Jon Press from Japers Rink joins the show to discuss how the Capitals were victimized by the NHL’s ongoing search for rivalries, and whether this is the best team they’ve assembled in Washington while Ovechkin has been there.

Then Thomas Drance joins us from sunny Florida to help pinpoint the distinct points in the season in which the Panthers improved their play, and try to figure out why there was such a big divide between talent and results for the New York Islanders.

Here’s a quick rundown of the topics covered:

0:35 Capitals drawing a tough opponent
2:43 Washington’s second half malaise
10:01 Evgeny Kuznetsov’s emergence
12:15 The playoff elephant in the room
19:52 Intriguing Panthers and Islanders storylines
21:39 The back-to-back effect
23:06 In-season personnel adjustments
27:03 Islanders underwhelming season
29:42 How much is coaching to blame?

Every episode of this podcast is available on iTunes, Soundcloud, Stitcher and can also be streamed from our website. Make sure to not only subscribe so that you don’t miss out on any new shows as they’re released, but also take a minute to leave a glowing review.

Thanks for listening!