Elliotte Friedman is reporting that David Poile will retire as general manager of the Nashville Predators. Friedman says Barry Trotz will take over the position.
Poile has been the only GM the Predators have ever had. He joined them in 1997, after 15 years with the Washington Capitals. Barry Trotz coached both in Washington and Nashville, winning a Cup with the Capitals in 2018.
By Peter Hassett 4 weeks ago
The oldest team in the league, the Washington Capitals, played the youngest team in the league, the Buffalo Sabres, while the young team was rested and the old team was not. Despite all human wisdom urging otherwise, the Caps chose to play this one wiiiiiiide-open.
The game started off hot, with a bunch of chances before Casey Mittelstadt fed Dylan Cozens for a rush goal. Dylan Strome retaliated with a great assist from Nick Jensen, but then Evgeny Kuznetsov fed Tage Thompson a tantalizing turnover in the high slot to give Buffalo the lead again. TJ Oshie caught a pass from Strome to tie it 2-2 after twenty minutes.
The second period belonged to Buffalo. They scored four goals: Skinner, Girgensons, Hinostroza, and Cozens for his second of the day. Alex Ovechkin caught a rebound off the end-board for his 33rd of the season, then Sonny Milano scored a jailbreak goal to make 6-4 after two periods.
Dylan Cozens got the hat trick in the third period.
Caps lose.
By Peter Hassett 4 weeks ago
The Washington Capitals – inconceivably – defeated the New York Rangers in a matinee game on Saturday afternoon. The goals the team had been so dearly missing for so dearly long came all at once.
TJ Oshie began the day with a power-play goal, tipping a point shot from Erik Gustafsson. Barclay Goodrow took advantage of some careless Washington defense to tie it up by the end of the first period.
The Capitals exploded in a good way in the second period. TJ Oshie scored on the rush, then Tom Wilson scored on the rush, then Milano got Oshie’s rebound, then Kuznetsov scored on the rush.
Chris Kreider tipped in a goal during five-on-three to start New York’s comeback, but Evgeny Kuznetsov responded by tucking in a goal to make it 6-2. The Rangers got one in garbage time, but that was it.
Caps win 6-3!
By Peter Hassett 4 weeks ago
The Washington Capitals parted company with Dmitry Orlov and Garnet Hathaway on Thursday night, signaling that the team will be “retooling“, which is just another word for selling at the trade deadline.
More trades are coming before the deadline hits at 3 PM on Friday March 3, and we have figured out who is most and least likely to go. Gird your loins and find out.
By Peter Hassett 4 weeks ago
It developed quickly. A little after 5 PM Eastern we learned that the Washington Capitals would scratch defender Dmitry Orlov and forward Garnet Hathaway tonight for trade-related reasons. Now we learn they have been traded to the Boston Bruins.
The Capitals will receive Craig Smith, a 2023 first-round pick, a 2025 second-round pick, and a 2024 third-round pick.
By Peter Hassett 4 weeks ago
After Tuesday’s nigh-unwatchable loss to the Detroit Red Wings, the Washington Capitals now sport a 3-7-0 record in their last ten games. This is the worst record in the National Hockey League, tied with the St Louis Blues. Two of Washington’s three wins came after regulation – one from the shootout. Their only win was – improbably – against the Boston Bruins.
The Capitals are very bad right now, and it’s important we understand how.
By Peter Hassett 1 month ago
The Washington Capitals are on a five-game losing streak, which might have influenced our most recent happiness survey. It is possible that your feelings have been affected by Washington’s current 25-percent chance of making the playoffs. We shall see.
Here now is the executive summary for the second happiness survey of the season. Nearly 2000 respondents scored each Capitals player from 1 to 5, based on how happy the respondent is that the player is on the team.
By Peter Hassett 1 month ago
The Caps lost again. This time it was to the Detroit Red Wings, a team that suddenly includes Jakub Vrana again.
Detroit defender Robert Hagg fired a shot from the slot that Trevor van Riemsdyk aided on its path to the net. A shorthanded goal by Pius Suter made it 2-0 for the Wings, but Tom Wilson’s tip-in got the Caps on the board at least.
The Caps pressed early in the third but Suter’s second goal of the night sealed the deal.
Caps lose 3-1. Their fifth loss in a row. A waste of your time.
By Peter Hassett 1 month ago
We are nearly sixty games into the season, so we’re slightly overdue for the happiness survey. Probably would have looked a bit different if we did this during the new years break, but those are the breaks.
Anyway, this is supposed to be a fun exercise that will take you three minutes to complete.
On a scale from 1 to 5 how HAPPY you are to have each player on the team. What does “happy” mean to you? Plato says he who lives well is blessed and happy. I don’t think that’s helpful to today’s exercise. Just go with vibes. Skip players if you want.
We’ll share the results soonish.
Thanks. Have a nice Sunday and a nice Presidents’ Day. We have had like two good ones ever.
By Peter Hassett 1 month ago
The Washington Capitals looked snazzy for their big outdoor game against the Carolina Hurricanes. But they played terribly. They got methodically dismantled by a superior team in front of 56,961 fans, a national TV audience, and some clown named Jake Owen.
Two minutes into the game, the Canes scored on their first shot: a deflection from Jesperi Kotkaniemi. The Canes scored three in the second period, starting with Paul Stastny all alone up front, middling with Martin Necas’ one-timer on the power, and lasting with Teuvo Teravainen on the rush.
The Caps played apocalyptically bad in the third period, but Tom Wilson got a goal from no-angle to crack the shutout.
Caps lose 4-1. Awful.
By Peter Hassett 1 month ago
