TORONTO - Early this season, the Washington Capitals battled fits of inconsistency and the confusion that comes with yet another coach and another system. Almost halfway through the season, they looked like a team that had everything together. The Capitals, in beating the Toronto Maple Leafs 6-2 Wednesday night, provided a blueprint for what Peter Horachek wants to accomplish the rest of the year. His mentor, Barry Trotz, took some time to get Alex Ovechkin and Co. to put the pieces together, but a recent stretch of at least a point in 14 of 15 games represents the consistency the Leafs want to find. I have a feeling theyre going to be playing a pretty similar system, Capitals forward Eric Fehr said of the Leafs. You cant do it all in one day. I think the most important part is the D-zone and we established that in training camp with a lot of physical battles in training camp and a lot of teaching. I dont know how much time theyre going to have to learn it on the fly, but its worked well for us now that we figured it out. Washington forward Brooks Laich, now on his fifth coach along with many of his teammates after stints under Glen Hanlon, Bruce Boudreau, Dale Hunter and Adam Oates, estimated it takes 50 to 60 games to really get your identity and identify how youre going to win. The Leafs dont have that kind of time, at least to salvage this season. At the midpoint, theyre 21-17-3 and a point out of a playoff spot. The Capitals, thanks to their recent run of success, are 21-11-7 and solidly in third place in the Metropolitan Division. Much has changed for Washington, not the least of which has been stronger play from goaltender Braden Holtby, who has a 2.33 goals-against average and .930 save percentage over the past 15 games. It means hes playing really well and it means were playing well defensively as well to give long-range shots, not second chances, that sort of thing, Laich said. Our five-on-five play has improved. Two areas of that is the wall play, breaking out of our zone, and the net-front traffic at the other end has drastically improved. The Capitals made roster changes from last season, with new general manager Brian McLellan bringing in defencemen Brooks Orpik and Matt Niskanen to stabilize the teams biggest weakness. The Leafs may find themselves in a similar spot this summer trying to shore up a few areas. But for now the teams have some similarities. Phil Kessel is a poor mans Ovechkin, a scoring winger who is the subject of criticism, and other key pieces match up, even if Washington has more depth of talent and the evidence to prove it from several playoff appearances. Still, when Trotz took over for this season, it was something of a fresh start. The longtime Nashville Predators coach had to drill his philosophies into a veteran group that had gone through plenty of coaching changes already. The player has to make the commitment. Thats where it starts, Trotz said. Ive been very fortunate that the guys that Ive gotten an opportunity to coach here, theyre committed to the buy-in and they wanted the change. ... Theyre a group that recognizes that theres a certain way we need to play as a group if were going to be successful. Horachek worked 10 seasons under Trotz as an assistant and then an associate coach for the Nashville Predators and could look to turn the Leafs into a version of the Capitals. But he doesnt have a long-term contract to work with, just 40-some games and the freedom that comes with lower expectations. On a very small scale, Horachek is already following his good friends lead, even if just subconsciously. Before his Leafs head-coaching debut, the 54-year-old said he wasnt going to rush changes, something Trotz was careful about in Washington. At the beginning of the season, Trotzy didnt want to give us too many adjustments, Fehr said. Weve slowly transformed our game into the way he wants us to play. I think hes done a good job of it, we understand what we need to do. I think were pretty consistent at doing it. General manager Dave Nonis cited inconsistency as the reason for firing coach Randy Carlyle. Horachek will try to instill something of that in the near future. Even in the 6-2 loss to the Capitals, Horachek pointed to limiting chances and shots and controlling puck possession as positives the Leafs can build off of. But Toronto is a long way from what its opponent was like Wednesday night. Change there has set in. I think its the way we use all five guys in the D-zone to help break out the puck, Fehr said. We do a good job coming back helping our defence find outlets. I think it really frustrates teams when they cant sustain pressure and we can just get the puck up and out. With the Leafs trying to become more of a puck-possession team, first under Carlyle and now under Horachek, the first step is getting the puck back. Horachek is expected to adopt some of Trotzs theories to make that happen and began making adjustments Tuesday in practice. Its what we used to call five, five and five, Horachek said. We want five guys in the defensive zone, in the neutral zone and in the offensive zone. Its all connected and we believe thats the way it has to be. Even if the Leafs hope to replicate the Capitals, it wont be a smooth process. Trotz knows from the past few months that there are growing pains associated with change. Even if youre playing well defensively you might not get the wins, Trotz said. You always get tested how far youre going to come off the rail, if you will, to have balance in your game. Weve been tested a few times and youve got to keep pulling it back. To me Ive been very fortunate, Ive got some really good leaders in the room, our leadership group is strong. Weve had some pointed talks, if you will, when its gone off the rails a little bit. Its unfair to expect Horachek to be a miracle worker, even though he worked under Trotz for so long. And as Laich knows, players need time to adjust to a new coach. A system is not a hard thing to execute, its not, Laich said. But it does take time to iron out every little detail of your switches in your own zone, your coverage changes, your side-to-side transitions, your rotations. Those are little, finite things that do take a little bit of time. Custom Nike Baseball Jerseys China .J. Fair didnt have many chances to be the main option for Syracuse last season. Custom Nike Baseball Jerseys Sale . - Whether its because of her improved play or the reason for it, Michelle Wie appears as comfortable on and off the golf course as at any time in her career. https://www.customnikebaseballjerseys.co...s-baseball.html. -- Andy Dorman and Kelyn Rowe scored in the second half to lead the New England Revolution to a 2-1 victory over Sporting Kansas City in the first leg of their Eastern Conference semifinals series on Saturday night. Custom Nike New York Yankees Jerseys . Toronto has lost six of its last eight games but is coming off Thursdays 7-3 victory at Kansas City. Juan Francisco and Colby Rasmus both went deep for the Blue Jays, who are second in the American League with 34 home runs on the season. Wholesale Custom Nike Baseball Jerseys .C. -- Al Jefferson knows few people will be giving the Charlotte Bobcats a chance to upset the Miami Heat in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs.BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Sabres owners Terry and Kim Pegula have a strong desire to see the Bills stay in Buffalo, and arent ruling out making a bid to buy the NFL franchise. In saying theyre following the Bills sale process, the Pegulas declined to go into further detail of their intentions, in a prepared statement released by Sabres vice-president Michael Gilbert on Friday. "Like everyone else in this community, they have a strong desire to have the Buffalo Bills remain a centerpiece of this region," Gilbert said. "Accordingly, they have been following the developments involving the sale of the Bills." Out of respect for the sale process, Gilbert said the owners will not be issuing any further comments. The statement was released in response to numerous reports of the Pegulas having serious interest in purchasing the Bills, who are on the market after the teams owner and founder Ralph Wilson died in March. The latest development came on Thursday, when a person familiar with the sale process told The Associated Press the Pegulas were among prospective buyers who received a non-disclosure agreement and background on the Bills from a law firm representing Wilsons estate. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because the sale process has not been made public. Filling out the non-disclosure agreement would be the next step in providing interested groups full access to the Bills financial data in order to begin formulating bids. The Bills were last valued by Forbes to be worth $870 million. But theirr sale price could go much higher because NFL teams rarely go on the market.dddddddddddd The Pegulas made their fortune in the natural gas industry, after Terry Pegula sold off many of his companys assets for $4.7 billion to Royal Dutch Shell in 2010. His net worth was last estimated by Forbes to be $3.3 billion, but that figure could rise after his company reached a deal to sell off 75,000 acres of land in Ohio and West Virginia to Oklahoma-based American Energy Partners last week. Pegula has spent the past four years going on a major spending spree focusing on two of his passions: hockey and Penn State, his alma mater. In 2010, he donated more than $100 million to Penn State to build a hockey arena and establish a Division I program. In February 2011, he purchased the Sabres, the team he became a fan of in the 1970s. The Pegulas have since shown a commitment to helping spur Buffalos economy by building a $172 million hockey/entertainment complex called HarborCenter across from the Sabres downtown arena. The Bills long-term future in western New York remains a question mark. Though their lease essentially ties them to playing at their current home through the 2019 season, there are concerns the Bills could eventually relocate under a new owner. Toronto and Los Angeles are considered potential landing spots. People familiar with the sale have previously said an ownership candidate could be identified by the end of July, and the sale approved by NFL owners as early as the leagues meetings in October. ' ' '