Washington Capitals

Capitals-Lightning; Follow Us!

January 19, 2013

Our (not-so) long (multi-) national (quasi-) nightmare is over.

Hockey is back.

I, for one, welcome back our crooked-sticked overlords.

The Capitals open their season in Tampa Bay against the Lightning. What the team will look like is anyone's guess as the team was only in training camp for about a week under new coach Adam Oates.

He has said that he will give Alexander Ovechkin more freedom than he was allowed under former coach Dale Hunter.

This is what Alexander Ovechkin looks like when he's free.

It is his thing. It is awesome to behold.

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We've started up a Twitter...

2013 NHL Eastern Conference Power Rankings

January 12, 2013

Bill Philp

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The 2013 NHL season is no longer an 82 game marathon, but instead is a 48 game dash to the finish line.

Will teams that had multiple players skating in Europe fair better? Will veteran squads win because they will have fresh legs all season long? Only the next few months will tell.

Here are my Eastern Conference power rankings.

1. Pittsburgh Penguins – A healthyEvgeni Malkin and Sidney Crosby will lead Pittsburgh deep into the Stanley Cup playoffs. The addition of veteran goalie Tomas Vokoun gives Coach Dan Bylsma a solid option if Marc-Andre Fleury falters.

2. New York Rangers – With the ...

Capitals Re-Sign John Carlson

September 14, 2012

Evan Slagle

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The Washington Capitals have signed Defenseman John Carlson, 22, to a six-year, $23.8 Million contract extension today. Carlson will earn $3.8 million in the 2012-2013 season and $4 million per year through the 2017-2018 season.

Carlson has 17 goals, 58 assists, 74 penalty minutes and a +17 plus/minus rating in 186 regular season games, as well as providing five goals and seven assists with a +3 plus/minus rating in 30 playoff games over the last three seasons.

Capitals GM George McPhee described Carlson’s benefit to the team in the press release.

“John is a talented young defenseman who has played very well for the Capitals and still has room to...

Why an online petition is a pretty terrible idea for ending the NHL lockout

September 14, 2012

Carden Hedelt

1 Comment

Meet Becky.

She's the crying girl at the start of the video. Her name may or may not actually be Becky, but she seems like a Becky. Becky likes hockey and she has a big-time sad because she wants to watch the NHL this season, but the start of the hockey season is probably going to be pushed back because of a lockout, which starts at midnight on Saturday when the current collective bargaining agreement ends.

If you're any kind of NHL fan, Becky probably lives on the right side of your Facebook page, where ads live (it's nice to think that Becky and the girl in the "Meet Asian Singles!" ad hang out). Clicking on Becky's Facebook ad leads to a peti...

Capitals extend Troy Brouwer

September 12, 2012

Mike Dusak

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The Washington Capitals have signed Troy Brouwer to a three-year extension worth $11 million that will make the forward under contract through 2016, general manager George McPhee announced Wednesday.

Brouwer, 27, was acquired from the Chicago Blackhawks in June 2011 exchange for the Caps' 2011 first round pick. In his first season as a Capital, Brouwer tallied 18 goals and 15 assists for 33 points while playing in all 81 regular season games. He also contributed two goals and two assists during Washington's playoff run into the conference semifinals.

Brouwer is set to earn $3.6 million in 2013-14, $3.65 million in 2014-15...

A Look Back At Alexandre Volchkov

September 11, 2012

Kenny Shackelford

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The summer of 1996 was a memorable one. Independence Day was due out in theaters on the fourth of July, the Spice Girls were driving parents of teenage girls insane, and the internet explosion was in full swing.

Washington Capitals fans had much more to be excited about than technological marvels and aliens attacking the White House. Their team had the number four overall pick in the 1996 NHL Entry Draft, which was to be held June 26, 1996 in St. Louis, Missouri.

The Caps were coming off a 1995-96 season that saw them exit the playoffs in the first round to their rivals the Pittsburgh Penguins. Morale wasn’t necessarily low amongst Ca...

No Balance to Washington Capitals Lines

August 21, 2012

Carden Hedelt

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Balance is good. It's good for a lot of things. It's good for tires. It's good on a beam. It's good on a seesaw. Having balance on a seesaw is having two riders of near-equal weight who get to enjoy flinging themselves up into the air with the help of the weight of the other rider. Without balance, the lighter of the two riders is stuck up in the air, legs waving wildly, until his fellow rider decides that this ride isn't worth it, gets off and sends his partner crashing back to the ground. Expect a lot of wild waving legs from the Washington Capitals right wingers this season as the team is left-wing heavy. Right now, the right...

Joel Ward ought to watch what he says on the radio

August 9, 2012

Carden Hedelt

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Joel Ward is a lot of things.

Professional. Gritty. Feisty.

Add 'brutally honest' to that list.

As reported by Puck Daddy, Ward talked about his offseason in a recent interview with 102.1 The Edge in Toronto. There were threats made against him because of his game seven overtime winner against the Boston Bruins. He also underwent surgery to correct a sports hernia.

He got a little lonely.

"I was a single male laying in bed like that, I figured I'd try to relieve myself a little bit. Well, sure enough I got a nerve that kinda connect from my seeds up to my scarring that slowly prevents me from relieving ...

Capitals Assign Filip Forsberg to Sweden

August 1, 2012

Kenny Shackelford

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The Capitals have assigned first-round pick Filip Forsberg to the Swedish second division.

Forsberg, 17, will join Leksands of the Swedish second division for the 2012-13 season. The Caps hope that the move will help him mature physically and earn more experience in a country and environment he is comfortable in.

Forsberg was taken by the Capitals with the 11th overall pick in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft. Rated by some as a top-five prospect, he has a natural goal-scoring ability and great hands, two attributes that make him a mouth-watering talent for Caps fans.

Forsberg, who signed a three-year entry-level deal in mid-July, will be amon...

Should the Red Wings Pursue Knuble?

July 31, 2012

Christina Roberts

1 Comment

In what will end up being a mediocre off-season in the eyes of Detroit Red Wings fans everywhere, the organization has done very little and seems to be all out of ideas. But does it make sense to go after yet another forward?