(D.Nichols/Caps News Network)

Washington Capitals defenseman John Carlson threw out the honorary first pitch before the first game of a doubleheader between the Washington Nationals and Los Angeles Dodgers Thursday afternoon.  Luckily for all, there was a long enough break in the rain, at least downtown, for the event to not get washed out.

Carlson spoke to a few reporters from the press box high atop Nationals Park after the ceremony about his experience, the upcoming NHL season, and recent tragedies that have affected the hockey community.

Asked if he'd ever done anything like that, Carlson replied, "No.  I've played baseball but never at that length, from the mound.  It was interesting.  It was fun."

Joking on if his pitch was a strike, Carlson laughed.  "It was inside, right on the plate.  It was looking pretty daunting once I got up there [on the pitching mound], but once I threw it I was decently happy with it."

"I was most happy when it was over with," he kidded about the pressure of being on a Major League pitcher's mound, "But it was fun."

(C.Nichols/Caps News Network)

On trying his hand in a sport without skates on his feet, Carlson responded, "It's different.  I played soccer this summer too [in Mia Hamm's charity event] and that's a change of pace for me. I'd never played soccer.  That's what everyone says about something like that, but what if they get on the ice?  It's a different story then."

Nats relief pitcher Collin Balester, a southern California native, was Carlson's catcher, and made a point to mention to him that he was a big Anaheim Ducks fan as they made their way off the field. Nats relief pitcher Tyler Clippard is also a big hockey fan and roots for the Tampa Bay Lightning. "They're big hockey fans.  You can't expect everyone to be from Washington," Carlson rationalized.

The Caps and Nats have done quite a bit of cross-promotion over the years, and Carlson thinks it's good that the D.C. teams support each other.  "It's great.  It's great to meet them, it's great that all the D.C. sports [athletes] intermingle and I think that I've seen them all at our games now and I love coming out to [Nats] games, I love going to Redskins games and D.C. United.  It's great to see all different types of sports and all these elite athletes."

With training camp a little over a week away, Carlson's excited to get back with his teammates -- returning ones and the new additions.  "It's gonna be exciting.  It's gonna be different.  I'm looking forward to a new season and a new team, too."

"Our mindset right now is first off getting to camp, working our hardest as a team, to get to where we need to be for the first game of the season."

The Caps have added several new players to their mix, so this year's training camp is going to have a little bit different feel to it.  "It's gonna take a while for us all to get used to each other," Carlson said. "They're all great players -- all of the new guys.  I'm really excited to have them on the team and it's gonna be fun."

The mood turned serious for a few moments when Carlson reflected on Wednesday's tragedy in Russia, as a plane carrying the team of KHL's Lokomotiv Yaroslavl to their season-opening game crashed just after take-off, killing all but two passengers.  "The hockey world is fairly small, I think, and instances like this, people are affected.  It was kind of a gloomy day outside too and [the weather] seemed like it just fit right in with the mood.  You never want to hear about something like that and when you talk about it being the whole team, it's just terrible news. Everybody around was affected by it."

The event in Russia adds to a particularly sad off-season in the hockey world, with three NHL players and a minor league player all passing this summer.  Carlson tried to accentuate the positive as the hockey world, a tight-knit community to begin with, has become even closer under the trying circumstances.  "You see all the support from everyone which is good.  Everyone's kind of rallying around each other to stay with it and try to figure some of these things out, and also to mourn the loss of people, and now [Lokomotiv]... It's devastating. But you have to look at is and see what the problem is and go from there."

Updated with Video of First Pitch:

Jason Chimera, right, taps in game-winner for the Caps (C.Nichols/Caps News Network)

“Sometimes when we get a lead so early we kind of settle in instead of keep pushing the pace and that was a classic example of what we did tonight."  John Carlson

You got the sense, after a first period where the Washington Capitals took a 1-0 lead and outshot the out-of-the-playoffs Columbus Blue Jackets 15-4, that if the Caps could score the next goal, the Jackets would roll over and the Caps could finally have a game where they could put away an opponent, rather than put things in jeopardy and have to squeak out another one-goal game.

You would have been wrong.

Only a fantastic play from a trio of Caps in overtime kept this game from following Tuesday's script, where the Caps got a lead, coughed it up, and ended up on the losing end via shootout.

Instead, Jason Chimera tapped in a rebound from Brooks Laich, who was fed a tasty pass from John Carlson, exactly halfway through overtime to give the Capitals a 4-3 win. 

“It went to the net soft," Chimera said.  "It kind of went off their defenseman and it kind of ended up right on my tape so it’s hard to miss those ones but those are nice. Especially nice against your old team. It was a good night.”

The two points drew the Caps to within one point of Eastern Conference leading Philadelphia, 1-0 losers to Atlanta at home Thursday night.  The Flyers have one game in hand over the Caps, but at 4-2-4 in their last ten games, Philly is not playing their best hockey of the year.

It also give the Capitals 101 points, marking the third straight year the Caps have eclipsed the century mark. 

A late first period fight between John Erskine and Jared Boll -- one that would end Erskine's night early -- got both teams going in a game that had gotten a little stale, but Columbus seized the momentum better. 

The second division squad found themselves in the second period, and when Antoine Vermette banged home a loose puck in the crease, with Matt Bradley and Boyd Gordon watching, Columbus decided they would put up a fight.

The game went back and forth from that point, with both teams scoring twice in the middle frame.  The Caps were matching Columbus on the scoresheet, and a lucky bounce behind the Columbus goal led to Marco Sturm hitting a wide open Jason Arnott for the go-ahead goal.

At that point, the Caps went into their "New Jersey Devils" mode, clogging the neutral zone and falling into a defensive shell.  It didn't help that for the second game in a row the Caps found themselves with just five defensemen, as Erskine took just one shift in the second period after the fight. 

But there's a big difference between playing defensive hockey and passive hockey, and last night the Caps fell into the latter.  You got the feeling that if Columbus got a lucky bounce, the game would end up tied.

They did.  It did.

The Capitals failed to clear a puck that was bouncing around between the circles, and Michal Neuvirth (23 saves) might have relaxed a little bit.  Scottie Upshall beat the young Czech glove side, and the Caps were in a dogfight.  The teams traded scoring chances down the stretch but needed the extra frame, where the Caps -- finally -- were able to find the game-winner.

"Tonight we had a lot to learn," Boudreau said after the game.  "We talked about it before the game, that it was an important thing, playing away from the puck.  And I thought that we weren't that good at it.  Hopefully it will be a learning session tomorrow looking at the video."

WIDEMAN HOSPITALIZED

A report surfaced during the game from TSN.ca's Bob MacKenzie that D Dennis Wideman, injured in Tuesday's loss, was hospitalized for a hematoma in his leg. After the game, the Capitals indeed confirmed that was the case. 

Mike Knuble went even further, as he told reporters that Wideman had emailed him pictures of the injury, which he termed "grotesque."  Knuble described how Wideman's leg had been cut to drain blood and relieve pressure from a condition called "compartment syndrome", where blood and pressure collect and could lead to tissue damage.

Wideman's injury is not thought to be quite that severe, however, he appears to be out indefinitely.  The offical team information has Wideman listed "week-to-week".

ERSKINE DOESN'T RETURN

John Erskine, by all accounts, won his title bout with Columbus' Jared Boll, but the Caps might end up the biggest losers of the tilt. 

Erskine skated just one shift after the fight and did not return after that.  Boudreau confirmed after the game that the rugged defenseman did not injure his hands in the fight, but would not elaborate further, except to say Erskine was day-to-day and was held out in the second and third periods as a precaution.

If Erskine can't return for Saturday's game with Buffalo the Caps will have to recall at least one blue-liner from Hershey, since Wideman, Mike Green and Tom Poti are all still on the shelf and the team is down to five healthy defensemen.

CARLSON'S BIG NIGHT

John Carlson played his 100th NHL game and had himself a big night.  He played almost 26 minutes, scored the game's first goal and assisted on Chimera's game winner. 

Carlson now has 35 points (seven goals, 28 assists) on the season and is two points shy of matching the club record for most points in a season from a rookie defenseman, currently co-held by Robert Picard (37 points in 1977-78) and Greg Theberge (37 points in 1981-82).

CAPS NEWS NETWORK'S THREE STARS

3. Brooks Laich.  Two helpers, two hits, three takeaways.  Really insinuated himself in the action.

2. Marcus Johansson.  Didn't figure into the scoring, but man, this kid is playing well right now.

1. John Carlson.  Goal, assist, PP, PK, whatever.  Great game from young stud defenseman.

PHOTOS (Click photo to enlarge.  All photos (c) C.Nichols/Caps News Network)

John Carlson's Goal

After Chimera's game winning goal!

Erskine's fight

Neuvy first off the ice for warmups

"I just said, quite frankly, I hope they realized how important this period is to our season." Coach Bruce Boudreau, on what he told his team at the second intermission.

Nick Backstrom and Marcus Johansson help John Carlson celebrate his power play goal. (C.Nichols/Caps News Network)

THE RESULTS: The Washington Capitals, struggling for six weeks now scoring goals, found themselves trailing 1-0 to the travelling Ottawa Senators after two slow, plodding -- dare we say boring --periods of hockey. 

But last night, before another capacity crowd at the Verizon Center, the Caps finally found enough energy in the third period, scoring three goals in 6:16 span to secure their 25th win of the season and once again pull into a tie for first in the Southeast Division with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

The goal that started things was not a flash of brilliance, rather the effort of hard work. 

Mike Green dumped the puck around the boards, and Ottawa defenseman Erik Karlsson went to retrieve.  A hustling Alex Ovechkin slammed Karlsson into the boards as the Swedish defender tried to play the puck back behind his own net.  His partner, Chris Phillips, was rushed by forechecking Marcus Johansson and made a bad pass, trying to spring Senators' captain Daniel Alfredsson up the middle.

But Phillips didn't have time to settle the puck and it bounced on Alfredsson, right to Brooks Laich who was streaking into the slot.  Laich, alone, calmly flipped the puck over Brian Elliott's right shoulder, and tied the game at one.

Laich described the play from his locker stall after the game.  "Ovi was the first hit then Marcus went into the other corner -- my job is just to track through the middle. A lucky break, I guess.  A puck bounces over their stick right on to mine and I was able to make a good shot. You say "It's a lucky break' but it comes from hard work, it comes from your linemates doing the right job and just being in the right position.  Sometimes good things happen."

"Forechecking.  That's what it was," Boudreau said in his press conference. "We just looked at [the replay] again and Ovi goes in and takes the guy and then all of the sudden Phillips is trying to hit Alfredsson in the middle of the ice and he rushes the puck a little bit, bounces over his stick and Brooks is in perfect position and that's why he got the goal."

Just 45 seconds later, following a cross-checking call against Milan Michalek for slamming Karl Alzner awkwardly into the boards, Nick Backstrom won an offensive zone draw straight back to John Carlson at the point, who buried the one-timer past Elliott, and the roof came off the Verizon Center.

Then a few minutes later, Jason Chimera banked a shot off Elliott's back from behind the goal line that sent the Senators back to Ottawa with their hats in their hands.

Jason Chimera used a move on Brian Elliott that he said he practiced on Stretch Leonhardt during Caps practices. (C.Nichols/Caps News Network)

It was the first time in a long time the Caps looked like The Caps.  Ovechkin skated past defenseman to the outside to put pressure on Elliott.  The forecheck came to life and really started to smell the blood in the water.  The defense, shaky on the Sens lone goal, tightened up and gave Michal Neuvirth (25 saves) plenty of room to see the puck and the rookie goalie was calm and focused.

It was a big win, as the Caps set off on a three-game roadie, starting Tuesday night in Philadelphia, with stops on Long Island and in Toronto.  Taking a four-game winless streak into Philly was not what anyone with the organization wanted to see. 

The players took matters into their own hands in the third, shaking off a dreary start to show that they still have it in them.  Now, they need to bottle it up and take it with them on the road.

THE GOOD:  The Caps were 69 percent in the faceoff dot last night as a team.  Boyd Gordon won all eight of his draws, Backstrom won 13-of-19, Steckel 6-of-9 and Mathieu Perreault 7-of-11.  Only Johansson (4-of-9) was under 50 percent.

THE BAD:  I hate to beat a dead horse, but Jeff Schultz is now minus-8 in his last six games.  He was caught under his own goal line, badly behind the play, on the Senators only goal of the night, just 1:15 into the game.  He was minus-1 for the night.

THE STATS: Brooks Laich (9) unassisted at 7:15 of 3rd.  John Carlson (5) from Nicklas Backstrom (30) at 8:00 of 3rd (PP).  Jason Chimera (6) from David Steckel (5) and Karl Alzner (5) at 13:31 of 3rd.

NEXT GAME: Tuesday at 7:00 pm at Philadelphia Flyers.

CAPS NEWS NETWORK THREE STARS

3. Michal Neuvirth.  After being hung out to dry by his defense 1:12 into the game, Neuvy was perfect.

2. Alex Ovechkin.  Didn't score, but his big hit on the forecheck started sequence that led to the first goal.  He insinuated himself into the play tonight, especially in the second half of the game.

1. John Carlson.  Real.  American.  Hero.

THE RESULT:  For the second time in a week, 41-year old goalie Dwayne Roloson shut out the Washington Capitals, leading his Tampa Bay Lightning to a 3-0 win, securing first place in the Southeast Division for the time being.

The loss is the fifth time the Caps have been shut out in their last 25 games.

Domonic Moore, Sean Bergenheim and Simon Gagne scored for the Lightning, who own the top spot in the division by two points over the Caps, and sit second in the Eastern Conference trailing Philadelphia by just two points.

It was Washington's first regulation loss in ten games.

The Capitals were simply outplayed all evening.  Continuing a theme we've noticed for a while, Tampa took the body early and often against the Caps and Washington just didn't respond until things were already well out of hand.

It was the second straight game the Caps got down 3-0, but unlike Tuesday's game in Florida where they stormed back to force overtime and earn a standings point, Alex Ovechkin and the rest of the Caps couldn't muster enough energy for a comeback.

The Caps took just 23 shots on goal against Roloson, making his second appearance against the Caps since being traded to Tampa by the cellar-dwelling Islanders.  Roloson was rarely tested though, as most of the Caps shots against came from outside the circles, and the Caps managed just 12 shots on goal during five-on-five play.

Washington's forwards were content to fling shots from the perimeter, but unwilling or unable to find the requisite determination to crash the net looking for rebounds.

Playing on back-to-back nights on the road in the NHL is tough.  But no one wants to hear excuses.  The Caps did not come out to play last night and it showed, on the ice and on the scoresheet.

Veteran forward Mike Knuble tried to put it into perspective after the game. “It took a lot of energy [Tuesday] night to catch up and if you keep asking your team to do that all the time, it’s tough. Coming in back-to-back, you’ve got to get the lead. It’s pretty important because we chased so hard [Tuesday] night to scrape out a point.”

But despite the lackluster performance, it was just the first regulation loss in 10 games, and the Caps still own the league's seventh-nest record overall.

Are there problems?  Sure.  The power play went 0-for-2 last night and  is as anemic as it has ever been, going 8-for-75 (10.7%) with the extra man in its last 20 games.  The penalty kill is still working well, but the Caps are taking entirely too many penalties, especially in the offensive and neutral zones. 

And the Caps two best players, Ovechkin and Nick Backstrom, are having historically bad runs right now.

As bas as all that is, the Caps are still seventh overall in the league.  I'm sure there are a dozen teams that would LOVE to trade places, problems and all.

It's only Jan. 13.  There's plenty of time to get things sorted out.  They've already weathered an eight-game losing streak, rebounding with a 6-1-3 stretch.

It's not time to panic.  Yet.

THE GOOD:  John Carlson.  No goals allowed.  Led the team with five shots.  Caps killed all five extra-man opportunities for Tampa.

THE BAD: Jeff Schultz.  The Bolts scored three goals.  He was on the ice for all three.  Schultz looked lost last night. 

Dishonorable Mention: Tom Poti.  Scratched from the Florida game, he returned to play just 5:38 and didn't take a shift after the first period.  He was already minus-2 when he left.  If you're a puck-moving defenseman and you can't move, you're a liability.  He should be shut down.

THE UGLY:  I'm still wondering how Scott Downie only got two minutes for punching Scott Hannan in the face twice while another player was holding Hannan down -- and Hannan got four for roughing.  Miscarriage of justice.

THE STATS: No goals.

NEXT GAME: Friday night against Vancouver Canucks at 7:00 pm at Verizon Center.  Vancouver current owners of NHL's best record (28-8-6).

CAPS NEWS NETWORK THREE STARS

3. Scott Hannan.  No goals allowed, and his original check on Downie was a thing of beauty.

2. Semyon Varlamov.  35 saves on 38 shots.  Left to his own defense much of the night.

1. John Carlson.  No goals and five shots for.  Turning into a real leader on the blue line.

The NHL announced today the list of players that will be available in the first ever All-Star team draft, and Alex Ovechkin and Mike Green of the Washington Capitals were both invited to participate.

In what has been a down year goal-scoring wise for Ovechkin, he is still tied for 11th in the league and leads the Caps in points (15-29-44, plus-10).  This is his fourth All-Star selection.

Green (8-12-20, plus-8) struggled early but has picked up the scoring pace lately, registering at least one point in each of the last six games for the Caps.  He is also fourth in the NHL in total ice time (26:10).  It is Green's first All-Star selection.

I have to admit, I am surprised by the Green selection.  He has had seasons where his points totals have been much more impressive, yet failed to earn a nod.  He ranks just 27th among defensemen in points this season.  One could argue that this has been his least impressive campaign on the offensive end until lately. 

His attention in the defensive zone has increased dramatically this season, but it's hard to imagine the justification of his All-Star selection based on what is undeniably the weakest part of his game, and the part which draws the most criticism and left him on the outside when the Canadian Olympic team was announced last season.

As for snubs, on the All-Star team it's hard to argue any Caps player that deserved got left behind.  But no Caps rookie was invited to the Rookie SuperSkills Competition.  It's fairly incredible that the NHL came up with a list of 12 rookeis to invite to its skills contest -- including three defenseman -- and left John Carlson off the list.

The rookie list does however include Florida forward Evgeni Dadonov, who has played a grand total of 14 games, and Phoenix defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson, with a total of seven assists, and whose TOI is going down as the season progresses. Both players are their team's lone representitive.

"I don't know if it was perfect, but it's as good as we've played all year." Coach Bruce Boudreau

THE RESULT:  The Washington Capitals played a full sixty-minute game against their closest competitor in the Southeast Division, shutting out the Tampa Bay Lightning 6-0, before another sellout at Verizon Center.

The win gives the Caps 34 points this season (16-6-2), and stretches the Capitals lead in the Southeast to six points and wrests the conference lead back from Philadelphia by one point.

The holiday crowd was treated to the Capitals most complete effort of the season.  Six goals scored.  None allowed.  Opponent limited to 17 shots.  NHL goal scoring leader held to one shot.  Even the lone fight was a domination by a player wearing a red sweater.

Alexander Semin continued his hot hand in his contract season, registering a hat trick in a 4:29 span of the second period.  He tallied on a two-on-one with Marcus Johansson and banged home two power play goals off similar back door feeds from Nicklas Backstrom to break things wide open.

It was Semin's third hat trick this season and the sixth in his career.

Semin's total of 17 goals so far this season puts him four behind Tampa Bay's Steven Stamkos, who was held to just one shot on goal tonight.

John Carlson and Karl Alzner drew the lion's share of guarding Tampa's top line of Steven Stamkos, Martin St. Louis and Steve Downie, and held the prolific trio to a combined four shots.

Coach Bruce Boudreau assessed the play of his rookie blue-liners: "For 21, 22-year old guys, having the duty of shutting down that line, they did a good job.  And Carly, adds that offensive element as well.  I thought he was at his best tonight."

“We just got outworked today, plain and simple.” said Stamkos, the NHL’s leading scorer. “There’s nothing more to say.”

Carlson was modest talking about his performance after the game.  "My legs weren't as good as I would like them to be, but I felt that I was pretty good, in position the whole time and stayed out of trouble.  So I guess it was a good game."

Three defensemen scored the other three Capitals goals, with Carlson, John Erskine and Tom Poti denting the twine.  Washington now has three defensemen with three or more goals, the same number it had all of last season.

And oh by the way, Semyon Varlamov stopped all 17 shots he faced for his third career regular season shut out.

Captain Alex Ovechkin did not score, but assisted on both power play goals and had three hits early, setting a tone.  "We played good defensively.  Power play works good.  PK did an unbelievable job.  I think we play a good 60 minutes."

The penalty kill did do an unbelievable job, killing off all five power plays, including a five-on-three of just over one minute, and the resulting minute of five-on-four.  "When you score a couple on the power play and you kill a five-on-three, I thought it was a good game by us," Boudreau told the assembled media.

It was something of a statement game, considering how the week started for Washington, getting shut out by New Jersey and playing a pretty good game in Carolina.  Tampa Bay came in hot and the Caps took a physical game to them early, then put the hammer to them in the middle stanza.  The Lightning played the third period like they just couldn't wait to get on the bus out of Verizon Center.

Stamkos probably said it best from the Tampa Bay locker room: "I thought we were soft all over the ice today.  You can't expect to win, especially against a team like that."

Tampa coach Guy Boucher was even more damning.  "Work ethic wasn't there.  It'd be easy to point some fingers as some guys but the reality is we need to point the fingers at every player that was there.  We got outworked.  We got outplayed."

Sounds a lot like what Boudreau was saying after Monday's loss to the Devils.  What a difference a few days makes in the NHL.

THE GOOD:  Lots to go around.  Semin.  Carlson.  Varlamov.  Marcus Johansson with two assists.  Backstrom with two assists.  The Caps scored six goals and no one was more than plus-two.  That's a total team effort against a young, up and coming Tampa Bay team.

THE BAD:  Um... David Steckel was the only Capital with a face-off percentage over 50%?  Does that count?

THE UGLY:  Nothing.  It was a pretty win.

THE STATS:  Carlson (3) from Johansson (1) at 3:09 of 1st.  Erskine (3) from Fahey (1) at 4:38 of 2nd.  Semin (15) from Johansson (2) at 6:52 of 2nd.  Semin (16) from Backstrom (16) and Ovechkin (20) at 8:56 of 2nd (PP).  Semin (17) from Backstrom (17) and Ovechkin (21) at 11:21 of 2nd (PP).  Poti (2) from Hendricks (5) at 14:46 of 3rd.

NEXT GAME:  Sunday at 5:00 pm against Carolina Hurricanes at Verizon Center.

CAPS NEWS NETWORK THREE STARS

3.  John Erskine.  Assist short of the Gordie Howe Hat Trick.  His goal, the second of the game, came at 2:05 of the second and led to the floodgates opening.

2.  John Carlson.  His goal opened the scoring, and he and Karl Alzner held Steven Stamkos to one shot on goal.

1.  Alexander Semin.  Hard to argue with the natural hat trick.  Three goals in a 4:28 span of the second period busted this one wide open.

CAPS NOTES

Ovechkin is now tied with St. Louis for third in the league in assists.  Yup, you read that right.

With the win, the Caps upper their league-leading home record to 11-1-1.  Fahey's assist was his first NHL point.  Johansson's first assist was his first NHL assist.

THE RESULT:  The Washington Capitals, who were outworked and outplayed in the season opener Friday night in Atlanta, shook off a listless first period by scoring four unanswered goals in the second period, chasing future Hall of Fame goalie Martin Brodeur and defeating the New Jersey Devils 7-2, before a sellout 18,398 at Verizon Center.

The Caps added two more in the third, and as you might imagine at the end of a 7-2 game, things got interesting -- then out of hand -- with five total fights in the third frame, and four in the last five minutes.

Alex Ovechkin scored twice, including on a penalty shot, and had an assist, and John Carlson had a goal, two assists, and one stand-up for teammate Marcus Johannson late in the game.

With the game well out of hand, the third period saw a succession of fights, but none more ridiculous than the last.  Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond, a generic, run-of-the-mill thug, twice asked Johansson, the smallest guy on the ice playing in his second NHL game if he wanted to go.  After the drop, LeBlond chased Johansson to center ice, where he jumped him anyway.

"He asked me at the faceoff if I wanted to go, and I said, 'No,' and he just chased me down the ice," Johansson said of Leblond. "I'm happy the guys stood up for me."

John Carlson was the first one in on behalf of his teammate.

"I don't want to say too much, but if you're gonna pick anyone on the ice I wouldn't pick an 18, 19-year old kid out there in his second game in the NHL."

Johansson turned 20 last week (Oct. 6).  Carlson turned 20 in January.

Coach Bruce Boudreau was asked what he was yelling at Devils coach John MacLean during the fracas, which eventually involved all the skaters on the ice.

"I was just saying, 'What are you doing?' Under five minutes, that's an expensive venture. We're the least fighting major team in the league and we didn't have D.J. King in the lineup. We accepted the challenges because we're a group that accepts challenges."

Letourneau-Leblond's instigator penalty will result in an automatic one-game suspension and $10,000 fine for MacLean.

 

THE GOOD:  Everyone knows the Capitals can turn it on with the best of them.  But the unsung hero tonight was Michal Neuvirth.  He kept the Caps in this game through the first period and beginning of the second while the Caps were finding their legs.  Neuvy made 31 saves on 33 shots -- 17 in the second period when the Washington was outshot 17-9, but scored four goals on the nine shots.

 

THE BAD:  As painful as it is to say it, Martin Brodeur.  In a word, the veteran was terrible tonight.  The first goal of the game was a medium-hard wrister from Carlson just inside the blue line, and Brodeur just whiffed on it.  Jason Chimera beat him between the blocker and his body from the top of the circle.  Brodeur just didn't have it tonight.

 

THE UGLY:  The last five minutes of the game.  John MacLean should be ashamed of himself.  It's bad enough that was had to see the string of bouts, but sending a fighter out to attack Johansson was just gutless and pathetic.

 

NEXT GAME:  Monday night at 7:00 pm against Ottawa.

 

CAPS NEWS NETWORK's THREE STARS OF THE GAME

 

3.  Michael Neuvirth.  Strong game will go unnoticed, but he played very well when the Caps needed it.

2.  Alex Ovechkin.  His first goal was a move only Ovi can pull off, going through three defenders.

1.  John Carlson.  Sure, he was on the ice for six of the first seven goals of the game.  But with a goal, two assists, and dare we say, a veteran move standing up for Johansson, he takes the honors.

Congratulations to the Hershey Bears, AHL affiliate of the Washington Capitals, for capturing the Calder Cup, Champions of the AHL.  It is the 11th Cup in Hershey's storied history.

The Bears defeated the Texas Stars 4-0 at Giant Center in Chocolate Town Monday night, earning their second consecutive AHL Championship, four games to two.  D Patrick McNeill scored twice, pacing the Bears.

Hershey dropped the first two games of the series in Hershey, before winning four straight to take the title.

Chris Bourque was named playoff MVP.  The same Chris Bourque that was the Capitals final cut from their opening day roster, briefly played in the Pittsburgh organization, and returned to Hershey to help captain Brian Helmer and the rest of the Bears to a 60-win, record breaking regular season.

Bourque’s 27 points (seven goals, 20 assists) were tied for the most of any skater in the playoffs.

Michal Neuvirth was the winning goalie, and John Carlson and Karl Alzner both had goals in game six, leading the Bears to victory.

Neuvirth was tremendous for the Bears in the playoff run, posting a 14-4 mark with a shutout, a 2.07 GAA and a .920 save pct.

Congratulations to the Bears, coach Mark French, and the entire Washington Capitals organization on back-to-back Calder Cups!

Veteran Dallas Stars goalie Marty Turco stole two points for his team tonight.  There's no other way to say it. 

Turco made a career-high 49 saves in a 4-3 shootout victory over the Washington Capitals, ending the Caps home winning streak at 13 and their most recent three game win streak since the Olympic break.

The Stars have struggled since the Olympics, going 0-3 and had been outscored 17-5.  And in this game they were dominated again.  Any team that was outshot 52-26 was dominated.

But none of that mattered tonight.

The Caps seemed to have this one in the bag, leading 2-0 after two periods, thanks to goals by Tom Poti and Alex Ovechkin, ending his personal six-game drought.

But the Stars roared back for three third period goals in the span of six and a half minutes and had the lead late.  Two of the Stars' goals were of the power play variety (on rather dubious calls, especially the holding call on Matt Bradley), and the third was a gift by Semyon Varlamov, who lost his concentration on a soft shot from the wing by James Neal.

But the Great 8 tied things up with a little more than three minutes left, and the Caps looked like they just turned things back on again.  That's where Turco did most of his good work.

He flat stoned Alexander Semin on three consecutive shots late in the game on an extended shift where the Caps relentless pressure just seemed to fuel Turco as he made save after increasingly frustrating save.

Overtime would prove the same, as the Caps--as for much of the evening as a whole--dominated play but could not dent the cagey veteran.
Shootout went to five rounds.  Nicklas Backstrom for Caps and Brad Richards for Stars scored in second round and Loui Eriksson of Dallas scored the winning goal.

Sometimes a goalie just steals a win for his team.  Turco has been much-maligned this season, but on this night, he was exactly what the Dallas Stars needed.  Marty earned a well deserved number one star of the game.

The Caps are back at it Wednesday at 7:00 pm against the Carolina Hurricanes, including former Capital Brian Pothier.


Other Notes:
The Capitals have signed center Keith Aucoin to a two-year contract extension, vice president and general manager George McPhee announced today. In keeping with club policy, financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Coach Boudreau hinted in post-game conference that John Carlson will stay with Capitals instead of going back to Hershey.

Washington will practice at 11:30 a.m. at Kettler Iceplex on Tuesday morning.

Alex Ovechkin had 10 shots on goal, giving him 307 for the season. He is the only active player with five years of 300 shots or more.

Alex Ovechkin's two goals bring his season total to forty-four, which ties Sidney Crosby for first in the NHL.

Two future NHL HOFers....

BOXSCORE//GAME SUMMARY//EVENT SUMMARY

Washington, DC -- The Washington Capitals hosted the Toronto Maple Leafs in front of a Red Rockin' Caps crowd.  The weather may have felt like winter, however, it was fall in DC tonight -- The Maple Leafs fell.  Caps dominated entire game and won 6-1.

It took less than a minute for Alex Ovechkin to score a goal and start racking up the points.  The NHL MVP had a season high five point game.  Ovechkin also had a career-high four assists.

After Ovi scored the first goal of the game, Coach Bruce Boudreau thought, "Alex is on tonight."

Mike Knuble and Ovechkin were the fabulous duo.  Back-to-back Knuble goals assisted by Ovi.  Knuble seems to be back on track with five goals in this last five games and his broken finger is healing nicely.

John Carlson was recalled from Hershey this afternoon and arrived at Verizon Center at 6:30 just in time for warmups.  Carlson received a warm reception from the surprised Caps fans when he was announced in the starting lineup.  Fans thanked him for his winning OT goal in the gold medal game at the World Junior Championships when Team USA beat Canada.

"It's pretty cool when you get cheered on like that," Carlson said. "It's cool to recognized like that. But you have to make sure to stay focused on the game, so they're still cheering for you after the game, too."

Caps found yet another enforcer--Shaone Morrisonn.  With about six minutes left in the game, it appeared that Colton Orr took a cheap shot at Mike Green which left him lying flat on his back and Shaone Morrisonn took up the fight with Orr.  Morrisonn ended up with 2 min for instigating, 5 min for fighting and 10 min for misconduct.  Orr was only slapped with a 2 min interference call along with 5 min for fighting.  Coach Boudreau said during post-game interview that after looking back at video, Orr's hit on Green "didn't look like a vicious check."

"We don't exactly have the toughest team in the world," said Boudreau, but 'this group cares about each other and when one hits one, they hit them all."

Caps have had a season-high 13 penalties twice this year - in each of the last two games. 

Per Caps Insider, Jason Chimera will receive an automatic one game suspension because he was whistled for an instigator in the final five minutes of the game. Coach Bruce Boudreau also receives an automatic $10,000 fine because of Chimera's infraction.

Jose Theodore looked sharp in goal and will likely be in goal against Flyers. Coach Boudreau said, "I hope this gets him some confidence. He'll probably start on Sunday afternoon and go again. He's a competitor, a battler. He's done it his whole life being a small goaltender with the awards he won. So it's no surprise to me that he's gone in there and is saying, 'The heck with you guys, 'I'm going to be great.'"

Theodore gave Carlson the Hard Hat. "None of the Canadians were happy with me, it was pretty funny" said a smiling Number 74.

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SCORESHEET

1ST PERIOD
00:49 Alex Ovechkin (29), Snap Shot. Assist: Backstrom
17:51 Eric Fehr (12), Slap Shot. Assist: Ovechkin, Chimera

2ND PERIOD
04:03 Mike Knuble (11), Backhand Shot.  Assist: Ovechkin, Backstrom
06:48 Power Play - Mike Knuble (12), Wrist Shot. Assist: Ovechkin, Semin
18:37 Power Play - Tomas Kaberle (5), Slap Shot.  Assist: Kessel, Stempniak

3RD PERIOD
06:47 Power Play - Tomas Fleischmann (16), Tip-In.  Assist: Ovechkin, Green
11:06 Tom Poti (2), Wrist Shot.  Assist: Semin, Green

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THREE STARS

1. A. Ovechkin - WAS (Goals: 1, Assists: 4)

2. M. Knuble - WAS (Goals: 2, Assists: 0)

3. J. Theodore - WAS (Saves: 28, Save Pct: .966)

The Washington Capitals entered Tuesday night's game with the Montreal Canadiens on a three game regulation losing streak and in need of a spark. 

They got that and more, as Alexander Semin scored twice, Tomas Fleischmann registered a goal and two helpers, and Michal Neuvirth pushed aside 24 of 26 shots, as the Caps completed a 4-2 victory over the Habs before a sellout crowd at Verizon Center.

The biggest news of the day, however, was the biggest spark that could have been provided.  Earlier in the day, and announced just at game time, two-time Hart Trophy winner Alex Ovechkin was named as the 14th captain in Capitals' history, ending a three-game captainless stretch, the result of the trade that sent Chris Clark to Columbus.

Ovechkin was held without a point in his first game as captain, making it two games in a row the prolific scorer has been held off the scoresheet.  But it was of no matter, as his countryman, Semin, tallied twice, including the icing on the cake with just over two minutes remaining.

To illustrate the point of leadership, coach Bruce Boudreau had his captain take the ice as time dwindled with the Caps fighting off the extra skater with less than a minute left.

Fleischmann played a complete game in his first start at center in the NHL, scoring the first goal of the game -- unassisted -- on the power play.  He also helped out on both of Semin's goals as well.  The flourishing touch?  He even won the majority of his faceoffs, something he needed extra practice for with faceoff specialists David Steckel and Biyd Gordon in yesterday's practice.

Perhaps the only blemish on the victory was two third period penalties by veteran alternate captain Mike Knuble.  He was whistled twice in the final frame, and the first ended with Benoit Pouliot's fifth goal of the season, which brought Montreal within one.

But the Caps killed the second infraction, then Semin notched the insurance goal at 17:58.

Ovechkin becomes just the sixth Russian born player to captain an NHL team.  He is the second youngest captain in Capitals history, and the third youngest captain in the league.

Boudreau heaped praise upon his newly minted leader. 

"I talked to him a few days ago about it," Boudreau said. "He said, 'I would accept the responsibility, but only if my teammates want me to. If they're happy with me as a captain, I'd be glad to be captain.' So he was already thinking about the team rather than thinking about himself, which is what captains do."

Ovechkin was circumspect in the locker room following the game.  "We have a lot of guys who can speak and talk. But if I have to say something, I say something."

Notes:  After the game, the Washington Post reported that David Steckel has signed a contract extension.

In the World Junior Championships in Saskatoon, Team USA defeated Team Canada in the Gold Medal game, winning 6-5 in overtime.  Caps' prospect John Carlson had two goals in the game, including the game winner on a 2-on-1 breakaway in overtime.

The Capitals took 43 shots -- a season high -- and marked the eighth time this season they've recorded 40 or more. They are 7-0-1 when taking 40 or more shots.

Photos From Habs v. Caps; Ovi wears C (C) C. Nichols 2010.

The Washington Capitals host the Chicago Black Hawks tonight at 7:00 pm from Verizon Center.

According to Capitals Insider, this morning's skate at Kettler was optional, so the line pairings weren't announced, but the Ovechkin-Backstrom-Knuble line is expected to play.

Other forwards on tonight's roster:  Semin, Laich, B. Gordon, Clark, Laing, Osala, A. Gordon, Perreault, Wilson and Sugden

Defense:  Green, Morrisonn, Pothier, Poti, Jurcina, Sloan

Semyon Varlamov is slated to start with Michael Neuvirth backing him up.

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Olaf Kolzig, the long-time face and heart of the Washington Capitals, announced his retirement today after 14 NHL seasons.  He finishes with 719 career games (711 with Washington).  His 303 career wins are 21st all-time, and he posted a 2.71 GAA and .906 save percentage with 35 career shutouts.

"Olie was the face of the Capitals franchise for years, on the ice, in the locker room and around Washington, D.C. He was a great Capital and the organization and our fans will always have fond memories of 'Olie the Goalie.' We wish him and his wonderful family all the best in his retirement." -- Capitals Chairman/Owner Ted Leonsis

It's a matter of short order before Kolzig's No. 37 hangs in the rafters with Yvan Labre's No. 7, Rod Langway's No. 5, Dale Hunter's No. 32 and Mike Gartner's No. 12.  Kolzig and Peter Bondra will complete a formidable "first line" of retired numbers when they are honored soon.

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Goaltender Jason Bacashihua, defensemen John Carlson and Patrick McNeill and forwards Francois Bouchard, Andrew Joudrey and Steve Pinizzotto have been reassigned to AHL Hershey, which opened its training camp Monday.

The only mild surprise in the first wave of cuts was Carlson, the 19-year old defenseman.  Coach Bruce Boudreau said Carlson needed more seasoning in the AHL. 

"I just think he needed more time," Boudreau said. "I told him yesterday, 'You're going to be a great NHL player.' Mike Green, Jeff Schultz, all of our young D have spent considerable time in the minors and the formula has worked. There's no need to rush him with the amount of solid NHL defensemen that we have here."

The training camp roster is at 36, with three preseason games in eight days to set the opening night lineup, Oct. 1 in Boston.

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THREE DAY SCHEDULE

Wednesday, Sept. 23

10 a.m.: Morning skate
10:30 a.m.: Practice (non-game players)
7:00 p.m.: vs. Chicago, Verizon Center
Radio: WashingtonCaps.com

Thursday, Sept. 24
10 a.m.: Morning skate
11:15 a.m.: Practice (non-game players)
7 p.m.: at New York Rangers, Madison Square Garden, New York, N.Y.
Radio: WashingtonCaps.com

Friday, Sept. 25
Day Off

My apologies - I wanted to get this up much earlier, however, work kept me busy today. This will be much shorter than planned, but wanted to post a brief review in Dave's absence.


The Washington Capitals (9-4-2-20) host the New Jersey Devils (7-6-2-16) at the Verizon Center at 7:00 PM. Tonight is the Caps' eighth home game and 16th overall and hold a two-point edge in the Southwest Division standings entering tonight's game. The Devils stand in third in the Northeast Division after three straight losses. Tonight marks NJ's lone road game in a stretch of six games.

Both teams will be without their starting goalies. Caps goalie Brent Johnson was voted as the number three star of the week for his performances Nov. 3-9 with Stats: 2 W, 1.63 GAA, .953 SV%. Johnson left the game on Wednesday in Carolina with an injury and is day-to-day and may be able to back-up Jose Theodore tonight.

The Devils will be without their All-Star Goalie Martin Brodeur who underwent surgery last Thursday to repair the distal bicep in his left elbow. "According to the doctors, his surgery was 100 percent successful," Devils GM Lou Lamoriello said in a statement. "The timetable for his return remains three to four months."


TONIGHT IS COACH BRUCE BOUDREAU BOBBLEHEAD NIGHT! They will go to the first 15,000 fans in attendance and feature coach holding the Jack Adams Award as the 2007-08 NHL coach of the year.
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INJURIES

WAS: D Brian Potheir (Out indefinitely); D Shaone Morrisonn (groin/DTD/OUT); C/D Sergei Federov (DTD/OUT); G Brent Johnson (DTD)

NJD: G Martin Brodeur (elbow); D Andy Greene (hand); C Bobby Holik (pinky); LW Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond (cracked orbital bone); D Paul Marti; C Brian Rolston (ankle)
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CAPS NOTES - The Capitals signed 2008 first-round draft John Carlson (D) to a three-year, entry-level contract Thursday. The 18-year-old Carlson was the 27th overall pick. He is in his first season with the London Knights of the Ontario Hockey League.