Last game, the Caps had a hard time scoring against the Devils, but Brett Connolly got them on the board early on New Year’s Eve. And it was all made possible by a lovely pass from 2016’s perfect bouncing baby boy, Andre Burakovsky.
After blanking the Bolts and celebrating TJ Oshie’s Dirty 30 Friday night, the Capitals dispersed across the country to celebrate the NHL’s three-day holiday break. Here’s what your favorite past, current, and future Caps were up to for Christmas.
On Saturday morning, as the roads piled up with cars driven by Washingtonians befuddled by winter, the Capitals jumbled their roster, calling up Zach Sanford from the AHL.
Sanford started the season with the Caps, playing 19 games. After only registering one point in NHL, he was sent down to the minors at the end of November. In just six games with the Bears, Sanford scored four goals (including his first professional marker) and had three assists, earning his call up back to the Caps.
“It was good for me,” Sanford said of his time in Hershey, which was his first experience in the AHL after signing with Washington out of college. “I thought I went in with a good mindset. I was going to work as hard as I could and not be pissed off about anything. It turned out well for me.”
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By Chris Gordon 7 years ago
After going scoreless during his first four games in the NHL, talented Caps prospect Jakub Vrana now has three points in his last three games. On Friday, Vrana scored his first NHL goal after a beautiful setup by Evgeny Kuznetsov.
Tuesday night in Brooklyn, Vrana authored his first NHL multipoint game of his career. 2:09 into the second period, Vrana tallied his first NHL assist, receiving a secondary apple on Brett Connolly’s first period goal.
The dude was absolutely pumped.
Milestone alert! Brett Connolly just scored his first goal as a Washington Capital and Zach Sanford registered his first NHL point on the same play.
The Washington Capitals hosted their 2016-17 regular season home opener in style Saturday with a special red carpet event. As cars provided by Lexus dropped players off on F Street, diehard Caps fans lined the entrance, hoping for a picture or an autograph with their favorite athlete.
The event started at 3:30 and was hosted by PA Announcer Wes Johnson, who served as the master of ceremonies. Johnson introduced players as they arrived while preselected fans walked the players down the red carpet. Many Caps, including Alex Ovechkin, Evgeny Kuznetsov, Tom Wilson, Nate Schmidt, and Andre Burakovsky, posed for selfies with fans before going inside Verizon Center.
That afternoon, RMNB had two photographers at the event, myself and the talented Katie Snyder (who you can follow on Instagram and Facebook). Snyder is one of the Redskins’ home-game photographers and graduated from the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City. Snyder also does a lot of freelance work, including family-based portraits.
By Amanda Bowen 7 years ago
With Caps Training Camp less than two weeks away, two members of next year’s club are on their to Washington, D.C.
Photo: Minas Panagiotakis
When the Caps signed Tom Wilson to a deal for $2 million per season, it further lowered the hope that they’d have the cap space to sign a guy like PA Parenteau or Kris Versteeg when free agency opened on Friday. Instead, it became more apparent that if the Caps were going to do anything in free agency, they were going to sign a cheaper option for the bottom six, perhaps a veteran like Brad Boyes or Tomas Fleischmann. There were also a couple of younger players like Brandon Pirri and Brett Connolly who fit this mold of a cheaper, more under the radar option for the bottom-six.
The Caps landed Connolly.
Connolly is a solid addition to the Caps forward group. Connolly is a guy who brings a skill-based game and can slot in on the bottom-six. He’s a former first round pick, still just 24 years old, so he may still have some untapped offensive upside. He’s a viable option to play wing on the third line, but he’s also not such an established player that he’ll be a roadblock in the spot. So, he won’t potentially block a player like Jakub Vrana if Vrana turns heads at camp and forces his way into the opening night lineup.
By Patrick Holden 7 years ago
Photo: Kirk Irwin
After former bottom six players Jason Chimera signed with the New York Islanders and Michael Latta signed with the Los Angeles Kings, the Capitals made their first significant move of the day, signing 24-year-old Brett Connolly to a one-year, $850k deal.
The news was first reported by TSN’s Gord Miller.
Photo credit: Greg Fiume
In the second period of the Caps home game against Tampa, Lightning forward Brett Connolly got hit with an ugly one-two play when he was tied up in the corner by Dmitry Orlov, and Mike Green came in hard and hit him high, making contact to Connolly’s head with his forearm. Video is below the jump.
