SaucyJack

Can’t say I remember that 2/3/99 home game 10-1 clobbering against then-lowly Tampa Bay, but upon lookup I saw that Peter Bondra scored a hat trick in that 4:47 span along with an assist. The Lightning got their revenge in their second-ever playoff series in the spring of ‘03, defeating the Caps 4-2 after having lost the first two games at home. (A series that signified an end of an era in Washington, leading to rebuild and the eventual acquisition of Ovechkin.)

Of course, it means a new formula of how often one plays each team in one’s division, in the other division in your conference, and the other conference. Several choices to make, including whether to only play some teams in the other conference once. I disagreed with 32 being perfect as far as playoff achievement. NFL and MLB still only allow less than half to qualify for postseason, despite expanding those fields in recent years. (I.e., 16 in, 20 out, is OK in my view.)

Russians are banned in team sports for the 2024 Paris summer games per their state-sponsored doping scandals. Whether that ban extends to the 2026 Turin winter games has not yet been decided, or so I read. It is more important for ice hockey to put on an exciting star-studded Olympic competition than other sports, as it is the only team game for a winter Olympiad. (The summer games are so overloaded and getting even more crowded, they can afford something like, say, basketball being amateur-only should that ever occur.)

Wow. Hunter had been out of Québec for 6 years when he pulled his crap on Turgeon in the ‘93 playoffs.

Dale Hunter vs Pierre Turgeon 1993, anyone?

Losers of six straight, lowering their making-the-playoffs odds to 3%, with a trip to Beantown and the mighty Bruins earlier this afternoon, that I missed. The Capitals win this game ?!? In a 3-0 blanking of the Conference Top Dogs ?!? In their rink ?!? My head just asploded.

After scoring 83 pts in the regular season of their Cup victory, he degraded to 72, 52, and 29 points the next three. (But the 29 was the 41-game Covid Seadon so project that as 58 pts.) He improved in 21-22 for 78 pts, then degraded last year to 55. But this year is especially bad with 17 pts in 47 games. (That projects to a meager 30 pt season if he played all 82.) It is extra bad now in 23-24, for sure, nothing quite compares to these low totals.

The fans may be down on Kuzy and his performance this season. But several commenters on the WaPo article thought he was brave to admit he had a problem and to take advantage of the league’s program.

Say what you might about Evgeny Kuznetsov, and most of it these days is not pretty from fans commenting on WaPo game articles, who want his now-underachieving arse and ridiculous salary out the door… …but he is nevertheless beloved for providing the most dramatic and cathartic moment in Washington Capitals history in the 2018 Cup run: - sure, the Cup was won against Vegas, but with relative ease in 5 - and sure, they were an inch from confirming their Choking Dog natures in round 1 vs Columbus, before Carl Eller’s double OT road winner prevented going down 3-0 - and yes, in round 3 the fans could hear those dreaded Dog Sounds against Tampa Bay, after losing 3 straight before winning the last two to win in seven - IT WAS ROUND TWO - - - finally beating the Penguins, the two-time defending champs, in OT, even if it was “just” a game 6. IN Pittsburgh. Crushing those demons…listen to my favorite sports call of all time, courtesy of Caps radio play-by-play man John Walton. Tears well up for me whenever I watch this every couple years or so. Good afternoon; good evening; and good night !!

WaPo says he tested positive for cocaine in 2019 representing Russia in the World Championships. (Possible of course since Washington hasn’t won a playoff series since the 2018 Cup.) And, this was originally named the “substance abuse and behavioral assistance program”. So I doubt the Problem is consuming too much Diet Coke.

Ovechkin improving with age: in April 2014, Bleacher Report had him the 2nd most overrated player in the league. Nearly 10 years later, he has improved, in this poll at least, to 6th in this woeful category.

The Puzzler…is a Pucks Fan! BEFORE: AFTER:

Before: After:

Bluddy effin’ ‘ell mate, um not troostin’ them bleedin’ rag sports writers at the wankin’ Chicago Tribune again, now am I ?!?!? Just watch me! Without stating any corrections from their reports in recent days, they write this TODAY: ”…their road winless streak ballooned to 20 games - within two games of the franchise record.” Unspecified is whether 22 games is also the league record streak for any club.

At -17 at the all-star break, you get one guess who has the worst +/- on the Capitals this season. I’ll make it slightly easier: 2nd and 3rd worst at -12 and -11 are Tom Wilson and Evgeny Kuznetsov.

Correction. The Blackhawk record is now 20 consecutive road losses after losing 1-0 in Calgary last night. A new low for Chicago. OK, apparently 22 consecutive road losses, from the ‘50-‘51 season, is the league record. The ChiTrib article from yesterday cited it but did not say which other Original Six club held that dishonor.

OK, that was then. Now…they are a team on a 19-game road losing streak. The Blackhawk record is a 22-game road losing streak from the Truman Administration. (‘50-‘51 campaign) P.S. If will take some calendar time to break that record. After tonight’s tilt in Calgary, their break starts, after which they enjoy a February with 9 home games and only 1 road game.

WaPo game article said that a fan’s hat hit the ice just a split-second before his third tally crossed the line.

Yup. WaPo fan comment consensus is that Kuznetsov and Carlson must go NOW. Some even say Mantha too despite his recent scoring. And Oshie often mentioned despite his decent play after returning from injury. Too bad the Avs and Stars are next on the Caps’ 4-game ‘Suck so bad Heartland Tour’.

Woo hoo…go wild, Warroad Minnesota! Osher’s got ‘im another Hattie, sixth of his career! (And on Country Music Night no less, where Caps fans received, you guessed it, cowboy hats.)

Darcy Kuemper. Ring any bells? (Oh yeah recently won a Cup in Denver.) Played 2nd string in back to back weekend matinees against the Rangers, behind Charlie Lindgren. You don’t need a weatherman to tell you which way the wind is blowing, as Bob Dylan noted decades ago. Of both Caps shutouts this season, Lindgren earned both… ….until tonight. Kuemper blanks Anaheim 2-0 thanks to an empty netter. Of course, it was the lowly DUCKS. Maybe the wind is swirling juuust a wee bit now though.

“My most memorable playoff overtime goals” - Alexander Mikhailovich Ovechkin“

What I meant to say instead of “in 2024” was “since the Holidays”, or “since Dec 23rd” more precisely: 1 narrow win, 4 regulation losses, 2 OT losses. Bah, humbug! So go figure- while most were watching Week 18 of the National Foosball League, the Caps erased a 3-2 deficit midway in the 3rd to win a Sunday matinee against those nondescript L.A. things. Thereby sweeping the 2-game season series, leading many Caps fans to say, let us play L.A. more often and God bless us, everyone!

A day’s rest, and a home tilt against another squad roughly even in the standings. Outplayed, bad penalties, give up 5 goals (2 EN) in the 3rd. Fans commenting in the WaPo game recap see the End coming. Doom and gloom so far in 2024 other than one narrow win over hardly-top-rate Pittsburgh… …at least the Pen’s top gun of the past fifteen years is still good enough to get picked as an all-star. (Not questioning the Wilson over Ovechkin decision.)

Now there’s a school with a tough travel schedule. I did look it up: with a couple of exceptions, AK-Fairbanks play two games against an opponent when on the road. Conversely, their guests come way up north to play two. Makes sense. Reminds me of the old 21-team NHL’s Smythe Division before the massive Sun Belt expansion. Whenever LA traveled to Winnipeg, and vice-versa, it would be two games, so as to cut the season’s travel burdens between those two squads’ eight contests against each other, in half. Two road trips a year, not four.