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Meet Cash, the adorable Caps fan who got Alex Ovechkin’s stick

Wednesday night at Rogers Place, Alex Ovechkin made national headlines for something other than scoring goals. During pregame warmups of the Oilers-Caps game, the Russian machine tossed his stick over the glass to a tiny Caps fan wearing an Ovechkin jersey.

We’ve since learned that the young boy’s name is Cash N., a youth hockey player who lives in Stony Plain, Alberta. Cash’s nickname from his teammates is Niebvechkin, a nod to his favorite player. According to an email from his mother Miranda, Ovi’s gesture to her son was one of the greatest moments of his life.

“The look on Cash’s face truly says it all,” she wrote.

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By Ian Oland 6 years ago

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Caps stuck in an oil slick: numbers for the morning after

Last night the Washington Capitals lost their third game of the season, 4-1 to the Edmonton Oilers. Through the first two periods the game was mostly a sleepy affair, with neither team getting much going and the Oilers gaining a two-goal lead off of a couple of deflections. Despite an Alex Ovechkin goal to start off the third period (his fourth of the season), the Caps couldn’t catch up and ultimately allowed another pair, resulting in their first losing streak in a long time.

How did the battles within the game go? Well, considering the final score, it was mostly okay for the boys from Washington. Shot attempts at five-on-five ended up being exactly tied at 45-45. The Caps actually out-attempted the Oilers overall, 64-57.

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By Nathan Sick 6 years ago

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Here’s why you shouldn’t be freaking out about the Caps

We are six games into the season and the Caps are 3-2-1. But oh boy, after losing 4-1 Wednesday night to Edmonton you’d think this team was coming down the home stretch and in danger of missing the playoffs. Braden Holtby stated that the team was facing adversity while Matt Niskanen said the team was looking average. It’s not a bad thing that the team is recognizing parts of their game could get better.

But can all of us non-Caps players pump the brakes on being concerned about this team just yet? For one thing, it’s only six freaking games into the season, so regardless of how the Caps have played, it’s too early to make sweeping judgments about this team. And here’s the thing, they’ve actually played decently in the six games.

So, let’s all take a deep breath and talk about why, even when not accounting for sample size, there is no reason to be down on the Caps.

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By Patrick Holden 6 years ago

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The Capitals are left bewildered by something rare — a losing streak

The last time the Washington Capitals lost two straight games in regulation was March 13, 2015. Curtis Glencross led the way for the Capitals with a first period goal in the team’s 4-2 defeat to the Dallas Stars.

Nineteen months later, the Capitals crashed back to earth after a season of tremendous success. On Wednesday night, the Caps fell 4-1 in Edmonton to Oilers after losing their previous matchup against New York 4-2. The team has now won three of its six games.

Last year, the Capitals had one of the best regular-season performances of all time, capturing the Presidents’ Trophy. Despite bringing back a nearly identical roster, the 2016-17 campaign has gotten off to a choppy start.

“We got to perform better,” defensemen Matt Niskanen said after Wednesday’s loss. “Guys need to do their jobs. It’s a little uncomfortable here tonight after the game.”

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By Chris Gordon 6 years ago

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Did Cam Talbot deserve a match penalty for punching TJ Oshie in the face?

Late in the second period, Oilers’ goaltender Cam Talbot did his best Tim Thomas impersonation, punching TJ Oshie in the head several times after the Caps winger crashed the crease.

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By Spenser Smallwood 6 years ago

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Stepped on: Oilers beat Caps 4-1

Last season, the Washington Capitals used their western Canadian road trip to jump start their Presidents’ Trophy winning season.

Now it’s time for take two. The Caps headed into the brand new Rogers Place in Edmonton looking to find their “killer instinct,” according to Karl Alzner, after an inconsistent start to the season.

Despite the referees doling out eight PIMs in the first period, the game was scoreless after 20.

The Caps controlled the first 10 minutes of the second frame, outshooting the Oilers 7-0 in the second. Then the Edmonton fired their first shot on goal of the period. It went in. Ryan Nugget-Hopkins’s shot went off Benoit Pouliot, giving Edmonton a 1-nil lead. Less than 10 minutes later, Pouliot got another lucky goal when he banked the puck off Braden Holtby’s back.

Just nine seconds into the third, the Capitals had lift when Alex Ovechkin went from sniper to jackhammer in front of the net, scoring his a goal in his fourth straight game. Just over a minute later, however, the Caps got caught shadowing McDavid and Patrick Maroon gave the Oilers a two goal lead once again. Milan Lucic added — wait for it — another power play goal against the Caps. Oilers beat Caps 4-1.

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By Chris Gordon 6 years ago

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Alex Ovechkin gives stick away to tiny Caps fan in Edmonton

Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin was in a giving mood Wednesday night in Edmonton. After spotting a tiny Caps fan in the crowd during warmups, Ovechkin grabbed one of his Bauer twigs and tossed it into the crowd.

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By Ian Oland 6 years ago

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Older bother who loves Oilers does not approve of younger brother’s Caps sign

Even though the Edmonton Oilers have missed the playoffs ten straight years, they still have some of the most passionate fans in the NHL. Wednesday during pregame warmups, a sibling rivalry was revealed when one brother, wearing an Alex Ovechkin jersey, held up hand-made sign against the glass that said GO CAPS GO.

The older brother, wearing an Oilers jersey, disapproved. I know this because he held up a sign of his own that said When the Oilers win I still have to go home with this loser. His sign then had an arrow pointing at his brother.

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By Ian Oland 6 years ago

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Caps at Oilers pregame: in need of a Taylor Hall

The Caps visit Edmonton tonight, where the Oilers are off to a scorching hot start. The Oilers have been in rebuild mode since around the time Burr and Hamilton dueled in Weehawken, New Jersey. Could this be the year that they start to show signs of rejoining the ranks of respectable NHL franchises? With a talent like Connor McDavid, it’s certainly possible. I still think the Oilers are at least one big piece away from becoming a competitive club. Some say, oh I don’t know, like Taylor Hall. If they could acquire a talent like Hall, and put him with the maturing nucleus led by McDavid, this team might really have something cooking.

Puck drop is at 9:30 pm on CSN.

Team	Record	Possession	PDO	Power Play	Penalty Kill
Edmonton Oilers	5-1-0	48.1%	101.8	16.7%	87.0%
Washington Capitals	3-1-1	55.9%	104.3	12.5%	71.4%

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By Patrick Holden 6 years ago

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An Edmonton Oilers writer thinks that the Caps are the underdogs in tonight’s matchup

This morning, one adventurous writer from the Edmonton Sun (nicknamed Ice T) broke down tonight’s matchup between the Washington Capitals and the Edmonton Oilers category-by-category. He gave the edge to the Oilers.

I’m serious.

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By Nathan Sick 6 years ago

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