Capitals defender Brooks Orpik was on the ice for seven opponent goals last week, but his underlying play has actually been improving. His usage is suspect, but he hasn’t been any better or worse than expected. On DC101’s Elliot in the Morning today, Elliot Segal said Brooks Orpik has been just “as advertised,” which I think is exactly right.

Coming off a brutal loss to the Maple Leafs on Saturday, Orpik spoke with Elliot on Monday morning on a variety of topics– though one recurring theme was how awesome Pittsburgh is. Yeesh.

Here’s a collection of my favorite quotes from the 15-minute chat.

On how the team reacted to the game in Toronto:

“Nothing really needed to be said. I think the players, not the goalies, take responsibility for that…[We] feel some embarrassment there and let those two guys [Holtby and Peters] down.”

On how he evaluates his play so far this season:

“I think I’m pretty hard on myself to be honest with you. I’d probably grade myself lower than some people would. At this point in my career, consistency is the one thing I try to strive for.”

On Capitals leadership and Orpik’s reaction to not being an alternate captain:

“I don’t think leadership’s an issue here at all. I was in Pittsburgh for a long time; we had a lot of good leaders who didn’t wear a letter.”

On whether Orpik prefers to be playing with Ovechkin and Backstrom rather than against them:

“Yeah, well I had two pretty good guys on my side in Pittsburgh, but we haven’t faced them yet… Nicky is one of the most — if not the most — underrated guys in the league. And they’re both great guys off the ice, which is something I didn’t know about them.”

On Segal’s worry that Orpik might accidentally go in the wrong penalty box in Pittsburgh: