Yesterday while most fans of the Washington Capitals were enjoying the teams' second annual Capitals Convention, I had the honor of attending Tampa Bay Lightning's final game of the preseason against Southeast Divisional, and cross-state rival, the Florida Panthers. It was the perfect opportunity to see how both the Bolts and the Cats had prepared during the off season, and scout what lies ahead for DC over the course of the 2010-11 NHL season.

St. Pete Times Forum

First and foremost, I would like to thank the Tampa Bay Lightning organization's media relations director Brian Breseman for the courtesy of granting me media access to last night's Lightning/Panthers game.  I was treated very well by everyone in the building and I was impressed by how classy the whole organization was, down to the players.  All three stars of the game tossed pucks over the glass to kids in the stands after they were announced.  I was also treated to an elevator ride with Lightning radio color commentator Phil Esposito, who still has all the passion and energy for the game as he's ever had.  After the game, I also had a short conversation with radio play-by-play man Dave Mishkin, who was also very nice and interested in my presence at the game.  I enjoyed chatting with the Lightning bloggers (including Raw Charge) between periods in the media room, the game presentation rivaled the Verizon Center's, and it was overall an excellent hockey atmosphere.  Everyone in Tampa is excited for the Lightning this season, even I caught myself throwing up my arms when they scored.  Hockey is back in South Florida and the Capitals will have to watch out for a re-loaded Lightning team this season.

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In case any one missed it, Rock the Red is proud to provide video of Tori's interview on Tuesday with ABC News 7 including footage of her meeting the shirts' muse, Braden Holtby. In case you aren't familiar with her, Tori is a monumental Washington Capitals fan, a Hershey Bears season ticket holder, goodie baker extraordinaire, and avid tweeter at @WashCapsRock on twitter.  Much like Caps Coach Bruce Boudreau, we really appreciate the support!

Fear not, fans of the puck - we are now a mere 10 days removed from the Washington Capitals rookie camp, which is set to start on September 12th. And while we await the organization's announcement of the practice schedules for both rookie camp and training camp, we've formulated a way to help count down the remaining days. Join us as we take a trip through the Caps' 36-year history by unveiling our choices for the most prolific sweater number by the tens. Digit selection will be based upon a myriad of attributes including skill, significance to the club, mystique, unusual quirks, and any other traits we deem fit.

Up first...

When I asked Osborn how we should kick-off our unveiling of Rock the Red's app for the Droid, he suggested "Is that an Android in your pocket? 'Cause I can see my Caps blog in your pants." Yes, really.

So if you're still reading, here's the details: on your smartest of phones, click on over to this link to be able to take RtR anywhere. If that doesn't seem to work for you, feel free to head over to this link where you will be sent an email to open on the device.

Spiffy, huh? In addition to your continual coverage of the Washington Capitals from us, you will also be able to access other great posts by our Bloguin partners on everything from Sports and Entertainment to Randall Simon's Sausages. And don't fear, loyal iPhone reader - our Apple-friendly app is currently in the process of being approved and should be available soon.

Enjoy, and be sure to let us know your thoughts!

There has been something nagging at me for about a decade now.  The Washington Capitals have usually had a very diverse roster comprised of the usual Canadians and Americans along with Swedes, Russians, Czechs, Slovaks, and even a Lithuanian and a Ukrainian.  The one nationality that is strongly represented in the NHL that Capitals General Manager George McPhee rarely includes are the Finns.  In this post, I will attempt to quantify his aversion and perhaps go back into his past to see what might have triggered this.  McPhee is widely known and respected as a passionate and loyal person as well as a excellent judge of character and talent, an opinion I share.  At this point, I'm not certain whether McPhee has a bias or if he just knows something we don't.

Is there a Finnish bias? Find out more after the jump!

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I had a chance to read two thoughtful and well-researched articles this week on Mathieu Perreault from Russian Machine Never Breaks and On Frozen Blog.  I agree with OFB that Perreault is a no-brainer to start the year at #2 center.  I have to disagree with RMNB's ultimate assessment: I think they underestimated him.  I think Mathieu Perreault is the answer to the Washington Capitals' #2 center vacancy, and I think he will perform at least as well as any #2 center the Caps have had since Michael Nylander in 2002-03.

Perreault, who won't turn 23 until January, is an exceptionally quick and intelligent playmaker.  He is generously listed at 5'10 and 174 pounds which, in his own words, contributed to him being drafted in the 6th round in 2006.  He has a strong junior hockey pedigree, posting huge numbers in the both the QMJHL regular season and playoffs and was 2007 league MVP.

His rookie pro season came in 2008-09 in the AHL and was better than solid: 11 goals and 50 points in 77 games for the Calder Cup winning Hershey Bears, plus another 8 points in the playoffs.  Last season, he ratcheted up his production to the same 50 points (16 goals) in only 56 games plus another 7 goals and 19 points in 21 playoff games as he won another Cup.  His biggest moment of the postseason was scoring the game-tying goal with 1:13 left and then scoring the overtime series-winning goal to send the Bears to the Conference Final.  As OFB put it, he has a top-six skill set.

Perreault also earned his first NHL action, displaying the excellent playmaking ability that got him drafted and posted the best numbers among the ten Bears call-ups with 4 goals, 5 assists, and 9 points.  Only John Carlson played more than Perreault's 21 games or had better than his +4 plus/minus rating.  He appeared to wear down during an extended 18-game recall in the autumn.  This is typical of young players (see:  Tavares, John), and the physical ability to keep up with older and better conditioned players takes time to develop (see:  Fleischmann, Tomas).

What will keep Perreault in the NHL is something unexpected:  he has shown he has no qualms about going to the net.  Three of his four goals were scored within 3 feet of the cage (Goal 1, Goal 3, Goal 4) and his other came from between the circles against Martin Brodeur (Goal 2).  He also scores when it matters:  his first career goal tied the game in the third period, his second gave the Caps an early 2-0 lead, his third pulled the Caps to within a goal (4-3) in the third on the powerplay, and his fourth was a third period go-ahead goal.

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Looks like the person in charge of commissioning the plaque for the Prince of Wales Trophy, the NHL's award to the Eastern Conference playoff champions, had the same high hopes for the Caps that everyone in DC did. Or at least the same editorial prowess of the Washington Post Express staff. Check out this picture taken at the Chicago Blackhawks' 2-day fan convention, distinctly showing the Capitals on the trophy in error.

So was the misprint to spite Philadelphia? Or is it channeling its inner Magic 8 ball, and foreshadowing next season's outcome?

[Editor's Note: All of the haters can suck it. This is no hoax]

 

[Pic courtesy of ChiBDM] no comments

 

[Update - 10/09/10: one step closer to the dream...Tom Green rocks the red in the new Unleash the Fury Video.]

We've always been massive supporters of the Washington Capitals rally video that combines clips of inspirational movies like Hoosiers, Varsity Blues and Invincible with comedies like Animal House and Slap Shot before culminating with Tom Green's character in Road Trip urging his friend's pet python to "unleash the fury" on his mouse dinner. Starting in 2008, the video has escalated from background entertainment to cult status, generating a ferocity that falls just short of Beaver Stadiums' "We Are! Penn State!" In addition to complete fan participation personalized sweaters, signs and tee shirts have cropped up at games - further driving the lore of the excerpt.

Our fascination with this Caps' mainstay lead us to request a still be placed on the jumbo-tron in our blog header, as well as name an award after him during our post-season presentation. We even went above and beyond, suggesting that an invitation needed to be extended to Tom Green for an in-game recreation of the famous scene.

So, can it be? To promote Green's recent stint at the DC Improv, he particpated in two seperate interviews with local media and hinted at our dream coming true. Speaking with the DCist, he mentioned that "I hope to come to a game this year. People have sent me videos of it on You Tube. It looks like a lot of fun." He then elaborated on the fact during an interview with 106.7 the Fan, stating that "I love hockey too, I grew up playing hockey. I want to come to a Capitals game this year."

No formal invite necessary Tom, feel free to stop on by the Phone Booth anytime you like. You don't have to take my word for it that your presence would be welcome, just ask the coach:

It’s July, and I’m struggling.  I miss hockey…a lot.  Sure, the New Jersey Devils and their contract hilarity have helped, as has the recent emergence of Douchegate, but it’s still not real hockey.  There aren’t any meaningful games (that you don’t already know the outcome of) on television.  There aren’t any recaps online.  It’s just not the same. 

You see, the best part about being a Bears’ fan is that I’m used to short summers.  In four of the past five seasons, Hershey has played into June.  Last year I was really spoiled.  The Bears hoisted the Calder Cup in June and then season kicked off unusually early because of the anticipated Olympic hiatus.

One of the hardest things for Bears fans right now is watching the team strip down as guys head for other organizations to get their shot at their life long dreams, while other guys sign with the team in hopes of continuing Hershey’s tradition of success.  Last year, this was a non-issue.  As HB Head Coach Mark French reiterated a few weeks ago at Development Camp, the team remained mostly intact for two seasons.  That makes watching the TSN signing tracker even harder.  We had a whole year without worrying so much about it.  Now what we do?

So, instead of beating myself up over learning and speculating as to who will or will not be donning the Chocolate and White this fall, I’ve remembered a ray of sunshine.  There is one guy who will not be putting on the skates this year in the AHL, let alone Hershey.  This in itself is reason to celebrate.  Nygel Pelletier retired at the end of last season, and we won’t have to see him anymore.  Fans across the AHL should remember this key retirement and rejoice…unless you’re Canadian.  Pelletier passed the test to become a Royal Canadian Mounted Policeman.  So good luck with that, friends up North.

For those of you who may not be very familiar with AHL refs, know this.  Nygel was about as bad as it could get.  Hershey and Wilkes-Barre fans, who normally cannot agree on anything (much like their parent clubs’ fans – Washington and Pittsburgh), agreed that Nygel was awful.  I don’t believe that there’s an arena out there that he hasn’t been booed in.  In fact, he holds the record for the ref that has been most frequently honored with the “B-U-L-L-S-H-I-T, BULLSHIT!” chant in Hershey* (Official stat is not in the record books.)

To aid in my celebration, I’ve Aol Search enhanced by Googled Nygel Pelletier to come up with ten of the best worst scenarios he’s caused in the AHL as retold by beat writers & bloggers alike.  Note that this is not just a collection of his horrible officiating in Hershey, but across the AHL, so if you’re joining us from another organization (or even from the ECHL) and want to share a Nygel story, please leave it in the comments section.  They never get old, and they never surprise me anymore!

 

10: No call on the Goalie’s concussion in Hartford.
9: Jonathan Bombulie from the Citizens Voice (Baby Pens beat writer) sums it up best in the 1st sentence of the 2nd paragraph.
8: Oskar Osala says “Maybe he didn’t have the best night.”
7: No, River Rats.  It’s not a goal – despite the goal judge’s light coming on and everyone seeing it on the jumbotron replay.
6: Bombulie again – this time explaining the seemingly unexplainable based on the ref.
5: A San Antonio & Peoria match-up where Pelletier whistled 153 penalty minutes... in one game.
4: The Peerless Prognosticator shares his take on a series winning OT goal in Hershey and the talent that is Nygel Pelletier.
3: 15 power plays in the first 40 minutes…  enough said.
2: Apparently you can take two shots in a shootout when Nygel is running the show.
1: This gem:

 

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In this photo via Tarik El-Bashir from Capitals Insider, we are finally able to see the retro logos the Caps and the Penguins will use when they don their sweaters on New Years Day for the 2010-11 Winter Classic at Heinz Field. The complete jersey will be unveiled at this years' Capitals Convention on October 2, 2010.

Uber-tanned Dave Steckel and Mike Knuble (Blu Blocker sunglasses in tow) were in attendance, and shared the stage with the Pens' Sidney Crosby and his former landlord Mario Lemieux, Maxime Talbot, Pascal Dupuis, and ex-Cap Matt Cooke. No word if a post-presser karaoke session was planned.