Justice Is Swift

According to Tarik's blog, Colton Orr got a five game suspension for cross-checking AO in the face and Donald Brashear gets one game for punching Aaron Ward. Shaone Morrisonn and Glen Hanlon apparently escape fine/suspension-free.

Frankly, I think Brashear deserved more, but agree wholeheartedly with how the League handled Orr, Mo and Hugs. As League disciplinarian Colin Campbell put it, "(Orr's) actions with his stick were reckless and dangerous. Although no injury resulted, the action is unacceptable."

The million dollar question now is, "What did Ward say that makes a sucker punch worth only a one game suspension?"

On Notice

Yeah, it's old and has been beaten to death, but The Rink needed a shitlist and Stephen Colbert's "On Notice Board" is as good a way as any to do it. Here, then, is The Rink's Shitlist, in no particular order:

Am I leaving anybody out?

Sunday Roundup/Rangers 4, Caps 1

[NHL.com Recap]

The depleted Caps dropped another game to finish the 2006 calendar year portion of the season at 16-16-7 (recaps galore here). But tomorrow is a new day and a new year. Clean slate. Tabula rasa. We all know that this past week has been brutal on the Caps health- and schedule-wise, so the losses are easily explained away, but the standings points foregone are not so easily parted with. Get healthy and get back to playing Caps hockey - there's plenty of time to right the ship and make the playoffs.

I don't want to spend too much time on last night's game, but did want to take a second to discuss the role Donald Brashear has taken on this team. He has become a fan favorite and undoubtedly a favorite of the guys in the locker room as well for his willingness to keep order at times when games might get out of hand (of course, that is supposed to be the referees' job, but their gross incompetence lately makes me question their ability to do so), and to try to provide a momentum-changing spark with his fists. He has five fights in the last five games, including a couple of absolutely punishing KO's.

But where was he last night when the Caps needed him? In the locker room after being excused for sucker-punching Aaron Ward. He'll likely be suspended for the hit, so there will be a couple more games where The Donald's intimidation won't be available to the Caps (and with John Erskine and Matt Bradley also injured, it leaves the team quite short-handed on the pugilism front).

Now, if the Brashear/Ward incident was sparked, as some are speculating, by Ward's use of a racial epithet, the Ranger defenseman is lucky that he didn't get more from Brash. That is, in many ways, even less excusable than most of the cheap shots thrown around the League on a given night. But if Brashear was incited by a little stickwork or run-of-the-mill trash-talking, he failed his team last night, for as soon as he was tossed from the game, Ranger "tough guy" Colton Orr started running around the ice like an idiot, knowing there would be no reprecussions for his actions; not from the referees and not from the Caps' bruiser.

Eventually, Orr cross-checked Alex Ovechkin across the lower jaw (when AO hadn't even been near the puck in ages), prompting flu-ridden Caps blueliner Shaone Morrisonn to jump Orr despite the knowledge that he would (and did) get his ass kicked. For his effort, Morrisonn got an instigator and a game misconduct in addition to his fighting major, while Orr got the fighting major and a charging minor. And since this incident occurred in the last five minutes of the game, guess what? Morrisonn could be suspended and Coach Glen Hanlon may receive the automatic $10,000 fine that goes with it. As Hanlon accurately summed it up, "Ovechkin gets his teeth loosened with a cross check and we get the instigator. I'm still trying to figure that one out."

I would strenuously argue (from precedent) that Morrisonn should not be suspended and that Hanlon should not be fined for Mo sticking up for his teammate in this instance, but the larger point is that it probably doesn't even come to this if Brashear had kept his cool and stayed in the game.

I like The Donald and think he's been a tremendous addition to this Caps team. But last night he didn't do his job and it's no different than a defenseman who blows his coverage or a goalie who lets in a soft goal - everyone on the team has a role and has to play that role to the best of his ability every night. Brash provides protection and a measure of security for the team's skill players. Can you imagine the liberties that other teams might have been taken without him in the lineup? No need to - you saw one last night and will likely get the chance to see more over the next few games.

UPDATE: Here's the video of the Brashear/Brendan Shanahan fight and the subsequent sucker punch. I didn't mention it above, but kudos to Shanny for challenging the big guy (and for having more guts than the rest of the Ranger roster combined):



Daily Awards

• Hart: Shane Doan (G, 4A, +3)
  
• Ross: Shane Doan (5 points)
  
• Norris: Mattias Ohlund (2G, +3, 2 SOG, 3 hits... though maybe Brian Rafalski deserves it more)
  
• Vezina: Curtis Joseph (40-save shutout win)
  
• Richard: Jeremy Roenick (3G)
  
• Calder: Marc-Antoine Pouliot (G, +1 in 6-2 loss)
  
• Aiken: Evgeni Nabokov (L, 3 goals allowed on 6 shots against in just 15:11 minutes of work)

Brian Rafalski's Really, Really Good Game

Sure he had the game-winning goal, was +1 with three shots on goal, two takeaways and no giveaways and two blocked shots in last night's 2-0 Devils win over the Islanders. But was Brian Rafalski so good that he deserved the first and third star of the game?


Luckily I've never published anything with a typo in it, so I can feel free to point out others' mistakes.

Supervechkin

Sorry for not posting for a little while - I've been felled by the same flu bug that has forced the Caps to give the apparently-atrocious Timo Helbling 13:30 of ice time last night. Hopefully the Caps and I will feel better later tonight and on into tomorrow. Until then, enjoy the cover of the current issue of The Hockey News:
Faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive... sounds about right.

H/t to hockey nut for the pic.

Jesus H. Christ

This has to be the worst excuse for hockey journalism I've seen this year, as New York Sun writer Kevin Greenstein has a suggestion on how to improve your Washington Capitals:

It's a simple move that could pay huge dividends. The Caps should investigate acquiring Flyers forward Geoff Sanderson to reunite him with former Hartford Whalers linemate Andrew Cassels.

Sweet idea. While they're at it, perhaps the Caps can try to reacquire Mike Gartner to see if he can get Bobby Carpenter going.

(Hat tip to Off Wing for the link)

Bang And The Bucks (Or Depth And Dollars)

Tarik's post from this morning taps into the thin line that Caps management must walk between building for the future and playing for the present, between fiscal and human resource responsibility and appeasing a playoff-starved fan base. The related payroll issue has become all too visible over the past two games, according to Tarik, and there's palpable frustration on this point at the player/coach level:

Sometimes, during postgame interviews following a loss, I can tell a player or coach just wants to say to me, "Yes, Tarik, we struggled. But there's a very good reason. Did you look at their lineup?"

Strong play to date has accelerated the team's rebuilding plan somewhat and raised expectations both within and outside of the organization, but at what point does the team take ice time away from a developing player in favor of a newly-acquired short-term-fix veteran? At what point does the team trade away a prospect who can help them down the road for a player who can help them make a playoff push this year?

I've made no bones about my belief that the team is a second-line center and a puck-moving blueliner away from being able to not only make the playoffs, but possibly pull off a first-round upset, and I don't think the addition of either player would significantly negatively impact the progress of any prospects currently on the roster (the blueliner could take minutes away from a guy like Jamie Heward or Bryan Muir and the center would bump Kris Beech down to the fourth line and Jakub Klepis back to Hershey where he'd see more quality minutes).

The question then becomes at what cost would these acquisitions come? Certainly there's room under the salary cap (more on that later). But if the cost is in younger players - say, Brian Sutherby and/or Steve Eminger - is it worth it (I'd think a team like Phoenix would jump at the chance to move a Mike Comrie in a package for those two)? My gut says no. My head says hell no. But my heart says maybe. Neither Suts nor Emmy is signed beyond this year, so it bears watching (in other words, if these guys are part of the long-term plan, lock 'em up - if not, make sure you get something for 'em).

The money issue, on the other hand, is an easy one. It's well-established that the Caps' payroll is among the League's lowest. Would adding a moderately-priced free-agent-to-be or two for half a season or less break the bank? Of course not. And even though I have no idea what a team takes in in terms of additional revenue gained by playing even a single playoff series, I believe it's more than $0 (that's my B.A. in Economics at work right there).

I'll leave you with this thought as the Caps limp into the New Year, their lack of depth beginning to show with better than half a season left: the Caps have the fourth best ratio of Projected Salary-to-Standings Points Per Game in the entire NHL (see below). A little added salary might not help that ratio, but it might help the team make the playoffs for the first time in years.

Table 1 - Ratio [Projected Salary/(Standings Points/Game)]

ANAHEIM (26,601,099.24)
NASHVILLE (26,735,687.58)
BUFFALO (27,672,526.47)
WASHINGTON (29,717,896.23)
MONTREAL (31,571,558.45)
ATLANTA (31,702,898.25)
DETROIT (31,776,492.49)
SAN JOSE (32,945,434.18)
DALLAS (33,432,055.63)
NY ISLANDERS (33,858,886.83)
CAROLINA (35,065,999.27)
PITTSBURGH (35,783,099.00)
NEW JERSEY (36,864,807.91)
EDMONTON (37,058,161.18)
CALGARY (38,835,450.13)
NY RANGERS (38,943,101.10
BOSTON (38,953,934.26)
COLORADO (40,299,558.63)
CHICAGO (40,500,655.78)
OTTAWA (40,726,678.31)
MINNESOTA (41,521,398.05)
VANCOUVER (42,388,661.90)
TORONTO (42,973,609.54)
TAMPA BAY (44,960,695.94)
COLUMBUS (46,478,169.29)
FLORIDA (47,286,140.57)
ST LOUIS (51,236,170.67)
LOS ANGELES (51,918,274.71)
PHOENIX (54,972,001.25)
PHILADELPHIA (77,469,332.40)

Thursday Roundup/Habs 4, Caps 1

[NHL.com Recap - WashingtonCaps.com Postgame Coverage]

At the end of the first period of last night's 4-1 Caps loss to Montreal - a period in which the Caps outshot their opponents 14-7 and dominated play save for two defensive breakdowns that turned into Canadien goals - I turned to my wife and said, "I hope you liked that effort because that's likely to be as good as it gets tonight." I was more or less spot on, as the undermanned Caps ran out of gas and were able to muster up only a very late 5-on-3 goal to break Cristobal Huet's shutout bid.

A few noteworthy points:

• The Caps were again dominated in the faceoff circle, losing 57% of the 53 draws and a whopping 78% in the offensive zone. Dainius Zubrus (who has to be in the top ten in the League in being thrown out of faceoffs) and Kris Beech - the Caps' top two centers - combined to go 2-for-10 on offensive zone faceoffs. It's hard enough to score on the Habs when you have to gain the offensive zone first; not being able to take advantage of the opportunity to start in the zone makes life even more difficult. Boyd Gordon, who had an otherwise strong game, was 6-for-17 on draws.
• Brooks Laich looked good. I don't have any stats to back that up, but he was noticeable in areas other than the penalty kill, which has been rare for him.
• On the flip side, Mike Green was bad. I don't know if he's hitting some kind of wall, but his last two games have been among his worst this season.
• The line changes, especially in the second period, were particularly sloppy. At least twice, a Cap forward carried the puck across the blueline and dropped a pass to a teammate who had gone to the bench for a change, leading to a Canadien rush the other way.
• Olie Kolzig couldn't be faulted for any of the Hab goals (except for the empty-netter, for which Olie was horribly out of position). Saku Koivu's tip-in nail-in-the-coffin was a thing of beauty.
• Montreal's defense corps is everything the Caps' isn't - experienced, decisive and skilled at the break-out pass.
• Yesterday I mentioned the Habs' special teams and they were the difference last night as the Habs were 25% effective on the power play and 87.5% effective on the kill.
• It was a surprisingly large crowd for a mid-week game (during the holidays, no less), announced at 15,609 but didn't seem packed with Montreal fans. Huh. Could it have been the 7:30 start time (a half-hour later than usual)?
• The Donald absolutely soaked Aaron Downey's melon with haymakers (see video below - h/t to Off Wing). Psst... Aaron... he's left-handed.

After generating little offense against Huet and Les Habitants, it's off to the swamp to face Marty Brodeur and the Devils - that sure ought to cure what ails the team.

Elsewhere 'Round the Rinks:

• NHL.com has a little piece on Nick Backstrom playing in his final junior hockey tournament.

Daily Awards

• Hart: Jeff Halpern (Game-winning goal, 2A, 4 blocked shots)
• Ross: Jeff Halpern, Marian Hossa, Jere Lehtinen, Daniel Sedin, Mattias Ohlund, Wojtek Wolksi (3 points each)
• Norris: Mattias Ohlund (3A, +1, 2 blocked shots)
• Vezina: Cristobal Huet (W, 30 saves on 31 shots against)
• Richard: Kristian Huselius (2G)
• Calder: Wojtek Wolski (G, 2A, +1, 4 SOG)
• Aiken: Jose Theodore (L, 5 goals allowed on 22 shots against in 41:52 of work)

World's Oldest Stick Sells For One Cullimore

The "world's oldest hockey stick," which dates back to approximately 1852 (Chris Chelios's second year in the League), sold at auction this week for $1.9 million. By way of apples-to-oranges comparison, here's a list of NHLers who will make exactly $1.9 million base salary this year along with their stats so far in 2006-07:

• David Aebischer (7-5-2, 2.96 GAA, .908 SV%)
  
• Jassen Cullimore (1 G, 4 A, even)
  
• Mike Johnson (7 G, 7 A, +9)
  
• Ryan Kesler (4 G, 5 A, -4)
• Jaroslav Modry (1 G, 5 A, +11)
  
• Vaclav Prospal (3 G, 18 A, -14)
  
• Robyn Regehr (0 G, 10 A, +10)
  
• Mike Ribeiro (6 G, 16 A, +7)
  
• Michal Rozsival (4 G, 15 A, +7)
  
• Cory Sarich (0 G, 6 A, +2)
  
• Lubmoir Visnovsky (8 G, 18 A, -7)
  

I'll take one Visnovsky and a CCM Vector 10.0. You can keep the old twig.

Respect Ranking (12/27)

Boredom has led me to compile a list of the so-called "Power Rankings" out there to figure out what the rest of the world thinks of the Caps. I'll update this "Respect Ranking" regularly, and the next update should be a little better as some folks haven't updated their rankings this week because of the holiday.

If you know of any other Power Rankings out there, let me know and I'll add 'em to the list.

Source	Current	Previous	Change
CBS Sportsline.com (12/26)	14	14	NC
CP (12/19)	20	19	-1
DeGroat.net (12/18)	10	18	+8
ESPN.com (12/18)	9	14	+5
FOX Sports.com (12/27)	14	12	-2
Massey Rating (12/27)	23	21	-2
Sagarin Rating (12/27)	23	-	-
SI.com (12/26)	16	16	NC
TSN.ca (12/18)	15	16	+1
AVERAGE	16	-	-
NHL Standings (Points/Games Played)	16	-	-

And He Called AO's Hit "Dirty" And "Gutless"?

Wednesday Roundup/ Sabres 6, Caps 3Gamenight: Habs @ Caps

[NHL.com Recap - NHL.com Preview - The Score's Tale of the Tape - WashingtonCaps.com Preview - Official Gameday Thread (en Français, no less!)]

Well that didn't go exactly according to plan. Bad bounces, bad coverage and bad preparation all contributed to a 6-0 Sabres lead before the game was eleven minutes old. And while the Caps chipped away a bit to make the score respectable, the game was by no means as close as the final count - Buffalo looked like they could have hung 20 on the visiting Caps had they wanted to (and they probably would have had it not been for some outstanding goaltending in relief by Olie Kolzig).

A few notes, then we'll try to forget this one and focus on tonight's match-up against the almost equally-tough Montreal Canadiens:

• Memo to Brian Pothier: shoot the damn puck around the boards or carry it - don't tap it ahead ten feet towards the backside of your own goal so that when your man beats you to the puck (which he will) he can feed it out front for an easy tap-in goal.
• The forwards were seemingly unaware of the late man into the zone and Buffalo's affinity for hitting him and this led to several scoring opportunities, including the Brian Campbell goal.
• Someone tell AO that you don't do the Hulk Hogan hand-to-the-ear move when you're down 6-2. It's nice to embrace the role of villain, but at that point the goal was little more than lipstick on the pig.
• The Sabres took their foot off the pedal a bit and if it weren't for a few great saves by Ryan Miller (especially the one on Dainius Zubrus), the game could have gotten much more interesting.
• Diveial Briere's spear into AO's yambag wasn't very cool.
• The Caps got killed in the faceoff circle (40-24 or 63%-37%), perhaps an indication of how unprepared they were for the game.
• According to Sabres bench boss Lindy Ruff, AO "has a lot of jam." Out of context, I wouldn't have the foggiest idea what that means.
• Even with last night's loss, the Caps have been great on the road, to the tune of 8-5-4. That means that in better than 70% of their road games, they've gained at least a point in the standings.
  
• Maybe it was because the Caps were down big early, but Ovechkin and Alex Semin played together on Zubrus's wings more often than usual. I'd love to see that combination come out for a couple of shifts each period, particularly after a penalty kill.
• Read this follow-up to the father-son story I mentioned yesterday - truly heartwarming. Oh, and on a somewhat-related note, do me a favor and don't click on links here just to go trolling. If you want to be an asshole, do it on your own blog.
• According to Elias, only two teams have ever reached six goals in a game faster [than 10:57, the amount of time it took Buffalo to do so last night]. The Maple Leafs versus the Red Wings (10:33) on Jan. 12, 1946 and the Canadiens against the Blackhawks (10:35) on March 10, 1951. But...
• Buffalo became the fifth team in NHL history to score at least six times in the first period and be shut out the rest of the game. Take that!
  

But enough about Buffalo, let's talk Montreal, one of only six NHL clubs that weren't in action last night. Sweet.

Montreal enters tonight's game with a 21-9-5 record that's good enough for third in the Conference (ignoring seeding) and t-sixth in the League, and that sparkling record is the direct result of great special teams - the Habs have the NHL's best power play and second-best penalty kill. Interestingly, they've had the second-fewest power play opportunities in the League. Do I have to tell you how important discipline and taking advantage of whatever power play chances come their way will be crucial to a Caps win. If so, just re-read this paragraph.

As you know, the Caps are in the middle of a brutal stretch of games and have to get points when and where they can. With a day off before heading up I-95 for games at the Devils and Rangers on Friday and Saturday nights, two points tonight would be absolutely enormous.

Daily Awards

• Hart: David Vyborny (2G, including OT game-winner, A, all on the last three goals of the game, +1, 7 SOG, 2 hits)
  
• Ross: Chris Drury (4 points)
  
• Norris: Brad Lukowich (+3, 3 blocked shots in 3-0 win)
  
• Vezina: Rick DiPietro (28-save shutout win)
  
• Richard: David Vyborny, Sergei Fedorov, Chris Drury, Nathan Horton, Daniel Sedin (2G each)
  
• Calder: Travis Zajac (GWG, +1, 2 hits, 2 takeaways, 0 giveaways)
  
• Aiken: Brent Johnson (L, 4 goals allowed on 6 shots against in just 7:30 of work, one stick shattered on the crossbar)

Tuesday Roundup/Gamenight: Caps @ Sabres

(logo courtesy Ingmar Bergman Shoots... and Scores!)

[NHL.com Preview - WashingtonCaps.com Preview - Official Gameday Thread]

Tonight is Game 2 of the Caps' over-hyped December rematch series (you'll recall that in Game 1, not a single major was handed out as the players wisely decided to play the game with their gloves on). I'd expect a similar game tonight, and would, of course, be thrilled with a similar result. It bears repeating that these events are always over-blown by the media and the fans. Players and coaches move on - they have games to win. This is the NHL, not "Youngblood" (and we all know what happens when a coach and some players think it is the latter).

In case the Sabres do want to get rough, however, Alex Ovechkin - the catalyst for last game's festivities - says he's ready:

"If it will be rough, I love play rough," he said. "I'm ready to fight if somebody want to fight me. I'm not afraid. I love make hits if somebody hit me. It's hockey. It's my game."

When asked if he's gotten any pointers from The Donald on how to protect himself, AO "smiled and said, 'No, I don't need to.'" This video may indicate otherwise, but regardless, the point is that Alex is a guy who doesn't shy away from any part of the game and fights his own battles when he needs to (unlike, say, Andy Sutton). Will he have to? I doubt it - the Sabres didn't even take a single fighting major after Scott Nichol sucker-punched Jaro Spacek last week. I'm not calling the Sabres soft, it's simply not their game, and even with John Erskine and Matt Bradley out of the lineup for the Caps for tonight's tilt, the Caps would be more than happy to oblige any fisticuffs, should the Sabres decide to play rough.

But enough about what's not going to happen; let's talk about what will.

The Caps come into tonight's game playing well and sitting in eighth place in the Conference, but are still several men short of their optimal roster, especially on the blueline, and will likely go with the same group of defensemen that played so well in the team's win at Toronto on Saturday night - a group that, outside of Jamie Heward's 334 career NHL games, has totalled 327 games of NHL experience. By comparison, the six defensemen Buffalo is likely to dress have played in 3,055 regular-season NHL games (when reliable Sabre rearguard Teppo Numminen played his first NHL game, Caps blueliner Jeff Schultz was two years old and Mike Green had just turned three). Needless to say, this inexperienced and patchwork D-corps will need to be nearly mistake-free if the Caps are going to have a chance tonight.

Which brings us to the Sabres. Buffalo is the Conference's best team, but inexplicably dropped their last game before the Christmas break to St. Louis, despite being healthy for the first time all year. It's too bad they laid that egg, because Buffalo has only lost back-to-back games once so far this year (on the plus side, it was last week), and I wouldn't expect a similarly lousy effort out of this powerhouse.

Tonight's game is an important one. The Caps will have yet another challenging "measuring stick" type game against a great opponent that will show how good (or bad) they are and how they deal with adversity. The Sabres will have to bounce back from a poor showing and beat a team that beat them handily the last time the teams met while both keeping their cool and displaying some measure of toughness. And, of course, this is a potential first round playoff matchup.

But it's an important game for another reason. It'll be the first NHL game for a boy and his dad, which, to me, is what being a hockey fan is all about. Someday down the road, this young man will be able to recall to his son the story of the first hockey game he went to with his dad, back during that magical season in which the Sabres would have won the Cup if they hadn't gotten cheated/injured/otherwise jobbed. And when his kid asks, "Daddy, why did you boo the greatest goal-scorer in the history of the game and eventual Supreme Leader of the Human Race?" he'll look his son in the eye and say, "Because my Daddy did." And that will be that.

A Capital Christmas

As hockey fans all over the world celebrate the birth of the baby Jesus today, I'd like to send belated Happy Hannukah wishes to Jeff Halpern, Mike Cammalleri, Mathieu Schneider and, of course, Gary Bettman.

But I have Christmas wishes to pass along as well. I have gifts, too. Well, not really, but if I could, I'd hand out the following gifts to each member of the 2006-07 Washington Capitals:

Beech, Kris - Passion to match his raw skills
Bradley, Matt - A comfortable seat in the press box
Brashear, Donald - Someone to dance with every night
Clark, Chris - His two front teeth
Clymer, Ben - plus-14
Eminger, Steve - Confidence and a healthy John Erskine
Erskine, John - Better skating ability
Giroux, Alexandre - A bus ticket back to Hershey
Gordon, Boyd - Fewer penalties to kill
Green, Mike - More shots on goal
Heward, Jamie - Better defensive-zone coverage
Johnson, Brent - A few more starts
Klepis, Jakub - Kris Beech's ice time (and faceoff ability)
Kolzig, Olaf - Five more years in the League
Laich, Brooks - Skills to match his hockey sense
Morrisonn, Shaone - Better passing ability
Muir, Bryan - More effective use of his size
Nycholat, Lawrence - A flight back to Hershey (hey, he's older than Giroux)
Ovechkin, Alex - A playoff game (can you imagine how good he'll be once he makes the playoffs?!)
Pettinger, Matt - Alex Semin's shot total
Pothier, Brian - The broadside of a barn at which to practice shooting
Schultz, Jeff - Zdeno Chara's career path for a big man
Semin, Alexander - More effective play without the puck
Sutherby, Brian - A second goal for the year (we'll work on the third, etc., from there)
Zednik, Richard - Good health so the Caps can get something for him at the trade deadline
Zubrus, Dainius - Nothing (he's got Ovechkin - what more does he need?)

There you have it. Merry Xmas to the Caps and their fans and more importantly, to my readers and friends.

J.P.

Congratulations Peter Bondra

Congratulations to the Caps all-time leader in points and goals (of all kinds - even-strength, power-play, shorthanded and game-winning goals) on his 500th NHL goal.

Break Up The Southeast Division?

Is the NHL getting ready to do something drastic? According to sources, the League is "considering a significant overhaul of the face of the league that includes realignment and a reduction in the number of divisions from six to four." Included in that realignment/reduction:

The current Atlantic Division (the three New York area teams plus Philadelphia) would be melded together with four teams from the current Southeast Division (all but one of Washington, Carolina, Atlanta, Tampa Bay and Florida).

Does anyone want to speculate on who the SED would lose? Well, since you asked, I will.

In terms of geographic rivalry, we can assume that Tampa and Florida will stay together, so they're safe. Washington and Carolina best fit in with the rest of this largely I-95-based Division. That leaves Atlanta. Geographically, they could be forced into a division with fellow southern relative newcomers Nashville, which would make sense in that Detroit (who is in the Eastern time zone and has the first right of refusal to switch conferences) could then move to the Eastern Conference and join Pittsburgh in the East's new seven-team Division.

Of course, the Pittsburgh situation will greatly impact any realignment plan (and if they move to Kansas City, they'll be the team going from the Eastern to the Western Conference and Philly would likely move to the Northeast, making room for Atlanta to stay in the Atlantic), but it would be great from a Caps fan's perspective to be reunited in a division with Jersey, the New York teams and possibly Philly, while keeping Tampa and Carolina. What do you think?

Friday Roundup/Gamenight: Devils @ Caps

[NHL.com Preview - Vogel's WashingtonCaps.com Preview - Official Gameday Thread]

Caps fans, brace yourself for exciting neutral-zone-clogging action as the Devils are in town (I know, Shayne, three Cups, etc.). For their part, the Caps have picked a bad time to be banged up, as they embark on a stretch of seven games in 11 days (including a pair of games against the Devils and games against the Leafs, Sabres, Habs, Rangers and Coyotes as well). They got no favors last night from their Southeast Divisional cohorts, all of whom won, with Atlanta doing the Caps the bonus kick-in-the-chops of giving away a point to Kansas City Pittsburgh. Then again, you didn't expect a playoff run to be easy, did you?

With The Donald, John Erskine and Matt Bradley all presumably out of the lineup, watch for the team's toughness to be exhibited in ways other than raw pugilism. Either that or watch the Cam Janssens and Darcy Tuckers of the world take runs at AO for the next few nights - it's up to you, Brian Sutherby et. al. And with Chris Clark (possibly) and Bryan Muir (likely) also out, other guys will have to step up - with adversity comes opportunity - and now would be a good time for guys like Ben Clymer and Steve Eminger to shine and help lead the Caps to victory. If I may ask for one more present on this, the last night of Hannukah, it would be for Matt Pettinger to return to the scoresheet. Or this. But probably a couple of goals from Princess.

I'll have more later (workload permitting), but wanted to note that I went to my first practice yesterday morning out at the Kettler Capitals Iceplex at the Ballston Commons mall. I highly recommend checking it out if you get a chance, even if it means playing hooky from work some day. An interesting (to me) epilogue to that blurb is that I found myself behind Olie Kolzig driving home. He can't live more than five minutes from me in Potomac (though I resisted the urge to full-on stalk him all the way to his house) and drives one of the sweetest cars I've ever seen (a $100+K 2005 or 2006 Maserati Quattroporte).

Daily Awards

• Southeast Division Player of the Day: Ilya Kovalchuk (G, 2A, +1, 12 SOG)
• Hart: Tim Thomas (39-save shutout win)
• Ross: Ilya Kovalchuk, Jason Pominville (3 points each)
• Norris: Paul Ranger (GWG, A, +2, 2 SOG)
• Vezina: Tim Thomas (39-save shutout win)
• Richard: Jason Pominville, Ales Kotalik, Maxim Afinogenov (2G each)
• Calder: David Backes (G, +2, 4 SOG)
• Aiken: Chris Mason (L, 5 goals allowed on 26 shots against in 39:52 of work)

The Worldwide Leader In Idiocy

[Ed. note: put the kids to bed before reading this post, as some of the language may not be suitable for younger readers.]

One of the great thing about being an unaffiliated blogger is that I can write things that the mainstream media or team-employed writers can't. For instance, you'll never see "Alexander Ovechkin has been scoring more than the sheep on 'Hurricanes fans drink free night' in Raleigh" appear on Tarik's blog. You'll never read "Steve Eminger couldn't punch his way out of a piss-soaked paper bag" on Vogel's blog. And there aren't too many places you'll read "Scott Burnside can go f..k himself."

But I can write it. In fact, I'm pretty sure I just did (well, almost anyway).

For those of you unfamiliar with Mr. Burnside's work, he was "a freelance writer based in Atlanta and is a frequent contributor to ESPN.com" (that starts him out with two strikes against him, doesn't it?) who now "is the NHL writer for ESPN.com." In his latest excremental article, he tackles franchise relocation in the NHL in light of today's news that the Penguins may not be long for Pittsburgh. In the interest of time, I'll skip straight to the "good" part which begins:

No one asked us, but if we were going to move an NHL team, there are a few we'd pick to relocate ahead of the Pittsburgh Penguins.

We? What, do you have a turd in your pocket, Scott? Be a man and assert that what follows are your own ideas. Either that or share the byline. Anyway, you can probably see where this is going. Sure enough, the first team that should pick up and move before the Pens are "forced" to?

Washington Capitals: Let's review. Fans in the nation's capital wouldn't come out when the Capitals boasted Jaromir Jagr, the game's most exciting player. Now, they won't come out when the Caps boast one of the hardest-working teams in the NHL and one of the game's most exciting figures in Alexander Ovechkin. Maybe that's a sign. We're just guessing, but we bet fans in Houston or Kansas City, or even Waterloo, Ontario, would appreciate Glen Hanlon's squad a whole lot more.

Where to begin... How about with the fact that when Jagr was in D.C. he was not the game's most exciting player, but rather a lazy, selfish, pouting baby? Or, more importantly, the fact that fans did come out to see Jagr anyway to the tune of 17,341 (92.9% capacity) average per night in Jagr's first relatively-unproductive season? And while attendance is poor right now, it's still better than four other teams in the League and only four spots behind his beloved Thrashers.

Speaking of the Thrashers, earlier in the article Burnside chides the Devils for drawing "an announced crowd of less than 11,000 with the high-flying Atlanta Thrashers in town." If he were to check some facts, though, he wouldn't have been surprised as the Thrashers are the second-worst drawing road team in the League. How about them apples, Scottie?

But let's look at this at a more basic level:

• Reason #1 that the Caps should not be relocated before the Penguins: they have an owner.
  
• Reason #2 that the Caps should not be relocated before the Penguins: they have an arena.

I could go on (for example, I'm sure fans in Houston or K.C. would love the Caps - I know I do - but as D.C. has the fourth-highest per capita personal income of any metropolitan area in the country, as opposed to Houston (31), Kansas City (60) and Pittsburgh (54), I'm not so sure any of those cities could support a team better than D.C. potentially can - and I believe will). The point is... well... I'm not sure what the point is other than providing a cathartic rant about a biased columnist's neglect of facts and common sense. But then again, being able to write something like that is one of the great things about being an unaffiliated blogger, isn't it?

[Thanks to the folks in this thread for some of the numbers and ideas.]

Steve Eminger: Stud Or Stiff?

Caps blueliner Steve Eminger would be the first to tell you that he stunk on ice last night against Tampa (actually, I might be the first to tell you that and Steinberg might be the first to tell you that I'll tell you that, but I digress).

Through 29 games this season, Emmy, now in his third full NHL season, has no goals, five assists and a minus-8 plus/minus rating, putting him on pace for a 14 assist/minus-19 campaign, this on the heels of a five-goal, 13-assist, minus-12 season last year. Per TSN.ca's scouting report, Eminger "[h]as the tools to quarterback the power play," "[d]isplays plenty of offensive acumen," and "can also be a solid defender," but it's simply not translating on the ice. By most accounts, he has taken a big step backwards this year, and the numbers would seem to back that up (though he has played better since being paired with John Erskine).

Speaking of numbers, let's take a look at some, shall we? Currently, he's third among the team's defensemen in time-on-ice-per-game (18:22) and shorthanded ice time per game and getting next-to-no power play ice time. Contrast that with last year, where he was second among blueliners in TOI/G (21:20), third in SH TOI/G and actually got power play minutes. Obviously minutes are earned and not handed out like candy on Halloween and the signing of Brian Pothier and emergence of Mike Green have cut into Emmy's minutes as well, but part of the decrease in production is no doubt the result of the two-plus minutes of power play time per game that he has lost.

So how should we measure Eminger's progress (or lack thereof)? How about comparing Eminger to other blueliners drafted after back in 2002 (excluding top-five picks Jay Bouwmeester and Joni Pitkanen who are quite simply another level of defenseman). Because of the Caps' rebuild, Eminger has played more games than any of them and has outscored them all too (though Chicago's Duncan Keith is about to pass him [sidenote: never trust a man with two first names]). But is there a blueliner taken after Eminger that you'd rather have right now? Any Trevor Daley fans out there? Perhaps Keith, and I've heard good things about Grebeshkov, Babchuk and Koltsov, but haven't been impressed. Point being that it's too early to tell on these kids.

What about defensemen drafted in a similar spot in the draft? Here's a list of all the defensemen taken between tenth and 15th overall in the five years leading up to the 2002 draft (in which Eminger was taken 12th): Brad Ference, Branislav Mezei, Jeff Jillson, Ron Hainsey, Dan Hamhuis and Igor Knyazev. Do you see anyone there who Eminger can't be better than in the next one-to-five years? Maybe Hamhuis?

Emmy's points-per-game might not be where you'd like, but the experience he has gained in the NHL at such an early age should prove invaluable down the road. And that's wherein the problem lies. How long will it be until we reach that point down the road where Eminger is the "top two defenseman" TSN think he can be?

It's no secret that defensemen take longer to develop than forwards, so let's take a look at some other very successful "top two" blueliners. Through 124 NHL games, Eminger has five goals, 24 assists and is minus-33. Dan Boyle? Through 129 games in the show, Boyle had 10 goals, 29 assists and was minus-17 for the Florida Panthers (of course Boyle was signed as an undrafted free agent, so expectations were lower). Sheldon Souray? Through 130 NHL games, Souray had four goals, 14 assists and was +23 for stingy Devil teams. Bryan McCabe? 162 games, 15 goals, 36 assists, -26 for the Isles. Philippe Boucher (who was taken 13th overall back in 1991)? 124 games, 15 goals, 32 assists, -26.

You get the point.

The bottom line is that at barely 23 years old and with less than two full NHL seasons' worth of experience it is far too early to give up on Eminger and call him a bust. What is most troubling, however, are the mental errors that are so apparent in his game. Whether it's not knowing when to step up to play a puck versus backing off to play the man or flipping a puck over the glass from the defensive zone, these mistakes have been killers and have been quite disappointing. But there have been plenty of extremely successful hockey players who have compensated for a lack of natural hockey sense with hard work and raw skill. Hopefully Eminger has enough of the former to develop the latter and make him a reliable top-four defenseman someday in the not-too-distant future.

Wednesday Roundup/Lightning 5, Caps 4

[NHL.com Recap - WashingtonCaps.com Postgame]

Too little, too late (not to be confused with the Bolts' postgame buffet, where those two little tools ate - admit it, you love the puns!). How a team can come out as flat as the Caps did last night in a divisional game at home at the beginning of a killer stretch of games is beyond me. Olie Kolzig thinks it was a case of overconfidence ("Sometimes when you're a young team and things are going good, maybe you forget what got you into that position.") and Coach Hanlon agreed.

And while overconfidence may have played a part in the loss, so did the play of one defenseman in particular, who I won't call out by name (though it rhymes with Weave Cleminger), but who described his own play on what amounted to the back-breaking goal by Ruslan Fedotenko late in the second as "like [he] was in quicksand." In addition, said blueliner committed an atrociously stupid over-the-glass delay of game penalty with five seconds left in the first that turned into the Bolts' third goal.

Also notably mediocre-to-bad were Olie (though he did make a number of tough saves), the ice conditions, the annoying dude sitting directly behind me and Matt Pettinger. On the plus side, Olie will rebound and I cut Princess from my fantasy squad, so he should be good to go again. On the minus side, the ice will stink as long as they play 400 basketball games a winter at the V.C. and the jackass behind me may or may not have bought a season ticket package.

The comeback attempt was nice (as was AO's one-man-team goal), but the hole had been dug and it was simply to deep to climb out of. At the end of the day the Bolts just wanted the win more - and they got it.

Daily Awards

• Hart: Patrice Bergeron (5A, +3, 4 SOG, 60% faceoffs won)
• Ross: Patrice Bergeron (5 points)
• Norris: Filip Kuba (G, 2A, 2 SOG)
• Vezina: Cristobal Huet (W, 42 saves on 44 shots against in 5-2 win at Buffalo)
• Richard: Andrew Brunette, Jason Blake, Marco Sturm (3G each)
• Calder: Anze Kopitar (2G, A, 4 SOG)
• Aiken, Pt. I: Andrew Raycroft (6 goals allowed on 26 shots against in two periods of work)
• Aiken, Pt. II: Dan Cloutier (because BoA says so)

Smarter Than The Average Bear

R.I.P. Joseph Barbera (1911-2006)

Tuesday Roundup/Gamenight: Lightning @ Caps

[SeSo Open Thread]

When the Caps and Bolts take to the ice tonight at the V.C., they'll be two teams headed in opposite directions. Tampa is a recent League Champ whose best days seem to be behind them as they struggle with salary cap management and currently sit in 13th place in the Conference after going 2-7-1 in their last ten games. The Caps, on the other hand, have nearly enough cap space to support an entire other NHL team, are 7-2-1 in their last ten tilts and are in sixth place and (hopefully) rising in the East.

Yet for all of these apparent on- and off-ice differences, I'm not ready to bury the Lightning quite yet. Sure, their goaltending has been suspect. And their blueline is mediocre. And they have no depth up front. But as long as they have the most talented triplets to terrorize the nation's capital since Troy, Emmit and Michael, they're a team with which to be reckoned in my book, and it will take a big effort to beat them.

One more interesting fact about the Bolts: I have Brad Richards, Dan Boyle, Ryan Craig and Paul Ranger on my fantasy team. Paul Ranger belongs on no man's fantasy team.

I'll have more thoughts on the game throughout the day over on the ol' SeSo, and please stop by the Open Thread and make yourself heard.

Elsewhere 'Round the Rinks:

• Dave Fay profiles the improvements in Boyd Gordon's game. Tarik el-Bashir similarly discusses Alex Ovechkin's improved play. Which are you going to read first? I thought so.
• Frodo St. Louis is in the holiday spirit. Are you?
• Some yokel out in San Fran doesn't think Sid and Alex are superstars (maybe it's a title he reserves for Nancy Pelosi).
• Gambling = bad. Sign the petition (and check out who already has).
• The Caps are up to ninth on ESPN's power rankings.
• If you're headed to Friday night's game against the Devils, wear a pair of reflective sunglasses and watch Marty Brodeur cry like a little girl.

Daily Awards

• Hart: Sergei Fedorov (2G, including game-winner, A, +2, 3 SOG, 1 hit)
• Ross: Sergei Fedorov, Dan Fritsche (3 points each)
• Norris: Chris Pronger (2A, 7 SOG)
• Vezina: J.-S. Giguere (W, 27 saves on 28 shots against, A)
• Richard: Sergei Fedorov, Robert Lang (2G each)
• Calder: Dustin Penner (G, A, +1)
• Aiken: Dominik Hasek (3 goals allowed on 12 shots against in just one period of work)

Have A Coke And A Smile Goal

Caps WaPo beat writer and fellow blogger Tarik el-Bashir notes what we've all been watching for the past couple of weeks, namely that - amazing as it seems - Alex Ovechkin seems to have found another gear. Quoth Tarik:

As one person who watches him regularly said today, "It's like he's got rocket fuel in his skates" in recent weeks. Another person said he's playing with greater "intensity and determination" than the first two months of the season.

El-Bashir teases us with his thoughts on AO's recent explosion ("I've got my theories on why we've seen such a sharp uptick in his level of play and I'll share them in tomorrow's paper"), but perhaps it's just a good ol' caffeine kick:

Incidentally, Coke should lock the kid up to do endorsements, especially in Mother Russia - he could probably sell ice to Eskimos.

[Ed. note: Am I shilling for Coca-Cola now too?]

Monday Roundup: The Other Super Soph

Can you believe how hot Sidney Crosby is? Sixteen points (5G, 11A) in his last six games, four of which his team has won. This hot streak has vaulted him into the League's lead in scoring, pushed the Pens up to 11th place in the jammed Eastern Conference playoff race, and bloggers and the MSM alike are now comfortable asking whether or not Sid is the NHL's best player. And he may be.

But there is, of course, another super soph in the NHL, and he's been every bit as hot as Crosby. In his last six games, Alex Ovechkin has 15 points (5G, 10A), helping the Caps to four wins during that span. In fact, Alex's Caps are the hottest team in the NHL, with 15 points in their last 10 games, leaving them in sixth place in the Conference. AO may "only" be third in the League in scoring, but he is leading the League in goals, second in the League in game-winning goals, second in even-strength goals, leads the League in road goals and has eight points (including five goals) to Crosby's five points (two goals) on game-winning goals.

I keep hearing the argument about how much better Sid makes everyone around him. While undoubtedly true, ask Dainius Zubrus, Chris Clark or Sasha Semin if the same can be said about AO (and if you think that Ovie's just a goal-scorer, you obviously didn't see the pass he made on Semin's second goal against the Flyers on Saturday night).

Am I saying that Ovechkin is a better player than Crosby? No. But if we're going to start considering players who haven't even taken their teams to the playoffs as among the League's best, I just wanted to make sure all the deserving candidates are in the running.

Daily Awards

• Hart: Sergei Brylin (2G, 2 SOG, 4 hits, 2 blocked shots)
• Ross: Jamie Langenbrunner, Zach Parise (3 points each)
• Norris: Kimmo Timonen (Game-winning OT goal, 6 SOG)
• Vezina: Martin Brodeur (W, 35 saves on 36 shots against)
• Richard: Sergei Brylin, Patrick Elias (2G each)
• Calder: Travis Zajac (A+1, 2 hits)
• Aiken: Kevin Weekes (L, 6 goals allowed on 28 shots against)

Friday Roundup/Gamenight: Caps @ Thrashers

[SeSo Open Thread]

Tonight's the game blood-thirsty fans from Atlanta to Washington have been waiting for - the big rematch with the Thrashers. For a number of reasons, I wouldn't expect many fireworks. As I've said before, these events are always over-blown by the media and the fans. Players and coaches move on - they have games to win. Also, Andy Sutton - the catalyst for last game's festivities - is out of the lineup with Brashearitis a foot injury. Finally, I'm sure the teams have gotten the word from above to behave themselves. There may be a symbolic fight early on - perhaps Eric Boulton and John Erskine throwing down - but it wouldn't surprise me if the game was major-free.

That said, I'd expect a very tightly-called game so the refs can feel they're in control. Who does that favor? Well, Atlanta has a top-10 power play and a bottom-10 penalty kill while the Caps are in the middle of the pack in both categories. Therefore it favors... whoever makes the most of their special teams opporunities (I know, bold statement).

I'll have more thoughts on the game throughout the day over on SeSo, and please stop by the Open Thread and make yourself heard. I know Ilya Kovalchuk will be ready for tonight's game - will you?

Finally, in yet another example of reality encroaching on our fantasy world of sports entertainment uninvited, tragically sad news out of Delaware where Joshua Freeman, a member of the Caps ownership group, died in a helicopter crash yesterday. He is survived by his wife and two sons.

Daily Awards

• Hart: Steve Sullivan (3G, +2, 4 SOG, 2 hits)
• Ross: Steve Sullivan, Brad Boyes, J.P. Dumont, Paul Kariya, Rick Nash (3 points each)
• Norris: Karel Rachunek (2G, +2, 4 hits)
• Vezina: Chris Mason (22-save shutout win)
• Richard: Steve Sullivan (3G)
• Calder: Anze Kopitar (2G, +2, 5 SOG, 2 hits)
• Aiken, pt. I: Ray Emery (L, 6 goals allowed on 14 shots against in just 31:54 of work)
• Aiken, Pt. II: Patrick Marleau (-4, 0 points, 40% faceoffs won in 4-2 loss)

Quote Of The Day

"I treat players like men and they should act like men."

- Wayne Gretzky on Jeremy Roenick's most recent temper tantrum.

All It Needs Is A "Kris Beech Lazy Hooking Penalty Area" Label

Thanks to octopi for pointing to this well-detailed diagram of an NHL rink.

Holiday Ticket Deal From The Caps

Alex Ovechkin has more than 15% more goals than Evgeni Malkin, Jaromir Jagr and Sidney Crosby.

He has more than 15% more points than Patrick Marleau, Olli Jokinen and Eric Staal.

He has more than 15% more hits than Shane Doan, Darcy Tucker and Gary Roberts.

And now you can go see Alex and the Caps for 15% off for the rest of December's home games.

Seriously, what are you waiting for?

The Penguins Golden Boy Showered In... Praise?

I made mention of them the other day, but have now received an email from a gentleman claiming to be the evil genius behind Monday night's, um... pamphleteering:

As of about three years ago I began paying tribute to the Penguins by offering fans of both teams the ability to urinate on a "star". This year happened to be Sid with a small caption to entice those willing participants to aim more precisely.

I successfully placed these little pee-pics [pictured] in all the urinals at Verizon Center this past Monday night.

FYI, the "small caption" read "I'm Thirsty," and by "all the urinals," he means all the urinals, from the 100's to the 400's. As someone on the Caps message board noted, this would be a great new Versus ad - "Honey, what's Sidney Crosby doing in the urinal?" "Oh, he's just here to remind us that there's a game on Versus."

The "pee-pics" are fast on their way to becoming legend, thanks to tales like this one:

A Pens fan was in one of the upper level restrooms with a plastic bag from the concessions over his hand trying to pick them out of the urinal and still couldn't (while the Caps fans stood back and laughed at him).

Great story, but we all know that a real Pens fan - like this guy - wouldn't have needed the plastic bag.

Wednesday Roundup

You can give me back my belts and shoelaces now.

Nearly 36 hours have passed since Monday night's collapse (the Caps', not mine) and despite Dave Fay's cryptically dire (or was it direly cryptic?) proclamation that "[s]ome club officials are hoping it was just a game that was lost and not a lot more[,]" the sun has risen both mornings and the Caps still, so far as I can tell, intend to play the rest of the games that remain on their schedule. And I think we may have set a personal record for comments-to-posted-words ratio with yesterday's Roundup that featured clearly-frustrated and emotional thoughts that ranged from the Caps' need for depth down the middle to requests for the abolition of questionably-used pronouns.

With most in Capland feeling a little down (especially given this rainy Tuesday morning, I figured I'd throw a couple of "feel goods" out there. The first is from the Philly Inquirer and has the added bonus of trashing the Flyers while complimenting the Caps:

You'd think that given how awful the Flyers have been, the players would understand the significance of public relations. Saturday was a disgrace. Kids representing the High Five Club stood at the tunnel exit to greet the team upon its entrance onto the ice. Most of the Flyers ignored them. The only player who actually high-fived every kid was goalie Antero Niittymaki. After the game, Washington's Alex Ovechkin skated over to a young fan wearing a Flyers sweater and gave him his stick. Donald Brashear also gave sticks to fans. The Caps get it; the Flyers don't. If the players weren't told the kids were there in advance, then shame on the marketing department. If they were told, then shame on the players. This team needs to cultivate good will, not ill will.

The second collection of Caps-related kind words comes from a Versus producer still basking in the glow of Monday night's show, via F.O.R. (Friend of Rink) KB:

Alexander Ovechkin in my mind deserves any accolades he gets now and in the future. Tell me another athlete in another pro sport who would stick around 2 hours after his practice (on Sunday) to do the interview/translation for [Elbows] Malkin. And when I asked him if we were the only reason he was hanging around, he answered: "Why wouldn't I?". He's got phenomenal talent, and just loves every aspect of the game of
hockey.

I can never get enough of this stuff, especially with the borderline character assassination that followed the Briere hit. It's nice to be able to root for good players who are also good people.

Stat of the Day :

• "Jaromir Jagr had 11 shots on goal -- but no points -- in the Rangers' 3-1 win in Philadelphia. It was the 14th time that Jagr reached double figures in shots on goal in a regular-season game, the most of any active player.
  
  "Jagr is in his 16th NHL season. But believe it or not, the player who stands fourth on the list of active leaders in 10-shot games is in his second season in the league: Alex Ovechkin, with nine. Between Jagr and Ovechkin are Peter Bondra (who made his 2006-07 debut with Chicago on Tuesday night) with 13 and Paul Kariya with 12." - ESB

Daily Awards

• Hart: Jarome Iginla (2G, including game-winner 2A, +3, 4 SOG)
• Ross: Jarome Iginla (4 points)
• Norris: Chris Pronger (2G, including game-winner, +2, 5 SOG, 3 blocked shots, 2 hits)
• Vezina: Evgeni Nabokov (W, 36 saves on 37 shots against)
• Richard: Jarome Iginla, Jason Spezza, Marc Savard, Chad Kilger, Joe Pavelski, Sergei Samsonov, Chris Pronger (2G each)
• Calder: Joe Pavelski (2G, including game-winner, +1, 6 SOG, 3 blocked shots)
• Aiken: Manny Fernandez (L, 4 goals allowed on 13 shots against in 23:35 of work)

Every Little Bit Helps

With the revelation that Bruin rookie Phil Kessel is being treated for testicular cancer sending shockwaves through the hockey world and this being the season for giving, I thought I'd make it easy on everyone to get in the spirit by providing links to donate to two of a nearly-infinite number of worthy causes.

The first is the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research (for obvious reasons) and the second is a personal charity of choice, Athletes Against Autism, the organization founded by Olie Kolzig, Byron Dafoe and Scott Mellanby to raise awareness and funds for autism research, treatment and education programs.

Literally, every dollar helps, so pass on that latte this morning and give what you can. And say a prayer for Phil Kessel and anyone else you know - personally or otherwise - who is facing a similar uphill battle.

Tuesday Roundup/Pens 5, Caps 4 (SO)

They should have won.

They did not.

Friday at Atlanta.

Ovechkin Named NHL's Third Star For The Week

Caps forward Alex Ovechkin today was named the NHL's "Third Star" for the week. Per NHL.com:

Ovechkin tied for the League scoring lead with seven points (one goal, six assists) as the Capitals won two of three games. He opened the week with three assists in a 6-2 victory over the Ottawa Senators Dec. 6, tallied an assist on the lone Washington goal in a 6-1 loss to the Anaheim Ducks Dec. 8 and recorded three points (one goal, two assists) in a 5-3 victory at Philadelphia Dec. 9. Ovechkin leads the Capitals and is 13th in NHL scoring with 35 points (17 goals, 18 assists) entering tonight's game....

Monday Roundup/Gamenight: Sid @ Alex Pens @ Caps

[NHL.com Preview - WashingtonCaps.com Preview - Official Gameday Thread]

From Ducks to Flyers to flightless foul, the Caps welcome the Penguins to the Verizon Center for tonight's much-anticipated and overly-hyped matchup.

After seeing their four-game win streak snapped in a big way on Friday night, the Caps bounced back to win one of those "should win" games at Philly on Saturday in what was visitors' third game in four nights. Tonight's game will again be the third in four nights for the Caps, who will then get a well-deserved break until Friday (when they will travel to Atlanta to face the Thrashers in another much-anticipated and sure-to-be-overly-hyped matchup).

Back to the task at hand, the Caps and Pens both come into tonight's game with more wins than regulation losses, but both have surrendered more goals than they've scored thus far (I guess when these teams lose, they lose big). And while the media would have you believe that this is a matchup of young superstars, it's really a matchup of two teams who are at different stages in their respective rebuilding processes. The Pens - who have seemingly been rebuilding forever - are still primarily a two-man team. They only have two double-digit goal scorers (I just guaranteed a Mark Recchi hat trick tonight, didn't I?), and only three forwards with more than fifteen points. But help is on the way for the Pens, we're told, as it has been for years.

The Caps, on the other hand, have developed the kind of depth and secondary scoring that is the hallmark of the League's more successful teams. They have five double-digit goal scorers, all of whom have at least 17 points. That's the same number of double-digit goal scorers as Buffalo and Anaheim have and two more than Atlanta and Ottawa have (those are the four teams in the League with 100+ goals scored). And with Olie Kolzig in net, the Caps seemed poised to make a serious run at this year's playoffs. Add a puck-moving d-man and it's a lock. Add a second-line center and it's a team that can do some real damage come April.

So what do I expect tonight? If the Caps can stay hungry and play disciplined hockey, they should win. If they come out flat or take too many penalties, the Crosby Show could be a painful one to watch. But the Caps haven't lost a "should win" in weeks (probably the last being the home game against the Bruins), so there's no reason to expect them to drop one tonight. At the very least, the expectations that are emerging surrounding this team are a great indicator of successes yet to come.

Elsewhere 'Round the Rinks:

• ESPN.com's Scott Burnside has more on the Caps' emergence.
• Thanks to DK for the pointer to this article on some AO media doings.

Daily Awards

• Hart: Kevin Weekes (W, 34 saves on 35 shots against in 2-1 win)
• Ross: Ron Hainsey (3 points)
• Norris: Ron Hainsey (GWG, 2A, +1, 4 blocked shots)
• Vezina: Kevin Weekes (W, 34 saves on 35 shots against)
• Richard: Dan Fritsche, Rick Nash (2G each)
• Calder: Lasse Kukkonen (A, +1)
• Aiken: Martin Gerber (L, 4 goals against on 13 shots in 27:08 of work versus Columbus)