Follow What Leader?

from pucksandbooks of On Frozen Blog, This hockey club has the requisite skill and experience to rise to the challenge. What we don?t yet know is if it has adequate leadership. It?s a point that?s been debated with some robustness for more than a year now: Did the Caps get it right in stitching the ?C? to Ovi?s sweater? Failure this week in Tampa will bring fresh and heated scrutiny to that question. 2010-11 has not been a year to remember for our captain; its premature conclusion would intensify the evidence against his leadership. And the late-season arrival of Jason Arnott only adds fuel to that fire.

This is a postseason tailor-made for Ovi to ascend, but to date, we don?t have that breakthrough performance suggestive that he?s ready to seize that moment and lead his club. Tonight is one such opportunity.

Behind the bench, there is the obvious subplot related to Bruce Boudreau. All seemed reasonably well for Gabby a week ago, but when his club was gifted a lengthy break with which to rest and repair, they came out of it unable to meet the underdog?s challenge. That story is growing old here. Boudreau?s beaten an under-manned John Tortorella set of Ranger clubs twice in the postseason over the course of four springs . . . and no one else. Losing to the rookie, Guy Boucher? At some point (potentially soon) Capitals? fans are going to ask: where is our Bylsma, our Tortorella, our Babcock, our . . . Boucher?

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Source: http://www.kuklaskorner.com/index.php/hockey/comments/follow_what_leader/

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