Another quiet day on the D.C. hockey front, but there is a little tidbit from yesterday afternoon at K-Plex. Apparently sometime after practice, Evgeni Malkin's agent stormed into Caps offices in a drunken mid-day rage sporting a busted left eye and screaming, "Where's Ovechkin?!"Alright, that didn't happen (or did it?). It's just that this four day layoff coupled with all the uncertainty and drama (real and otherwise) swirling around this team has got me a bit stir crazy, and not in the riotously funny Gene Wilder/Richard Pryor sense of the term. And as bad as this break in the action is (already their second four day stretch without a game of the season), the Caps have a longer break the first week in December, but will have five sets of three games in four nights before this month is out. It's certainly not an excuse, but it's gotta be tough to both find a rhythm and be well-rested with this early schedule.
Anyway, back at it Tuesday, and we'll see what - if any - news really comes out of K-Plex today.
Elsewhere 'Round the Rinks:
Steve Eminger is officially done taking his benchings quietly. Can you blame him?... I gotta ask - has anyone ever seen Jiri Hudler and Jennifer Tilly in a room together?... The Japers' Rink Blogroll turned Sweet 16 yesterday. 1,600, that is.
Daily Awards
- Hart: Martin Erat (2G, including the game-winner, 2A, +4, 4 SOG)
- Ross: Martin Erat (4 points)
- Norris: Doug Murray (+4, 6 blocked shots)
- Vezina: Evgeni Nabokov (25-save shutout win)
- Richard: Martin Erat, J.P. Dumont, Justin Williams, Cory Stillman, Scottie Upshall, Devin Setoguchi, Joe Thornton (2G each)
- Calder: Devin Setoguchi (2G, +2, 4 SOG)
- Aiken: Mikael Tellqvist (L, 5 goals allowed on 28 shots against)
9 comments:
1) Eminger does have a point. It doesn't help his trade value either(assuming they're trying to move him) having him sit for going on a quarter of the season
2) It doesn't make sense. Not like the Caps have been the 1977 Canadians. We will probably never know, but GMGM probably tried to trade Eminger and the interest/what was offered wasn't what he expected so he was left to deal with their current glut of defensemen
3) He's the third highest paid defensemen on the team. (Pothier/Poti)That's seems quite a bit of salary to be sitting for long
You can certainly read more into Tarik's Eminger article than what's written.
I don't think it's just about Eminger; Tarik's saying more in that article than is apparent.
focality, I'm not that smart, can you be more specific?
Some things one can assume from Tarik's Eminger article are being discussed on the Caps' official message boards.
GMGM's management of Eminger may be indicative--a symptom--of what ails the Caps organization. That Hanlon will not (or isn't allowed to) comment on Eminger's status with the Caps has some assuming GMGM is micromanaging and the Caps' performance this season isn't [entirely] Hanlon's fault.
Without any concrete info, we can continue to assume what we will, but it's also possible some of the assumptions among fans contain some kernels of truth.
We can go back and forth here or on the official Caps message boards, but look where that gets us in the end: a flamewar and nothing to show for it.
I'd like to hear more about what the Caps are doing to improve their dismal record.
The Ovechkin contract negotiations, poor league standings, and the nonsense about AHL callups as well as Eminger's status (and GMGM's silence/fear). Lots to chew on.
1) Interesting read/insite Focality. Not sure why such a discussion would cause a 'flamewar' unless GMGM/Hanlon are posting under assumed names on the Caps boards. LOL
2) GMGM should NOT be given a pass on the current state of the team. If he IS micro managing the team, and not allowing Hanlon to coach/use his personnel as he wants then that's a mistake. Perhaps GMGM wants to pull a Waddell and come down stairs and show what he's got?
3) Either way, all this would be forgotten with some W's, else it'll intensify until a change is made
1) Interesting read/insite Focality. Not sure why such a discussion would cause a 'flamewar' unless GMGM/Hanlon are posting under assumed names on the Caps boards. LOL
2) GMGM should NOT be given a pass on the current state of the team. If he IS micro managing the team, and not allowing Hanlon to coach/use his personnel as he wants then that's a mistake. Perhaps GMGM wants to pull a Waddell and come down stairs and show what he's got?
3) Either way, all this would be forgotten with some W's, else it'll intensify until a change is made
This Eminger article has me wondering about the type of character GMGM is.
And as much as I'd love to see Semin back on the ice soon, I hope he's not being brainwashed to think he's good to go health-wise. Semin back on the ice may result in some more goals (and ticket sales), but it's not worth exacerbating what appears to be a bad injury.
In light of the Eminger article, I wouldn't put it past GMGM to somehow force Semin back on the ice prematurely for an upcoming game. That way he can satisfy his ego and attempt to show his detractors he was right about getting everybody healthy and back on the ice.
But what happens if the Caps continue their winless streak despite the presence of Clark, Semin and Poti? And what if Semin's injury worsens in an upcoming game, or someone else gets hurt? Will GMGM have a leg to stand on then?
1) It would not be good team precedent to 'force' an injured player back prematurely. Usually its the player who wants to get back too soon, not the team physician/GM asking a player to go out and play hurt
2) From direct experience, ankle sprains are not treated as aggressively as they should. They are ligament tears that need time to heal properly. Repeated and subsequent injury can lead to joint instability that could require surgery to repair. Therefore Semin should NOT be rushed back!
I agree with Focality - there's something more going on here, and Hanlon's deflection upstairs of the Emmy question hints at what it is.
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