SaucyJack

Have the name right? WaPo article on the Caps-Jackets matchup highlighted Beck Malenstyn’s good camp and gameplay, that likely secures him one of the 12 forward spots. But I don’t follow the pre-season details. (I’ll see whoever play regular season if they make the cut.) That said, no mention of him in that article, or in user comments.

I never watch pre-season games. Any sport. They juss be practicin’. You did remind me whether I get this new Monumental TV network. Happy to learn I do. New name for the old NBC Sports Washington, basically.

Is there a special prize for earliest injury across the league? Caps amongst the most injury-prone last year. They’re using that learned experience well. New D-Man Joel Edmunson out for maybe 6 weeks with a hand fracture suffered 1st week of training. What, my Idiots are slashing each other across the wrists in practice sessions already? Dudes, you’re on the SAME TEAM…

WaPo article today on Nick Backstrom, claiming he is 100% healed from his hip injury. Of more interest to me were user comments. They are typically much more optimistic than the average hockey observer on Capitals chances for success. But today, comments were dour and pessimistic… …Backstrom’s deft hands are still bound by slow skating and where are the younger faster guys to make up for it? …nobody thinks Kuznetsov or Mantha will provide fire, just smoke. (Caps need to trade Kuzy, get something in return for the talented underachiever) …skepticism on signing another 30-something (Max Pacioretty) and his Achilles history A splash of water in the ol’ face for Washington fans more fully realizing the state of Caps Affairs, awakened by supposedly positive Backstrom news. LO Freakin’ L !! Lots of beer sales this year to enjoy and get through an outing. The only fun news from today’s article: new coach Spencer Carbery could well become known better as “Coach Cranberry”.

I’ll just say this is highly debatable.

What was Babcock going to do if he wasn’t impressed with someone’s family photos? Play them less? Don’t coaches have real “hockey skills and effort” criteria in which to make relevant decisions? I worked nearly 4 decades and never once did a manager or superior ask me such questions or make such requests. Nor did I of team members under my guidance. It is simply irrelevant in assessing skills of people in matching up with tasks, or determining reward.

Just learned that Carl Hagelin is retiring. He hadn’t played since the Caps 2021-22 season. A stick under the visor in practice (iirc) more than a year ago almost led to eye loss. Now age 33 and continuing difficulties, he is retiring. One less older guy in Washington I suppose, but eye injuries are scary. Nobody needs or deserves that. Way back in helmetless days of Hull, Orr, Howe, Beliveau, Esposito, and nearly every other player, there had to be more respect between players in keeping sticks down. I suppose Hull introducing the ferocious slap shot was the start of sticks getting higher and higher until 20 years later everyone ended up with helmets after the likes of Rod Langway and Craig MacTavish finally hung up their skates as the last without the helmet.

It’s what we do! Our post-season successes are mild and rare. Reminds me of a Caps postgame commentary from some game last year by on-ice reporter Al Koken. (He used to be Caps’ color commentator in late 80’s & early 90’s, a rarity since he never played; just a sportswriter by background.) He and the studio hosts got to a point where reminiscence of past glory seemed appropriate. Not to beat a dead horse, he avoided 2018 and referred back to events of 1990 (loss to Bruins in East Final) and 1998 (loss to Wings in Cup final) instead! Mentioned a few of those players. I’m sure 3/4 of the viewers were all ‘wot the fork this guy talkin’ ‘bout ?!’

I do not recall. I read somewhere he felt good about being picked #1 rather than #2 (whether it be vs Malkin or anyone else.) Here’s a Wayback Machine link to the 2004 WaPo article on the entry draft; McPhee had several trade offers. Hope the firewall lets you read at least one article: https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/sports/2004/06/27/caps-make-ovechkin-no-1-pick-in-draft/0d3657b5-cc01-448a-a8be-db0172c764c0/ Reading about all of this, I learned that Ovie played an extra year for Dinamo Moscow because of the ‘04-‘05 NHL season cancellation. (My own head that season was less ‘Ovie is coming’ than it was ‘last season sucked and Bondra left’. I recall a business presentation we gave with customer guests from either Pittsburgh or Toronto in early ‘05 and somehow it became apparent they were hockey fans and I mentioned the lost season and how I missed Bondra anyway and they were just shaking their heads in commiseration on how sad it was to have no NHL for a full year. Ah, bad times…)

This is my memory, which can be faulty. I see that Malkin went 2nd in summer of ‘04. I do not recall any serious “Ovechkin or Malkin?” hand-wringing indecision back then. But might Poile have chosen Malkin? Note: like Ovie, Malkin has a mediocre career +/- of +47. I had also forgotten that Ovie didn’t hit the ice until a full year later, as the Sep ‘04 lockout evolved into the Fully Lost Season.

But the thrill must be over in ChiTown. The official Bedard contract signing article only made page 3 of the Tribune sports section today. Page 1 was all ️ oh but of course I

Absolutely. Any GM would have. He was like Bedard, the hands down #1 choice that season. Caps got the #1 pick per the rebuild that started after the spring 2003 playoff collapse to Lecavalier’s and St Louis’ Tampa Bay squad. One of the many playoff debacles. Within a year, Bye Bye Bondra. (Also bye bye coach Bruce Cassidy yeah our VGK winning coach has been around a while.)

Perhaps I am in the minority of Caps fans in my lack of historic regard for Ovechkin. Here are some other remarkable comparisons between Ovie and Gretzky. (To date, Ovie has played 140 less regular season games than The Great One.) Points: Gretzky 2,857 Ovie 1,485 +/-: Gretzky +520 Ovie +67 No comparison whatsoever! How ‘bout playoffs where it matters most. Gretz played 208 games, Ovie is at 147 now. Both played on mostly good squads, but the Great One surely had better line mates esp Kurri. Goals: Gretzky 122, Ovie 72 Points: Gretzky 382, Ovie 141 +/-: Gretzky +91, Ovie +5 (what?!?) GWG (clutch playoff performance) - Gretzky 24 - Ovechkin 10 (zero in OT, btw) Again, no comparison really even taking into account Gretzky’s Oilers being huge for most of his playoff tenure there. At some point, need to do similar comparisons between Ovie and other great players of the modern era. Will he deserve a Top Ten All Time ?!?

I’m late to this party, but come summertime I normally give my head time away from reading much about hockey. I’m sorta with you. Laviolette was an opposing coach that always impressed me. Three different teams (Canes, Flyers, Preds) to the finals. Not bad… …but he laid a huge egg with Washington. Seemed clueless on what to do with the team. Wasn’t impressed with his answers at press conferences, had no original thoughts on what to change. But one failure like Washington should be forgiven per his past successes. (Still, ya have to wonder if he’s lost his touch…happens to everyone at some point.) Will be interesting how he does in Manhattan but I wouldn’t wager a dime either way.

Given that his playoff squads were repeatedly cursed, losing many game sevens and crucial OTs even when they held the skating advantage, I’d say no. But sometimes playoffs in sports are dumb luck. Go back in time to April 2018 and replay everything, I doubt Caps break the curse, Poile or not…avoid 0-3 deficit to Jackets with multi-OT goal on road. Another uncharacteristic Caps OT winner vs Penguins game 7 care of Kuzy. Then win G6&7 for comeback over Tampa. Had a butterfly swept its wings slightly different in Bolivia a month prior, or if a front row Jackets fan had spilled his beer a different direction in OT, the Caps would be in the same Cupless Club as VAN & BUF & others.

Well, kinda… …the 2010 first round loss to the Montréal Canadiens had to be the worst ignominy in Washington Capitals history. President Cup winners, 3-1 lead going into home game 5, already started repeating playoff miseries of the ‘83 to ‘03 double decade per early-Ovie-era playoff underachievement in the spring of ‘08 and ‘09… …so of course they lose the last three to the #8 seed Quebecois, in a series that revealed the lack of 2-way hockey skills in Ovie and crew. A lack of skill he never corrected as confirmed by his mediocre career plus-minus. So, for a Montréal Canadien from that 2010 squad, that most horrendous spring memory, to end up with Washington, in the form of 34-year-young Max Pacioretty, it brings back bad thoughts, ah oui. Well kinda… …despite playing 50+ games for Les Habitants that season, the young Pacioretty was left off their 2010 playoff roster… …Still !!!

Even in the worst case, Phoenix can always brag that they saw the Most Incredible Goal Ever.

The Hawks had oodles of draft picks this year. Many consider Bedard to be the highlight, if the Trib front page this morning is any indicator. But perspicacious insiders, and lovers of linguistic reduplication, were more enamored of Chicago’s 5th round selection of Czechia’s Marcel Marcel. Great times are anticipated. NOTE: Rumors of Marcel’s distant genealogical relationships with French actress Simone Simon, and with English literarian Ford Maddox Ford remain unproven.

Perhaps the Tom Wilson ethos shall continue in the Washington swamp, based on what Ryan Leonard had to say last night after being picked #8: But as the newest Capital, Leonard quickly noted that there’s a player with his new organization who fits the same mold. “Tom Wilson,” Leonard said with a smile. “Tom Wilson, definitely. Tom Wilson. Definitely.” I find it so hard to feel anything here, with the young’un now off to four years of college. It will be a different world in 2027.

You’ll be delighted to hear that in addition to dibs on Bedard, Chicago have more than 10% of the first 67 picks. They have 9 of the first 99, too.

It should be no shock that a Selke winner has an excellent career regular season plus-minus. In fact, of active players, Bergeron’s +289 is only exceeded by that of his teammate Brad Marchand, and only by a nose (+290). And it is not very close from there. The next best active players are Nashville’s Ryan McDonagh (+227) and Pittsburgh’s “Sid the Kid” (+210). Ovenchicken is career +67, for comparison.

Yesterday’s article only covered the tenures of current athletes. So, in addition to the illustrious history of those other (non-Ottawanian) Senators, a more comprehensive list would have included some famous, um, Redsk!ns (uh oh, I risk cancellation now) from their glory days of the 80’s, and probably some from Sunny Jurgensen’s time, a few Bullets (now Wizards, best to just say Buzzards) from their 70’s Wes Unseld era, and a few DC United guys as they dominated the first years of MLS in the 90’s. In contrast to today’s aging Caps, I read that the current Wizards have nobody with a tenure greater than 3 years after the recent off-loading of vet Bradley Beal.

…pretty old, Sunny Boy, pretty dad-gummed old. WaPo sports had a fun article today, listing the 13 athletes on Washington Metro Area (WMA) teams who had the longest tenures. (So baseball, football, men’s and women’s basketball, hockey, men’s and women’s soccer. 7 teams.) The Capitals have 6 of the 13 longest tenures amongst the seven franchises. LOL. 1 - Ovechkin 18 yrs 2 - Backstrom 16 yrs 3 - Carlson 14 yrs 6 - Wilson 10 yrs 7 - Kuznetsov 10 yrs 11 - Oshie 8 yrs Of course, this Age Gauge reading must be tempered by the fact that most WMA sports franchises have recently displayed dismaying levels of Suckiferousness, and tend not to keep many veterans around. Caps have been the most stable of them all. Grampa, read me another Caps story, pleeeez? (In due course, Laddie Boy…)

Hope some of these Baby Caps end up aiding Momma Bear in D.C. sometime soon.

Somebody contact Dale Hunter with this news, stat!