Nearly six years ago, a 21-year-old Braden Holtby first met an 18-year-old Evgeny Kuznetsov at Caps development camp. Their relationship began somewhat rocky, as the competitive Holtby once slashed Kuznetsov in the calf after celebrating a scrimmage goal.
Photo: Rob Carr
Hockey players and their flow go together like oil and vinegar — great until the mixture separates, which is almost exactly what Tom Wilson‘s hair did from his scalp on Tuesday night.
In a brutal fight against the Los Angeles Kings’ Luke Schenn, Willy Baby made sure to get the last punch in while the fans wondered if they had, in fact, seen Tom Wilson’s hair come to life and try to escape his head.
By 8 years ago
Photo: Geoff Burke
The Washington Capitals are a very good hockey team. One of the reasons why they’re so dangerous is their secondary scoring, especially lately.
Andre Burakovsky has eight goals in his last ten games; Justin Williams has 18 goals on the season and is the Caps’ fourth leading scorer (39 points); and Evgeny Kuznetsov has been the Caps offensive MVP, leading the team in total points (57) and the entire NHL in primary assists (33). With the game tied 1-1 and 2:30 left in the third period, the trio got their lunch pails out and scored an ugly goal to win the game.
After a brutal first half of the season, Andre Burakovsky seems to have finally gotten his mojo back (pun intended).
In the second period, the Burracuda scored his 12th goal of the season, after a beautiful slap pass from Caps defenseman Dmitry Orlov.
By 8 years ago
The Los Angeles Kings did their ground-and-pound routine against the Washington Capitals on Tuesday. The Caps struggled at special teams and got pushed around at evens, but a sturdy performance by the back-up goalie kept it interesting until a win could be eked.
A disastrous first-period power play yielded a shorthanded goal for living zombie Anze Kopitar. The second period was dominated by Los Angeles, but Orlov and Burakovsky combined to get the Caps on the board late. The Caps look stronger in the third and pushed their way to victory with a late, scrappy goal by Kuznetsov, and then Chimera got another empty-netter. Haha.
Caps beat Kings 3-1!
By Peter Hassett 8 years ago
Unfairly or not, Tom Wilson has a reputation around the league. Word on the street is that Wilson is on the NHL Player Safety watchlist. The play I’m about to document is one of those times Tom crosses the line.
During the second period of the Caps-Kings game, Wilson shoved defenseman Luke Schenn (brother of Wilson’s personal punching-bag Brayden) into goaltender Jonathan Quick. It was a dangerous play. Quick toppled to the ice.
Midway through the first period, Capitals forward TJ Oshie took a defensive-zone penalty for holding. That’s not the story.
The story is about the man who called the penalty: Oshie’s evil twin, Nega-Osh, Darth TJ.
“Just me or does the ref who called the penalty on Oshie look like Oshie?” RMNB’s Patrick Holden said in our nerdy chatroom.
Tonight, the Caps return home to the Verizon Center for the first time since February 7. Their opponent is one of the NHL’s better teams, the Los Angeles Kings, who also lead the Pacific Division. The Kings are known for their elite possession numbers and their objectively terrible Dustin Brown contract.
The Kings may not possess the same speed or offense as the Stars, but the Caps must be better than they were Saturday night. It should go without saying that another late rally isn’t acceptable.
Mike Richards and Justin Williams get to say hello to some old friends. Hopefully they say hello by scoring a goal. Speaking of saying hello, Brooks Orpik returns to the lineup tonight.
Puck drops at 7 PM. Glue your eyeballs to CSN-DC if you dare.
| Team | Record | Possession | PDO | Power Play | Penalty Kill |
| Washington Capitals | 40-10-4 | 52.0% | 102.0 | 24.4% | 83.7% |
| Los Angeles Kings | 33-19-3 | 56.8% | 99.0 | 23.1% | 81.6% |
By Margaret Stuart 8 years ago
