The Washington Capitals had a team dinner in Saint Michaels, MD during the first day of their trip to the Eastern Shore, Monday night.
The Capitals ate at The Crab Claw, a restaurant that sits on the Chesapeake Bay. On their Instagram page, it boasts “Hot crabs and cold beer!”
The team went over to grab the meal after having a drink at RAR Brewing in Cambridge.
The Hershey Bears are ready for puck drop ahead of their season-opening matchup against the Belleville Senators, Saturday night.
The team announced its 31-player, Opening Night roster that includes 19 forwards, 9 defensemen, and 3 goaltenders.
The Bears feature 16 returning players from the 2023 Calder Cup Championship team, including 2023 AHL Playoff MVP Hunter Shepard and Capitals prospects Hendrix Lapierre and Vincent Iorio. Ivan Miroshnichenko and Alexander Suzdalev have both made the Bears and will play their rookie seasons in the AHL.
At some point later tonight probably between 6:55 and 7:25 pm, a swath of Washington Capitals fans are going to click on their TVs, turn the channel to Monumental Sports Network (formerly NBC Sports Washington), and be super confused why the Caps game isn’t on.
Friends, tonight’s season opener between the Washington Capitals and Pittsburgh Penguins is on national TV. There will be no Joe B or Locker on the telecast (which gives me great despair).
You can watch the game live via an ESPN Plus subscription or through Hulu. Puck drop is at 7:30 pm.
The Washington Capitals were bad last year. They were terrible to watch thanks to the system they employed. They were injured. They looked old (sorry, Ovi). The lineups and roster decisions were baffling and self-sabotaging. They were under .500 and missed the playoffs not by a little, but by a lot. There were nights where I contemplated to just stop watching, but I couldn’t, because I’m married to this game through this website. I could not escape the horror. (Happy Friday the 13th, btw!)
But spooky season, at least… I think (?), is now gone, in figurative terms about DC hockey.
Usually the Capitals have vapid, completely innate mantras for their seasons. But this year’s tagline makes sense. I connect with it on a very personal level and I hope the players do too.
This year the Capitals have Something to prove.
Cue the video.
By Ian Oland 2 months ago
Alex Ovechkin spoke to reporters a day ahead of the Washington Capitals’ season and home opener against the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Ovechkin has not spoken much on retirement during his many interviews with the press, but on the eve of his 19th season in the NHL, the Russian superstar brought up the topic himself when asked what keeps him motivated this deep into his career.
The Washington Capitals will wear their nay blue W jerseys 11 times in what will be the final season they’ll wear the sweaters.
The Capitals plan to suit up in the jerseys six times against Western Conference foes — including Connor Bedard’s Chicago Blackhawks — and five times against Eastern Conference rivals.
The Washington Capitals will announce their Opening Night roster on Wednesday morning, but judging by who attended the Hershey Bears’ season-ticket holder event on Tuesday, there appears to no longer be any mystery on who made the team.
Ivan Miroshnichenko, Hardy Haman Aktell, and Riley Sutter all donned Bears jerseys, signing autographs and mingling with fans at Giant Center on Tuesday night.
That suggests all three players will start the season in Hershey. The Bears’ season opener is on Saturday night.
By Ian Oland 2 months ago
When the Washington Capitals recently updated their practice schedule ahead of their Home Opener, the team’s skate on Wednesday had a surprising venue change. The Caps announced that they would take the ice at the Talbot County Ice Skating Rink. Head coach Spencer Carbery said that he believed getting players out of their normal routine will help them build camaraderie with each other.
While Wednesday was the team’s only listed day in Maryland, the Capitals ultimately left for the Eastern Shore on Monday afternoon (with their golf clubs in tow) for a three-day trip. The Caps’ itinerary provided ample down time for the players, which turned into a chance meeting of a lifetime for some Maryland Capitals fans.
Take longtime reader Drew and his son Elliot, a youth hockey player for the Easton Icehawks. Drew reached out to RMNB in excitement on Instagram.
“My son and I were getting ready to head out to meet a buddy of mine to go for a boat ride on the Choptank River to see tree swallows going to roost,” began Drew. “My buddy Matt lives in Cambridge and he popped into RAR Brewing to fill a growler before going to pick up his boat. The bar, as he put it, was filled with a bunch of guys, which he thought was strange.”
The bartender told Matt that those guys happened to be hockey superstar/global sports celebrity Alex Ovechkin and the rest of the 2023-24 Washington Capitals.
Drew’s bird-watching trip would have to wait.
By Ian Oland 2 months ago
With so much time between now and Opening Night, Washington Capitals head coach Spencer Carbery is getting creative to bring his team closer together.
Carbery will give the Capitals the day off on Tuesday, presumably for a team-building event, before holding practice in Eastern Maryland the day after.
The Capitals are scheduled to take the ice at Talbot County Ice Skating Rink on Wednesday, Oct. 11 at 11 am.
By Ian Oland 2 months ago
Ivan Miroshnichenko impressed in the preseason, but it appears — at this moment — the young Russian forward did not make the NHL team.
Miroshnichenko did not take the ice for Capitals practice and RMNB’s Katie Adler reports that his locker was cleaned out inside the locker room. Teams’ 23-man rosters are due Monday at 5 pm.
Miroshnichenko’s next destination is likely the AHL’s Hershey Bears. The young prospect does not have to pass through NHL waivers to be assigned to the AHL, making Hershey the most palatable option for Caps’ brass to start his professional career. It’s possible, though unlikely, he could be loaned back to the KHL due to how deep the Bears are.
The Capitals could also make room for him on the NHL roster between now and Opening Night. The Capitals’ Mike Vogel says the team will announce its Opening Night roster on Wednesday morning and are planning “some paper transactions for today for salary cap purposes.” (Update: Here they are.)
