 (Gilbert, Gagner), 1:33. 2, Edmonton, Jones 1 (Vandermeer), 5:34. 3, Florida, Reasoner 1 (Bernier), 6:11. 4, Edmonton, Horcoff 2 (Hall, Peckham), 7:20. 5, Florida, Reasoner 2 (Booth, Bernier), 17:51.

SHOTS ON GOAL FLORIDA ................................ 11

EDMONTON ............................. 3

12 4

5 — 28 6 — 13

Power-play opportunities: Florida 0 of 5; Edmonton 0 of 2. Goalies: Florida, Vokoun 0-1-0 (13 shots-10 saves). Edm, Khabibulin 2-0-0 (28-26). A: 16,839. T: 2:17.

CAPITALSSTATS SCORING

G

Ovechkin............2 Carlson ..............1 Flschmnn...........1 Semin ................0 Knuble ...............1 Laich ..................2 Chimera ............1 Fehr ...................1 Green.................0 Alzner................0 Backstrom ........0 Bradley ..............0 Erskine ..............0 Gordon...............0 Hendricks ..........0 Poti....................0 Schultz ..............0 Steckel ..............0 Team .................9 Opponents.........6

GOALIES

Neuvirth ........... 3.03 Team................. 3.00 Opponents ........ 4.50

Curtis Glencross scored a short-handed goal for Calgary against Los Angeles. Craig Conroy and Niklas Hagman also scoredtohelptheFlamesreboundfroma 4-0 season-opening loss at Edmonton. Dustin Brown scored for the Kings, com- ing off a2-1 shootoutwin in Vancouver. SCORING LOSANGELES ........................... 0

CALGARY ................................... 0 THIRDPERIOD

Scoring: 2, Calgary, Conroy 1 (Morrison), 1:20. 3, Los Angeles, Brown 1 (Kopitar, Doughty), 14:06. 4, Calgary, Hagman 1 (Morrison), 19:37 (en-pp).

SHOTSONGOAL LOSANGELES ........................... 8

CALGARY ................................ 12

7 6

7 — 22 14 — 32

Power-playopportunities:LosAngeles0of3;Calgary1of 5. Goalies: Los Angeles, Bernier 0-1-0 (31 shots-29 saves). Calgary, Kiprusoff 1-1-0 (22-21). A: 19,289 (19,289). T: 2:17.

0 1

1 — 1 2 — 3

SECONDPERIOD Scoring: 1, Calgary,Glencross 1 (Sutter), 11:31 (sh).

2 2 3 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

11 7

1 1

4 3 3 3 2 2 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

stairs afterward with an ice pack covering his sprained left ankle. He doesn’t expect the injury to keep him from playing against the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday, but Thornton isn’t quite sure what his role will be whenever he is back on the court. He entered training camp as the favorite to emerge as starting small forward, with Josh How- ard still recovering from left knee surgery. “Supposedly. That’s the plan,”

Thornton said, when asked near the end of training camp if the starting job was his. “I want to say, ‘Yeah.’ ” But through the first three preseason games, Saunders has decided to take an unconven- tional approach and started his “three little guys” — point guards Gilbert Arenas, KirkHin- rich and JohnWall—along with Andray Blatche and McGee. Al- though none of the guards stands taller than 6 feet 4, the Wizards have actually been competitive with that trio, with Hinrich tenaciously defending opposing small

They’ve also been able to limit turnovers with three capable ball-handlers on the floor. And, the Wizards’ use of zone defens- es has also helped them from getting worn down.

A PTS +/- PM PP SH 2

2 1 2 0 1 2

-1 -1 2

-1 1 1

-1 1 0 1 2

20 13

1 1 1

-1 2

-2

0 0 0

0

14 0 4 0 0 7 2 5 0 0 5 4 0 5 2 0 0

50 55

0 0 0

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0

Saunders said he is experi- menting with different lineups and hasn’t “made any decisions” about the group he plans to trot out for the season opener in Orlando on Oct. 28. “We want to see if we can play

those guys together, because they are three of our top five guys,” Saunders said about Are- nas, Hinrich and Wall. “What you’d like to do at some point is get your best players on the floor as much as you can. Kirk has an ability to play against bigger guys. Idon’tknowifwe’ll be able to play a lineup like that steady, but we’ll be able to play them at times.” He joked, “Itwouldn’t be right

to put that group out there, and one of those guys has to play LeBron James. That wouldn’t be fair.Theymightputmein jail for that.”

Saunders said that, ideally, he

is looking for a small forward who can finish at the basket, consistently knock down open jumpers or prevent opponents from scoring. Hinrich said he “was a little shocked” when Saunders decided to pick him as the initial starter, “but I’m just happy to be out there.” Thornton emerged as the

starter at small forward when Howard tore his anterior cruci- ate ligament last February, but was later hampered by a groin injury. In their finalmeeting last season, Saunders told Thornton that he needed to get in better shape and provide more than occasional flashes on the defen- sive end. Thornton arrived in the best

forwards.

shape of his career, losing 20 pounds with the assistance of a trainer. He had a decent camp, closing out the final open scrim- mage at GeorgeMason with the game-winning runner, but was admittedly surprised when Saunders decided to go small against Dallas. “A little bit, to be honest with

you. He’s the coach, it’s his deci- sion,” Thornton said. “I think Flip is changing the lineup around a little bit. Kirk Hinrich is a veteran, brings leadership. I

think it’s gone well for us.” Thornton is trying to make

the most of his time on the floor, saying that he just wants to be ready when his name is called. He sat for the entire first half against Cleveland, but scored 13 points in 15 minutes in the sec- ond half of the Wizards’ 97-83 win. “I’m still trying to figure everything out, findmyway, find my role. I think it’s an ongoing process,” Thornton said. “I’m trying to come out and bring it on both ends of the floor. Bring energy. Be a playmaker and make things happen for me when I have the opportunity.” Nick Young also was expected

to contend for the starting job, but he has played mostly shoot- ing guard off the bench this preseason. After struggling the first two games, Young bounced back to score a team-high 18 points in the 107-96 loss in Chi- cago, but he was most proud about taking a charge on Bulls reserve center Omer Asik. “Got my confidence back

more, just showed I can’t be limited to being a spot-up shoot- er. There is more to me than that,” Young said. “Coming off the bench, I’ve got to bring energy and score. I can’t be anybody else out there, just be myself.”

Saunders said that over the

next two weeks, there will be opportunities for bothThornton and Young. “Al’s been really good here

lately. He’s played really well. I like what he’s done,” he said. “Nick, he can really make shots at times. We’ve just got to his concentration up, defensively. And make shots in key situa- tions. I think sometimes, he makes shots, maybe when the game is not as close because he doesn’t feel as much pressure. He’s got to make those shots in pressure situations. “You want to have flexibility

to that spot.We’ve gotsomeguys who can bring something differ- ent, so it’s really a matter of where we’re at,” he said. “We’ll have to see.”

leem@washpost.com

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