Friend of the blog Holly F. and King mug for the camera at a Movember event last year.

Vice President and General Manager George McPhee announced today that the Washington Capitals have sent forward D.J. King to the Hershey Bears of the American Hockey League. The 6’3”, 231-pound horse-lover played in a total of 18 games in Washington over the past two seasons, watching another 85 from the press box. King collected $660,823 during those 85 games he did not play, which should totally bum you out.

Last week King was made available on waivers, signaling his desire to see actual playing time. The move to Hershey may be a continuation of that.

Despite his limited impact on the ice, King was popular among fans, teammates, and media members alike. Here’s just a small sampling of the fan reaction on Twitter:

Here’s the backstory on why Clyde’s daughter loves D.J. so much.

When McPhee traded for King way back in the Summer of 2010, he told the media that D.J. “could play.” That was encouraging since we were already dubious on the value of adding an enforcer.

Unfortunately, D.J. never had a moment in Washington that inspired much confidence. He had the skating ability of Happy Gilmore, and when he did actually did drop the gloves, his fights were contrived and didn’t create momentum for the Capitals.

Let’s review. (And just a warning: this is a really, really sad walk down memory lane.)

October 13, 2010 – D.J. King vs. Trevor Gilles

King’s first fight as a Capital was promising. That is until two thundering left crosses from Gilles knocks him from a standing position to one knee. 79% of voters on HockeyFights.com viewed Gilles the winner of the fight.

November 3, 2010 – D.J. King vs. Colton Orr

Watch Colton Orr punch D.J. for about 70 seconds straight. The best comment on YouTube of the fight is from user zegermans750, a Blues’ fan. “Jesus, Kinger used to be better than this.” 82% of voters on HockeyFights.com viewed Orr the winner of the fight.

December 6, 2010 – D.J. King vs. Colton Orr

A month and three days later, King drops the mitts with Orr again this time to exact revenge on a dirty hit on Ovechkin. The fight however, is a snooze-fest as Orr spends a minute-plus throwing punches, while D.J. holds on for dear life. 85% of voters on HockeyFights.com viewed Orr the winner of the fight. Yikes.

January 18, 2011 – D.J. King vs. Jody Shelly

Here watch as King bruises Shelly’s left shoulder pad with punch after punch. 49% of voters on HockeyFights.com viewed this fight as a draw. Hey! Progress!

February 12, 2011 – D.J. King vs. Kevin Westgarth

Two days before Valentine’s Day, King and Westgarth show their love for each other by exchanging a bag full of knuckle sandwiches. No hugging for these love birds. However, King definitely takes a brunt of the shots. 51% of voters on HockeyFights.com viewed Westgarth the winner of this fight.

March 21, 2011 – D.J. King vs. Francis Lessard

In King’s final fight hopefully ever as a Capital, he and Lessard wrap each other up like a burrito and hug it out. Come on, guys. Get a room! 64% of voters on HockeyFights.com viewed this fight as a draw.

King will travel up I-83 to Hershey and try to establish himself on a team which already has a few heavyweight fighters in Joel Rechlicz and Patrick Weller. Where he fits in there is anyone’s guess. For now the Capitals can rely on Matt Hendricks, Jason Chimera, and Big John Erskine for pugilism. And maybe Cody Eakin sticks around for a little bit longer.

Thanks for all the hard work, Kinger. Good luck to you.

Alexander Semin picks up William after giving him his game jersey. (Photo credit: Shannon family)

Editor’s Note: By now, you’ve probably heard of William Shannon. He is five years old, has acute lymphoblastic leukemia and is everyone’s favorite little Capital. Thanks to the make a Wish-A-Wish foundation and the Caps, William had his dream realized and took the ice with Mike Green, Jason Chimera, D.J. King and Semyon Varlamov on Friday.

“This weekend was an incredible event!,” William’s father Devin Shannon said in an email. “William’s wish was to practice with the Capitals and he did! I can’t tell you how much everyone has done for us and what this weekend has meant for us.”

After practicing with the Caps, William’s journey continued on Saturday when he and his family took in Washington’s matchup with the Buffalo Sabres before riding the on the Zamboni and receiving the jersey off the back of Alexander Semin after the game. I’ll let Devin take it from here:

Day two was just as amazing as day one! Allyson Butler from Make-A-Wish met us in the hotel lobby and took us out to wait for our “ride” to the game! Within minutes a very long black stretch limo appeared before us! Bill, our driver, was very nice. William and Emily quickly climbed in and all we heard for a few minutes was: “Cool!” “This is so sweet!” Then we had chatty little ones for the short ride over to the Verizon Center! It is amazing how just the little things make such a huge impression! How neat it was for the kids to get out of the limo right in front of the Verizon Center with so many fans around wondering who the V.I.P. was!

Allyson led us to our seats which were in Ovi’s Crazy Eights section! Before game time, we got to go down to the ice level to watch warmups. However, it wasn’t just any warmup because we got to watch it from the penalty box! Both kids spent a few minutes with Wes Johnson, the public address announcer!

While we were hanging in the penalty box, one fan came knocking on the glass and congratulated William on the goals he scored on Semyon Varlamov! How thrilling it was to be with a celebrity! Then we headed up to our seats for the game! As soon as I returned from our first period run for food, we were whisked away to the press box. Kurt from Capitals PR took us around and showed us the press box with Joe Beninati and Craig Laughlin. They greeted us all with smiles on their faces! William responded with a “I saw you on TV!”. They gave William a pair of headphones so that he could listen in to what they were hearing.

As soon as the first period ended, Craig instructed William in how they use the telestrator to demonstrate plays by drawing circles, arrows, etc. He was very chatty with William about his experiences with the Caps. Joe jumped in a bit to compliment William on his hockey skills from the day before. Craig didn’t leave Emily out and gave her some of the same attention and instruction that he gave William! Top-notch guys!! We got an added bonus when we were all invited into the replay booth. The head replay guy, John Robinson, shared how he had just made a donation to friends of his participating in a Make-A-Wish Foundation fundraiser bike ride! He asked permission to include William on his prayer list, which so far contains the names of survivors! He was so sweet and so touched by my little guy!

We headed back to our seats to watch a little more of the game, but that was short-lived! William had to make his debut on the big screen riding on the Olympia (in our world, the Zamboni)! Another dream come true for him! He did not hesitate when picked up to climb in! He got his seat belt on and was ready to go! The beaming smile was just amazing! The video of William on the Zamboni went up on the jumbotron to a huge applause from the fans! He smiled and waved in reply! He looked so little up there, but so happy and confident! He chatted a little with Jamey the driver, but was mostly just checking everything out! Emily, Sandy and I got to watch him from behind the doors where the Zamboni comes on and off the ice.

We made it back to our seats for just a few more minutes. As it was Fan Appreciation Day, every fan received a Nicklas Backstrom bobblehead (and one fan randomly gave his to William as he was passing us before the game even began)! There was a contest conducted for fans to win a game-worn autographed jersey. So they came to get Sandy and William and head back down to the ice level to prepare to line up to receive his jersey. Sandy and William got to watch most of the third period on T.V. from near the Coaches Club lounge downstairs. Hanging out there they saw several goals, but had to go line up with the Caps being down by a goal. They went off to the hallway to await being brought out onto the ice. They received news of the goal to tie it up and then the winning goal by Alex Ovechkin!

There was another little boy, Luke, in the line who was getting Slapshot’s jersey. Luke was initially taken aback about which jersey William was getting (it was a surprise for all the winners except William), as it was Luke’s favorite player, but he handled it like a champ and was excited for William and for himself. Luke and William are only a few months apart in age and they hit it off big! How great it was for William to meet another kid who shares the same passion for hockey that he does! They chatted about players, goals and were just goofy together! Two peas in a pod they were! The line of winners filed out onto the carpet over the ice. Each winner had to pull a paper out of their envelope which had a player’s number on it. That player then came over to meet the winner of the jersey and to sign the jersey. William and Luke were the last two. They were so patient and so composed waiting their turn! All players had given away their jerseys except one: Alexander Semin! Semin skated over and pulled off his jersey to give to William. He signed it and then as he handed it over and went to pose for a photo-op, he hoisted William up to his shoulder to a huge applause from the fans and from the players! Just amazing! Both William and Semin were beaming!

On their final trip back to our seats, Sandy said William was met with applause and gestures of awe as they walked along the corridor: “There’s that kid!” “Way to go William!” “I saw you on T.V.!” “You skated great!” I think he might have been a bit overwhelmed, but certainly so happy! I can’t wait to see the recording of the game. I heard that Joe and Craig mentioned William’s practice Friday and that we had visited them in the booth. I am sure I am leaving out so much! It was just an amazing night! I cannot get over the generosity of this organization and the special place they held in their hearts for our little boy! The stories being written and the tweets posted tell me how touched the players, bloggers and media were with his story. I don’t think that his story medically is much different from many other children, but I know that his passion and love for hockey and the Capitals makes him stand out! When we were talking earlier that day about the game, the kids predicted that the Caps would score three or four goals (they scored five). William said Ovi was going to get at least three points! And he was right on! Two assists and the final overtime goal!!!

Bill met us with our beautiful stretch limo and took us back to the hotel! William loved his limo ride and was excited that his feet could touch the ground! When asked his favorite part of tonight, he responded that it was meeting Semin! All in all, I don’t think Make-A-Wish and the Capitals could have made the trip any better! When Sandy and William were walking back to our seats, William turned and told Sandy, “Mom, my wish really did come true!”

There are so many people that played such a huge part in William’s wish! Bruce Boudreau, George McPhee, Bob Woods, Scott Hannan, Matt Bradley, Mike Green, D.J. King, Semyon Varlamov, Jason Chimera, Alexander Semin, Joe Beninati, Craig Laughlin, John Robinson, Ted Leonsis, Liz and Nadia (our Capitals escorts), Allyson and Jessica from Make-A-Wish Mid-Atlantic, Pam Haymond from the Make-A-Wish Northern WV chapter, Laura our Red Rocker, Wes the PA announcer, Bill the limo driver, Jamey the Zamboni driver, Jorge from Front Page Arlington, Chris Gordon, the crews from WUSA 9 and CSN, all of the bloggers, the fans who cheered William on and so many more! It truly was a magical night!

(All photos courtesy Shannon family — Click to enlarge)

Alex Ovechkin signs his stick for William on Friday.

William and his sister Emily take in practice.

William poses for a photo with Caps Head Coach Bruce Boudreau.

William’s very own stall in the Capitals locker room.

“Authorized Personnel Only”

William meets Scott Hannan.

William talks to Joe B outside the locker room.

Capitals General Manager Geogre McPhee with William.

William in Capitals locker room with Jay Beagle (left) and Matt Bradley (center).

The Shannon family poses for a photo at Kettler Capitals Iceplex.

Jorge from Front Page Arlington talks with William.

John Carlson poses for a photo with William and Emily.

The limo arrives in front of the hotel.

William and Emily in their V.I.P. ride.

Devin, Emily, Sandra, William and their driver Bill.

William with his Nicklas Backstrom bobblehead.

William and Emily await warmups from the penalty box.

William and Wes Johnson pose for a photo.

William takes in warmups.

William cheers on the boys in red.

William meets CSN Washington color man Craig Laughlin.

Joe B. puts headphones on William.

Locker shows William how to work to the telestrator.

“Hold it here!”

William and Emily pose with the crew from the NHL replay booth.

Hat Trick, William, Slapshot and Emily pose for a photo.

William rides the Zamboni.

William and Luke share a laugh.

Hat Trick shakes William’s hand.

Sasha Minor signs his game jersey for William.

William, Devin and Emily pose for a photo with Semin’s sweater.

From left to right: Nicklas Backstrom, Alex Ovechkin, D.J. King, Lil’ Wayne, Marcus Johansson, Mike Green, Drake and John Carlson

First it was Pauly D. Then it was Michael Vick. This past Friday, it was First Lady Michelle Obama. And tonight, Alex Ovechkin posted a photo of him and what seems like half of the team posing with Lil’ Wayne and Drake.

So naturally the question is:

William scores on an out of position Semyon Varlamov. (Photo credit: Chris Gordon)

It was an ordinary day at Kettler Capitals Iceplex. Caps players took part in an optional practice, one of the countless and rather mundane skates they will participate in this season. That was, of course, until William Shannon joined in.

William is five years old and suffers from acute lymphoblastic leukemia. His dream is to play for the Washington Capitals. For a few hours at least that dream was realized thanks to the Make-A-Wish Foundation’s Mid-Atlantic chapter.

With the players wrapping up their on-ice workout, William took the ice, clad in the sweater of his favorite player, Alex Ovechkin, and Ovi’s signature yellow laces. He has been playing hockey since 2009, but had to stop late that year because of side-effects from his treatment. That didn’t keep him out of the rink for long, however, and in February of last year he was back, feeling so weak he had to use a walker, but nonetheless on the ice.

“This is phenomenal. This is every kid’s wish,” William’s mom Sandra told me. “For William, it’s even bigger. Hockey is what has gotten him through. Our hard days, our tough days, we are watching hockey. On our better days he’s playing hockey … To actually be strong enough, to be confidant enough, to be good enough of a skater to hold his own in a way with these players out here, you know, it’s joyful. It’s hope. It’s saying, ‘you’ve got a lifetime’.”

William’s day at Kettler began with a meeting with the Great Eight, who presented him with one of his signed sticks. William was then taken to the Capitals dressing room where, to his amazement, a personalized locker was set up for him, his skates hung up and all.

Bruce Boudreau broke the news. William would get skate with the Caps.

“His eyes just lit up,” Mrs. Shannon said. “He was so excited.”

After competing against Jason Chimera, Mike Green and D.J. King for a while, William got a special treat. Taking to the net to face him was none other than Semyon Varlamov. A shootout drill followed. Varlamov remained strong in his crease early on, but after Varly got a little too aggressive William starting racking up the goals to the delight of the crowd at the practice facility, who cheered and banged on the glass.

“He played hard out there,” said Mrs. Shannon. “He played as hard as he could. We saw the best of William on the ice.”

Green, one of the best defenseman in the sport, agreed.

“He’s a good little player,” he said. “We were giving it to him a little bit. I think I slashed him once. D.J. hit him. We were roughing him up a bit. He handled himself well out there.”

William and his family, who hail from Shepherdstown, West Virginia, will get to join some of the same fans who cheered for them on Friday when they attend the Capitals match-up with the Buffalo Sabres Saturday evening. William, his sister Emily, mother and father Devin will sit in seats purchased by Ovechkin as part of “Ovi’s Crazy Eights.” After the game, William will be presented with Alexander Semin’s game jersey, right off the back of Sasha Minor himself.

“It’s just been an amazing experience and it’s one that he and his entire family will have for the rest of their lives,” said Allyson Butler of Mid-Atlantic Make-A-Wish. “We try to make every wish its own and go beyond the child’s imagination. That’s the beauty in what we do.”

As he left the ice, Capitals General Manager George McPhee quipped that he would like to speak with William, possibly to negotiate a contract with the young forward.

Just before he stepped into the Capitals dressing room, a familiar face greeted Will at the door. “I saw you on TV,” William said to CSN Washington’s Joe Beninati. Joe B. preceded to announce the play-by-play for William’s game-winning goal for the Capitals, something that no one is saying won’t happen again in the future.

“He’s determined he’s going to be a Cap,” Mrs. Shannon said. “One day he’s going to be a Cap himself. And I wouldn’t put it past him.”

(All photos by Chris Gordon — Click to enlarge)

Chimera and King react after Green accidentally trips William.

Varly pretends to break his stick after allowing a soft goal to William. Pro tip: your legs, not back, go on the ice.

Colin Greening celebrates his goal; Varly is not pleased. (Photo credit: Phillip MacCallum)

Well, where do even begin? Poor effort, non-existent offense, a goalie playing in his first game since the 20th of February and some, let’s just say, interesting officiating. Those four things combined make the blueprint for how you find a way to lose to the worst team in the Eastern Conference.

Nothing of interest happened in the first period, but there was another meaningless D.J. King fight just under three minutes into the game.

The Senators’ Colin Greening opening the scoring at 13:25 in the second frame. After a scramble in front of the net, Greening appeared to kick not only the puck, but Capitals ‘keeper Semyon Varlamov’s whole pad past the goal-line. The big wigs in Toronto took a look at it, but the play stood. 1-0 Sens.

Both teams registered eight shots on goal in the second period — with the Capitals having the best chance on an Alexander Semin breakaway — yet no one would tally.

Just over two minutes into the third stanza, Erik Condra pushed the Senators’ lead to two. After a Karl Alzner giveaway, Condra picked up Milan Michalek’s backhand no-look feed and wristed it pass Varlamov.

The real action, however, would happen just under 13 minutes into the period when Matt Bradley laid-out Patrick Wiercioch at the goal-line. Though the hit appeared to be a legal shoulder to chest hit, the Sens and referees took exception. First Ottawa’s Zach Smith jumped Bradley, forcing him to duel. Smith got the win in the ’bout, but correctly received an instigator penalty for his instigating. However, the refs called Bradley boarding, one thing the hit almost certainly was not as Bradley and Wiercioch were 12 feet from the dashers when the hit occurred. That would be it. Ho-hum. Sens blank Caps, 2-0.

• Bruce Boudreau coached his 300th career NHL game Friday night. Not only does he have the highest winning percentage amongst all active bench bosses, he has also accumulated the most victories in league history over his first 300 games. The top five includes Boudreau (184), Mike Keenan (183), Toe Blake (176), Don Cherry (176) and Dave Tippett (172).
• Despite netting the only goals of the night, the Senators only out-chanced the Capitals by one (16-15). Of the Caps scoring chances, a third of them came on their three power plays, though they obviously failed to convert on them.
• Brooks Laich was stellar, racking up four individual scoring chances while also being on the ice for seven of the Capitals ten even-strength ones. Laich also registered seven shots on goal, three hits and a blocked shot.
• D.J. King and Francis Lessard must be bros, because all they did in their fight was hug it out. Get a room.
• Early in the first period, Matt Hendricks absorbed a careless high-stick to the right side of the head from David Hale. A clear penalty, Hendricks fell to the ice clutching his noggin’. The hit opened up a cut and Hale — aware of his transgression — immediately skated to the penalty box to do his time. That’s when the craziness got underway. The four officials met by the box before suddenly Hale was asked to leave the sin bin. Hendricks, when interviewed after the game, explained that one on-ice officials initially called a four-minute double minor for high sticking. However, the other three officials overruled the penalty and said that he was kicked with a skate. O RLY? That might be one of the most bizarre sequences we’ve ever seen. Hendricks later took another high-stick, this time from Condra. The Capitals were actually awarded a power play that time. The officials weren’t the reason why the Caps lost, but they sure did made us want to throw stuff at the television.

• That reminds us… every time Ian heard Condra’s name mentioned during the telecast, all he could think of was this.
• Matt Bradley tried his best to awake the Capitals in the third period by knocking Patrick Wiercioch on his tush, engaging Zach Smith in a fight, and bleeding… everywhere. Despite swarming the Ottawa net on their next few shifts, the Capitals couldn’t capitalize on the momentum Bradley created and were shutout for the tenth time this season. RMNB reader Kirsten O. reports that this was the first time in four fights where Brads has shed red. At least Marcus Johansson has a stitches buddy now!
• Alex Semin continued his confounding behavior, taking an offensive zone stick penalty and then almost scoring on a breakaway upon leaving the box. I know we say this every game, but really, come back soon Mr. Arnott.
• Marcus Johansson went one for ten in the faceoff dot. Yikes.
• In the Caps’ past 11 games without Alex Ovechkin, the club has gone 8-2-1 and averaged 4.5 goals per game. Well, I guess we all knew that wasn’t going to last forever.
• It’s hard to blame Semyon Varlamov for Friday’s loss. As I stated earlier, he appeared to have been interfered with on one goal and at least partially screened on another. That’s on top of the fact that the Russian didn’t originally expect to start tonight, his first game in 34 days. Al Koken reports that Michal Neuvirth is ill, but not injured. Koken also says that Braden Holtby has been called and is on his way up to meet the team, though he has not officially been called-up to the Capitals. As if Washington’s goalie situation could get any less clear.
• 

  Joe B. Suit of the Night

  Joe B.‘s Suit of the Night needs to be burned, sacrificed to the hockey gods and never spoken of again.

Yes, Friday night was a lack-luster performance at the least, but the Caps (and their fans) have to block it out and move on to the next one. Speaking of which, Washington will get that chance to forget about it in less than 24 hours as they take on the Canadiens in the last game of the Caps’ six game road trip.

Additional reporting by Ian Oland and Neil Greenberg.

Sigh. (Photo credit: Dave Reginek)

The Capitals came back twice against the Detroit Red Wings Wednesday night, but it would be a matter of inches that would stop them from extending their winning streak to ten games.

The Wings’ Henrik Zetterberg opened the scoring at 12:23 at in first period, firing a one-timer over Caps ‘keeper Michal Neuvirth’s shoulder. Washington would get it right back, however, as John Carlson’s blast from the point found twine just 33 seconds later. D.J. King got his second point of season on the play. I know! Woo!!! Less than two minutes after the Caps tally, Detroit would once again jump out in front as Valtteri Flippula clogged up the crease and deflected Brian Rafalski’s slapper past Neuvirth.

Alex Ovechkin would tie things up once again under six minutes into the middle frame. After taking a nifty backhand pass from Alexander Semin, Ovi raced up the middle going one-on-one with Brad Stuart before firing a wicked wrist shot through Stuart’s legs. Boom! 2-2.

Midway through the third period, Zetterberg would knot his second tally of the night. He lifted the puck over Neuvirth’s head from a sharp angle as the Czech netminder hugged the post. The Capitals attempted to rally late and came this close to doing so as Semin’s wrist shot hit just off target, ringing the crossbar with just 20 seconds remaining. Streak over. Wings edge Caps, 3-2.

• You know that sound your car makes when you try to make a hard turn and you haven’t had an oil change in 20,000 miles? Well, that’s the noise we heard blaring through our tv speakers every time Michal Neuvirth moved in the crease during the first period. Still, after giving up two early goals, Neuvy settled down, stopping 24 of 25 shots in the last two stanzas. But it was one mistake that killed him.
• That mistake of course was Henrik Zetterberg‘s game-winning power play goal. Zetterberg, who had just 2 goals in his previous 26 games, netted two tallies tonight. His first goal, a slap shot from the circles, was unstoppable; his second: improbable. After Neuvirth went down a wee bit too early, Zetterberg streaked towards the net and chucked a backhander off Neuvirth’s mask into the net. Simply, a soft goal. Granted, if you gave Zetterberg a hockey stick and a Panera Bread bag, he could rifle a baguette into it blind-folded. It’s okay, we don’t get that joke either.
• Brooks Laich and Marcus Johansson were a combined 12 of 38 in the faceoff circle tonight. Ouch.
• Today, ESPN’s Scott Burnside named John Carlson the top rookie defenseman in the league. The Real American Hero proved why he was worthy of that accolade, scoring the Caps first goal just over half a minute after Detroit opened the game with their first tally. Carlson finished the night with five blocked shots and played excellent defensively.
• Way back in 2007-08, D.J. King had a career-high 3 points. Don’t look now, but the un-swift-skating Saskatchewan winger has now two points after getting a secondary assist on Carlson’s rocket. Deep down, we really want to like Deejay. He’s a nice guy and from all accounts, his teammates absolutely adore him. And when he does get on the ice he seems to work his tush off. But when we see him clunking his skates into the ice, whiffing at passes and not being a physical presence, we long for Braden Holtby to replace him on the fourth line in his goalie gear and all.
• Let’s flashback to the trade deadline, shall we? This is what George McPhee had to say about Dennis Wideman: “I called Dale [Hunter] this morning before we went forward on the deal to ask about this player,” McPhee said. “And he said great things about him, great competitor, real good person. And his final comment was, ‘He’ll block a shot with his face if he has to to win a game.’” Well, Wideman finally made good on Hunter’s promise, blocking a Detroit dump-in with his jaw and then for good measure taking a slapshot to the chest. Wideman didn’t miss a shift, played a game-high 27:54 and finished the night with six blocked shots.
• Now that two games have passed, we feel comfortable saying this: Alex Semin appears absolutely lost without the injured Jason Arnott.
• Alex Ovechkin is playing like the League MVP again. People know what’s coming, but they still can’t stop it. The Russian Machine used his patented use-the-defenseman-as-a-screen move and laser-beamed the puck past a helpless Jimmy Howard for his 29th goal of the year. Ovi also had four hits, seven shots and even won a faceoff for good measure.

• Bruce Boudreau said after the game: “We have been getting the breaks in this situation for the last couple of weeks. Tonight, we didn’t get them.” Losing 3-2 against one of the most steady, professional teams in the National Hockey League is nothing to hang your head about — especially after playing two games in two nights while missing some of your best players.

Joe B. Suit of the Night

All good things must come to an end. The Capitals didn’t get the bounces and Neuvirth let in a soft game-winning goal. Simple as that.

The road likely won’t get any easier for the Caps in the next week as they face two of the League’s hottest teams in the New Jersey Devils and Philadelphia Flyers. So who should Boudreau go with in net? Neuvirth, Holtby or possibly even Semyon Varlamov?

We’ll see you back here Friday night.

Additional reporting by Ian Oland.

Photo credit: Mike Stobe

Hendy tried to spark the team, but instead he got his face Kanopka'd. (Photo credit: Kathy Kmonicek)

With the Washington Capitals in danger of losing a second game in two nights, their flabbergasted head coach Bruce Boudreau called a timeout and made some adjustments.

He scrapped his floundering top line and put together his dream team trio in a desperation last resort to try and spark a squad that inexplicably could not create scoring chances.

It worked.

With Alexander Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom and Alexander Semin playing together, the Capitals rallied from two goals down to beat the rapidly improving New York Islanders, 3-2, Saturday night for a pivotal road win just two days before the trade deadline.

Semin scored the game-winner in transition on a rocketing wrist shot with 14:19 to go. Ovechkin was barreling towards the net as well on the tally. Not exactly what Islanders goaltender Al Montoya wanted to see coming at him, I’m sure. Makes you wonder if the Capitals will try to bolster their second line (more on their latest move in a bit), and play the “European Sensation™” line together more often. I’d be tempted to.

When asked about his line switcheroo after the game, Boudreau said he “had to do something.”

If only we all could press our personal panic buttons when times get tough and find such a wondrous option before us. Boudreau’s move energized Washington’s second line as well. Once again, Brooks Laich proved it’s not always how fast you skate, but how strong you are. He bullied the young Islander defense all night long, picking up a goal and an assist that seemed to awaken his team as much as Boudreau’s time out did.

The Capitals got off to a destructive start — again. What do you expect from the team with the fewest first period goals in the NHL? Winger Kyle Okposo scored on a 2-on-2 for the Islanders with 13:48 to go in the first. The wrist shot tally came after Johansson lost a face off and Karl Alzner got beat in open ice. New York extended their lead in the first minute of the second frame on a wacky knuckler from near the blue line by Travis Harmonic that seemed more lucky than skillful.

Boudreau wasn’t the only Capital who stopped play in an attempt to wake the team from their malaise in the second frame. Just over three minutes before the coach’s fateful timeout, Matt Hendricks dropped the gloves with NHL penalty minutes leader Zenon Konopka. Hendricks got thrashed and his teammates still weren’t playing inspired hockey, a disastrous combination, especially for Hendricks’ cheek bones. Finally, after the Islanders blew at least three golden opportunities to pad their lead, a disgusted Boudreau called the timeout, tinkered with the lines and generated almost immediate results.

Laich scored on a brilliant backhander in which he pretty much bull-rushed his way to the net with 10 minutes to go in the second. He also had the primary assist on Mike Knuble’s backhander early in the third. Semin added the game-winner just three minutes later, allowing the Capitals to pick up their third one-goal win of the season over the Islanders, who seem awfully close to becoming a very dangerous team.

Some news and notes:

• The Capitals claimed veteran winger Marco Sturm off waivers from the Los Angeles Kings Saturday. He had nine points in just 17 games with the Kings after missing most of the year with a knee injury. Craig Laughlin speculated that Sturm would be a top-six forward, but where he fits in remains to be seen. What do you guys think?
• Speaking of Laughlin, he also said that he checked into his hotel suite last night and encountered someone “wrestling” in what was supposed to be his bed. I’m not sure what he meant by “wrestling,” and since this is a PG-rated blog, I won’t dare to speculate. Nice to hear Laughlin got a room upgrade after that uncomfortable encounter.
• The Capitals were busy today with roster tweaks. Semyon Varlamov (knee) and Mike Green (death of grandmother/outer jaw trauma) were not available. Todd Ford got the recall and served as the backup goalie (round of applause from underdogs everywhere). Jay Beagle also came up from Hershey and played inspired hockey.
• Someone had to go to make room for Sturm. It was D.J. King, who was placed on waivers. Mathieu Perreault was also shipped away, with the Caps assigning him to the Hershey Bears.
• It was another solid effort by Scott Hannan, who led the Capitals in ice time (24 minutes) and finished with a plus-2. Good stuff with the absence of Green.
• I thought Laughlin summed up Semin’s efforts rather well when he said, “It’s amazing. He can sleep walk through a game, then all the sudden, BOOM.”

Joe B. Suit of the Night

The listless play early in games is irritating and confounding for fans, but the Capitals managed to pull out a road win they desperately needed thanks to the team’s three most skilled players playing on the same line and Brooks Laich’s successful rushes to the net. Now we wait for the trade deadline to see if anybody other than Sturm is coming to Washington in the quest for the Stanley Cup.

Additional reporting by Chris Gordon.

RMNB’s own Rachel Cohen created this Valentine for Matt Bradley

In honor of Valentine’s Day and to drown your sorrows after the latest Caps loss, we asked our readers to submit their very own cards addressed to a Capitals player. And oh, boy, did you listen. We’ve included many of your submissions but have narrowed it down to five finalists. From there, you guys will vote to pick the winner, who will receive one of our lovely — no pun intended — t-shirts. Voting will last until Wednesday night at midnight. And FYI, some of these cards may be NSFW. Proceed with caution!

Stephanie C., clearly impressed by Semyon Varlamov’s rapidly expanding acting portfolio, brings out the hand love cursors with this Valentine for Varly.

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Reader John A. plays the role of a disappointed, yet encouraging lover in this personalized ditty for Sasha Minor. Our favorite line: “A Caps winning-streak you could start, but mostly, I wish you’d toe-drag into my heart.” Awwwwww.

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Our dear friends at Knuble’s Knights assure us that they didn’t make this card. They found it outside of the locker room at Verizon Center. Who could this mysterious B.B. character be?

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Twilightxqueen7, brilliantly shows her appreciation for Matt Hendricks’s blind-folded antics in this Valentine’s Day Card. Steve Downie never stood a chance, right? Though we have to deduct some serious points for inappropriate language here, we felt this was definitely worthy of being a finalist. What do you think? Is this the one?

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Jennifer B. actually hand-made this card for noted Holtby fan @WashCapsRock. Stunning.

Now that you’ve seen the Top 5, head on up to the top of the page and vote for your favorite!

The Best of the Rest

Bob M. totally copped-out and didn’t make us an original card. For shame! But what his submission lacked in effort, was made up for with its humor. His email entitled “The Count loves OV” aptly describes this youtube, and it… just… works.

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Lady Bug Ashley created this sweet card for Brooks Laich. Let’s be honest, the puffy paint typeface is impressively appropriate here.

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Brittney M.‘s Valentine pays homage to some of the stronger male bonds on the team. While the Ovechkin/Semin bromance is well-documented, Brit also shows her appreciation for Carlzner, the Swedes, and… Brookseen?

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Some dude named Peter H. thinks bulldogs love Matt Bradley. While that may be true, we think it’s Peter who #needsmorebradley.

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This card was submitted to us by an Anonymous reader. Who is Niel Breengerg and why would he ever want to apologize to Jason Chimera? Hmmmmmm.

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Abram Fox’s Valentine’s Day poem to the entire Capitals organization
In the style of Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s Sonnet 43 (“How do I love thee?”)

How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.
I love you on Comast and Versus and on ice
Where my cheers can reach, when feeling out of sight
Stuck in the 400 level and thee in open space.
I love thee though masks obscure thy face
Covered in scars, missing several teeth.
I love thee freely, as McPhee looks for a decent
Right wing to complement two stars who need one badly.
Thanks to Facebook and Twitter put to good use
I love thee now that I know that I #needmorebradley.
I love thee with a love I started to lose
With Hanlon’s reign, when you sucked so badly.
I love thee in January when the Penguins you abuse
I shall but love thee better in June when you win Lord Stanley.

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Olga sent this from an .ru email address and swears she spent all day working on card. We’re sorry, but we’ve got to ask: why does Alex Semin look like the Statue of Liberty? Is that symbolism for something?

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Long-time reader Paula also made a Valentine for the Great 28. Someone please put a shirt on him, ASAP.

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Danielle‘s Valentine seems to indicate she really, really loves our blog. ::high five::

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Zachary P. gets a lil’ weird with this card for Nick Backstrom. Zach, there are filters in Photoshop other than just Inner Glow. Like Fresco. Get on that.

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Greg G.‘s Valentine for DJ King focuses on the enforcer’s stunning good looks.

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Tari C., please don’t strike your child. She is really cute. Don’t make us call Child Services on you. (We’re kidding! Great photoshopping!)

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Katie A. submitted this card for Neuvy. Cuz’ he’s a boss.

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Jennifer B. also hand-made this card for the world’s biggest DJ King fan, @mildbestwishes. She should sell these at a craft fair. Wow.

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Danielle‘s Valentine for John Carlson was too adorable not to put up!

And finally we saved our personal favorite for last. Knuble’s Knights decided to create a second Valentine, this time for Neil’s Monte Carlo Machine. We couldn’t stop laughing when we saw this.

Brilliant work, guys! A huge thanks to everyone else who submitted. Make sure to leave a comment below on whose your favorites were!

Additional reporting by Chris Gordon.

Photo credit: Jacquelyn Martin

The last time these two teams met, the headless Caps were reeling. After trading away captain Chris Clark, Washington failed to put together a full 60 minute effort and just looked plain off in Los Angeles. Now, more than a year later, the boys from DC have a man with a ‘C,’ but that tune still sounds awfully familiar.

Just over a minute into the contest, Alex Ovechkin ripped the Capitals only tally past Kings goaltender Jonathan Bernier. The goal came the moment I was settling in with my nachos at Verizon Center. Coincidence? I think not. However, Anze Kopitar would have something to say about that in the second, flipping the puck over a seated Semyon Varlamov to knot the game at one. Then with 16:24 left in the third, Andrei Loktionov gave L.A. a 2-1 lead as the biscuit once again got past an out of position Varlamov. It would only get worse for the Capitals as Michal Handzus and Jarret Stoll pushed the lead to three. By the end of the game, Verizon Center was half empty. Kings beats Caps, 4-1.

• Ovechkin‘s goal was unassisted, making him the only Cap to register a point. Ovi came down the off wing, used Drew Doughty as a screen, and then… BOOM!  Just like old times, right? After that, the wheels completely came off.

• The Capitals failed to get over 10 shots on goal in any period. Eight, seven, eight. What’s our rule? If they don’t register 10 in a period, then they didn’t play hard enough.
• Washington’s power play continues to struggle as the Caps went oh for four on the man advantage. When David Steckel has your best scoring chance on the PP then perhaps you should simplify your game.
• In a related note: the Kings’ first three goals came off rebounds.
• Mathieu Perreault struggled in the dot, winning just two of his nine draws.
• Mike Green and Jeff Schultz both had a minus three for the game. Ouch.
• John Carlson blocked four shots in the first period alone, five for the afternoon.
• Matt Hendricks played his usual rough and tumble game, registering a game high seven hits while also managing four shots on goal. Hendricks continues to be one of the few Capitals who seems to be giving it his all night in and night out.
• Both Alex Semin and Brooks Laich were benched by Bruce Boudreau during the final six minutes.
• The players had a closed door meeting after the game. Afterwards, Mike Knuble addressed the media and said, “I don’t know what we’re waiting for.  There’s a lot to play for — as players, as individuals, as a team. There’s a lot. Every game is important,” He continued, “Those are huge points we left on the table the last two games.”
• And finally, how bad was it? D.J. King was awarded the Palm as CSN’s player of the game for his fight in the first period and his four hits overall. He had 7:22 TOI, the lowest on the team, and his fight actually seemed to energize Los Angeles.

It’s been a lifeless last two games for the men in red. Sure, it is just 120 minutes of hockey, but the offense was nowhere to be found and the team looked like they had no passion. Just lost. Now, Washington will try to find their mojo as they head off to the valley of sun. It’s the start of on a big 5-game, 9-day road-trip for the Caps.

Catch you back here Monday.

Ian Oland contributed reporting.

GROUP HUG! (Photo credit: Abelimages)

Braden Holtby stones Tyler Bozak on a breakaway. (Photo credit: Graig Abel)

The last time the Capitals played on Hockey Night in Canada, they destroyed the Calgary Flames 7-2 on October 30th, 2010. Coincidentally, it was also the last time that The Great Eight had a multi-goal game.

Eighty-four days and thirty-eight NHL games later, that streak would finally end for Ovechkin against a team he consistently has success against: the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Tonight, the Capitals managed to get on the board first for the second consecutive game. Jeff Schultz unleashed a howitzer from the point, and a hard-charging Russian Machine tipped Sarge’s shot past Maple Leafs’ goaltender, Jean-Sebastien Giguere. Despite both teams combining for forty shots through the games first two periods, scoring would not resume until the third.

One minute into the games final’s frame, Ovechkin would strike again, as he set up shop in his new home in front of the net. Unfortunately, the two-goal lead would only last a minute and a half. Leafs’ fourth-liner Tim Brent ended Braden Holtby’s shutout bid, going five-hole after Jay Rosehill’s shot from the point was muffled. The Leafs then astutely seized the momentum and came at the Caps in waves for the next several minutes. That is until Bruce Boudreau wisely called time-out after an icing call.

Matt Hendricks then scored the most beautiful goal of his career on a breakaway and Ovi’s ENHTG (empty net hat-trick goal) sealed the deal. Caps win 4-1.

Waffles!

• What do the Maple Leafs have in common with the Titanic? They both looked good until they hit the ice.
• Let’s be honest: it’s Braden Holtby‘s world, and we’re all just lucky enough to live in it. Hershey’s December player of the month was effing spectacular in his second straight start for his big-league club. Sure, Ovi had the trick, but it was Holtby’s dynamite saves that won the game for the Capitals tonight. The Caps were severely outchanced 14-23 overall, and 3-12 in the 3rd period. Holtby had five “ten-belle” saves, including a wicked pad save on a Tyler Bozak breakaway and a scintillating stop on a 3-on-1. Braden’s 18 saves in the third period were clutch and he was your night’s number one star of the game. In each of Holtby’s last 4 games, his 5v5 scoring chance Sv% has risen: .250 against Atlanta, .692 against the Devils, .857 against the Islanders and tonight’s .952 against the Leafs. That’s definitely as calm, cool, and collected as I’ve ever seen him play.
• We must extend a special thanks to CBC for capturing a new Holtbyism: the pre-game eye-brow stretch.
• This just in: Alex Ovechkin owns the Leafs. He now has twenty-two goals in twenty-two career games against Toronto. Tonight, his first two tallies came from crashing the crease hard and skating with a purpose. When Ovi scores goals like that, I feel so proud.
• Ovi double bullet! We all know Alex Ovechkin is a great guy, but tonight another heart-felt story about him came out during CBC’s broadcast of the game (which was sadly blacked out in this area). Via RMNB reader Stephanie C.: “Pre-game there was a split-screen of Ovi and a little boy named Owen N. in the crowd in a Caps jersey. The commentators talked about how the boy’s father was a firefighter and he died last year. Little Owen was a huge Great Eight fan and he actually had the opportunity to meet up with Ovi after practice today. Elliotte Friedman interviewed Ovechkin at the end of the second period and asked him about it. Alex basically said it was tragic for the boy to lose his father at such a young age, and he told him to stay strong.” The video of the interview is below.

• Is the 8-19-25 line picking up steam? Since Jason Chimera was moved to the top line, they have scored five goals on 17 chances in about 40 min 5v5 ice time and no goals against. Keep up the good work!
• Matt Hendrick‘s first period fight with Mike Brown (brutal photo here) reminded me of the first time I fought Mike Tyson in Mike Tyson’s Punch Out.
• D.J. King was a force tonight. He recorded one shot (his fourth of the year) and he was on the ice for more 5v5 scoring chances (2) than Brooks Laich, Jay Beagle, Scott Hannan, John Erskine & Mathieu Perreault. And I thought the world was ending in 2012?
• Huge props go to both Alan May and Homer McFanboy for their pre-game predictions. May accurately assumed that Alex Ovechkin would break out tonight, while Murf was convinced that Sarge would avenge the Leafs for breaking his finger. Well, we all know what Ovi did, and Schultz was on the ice for nine of the Caps eleven even-strength chances, had an assist, and finished a +3.
• The Caps earned five out of a possible six points during this three game road trip. Maybe we went a bit overboard after that Flyers game? Nah.

Joe B's suit of the night

Despite being outshot 36 to 31, the Capitals played a full sixty minute game and it was definitely fun to watch. Our heros certainly had their mental gaffes at times, but they showed heart in how tenaciously they forechecked, went to the net, and played defense. For example, did you know that the Capitals had 27 blocked shots tonight in comparison to Toronto’s 10? And it was the All-Stars who were leading the way in that category. Mike Green blocked four shots while Ovi blocked three. When your Captain and pretty-boy defenseman are leading the way, it becomes contagious. And that’s a really good sign.

With tonight’s win, the Capitals received an off day from Bruce Boudreau tomorrow. Peter will be back with you guys on Monday, for the Capitals tilt at home against the New York Rangers on Versus! Finally, time for revenge!