Welcome back, Captain Clark – with a little help from his trusty sidekicks Alex and Semyon, of course.
Welcome back, Captain Clark – with a little help from his trusty sidekicks Alex and Semyon, of course.
The most frustrating thing for a head coach may be when the team drops a game it should have won. Capitals boss Bruce Boudreau certainly showed some of that frustration after the Caps gave up a 3-2 lead against the Rangers with under ten minutes remaining in the third period last night.
Simeon Varlamov's long trip from Hershey, PA meant he didn't arrive in time to back up Brent Johnson when the puck dropped Friday against the Ottawa Senators. Instead, the Caps had to rely on team Web Producer and former Division III goalie Brett Leonhardt as their backup goalie for ten minutes of nail-biting NHL action. The Senators took every possible opportunity to try to hurt Johnson and get to Leonhardt, the only Division III goalie in the NHL this year. But once Varlamov got his pads on and joined the bench, the Sens stopped crashing the crease, as though Johnson had taken on the powers of Obi Wan Kenobi. Last night in Montreal, Varlamov showed exactly why.
Usually at this time of year the Washington Capitals are a distant memory and an icy dream in the warm hearts of their fans. Today, though, we watched 14 likely team members (12 returning Capitals plus Karl Alzner and Jose Theodore) practice together at Kettler Capital Iceplex. This unusual level of commitment is a positive sign for a team on the rise. Even better, we are pleased to report that Caps captain Chris Clark looks ready to play hockey.
Talented European prospects Jacub Klepis and Jame Pollock left the Washington Capitals' farm team this week to play in Europe. The Capitals will no longer have to pay their salaries, but they will also no longer have them around to call up when their star players get injured. Klepis played half the season for Washington last year, gradually developing into a decent center, and showing signs that he could become more of an offensive force...
In the midst of trying to pull the Capitals out of last place, new coach Bruce Boudreau (2-1-1) has the challenge of finding enough playing time to let the young guys--and except for goalie Olaf Kolzig and a few free agents, they're all young guys--develop to their potential. Boudreau has already won top marks from embedded blogger Mike Vogel for letting Steve Eminger play his second game of the season. It will be interesting to...
This weekend the Capitals won their first two games under new head coach Bruce Boudreau. WashingtonCaps.com Senior Writer Mike Vogel announced that Boudreau had turned the team around by fixing the power play. This is true, but Vogel writes that he fixed it by "promoting Nicklas Backsrrom (sic) and Mike Green to the first unit and moving Alex Ovechkin up to his more customary forward spot from the point, where he had been stationed for...
Three of the Capitals' best five offensive players are still out with minor injuries. That's the good news. The bad news is that, after being absolutely destroyed by the Carolina Hurricanes last night, the Caps are tied with the Atlanta Thrashers for the worst record in the East at 5-9-0. Last night's loss would have been easier to explain if the Caps were missing ten, or maybe twenty of their best players. Two Hurricanes scored...
It's getting hard to keep track of what to think about the Capitals this year. At the beginning of the year, they won three straight games, and even spent an hour as the league's first place team. Then they lost a few, won one, and tried losing again. Last night, in what should have been a hopeless battle against a hot team, they put together a seven to one victory over the grammatically challenged...
This summer the Capitals planned to add a defenseman a center and a right wing, all of whom should contribute to the team's sub-par power play. Yesterday, on hockey's first day of free agency, the Capitals signed defenseman Tom Poti and towering center/right wing Viktor Kozlov, both of whom just finished contracts with the New York Islanders. Poti, thirty and heading into his tenth professional season, is a medium sized defenseman who plays mostly...
Written by DCist contributor Eli Resnick The Capitals are on a "mostly winning streak." Why? How? What's a "mostly winning streak?" Who cares! They're doing good. But first there's some bad news: Alexander Semin left the ice late in the third period doubled over with pain. A possible shoulder injury could make it painful for Semin to shoot. We don't want to see Semin's shots dribble weakly to the crease, do we? No! We want...
This entry was written by DCist contributor Jesse Rounds The Washington Capitals are done for the season. The team finished the last week of play by going 3-1 with wins against Florida, Tampa Bay, and Atlanta. The Capitals were expected to finish at the bottom of the NHL this season, and by finishing with the third worst record in the league, the team certainly lived up to those expectations. On the other hand the Caps...
This entry written by DCist contributor Jesse Rounds At the end of a losing season, the Capitals are going to have to fight off ennui and frustration to maintain the camaraderie that the team claims will make them a threat next season. Their recent record isn't helping any. Last Thursday the Capitals traveled to Manhattan to take on the playoff-bound Rangers and attempt to halt a three game slide. Washington stayed on pace with the...