Photo credit: Toni L. Sandys of the Washington Post

Editor’s note: To get you properly revved up for the season, each member of the RMNB crew will take a longing look back at some of our favorite goals from days gone by. You can call it nostalgia or cheap summer content, but it’s really a reminder: WINTER IS COMING.

Seeing a Steve Konowalchuk hat trick live with my dad and brother made me fall in love with hockey. Joe Juneau’s jamshot past Dominik Hasek made me wildly jump up and down as a teenager. But Alex Ovechkin’s first career playoff tally is my all-time favorite NHL goal.

Here’s why.

Way back at the beginning of the 2007-08 season, being a Caps fan wasn’t such a fun thing. Sure, the team had young prospects in Alex Ovechkin and Alex Semin. But the organization was coming off three dreadful seasons in which they finished dead-freaking-last in the powerhouse Southeast Division. Mix in a lockout, watching GMGM trade away all of my favorite players from childhood (Bondra, Oates, Gonchar, etc.) and– just in general– the Jaromir Jagr experiment, and it had been a really awful ten years since the Caps made their first trip to the Stanley Cup Finals.

’07-08 didn’t start off much better. In fact, things got worse. Way worse. In those early months, the team looked completely lost, winning six of their first 21 games. The rebuilding Capitals were actually the worst team in hockey. I had my doubts in Ted Leonsis’s plan.

On Thanksgiving Day, Coach Glen Hanlon was mercilessly fired, and Hershey’s Bruce Boudreau was called up to turn things around. And turn things around he did.

The Capitals overcame injuries to key players like Michael Nylander and Brian Pothier during the year, and won 11 of their final 12 regular season games to edge the Carolina Hurricanes for the Southeast Division title AND the final playoff spot in the East. Mike Green led all NHL defensemen with 18 goals. Alex Ovechkin, who was serenaded by the Verizon Center crowd with M-V-P chants at the end of the year, scored 65 jaw-dropping goals.

I was at about 25 of those home games that year as a fan and the Capitals were truly the NHL’s Cinderella story. I had never experienced one of my favorite teams having the best player in the league. I never thought in a million years that the Capitals would recover and make the playoffs. Verizon Center also became the place to be. As the year went on, the building got louder and louder. It almost seemed like every night you were going to a rock concert or some kind of awesome party where everyone there was your long-lost friend. When tickets went on sale for the first round, I nabbed two upper bowl seats to Game 1 where the Capitals took on the Philadelphia Flyers. I was really excited…

But then things kinda went wrong. The team looked off in the first forty minutes. Most of the players, such as Nicklas Backstrom, had never even experienced an NHL playoff game before. “I was so nervous when I had the puck the first two periods,” said Ovechkin after the game.

The Capitals were staring at a 4-2 deficit coming out for the third period. Things looked awfully bleak. But just like every game towards the end of that year, the Capitals flat-out willed themselves to victory.

Mike Green scored a Bobby Orr-eque goal two minutes into the third. 4-3. Five minutes later, MG52 blasted a rocketship home, this time on the power play past a helpless Mathieu Biron. The tally also resulted in this iconic photograph, too. 4-4.

And then after ten tense minutes of play with the score tied, Alex Ovechkin did his thing:

All I remember from the goal was jumping up and down frantically and bear-hugging my friend Roebuck. I high-fived the two gentlemen in the row below me. They were two friends from Scotland (they were wearing kilts) visiting DC for the weekend, taking in their first ever hockey game. Then someone from the row above fell on top of me, knocking me leg first onto the concrete. It resulted in the worst bruise I’ve ever had. I hugged that guy.

“It is amazing in sports how great moments follow great players,” Caps coach Bruce Boudreau said to reporters after the game. “They just seem to be in the right place at the right time. If you are a star baseball player, it seems like you are coming to bat with the runner on second base. Those are things that happen.

“For his first playoff game, he finished it off OK.”

There are a lot of notable things that happen in life, all of which you try to remember. Not all of those moments stay with you though. However, I remember this night as vividly as if it were yesterday. And after some reflection, it probably wasn’t because of the goal or those Scottish guys. It was because of the context surrounding it. My favorite team was really good. I believed deep down in my heart that my favorite team could overcome any and all odds. My favorite team could and – at the time I believed – WOULD finally win a Stanley Cup. Also, after many years of the Verizon Center being empty, people were coming out in droves to support the team. Boy, those those were really good feelings.

Since that year, I’ve been eager to see what this team will do next. I believe in Ovechkin. I believe in this collection of core players.

So with Opening Night one day away, I keep thinking this:

Maybe this is the year.

He didn't score, but he always makes for a good photo! (Greg Fiume/NHLI via Getty Images)

For the second time in consecutive nights, the Caps allowed a 2-0 game go to overtime. Tonight’s battle with the Hurricanes found the Caps continuing to struggle with the penalty kill, but a superlative effort from Mike Green and an overtime goal from Tomas Fleischmann earned the red team the win.

The Caps clearly have not yet returned to their pre-Olympic break heights. The top line is whiffing on the crease-cluttered opportunities they used to exploit. The penalty kill unit gave up only one goal on four chances tonight, but they’re still not operating at full capacity. The usual suspects (*Cough*Semin*Cough*) are still committing penalties and surrendering pucks with alarming frequency. Fixing these problems will be crucial not only in the post-season, but in the next few weeks to secure the President’s Trophy.

Look, Ma! Bullets!

• Alexander Semin‘s wipeout miss in the shootout last night was blooper reel material. Semin sucked snow again tonight, but he scored in the process. Progress.
• Mike Green tallied two goals on the power play tonight, and for this we love him. We are reminded that it was this time last year when MG52 went from being an exemplary offensive D-man to a holy-crap-can-you-believe-this-guy offensive D-man. Here’s hoping that Green is ready to turn it up again. Then again, Mike was on the ice for 2 of the 3 Canes goals and gave them a penalty shot. Always room for improvement.
• The Caps’ top line produced no goals and was nowhere to be found for Tuomo Ruutu‘s go-ahead goal in the second period. Lots of people could prognosticate as to why the top line is struggling, but I find the fault in Mike Knuble taking shots from distances greater than 5 feet from the net.
• Ex-Cap Brian Pothier seems a good fit for the Hurricanes, and they did seem to employ his talent more than the Caps would. RMNB wishes Brian and former Cap prospect Oskar Osala all the best.
• What a relief it was for Tomas Fleischmann to net the game-winner. Having been shuffled out of rotation on Monday, Flash was dearly missed in overtime and the shootout in that game. Flash’s play seems to benefit from open ice, and the Caps seem like a much deeper team when he’s around.

Here’s an exchange between the girlfriend and me while watching post game interviews:

“I don’t think Eric Belanger is up to the Caps standard of handsomeness.”
(beat)
“He looks like you, Peter.”
“DAMMIT, ERIN!”

Friends, I won’t be around on Friday to write a game recap, so please feel free to manufacture your own smart-ass commentary.

And a final note: please aim your browsers at this site Thursday morning at 10 am. We’ve got something special brewing that we think you’re going to love. At least, we HOPE so.

The trade deadline came and went, and while the Caps made some changes, a lot stayed the same. Most importantly: Hershey was virtually untouched. And it is probably because of this that the Caps didn’t make the “big move” most of the fans thought they would.

Trade Deadline Recap

• 2010 7th rounder for Scott Walker.
• 2010 2nd Rounder for Eric Belanger.
• 2010 6th rounder for Milan Jurcina.
• Brian Pothier, prospect Oskar Osala and 2011 2nd rounder for Joe Corvo.

A theme runs through all the players acquired today: They all have prior experience with Boudreau and/or GMGM.

• Boudreau had Belanger in Lowell.
• Scott Walker once represented himself in contract talks with Vancouver, where George McPhee was the assistant GM.
• I heard Milan Jurcina played for Boudreau AND McPhee (at the same time!), but am still Googling to find out where.
• Joe “Oh No” Corvo the Turnover Machine was coached by Boudreau in AHL.

RW Scott Walker gives the Caps some leadership, some “grit” and 29 games of playoff experience (18 of those coming in 2008-9 with Carolina) for the Cup run. Walker has a respectable 2.33 GAON/60 at even strength on a team that averages 3.14 GA per game.

Eric Belanger (this Belanger, not this Belanger. Sorry ladies.) is a decent two-way 2nd/3rd line Center option on

Eric Belanger is sadly not a model.

pace for career-best numbers in goals and assists. Plus, he brings 30 games of playoff experience. Looks like he and Chimera have some history, where Chimera felt Belanger’s check was dirty and merited a suspension. I don’t expect this to be an issue, but it just shows the comfort level of BB and GMGM to bring a player in with this type of “bad blood.”

Milan Jurcina. Based on Twitter reports, Jurcina was Plan B in case trades for other D-Men fell through. In the end, it’s the devil you know, and the Caps bring back someone that knows the system for the playoff push. Not the “Top-4 D Man” fans were looking for, but a familiar face nonetheless.

And then we have the deal that came in almost at the buzzer, and one that is sure to be debated: Joe Corvo. It is probably a bad omen when one of the first tweets seeks to clarify if Corvo’s nickname was “Oh No” or “Uh Oh”, but I like this trade.  It has nothing to do with him receiving a three-year suspended sentence after pleading guilty in Boston to assaulting a woman in a restaurant when he was with the Manchester Monarchs of the AHL. I like gaining Corvo because he represents an improvement to the defense. Specifically, Corvo plays tougher minutes at even strength than all of the Caps defensemen with the exception of Tom Poti. And Corvo’s GAON/60 of 2.75 is better than Carolina’s 3.14 GA per game – the hallmark of a good defenseman. Some may argue that Pothier, for whom he was traded, has a better GAON/60, but those come against both significantly worse competition and in fewer minutes per game.

RW Scott Walker. Practically a freebie.

All in all, the Caps did not give up much:

Brian Pothier was a defensive non-factor for the club at best, and the Caps certainly upgraded with Corvo. Prospect Oskar Osala had a limited future with the Caps, and now he gets a chance with another club.

A 6th rounder averages 73 games in the NHL with 13 Goals and 20 Assists, for their career. A 7th rounder averages 47GP/7G/13A, and that drops significantly if you pull Henrik Zetterberg‘s numbers out.

The second rounders (in 2010 and 2011) have future value, and an argument has been made that it is advantageous to trade a bona fide NHLer for an unlikely draft pick, but I think it is a smart move for the Caps. They have already bucked the odds with the talent they have in Hershey and South Carolina and can afford to sit out the second round the next two years for a serious run at the Cup.

Right now is like the part of the lap dance right after the song stops:  the anticipation and empty promises are gone, and we’re left with reality.  We’re married to the roster as of 3 PM, and they’ll either take us to the cup or damn near it.

• Jose Theodore skipped the final period of last night’s Islanders game. As per usual, the Caps staff declined to describe the nature Theo’s injury beyond the perfunctory “lower-body injury.” I’ve reviewed the game tape, but I’m unable to ascertain the nature of the injury. As such, Russian Machine has commissioned his (smokin-hot) wife Stéphanie to investigate Jose’s lower body more vigorously.
• Our spies at Kettler shoe-phoned to inform us that Semyon Varlamov is skating today. Semyon’s lower half has completely failed him since December; we hope his junk is still under warranty. It’s encouraging that Varly is skating, but he is definitely not taking shots. The Olympics now seem unlikely, and our heart aches for Varly. It’d be selfish of us to be glad that Semyon will get more rest before the playoffs when it comes at the cost of such a big personal goal. Therefore, we must hope either that his recovery drastically hastens, or that he’s still a superstar goalie in 2014.
• As the previous two bullets have made clear, the Capitals now have a full-blown goalie crisis. What a world away we are now from the halcyon “Which awesome goalie shall we play tonight?” days of November. To fill the ranks, the organization has recalled Braden Holtby from the Hershey Bears. It’s one of our distinct pleasures as Caps fans that we get to see promising players from the organization’s stellar farm club. In the last few years, we’ve enjoyed standout performances from Matthieu Perrault, Karl Alzner, Semyon Varlamov, Captain America, and many more. I’m not well educated on the Bears, so I’m spending some time today learning about Braden, and I like what I see (.935 save % on 506 SOG). Let’s just hope he doesn’t hang around D.C. too long.
• Exchanging a Top Gun high five with Holtby somewhere around York, PA, is Karl Alzner, who has been returned to Hershey’s care. Karl has only an even +/- from his recent four-game stint, but we recall fondly his crucial assist on David Steckel’s GWG. Plus, Karl got to hang out at Casino Night (check out Emily Karol’s terrific story if you haven’t already).
• Brian Pothier. I don’t really have any news on the dude, but then again I’m not a real journalist. Let’s just assume he’s going to play tonight.
• He’s not on our team, but Jack Hillen‘s faceblock last night was too monstrous not to mention.  After attempting to catch an Ovechkin slapshot with his teeth, Jack fell to the ice with a bloody, wet thud.  The Islanders report that Hillen broke his jaw and several teeth.  He’ll miss 6-8 weeks, but Quentin Laing has already promised to send over a dandy protein milkshake recipe.  Poor guy.

Tonight’s game against the Anaheim Ducks (24-22-7) begins at 7 PM. Russian Machine has a correspondent on location to document. Will the goalie problems discussed above end the Caps winning streak? Will Braden Holtby submarine some dude at center ice? Will Matt Bradley (whose jersey, it seems, I must now buy) secure a hat trick? Tune in and find out.

Semyon Varlamov's junk is no longer the problem.

As the east coast prepares for another storm, the Washington Capitals suit up to face off against the Ottawa Senators.  And guess what?  We’ve got some injuries.  Stifle yourself.

• Brian Pothier is expected to return to play tonight after recovering from a broken rib.  I’ve never had a broken rib, but I hear those things hurt like the dickens.  Imagine if you have to sneeze.  Yowza.
• Quentin “Crazy Eyes” Laing is out tonight.  Apparently, he’s got some bad bruises he acquired from blocked shots recently.  I’m searching my memory right now, and I can’t recall anything remarkable from Quentin that doesn’t involve diving in front of flying pucks.
• Semyon Varlamov continues his period of convalescence and unibrow-gardening.  Varly injured his jock over a month ago, but has since played a game with the Hershey Bears to test his progress.  After the game it was reported that he had another “lower-body injury”.  The hockey tradition of using these vague euphemisms led us to believe that Semyon had re-injured his junk, but we were wrong.  Tarik reports that Varlamov sprained his MCL, but — and we quote — “Groin is good.” While we dispute that there is anything inherently good about  the word groin, we are ecstatic that Varly may soon be back in the Caps line-up!
• Tyler Sloan, whose financial projections are looking rosy of late, will not be playing tonight.  Is he injured?  Not as far as we can tell.  With Laing out and Alzner back in Hershey, isn’t this exactly the kind of situation where Tyler could be used?  Or are we gonna let that $1.4m marinate for a little bit before we put him to work?

That’s it for now.  If there are any more updates on tonight’s players, we’ll be sure to mock them mercilessly right here.

In other news, Blogfather Ian Oland will be at the game tonight.  My guess is he’ll be wearing one of our totally bitchin’ t-shirts.  If you see him, run up to him and kick him in the groin for me.  Cheers!