In the second period of game one, the Washington Capitals looked wobbly, in a one-goal hole and entirely without momentum. Then Aaron Asham checked one of the Caps in the head and Washington went on its fourth power play of the game. That’s when Alex Ovechkin channeled his inner-MVP-ness, scoring his 31st career postseason goal on the power play. It seized back momentum for the Caps, who went on to score two more goals before the period was done. The Caps held on to win 3-1.
With that goal, the Great Eight is Washington’s franchise leader in playoff goals, passing one of my childhood hereos, Peter Bondra.
I’m a bit wrapped up in the Washington Capitals this year. I thought I’d be cool, analyzing the game with the sober distance of an expert, but I’m not that at all. I’m a basket case, and I bet I’m not alone. It’s the gosh-darn playoffs, and the Caps are off to a hot start.
Washington bombarded NYR goalie Henrik Lundqvist in the first period, but the Rangers somehow got the early lead anyway. The Caps didn’t change their style though and responded with three goals in the second period. Holtby withstood an enfilade in the third and earned a wonderful game-one win.
Caps beat Rangers 3-1. Caps lead series 1-0. Boom!
Alex Ovechkin and rap music go together like cheese whiz and nachos. His cameo in Sasha Belyi’s Championwas such a hit with our readers, we had to buy four extra mice to run on those little wheels to power our web servers. And on Wednesday, using Maria Kirilenko’s iPhone, Ovi and his crew put their hoods up and gyrated to Drake’s Started From The Bottom. And here I was thinking we’d have nothing to post during the four-day break.
Since he has been so crucial to the accomplishments of his team, he deserves consideration for the Hart Trophy, which is awarded to the guy “judged to be the most valuable to his team.” However, many of the writers who vote for the award are casting their ballots for somebody else — namely Sidney Crosby or John Tavares.
The Great One, Wayne Gretzky, disagrees with that.
On April 29, 2013, In Guest Post, Playoffs, By Russian Machine Never Breaks
[Editor's note: Renee, a long-time Caps season ticket-holder, won the ultimate prize in the Caps annual "Jerseys Off Our Backs" event on Fan Appreciation night. Here's her story.]
The “Jersey Off Our Backs” winners hang out at ice level and watch the Boston Bruins walk into the locker room.
I started off my Friday like anyone else — scrambling to get work done before the week ended. But one phone call ended my productivity: I had been randomly selected for the “Jersey Off Our Backs” event on Fan Appreciation Day. As a longtime season-ticket holder, this is one event I’ve watched with awe – even back when the Caps would toss their signed jerseys haphazardly over the glass to waiting fans. Long story short, I didn’t get much done on Friday.
Fast-forward to game day. I watched periods one and two like anyone else — anxious to have the Caps produce on what looked to be good play despite the 0-2 score at the end of the 2nd. As the 3rd period started, I gathered with a crowd of lucky fans in the concourse. Count was taken and we were ultimately asked to pick a random manila envelope from our host — the envelope that held each of our future jersey’s numbers. We were escorted underground to wait for the end of the game. None of us saw Mike Green’s goals to tie it up, but we heard the crowd’s amazing cheers and we celebrated too. We followed tweets and text messages from friends and family in the arena, trying to harness the excitement of broken glass and overtime. The horn sounded a win and the crowd erupted in a frenzy. From the end of the hall, we watched the Bruins, heads down, trek to their locker room. And then it was our time.
A few days ago, when the Caps clinched the Southeast division, Alex Ovechkin was asked how the team celebrated. “Yeah, like, we went to the bar. I got home at 7 in the morning. I get hammered,” Ovechkin deadpanned to The Washington Post’s Katie Carrera. “That’s kind of Russian celebration.” Well on his day off after winning the Rocket Richard trophy, Ovi had another early morning Russian celebration, this time putting on sneakers, grey shorts, a zip-up hoodie, and a Caps floppy hat given away on Fan Appreciation night and played tennis with his fiancée Maria Kirilenko. Adorbs. This is pretty much the same attire I wear on Sundays too.
In the third period of the Capitals’ 3-2 overtime win over Boston on Saturday, Marchand dropped to the ice like a piano falling off the top story of the Empire State Building after Alex Ovechkin gave him a friendly slash in the ribs.
It’s official: Alex Ovechkin has won the 2013 Rocket Richard Trophy. Back in February, Ovechkin was getting trashed as struggled through his third consecutive subpar year. Now he’s the NHL’s scoring leader for the third time in his eight year career.
