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GEICO continues its frankly unsustainable onslaught of commercials only tangentially related to whatever service it is they provide (I have no idea, does it have to do with cars?) with this new one featuring Nick Backstrom.
Without spoiling the gag, Backstrom is injured in the ad and also not immediately imperiling any gentlemen up for Academy Awards on Sunday.
Brouwer Power. (Photo credit: @recordsANDradio)
When Panthers center Drew Shore scored his crazy, mid-air, ricochet goal and gave Florida a 5-3 lead, all seemed lost for the Washington Capitals this night. But this isn’t the same team of a few weeks ago. Eric Fehr scored on a rebound in front of the net. Alex Ovechkin tied it up with a beautiful wrist shot from the point on the powerplay. And Troy Brouwer got all Herculean and won the game in overtime.
Video is below the jump.
Photo credit: RMNB’s Chris Gordon
At Monday night’s game against the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Washington Capitals held their most bizarre giveaway yet: the Nicklas Backstrom Garden Gnome. The plaster figurine measures eight inches tall, sporting a striped cone hat and long, flowing blonde locks. Caps players were unimpressed.
“It looks like Phil Kessel,” Troy Brouwer told the DC Sports Bog’s Sarah Kogod. “It’s funny though. That’s gonna freak my dogs out.”
“What’s a garden gnome?” a confused Brooks Laich asked The Washington Examiner’s Brian McNally. “Are there a lot of Caps fans that are gardeners?”
“What a beautiful gift,” Washington Capitals head coach Adam Oates sarcastically remarked to Sky Kerstein. “What a compliment. A gnome.”
Regardless, the gnome was a hit with the 18,000 fans who were lucky enough to get their hands on one. “F@$* yeah got my Backstrom gnome,” Twitter user @MRubin35 said on twitter. “So pumped to be back at Verizon.”
“Got my Nicklas Backstrom gnome,” exclaimed ESPN hockey writer Craig Custance on assignment in the nation’s capital. “Think I can leave DC now, nothing left to accomplish here.”
Caps fans were so excited about their new item, they posted a bunch of creepy photos (and one David Lynch-y video) of the gnome. Below, in honor of Nick Backstrom, I share the 19 best.
Adam Oates talks to Ovi during practice on Saturday. (Photos by Chris Gordon)
Alex Ovechkin has become a one-dimensional player. Once the league’s most creative and premier scorer, Ovi has been stymied by his apparent unwillingness to change — at least so far. His struggles at right wing in the first three games this season demonstrated that much. After just eight periods, the exercise ended. Ovi was back at left wing.
Ovi’s switch has been the story of the season so far for the Caps. But not everybody thinks it should be.
“Are we talking about Ovi again? That’s bulls—t,” forward Troy Brouwer told me when asked about Ovechkin’s play this season.
“It shouldn’t be difficult,” Brouwer said. “He’s a right handed shot, he should be able to play right wing. It should be hard to play your off wing.”
When Nicklas Backstrom suffered a neck injury in Russia a month ago, Caps nation was tense. Backstrom, who missed 42 games last year due to a concussion, proved how valuable he was to the organization just by being on the sidelines. The Capitals played some of their worst hockey in several years without their top pivot. What did we learn? Nicky is irreplaceable.
Well, via a new Geico commercial that was released today, we can see just how talented Backstrom is at hockey.
UPDATE: Backstrom told reporters after practice that he didn’t suffer a concussion and he feels 100% healthy. He expects to play on opening night.
Nick Backstrom is back on the ice! According the Caps press corps and confirmed by this photo on the Capitals’ Instagram, Backstrom skated with the team during their informal practice on Friday morning. What this means for his prognosis and health is uncertain, but all signs seem to point to WOOHOO.
Photo credit: khl.ru
On Tuesday morning, far-flung Caps players reunited at Kettler Capitals Iceplex for an informal practice session. Present but not skating was the team’s star center, Nick Backstrom. Backstrom has not played since late December, when he took a hit from behind in a Dynamo Moscow game. According to SportsBox.ru, a doctor in Moscow said the injury was just a bruise, but Backstrom’s agent has since said his player’s status may be week-to-week.
On Tuesday night, we learned that Backstrom is visiting a specialist in Michigan.
Photo credit: dynamo.ru
No duh. Alex and Nicky have left Dynamo Moscow to return to North America.
From the Dynamo Moscow press release:
Today our team departed for Ufa without three forwards: Alex Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom and Leo Komarov. Due to the end of the NHL lockout, these players departed for North America in accordance with their contracts.
Translated by Igor Kleyner.
hahahahaha, best friends)))))) (Photo credit: dynamo.ru)
While the NHL and NHLPA race to a January 11th deadline to save the season, we’re reminded how weird future Capitals/Hurricanes games are going to be once/if the lockout is lifted.
Alex Ovechkin and Dynamo Moscow took on former Capital Alex Semin and Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod on Friday. And in Ovi’s first game since getting engaged to Maria Kirilenko, the Russian machine tallied two points, including his 19th goal of the season, the game-winning tally. Dynamo would win 3-1.
Video of Ovechkin’s goal is below.
Photo credit: Dynamo.ru
Playing overseas may keep some NHL players in top form during the lockout but the dreams of their general managers are haunted by a nightmare scenario — a serious injury to a star player.
Last Wednesday, Nicklas Backstrom was involved in frightening episode, in which he was checked from behind while playing for Dynamo Moscow. Backstrom, who missed three months last season with a concussion, went headfirst into the boards and left the game after trying to play one more shift. Dynamo called the injury a “neck bruise” and said the pivot should be good to go by the next game. As of the weekend, Backstrom saw at least two doctors, and a Russian newspaper report speculated that Nicky had traveled to America due to the injury’s severity. According to Nicky’s Swedish agent, Gunnar Svensson, that’s not true.
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