Michal Neuvirth brings a great run of form into tonight's game. (Clydeorama)

The Washington Capitals are in Ottawa, Ontario this evening to take on the Senators in their sixth game of the 2013 campaign.  The Capitals, who are 1-3-1, picked up their first win of the season Sunday afternoon and are 4th in the Southeast Division and 14^th in the Eastern Conference with 3 standings points.  The Senators, who lost in a shootout to the Penguins on Sunday, are 3-1-1 in their five games and sit 2^nd in the Northeast Division and fourth in the Eastern Conference.  This is the first meeting between these two teams this season and is a big game for the Capitals coming off their first victory of the season.

Craig Anderson, who has been outstanding so far with a 0.74 GAA ands .975 save percentage in four starts, will get the call from Paul MacLean in the Ottawa net.  Anderson has always been tough on the Caps and they will need to get to him early in order to have a chance.  MacLean’s crew will be missing star center Jason Spezza, missing with an upper body injury, but captain Daniel Alfredsson will play despite a bout with an illness earlier this week.

Michal Neuvirth will receive his fourth consecutive start in the Washington net from Adam Oates this evening, following his excellent performance Sunday.  Neuvirth has posted a 2.92 GAA and .889 save percentage so far on the young season, but has been almost exclusively responsible for the Caps’ three standings points with his excellent play in the goal.  On the injury front, defenseman Jack Hillen is out with an upper body injury.  Forward Brooks Laich, who has yet to play this season with what is believed to be a groin injury, is on the trip but will not play.  In terms of the lineup, after a win on Sunday I would not expect changes, and Marcus Johansson, Tom Poti and Roman Hamrlik are still scratched.

Puck drops 7:37-ish.  The game can be seen on Comcast SportsNet locally.

Harry Hawkings is a college student credentialed to cover the Capitals for RtR.  Follow him on Twitter here for all your news needs this season.

Alex Ovechkin finally gets off the schneid. (Clydeorama)

The Washington Capitals became the final team in the National Hockey League to win a game Sunday afternoon, defeating the Buffalo Sabres by a 3-2 margin inside Verizon Center.  Getting goals from Joel Ward, John Erskine, and Alex Ovechkin, the Caps came back from an early 1-0 hole by scoring three unanswered goals.  The Sabres drew within one late, but 22 saves, many of them big, from Michal Neuvirth kept them at bay and won Adam Oates his first game as a head coach.

As has been a common thread in their games so far, the Capitals were awarded the first power play of the evening after less than a minute, but another futile effort with the man advantage kept Washington from opening the scoring for the first time this season.  The next eight minutes were characterized by chances for both teams until the Sabres capitalized just past the ten-minute mark.  Taking advantage of another John Carlson turnover in the neutral zone, Tyler Ennis streaked in and shoved a backhander through Michal Neuvirth on the ice surface.  Desperate to gain some footing after another bad start, the Capitals came back hard and almost tied the game three minutes later when Nicklas Backstrom rang the iron from the top of the left circle. 

Washington would get their equalizer soon after as Joel Ward cleaned up a rebound in front following a dominant shift from his line.  Washington continued to buzz around Ryan Miller’s net after the goal, but lost that momentum when John Erskine took a tripping call late in the period with 30 seconds left.  They killed off the initial 30 seconds on the minor before the period ended.

Photo by the Washington Post

When the Washington Capitals hired Adam Oates this July, it was a clear sign from management and ownership that the team was going to distance itself from the system that Dale Hunter had brought to the team.  To many, it meant the possible renaissance of an offensive system that could help to rejuvenate Alex Ovechkin and play to strength of the roster while at the same time keep a sense of responsibility in Washington’s own zone.

After four games, it has been neither.

The Capitals are 0-3-1 after four games, and have led for less than three minutes total across those four games.  Only a big third period on Friday night against the Devils earned the Capitals a point and kept them from remaining the only team in the NHL without any standings points.  They are taking dumb penalties and playing poorly on the penalty kill.  It has been rough sledding, and it might be a while before it gets sighnificantly better.

No matter who the Capitals hired as their next head coach, there was going to an adjustment period, especially with a week-long training camp.  Three very different systems in 15 months is hard, even for professional hockey players.  Even teams that are established as elite, like the Flyers and Rangers, are struggling.  Hell, the defending Stanley Cup Champions have zero wins.

Other teams in the NHL with the same predicament as the Capitals, like Edmonton and Montreal, are doing better than the Capitals, but that doesn’t mean it’s been easy.  Nor are they doing it without one of their best defensive forwards, penalty killers, and leaders.  This was always going to take time.

Brooks Laich won't be playing, but the Caps need him badly. (Clydeorama)

The Washington Capitals are in Newark, New Jersey this evening to take on the Devils as they try to rebound from their very poor start and get their first win of the season.  Washington is 0-3-0 on the campaign so far, allowing 14 goals while scoring only four.  The Devils, who shut out the Flyers for a 3-0 win in their last game, are 2-0 on the season and are rested having been at home for over four days.  This is a big one for the Capitals as they must stop the bleeding and get a win under their belt before a game Sunday against the hot Sabres.

Martin Brodeur will start in net for the Devils, just as he has in both prior Devils games this season.  The ageless wonder has allowed one goal in two games and has a .977 GAA on the campaign and has always played the Capitals tough with the exception of a few games two seasons ago.  On the injury front, the Devils are missing center Adam Henrique, who has a thumb injury and has yet to make his season debut.  Other than that, coach Peter DeBoer will field a full lineup.

After another uninspiring performance from a Washington netminder, this time Michal Neuvirth, on Thursday, expect Braden Holtby to get the call in nets from Adam Oates.  Holtby has allowed ten goals in two starts so far this season and while in no way is the slow start the goaltending’s issue, Washington does need its young tandem, especially Holtby, to play better.  Both Brooks Laich (lower body) and Jack Hillen (upper body) are out and will not play.  After another very poor game in all facets Thursday, the lineup is anyone’s guess; I would still wager that John Erskine is still sitting Friday.

Puck drops 7:07-ish.  The game can be seen locally on Comcast SportsNet.

Harry Hawkings is a college student credentialed to cover the Capitals for RtR.  Follow him on Twitter here for all your news needs this season.

Capital Blue Cross AHL Outdoor Classic-The showcase event of the AHL this year was held this past weekend in Hersheypark Stadium just across the parking lot from the Ice Palace and Hersheypark Arena where the Hershey B’ars/Bears had played from 1932 to 2002. Over 2 years of planning had gone into building an outdoor rink at Hersheypark Stadium. Saturday the Hershey Alumni played the Wilkes Barre/Scranton Alumni before Sunday’s regular season matchup between the Bears and Pens. The Bears would strike first in the second period but the Baby Pens tied the game and scored on a breakaway on OT to steal the game at 2-1. The game result was the only thing that went wrong for the Bears faithful all weekend long through a great series of events provided by Hershey.  The Bears have games Friday vs St. John’s at home and Saturday vs Binghamton at Broome County Veterans Memorial Arena to help the team move on from Sunday’s loss on the big stage. 17,311 packed the stadium with an international audience watching on television in HD.

The Hershey Bears take to the ice at the 2013 Capital Blue Cross AHL Outdoor Classic. Photo Courtesy of Old Barn Hockey Show.

Tomas Kundratek-A whirlwind of a week in Kundy’s world as he was selected to the AHL Eastern All Stars on Thursday night during the Bears family skate on the outdoor rink. Then on Sunday, Kundratek scored the only Bears goal of the AHL Outdoor Classic on a slapshot in the second period. This goal is his team leading 13^th of the year and a new AHL career high for goals. His 26 points this year are also an AHL career best. Monday threw a wrench into his All Star plans as he was called up to the Washington Capitals to fill in for an injured Jack Hillen. Hillen is listed as week to week, so Hershey will most likely need another AHL All Star representative. I am sure Kundratek isn’t crying over it. UPDATE: Jeff Taffe will be headed to the AHL All Star game in Kundratek’s absence.

Second Season-With the start of the NHL and the number of call ups that have accompanied it, the AHL and ECHL might as well start over again. The playoffs this year might as well be called third season. The rosters of so many teams have been picked up, shaken about, and placed in the washing machine for a tumble or two. The Hershey Bears will really only lose Holtby along with other recalls due to injuries. Capitals injuries will play a crucial role in the Bears season with so many NHL games in such a compressed time period and an improper length of time to prepare and rest. Hershey will hope to fair better against other AHL teams the second half of the year with many of them incurring multiple roster losses due to the NHL lockout ending.

Red Rockers, Becca and Michelle M., stop for a photo with Rock the Brock at Giant Center. Photo Courtesy of Old Barn Hockey Show.

Red Rockers-The Red Rockers and Slapshot visited the Giant Center on January 12^th. Red Rockers, Becca and Michelle M., found me in the elevator and we had a great conversation about how the Red Rockers are great community ambassadors for the Washington Capitals and hockey.  They were extremely kind and mentioned they were readers here as well. They were certainly mobbed and loved by all the Hershey fans that caught sight of them on the concourse with their Capitals giveaway goodies. Slapshot was also entertaining to the crowd and seemed to pair better with the more energetic Coco introduced this year. With how conservative Hershey is, I still wonder if we will ever see a cheer group in Chocolatetown for the Bears.

Go Bears. 

Image via Clydeorama

The Washington Capitals will welcome the Montreal Canadiens to Verizon Center on Thursday night as they attempt to get their first win of the 2013 season.  The Caps have dropped their first two games while conceding ten goals in the process, and are 0-2 for the first time in more than a decade.  The Canadiens, who beat the Panthers 4-1 in their last game Tuesday, are 1-1 and look good, finally restored to health after a miserable season beset by injuries last year.  Tonight is a big game for the Capitals, as an 0-3 start will plunge the team and the fan base into further panic under new head coach Adam Oates.

The ever-reliable Carey Price will get the call in goal from Michel Therrien in the Montreal net, Price’s third consecutive start.  The Habs’ franchise goaltender has played very well this season, allowing three goals across his two games for a 1.52 GAA and .944 save percentage.  Defenseman PK Subban will not play this evening as he is currently in a contract dispute with new GM Marc Bergevin and has not been signed; he’s missed Montreal’s first two games.  Other than that, Therrien will field a full lineup.

After a second consecutive uninspiring performance from Braden Holtby between the Washington pipes, Oates will turn to Michal Neuvirth to right the ship.  Neuvirth started 30 games last year and posted a 2.82 GAA and .903 save percentage; he’s also played well against the Canadiens in his career.  On the injury front, both Jack Hillen and Brooks Laich will be absent with upper-body and groin injuries, respectively.  To that end, the lineup will stay the same with Eric Fehr benched among forwards and John Erskine and Jeff Schultz joining him in the press box among defensemen. In personnel changes, Wojtek Wolski and Matt Hendricks earned promotions to the first and second lines, respectively.  This means Marcus Johnasson has been relegated to fourth line duty with Joey Crabb and Mathieu Perreault.

Puck drops from Verizon Center 7:09-ish.  The game can be seen locally on Comcast SportsNet and on RDS in Montreal, should you be in frigid Quebec.  Check back later.

Harry Hawkings is a college student credentialed to cover the Capitals for RtR.  Follow him on Twitter here for all your news needs this season.

Jets winger Evander Kane continued to kill the Caps Tuesday, with a goal and an assist. (Clydeorama)

The Washington Capitals continued their slow start to the 2013 season Tuesday night, taking a 4-2 defeat at the hands of the Winnipeg Jets inside Verizon Center.  The Capitals scored first with a deflection goal off the body of Matt Hendricks, but conceded four unanswered goals to Winnipeg before Troy Brouwer scored late in garbage time.  Braden Holtby was solid, but unspectacular, making 35 saves in his second consecutive start.  And no, it’s not time to panic.  But the Capitals need to start getting better soon.

Washington got off to a good start in front of their rabid home crowd, forechecking effectively and forcing some turnovers at the blue lines.  With just over ten minutes gone in the period and the Capitals still pressing, Matt Hendricks finished off a brilliant passing play by Alex Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom to give Washington a 1-0 lead.  90 seconds later, Joel Ward was sent to the box on a tripping infraction, and the Caps’ early penalty killing woes continues when Evander Kane banked a goal off John Carlson’s skate and past Braden Holtby.  Carlson’s night got worse immediately, as he was booked for delay of game with 5:30 remaining and the Jets scored again on their power play; this time it was Anderew Ladd who unloaded a one-timer that beat Holtby to his far side.  The first period closed with that score intact.

WJLA

The Washington Capitals will kick off their 2013 home schedule Tuesday night as they welcome the Winnipeg Jets to Verizon Center for a Southeast Division clash.  The Capitals, having got off to a poor start by getting smacked around in Tampa Saturday night, will need to take advantage of a Jets squad playing their second game in 30 hours.  Winnipeg lost to the Bruins, 2-1 in a shootout, on Monday and are 0-1-1 on the young season so far.  With this game comes an opportunity for the Caps to pounce on a weary team in their home opener and get two points that they need in this abbreviated season.

Ondrej Pavelec played well for Claude Noel yesterday, but given the back-to-back situation, it seems likely that Noel will opt to go with backup Al Montoya.  Montoya has not played in a game this season, but posted a 3.11 GAA and .893 save percentage last season in 26 starts for the Islanders.  On the injury front, the Jets are missing top-four defenseman Zach Bogosian, who is sidelined with a hand injury, and winger Antti Miettinen, who has an upper-body ailment.  Other than that, Winnipeg will field a full lineup.

Despite Braden Holtby's disastrous season debut, Adam Oates will once again turn to his young Canadian netminder for this evening's game.  Holtby allowed six goals on 34 shots Saturday, but has posted success coming off losses so far in his career.  On the injury front, both Brooks Laich and Jack Hillen will be out of the lineup with lower-body and upper-body injuries respectively; Laich could return to practice Wednesday.  To compensate for Hillen's injury, the recently recalled Tomas Kundratek will fill in his place and skate with Roman Hamrlik, meaning that both Jeff Schultz and John Erskine are healthy scratches in back.  Grit forward Joey Crabb will make his season debut on the fourth line, and Eric Fehr will be benched up front.

Puck drops 7:08-ish; the game can be seen locally on Comcast SportsNet and nationally on TSN in Canada.  Check back later.

Harry Hawkings is a college student credentialed to cover the Capitals for RtR.  Follow him on Twitter here for all your news needs this season.

The Washington Capitals were on ice Monday for a practice following a day off after getting smacked around by the Lightning Saturday night, and as they prepare to meet the Jets in their home opener Tuesday.  Some updates from Kettler Capitals Iceplex:

Defenseman Jack Hillen, who took a crunching hit from Vincent Lecavalier and left the game Saturday, did not skate and was placed on injured reserve with what is believed to be a shoulder injury; he is considered week-to-week.  To replace him, rearguard Tomas Kundratek was recalled from AHL Hershey, and skated with John Erskine (Tom Poti and Jeff Schultz were partnered).  The other defensive pairs, Carlson-Alzner and Green-Hamrlik, were unchanged, and Dmitry Orlov missed another practice with his shoulder injury.

Adam Oates' forward lines were also unchanged: Ovechkin-Backstrom-Johansson, Brouwer-Ribeiro-Wolski, Chimera-Beagle-Ward, and Hendricks-Perreault-Crabb/Fehr.  Brooks Laich, still out with a groin injury, didn't even skate, and his return is starting to look further off than initially anticipated.

Harry Hawkings is a college student credentialed to cover the Capitals for RtR.  Follow him on Twitter here for all your news needs this season.

Photo by Brian Blanco

Don’t panic.  The Washington Capitals lost their opening game of the 2013 season on Saturday night, conceding three power play goals en route to a 6-3 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning.  With a new coach, a new system, and a lockout hanging over their heads, the Caps were terrible in their own zone and suffered the consequences of such sloppy play.  Joel Ward scored twice and Wojtek Wolski was on the mark for DC while Braden Holtby mde 26 saves in net.  With 47 games left and two days of practice before their next game, the Caps have some time to get things sorted out, but must get the ship back on track soon or they will be put into a pressure cooker.

Given two early power plays in the first five minutes of the period, the Capitals were unable to capitalize despite some good pressure during both two-minute advantages.  Washington paid for their transgression quickly, as Eric Brewer opened the scoring on Tampa’s first shot at the 6:24 mark.  The Caps tied the game up soon after during another power play as Joel Ward banged home a Tom Poti rebound, but Vincent Lecavalier gave the Lightning the lead right back less than a minute later.  After some back and forth with chances for both squads, Tampa was given their first power play at 14:01.  They, too, failed to convert while a man to the good, and the period closed with Tampa holding a 2-1 lead.