Matt Niskanen

Capitals annual Better Halves basket auction features Stanley Cup Champions buckets, survival gear, and salami

Grab your digital bidding paddles, Capitals fans. The Better Halves are back once again, auctioning off their annual themed gift baskets. As always, the baskets include autographed Capitals memorabilia, from jerseys to commemorative Stanley Cup championship merchandise, but also a few weird and wonderful surprises.

So if you’ve ever felt a desire to own signed fishing gear from Pheonix Copley, a signed four-person tent from Matt Niskanen (you’ve got to be prepared for the desert island, after all), or even some signed salami from Jonas Siegenthaler, then this is the auction for you.

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Matt Niskanen and Dmitrij Jaskin return to the lineup against the St. Louis Blues

After taking a scary hit into the boards and being scratched for five consecutive games, both Matt Niskanen and Dmitrij Jaskin will be back into the lineup against the bottom-feeding St. Louis Blues.

For Jaskin, this is a chance to get revenge against the team who waived him this past fall.

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By Julia Karron On January 3, 2019 1 Comment

Matt Niskanen on the play that injured him: ‘I don’t think anybody did anything wrong’

Matt Niskanen was part of a scary play Thursday against the Hurricanes where he was knocked face-first into the boards. The defenseman missed Friday’s pratice and Saturday’s game, but after speaking to media after practice on Sunday, he says there are no hard feelings.

“I don’t think anybody did anything wrong,” Niskanen said to NHL.com’s Tom Gulitti. “A bad set of circumstances. Me and Justin Williams were racing for the puck. It’s a little bump. That happens 20 times a game.”

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By Cara Bahniuk On December 30, 2018 0 Comment

Capitals shuffle defensive pairings with Matt Niskanen unlikely to play Saturday in Ottawa

Defenseman Matt Niskanen is not expected to play against the Ottawa Senators on Saturday night, and the Washington Capitals will have to change their defensive pairings accordingly. Niskanen did participate in his first morning skate after sustaining a scary upper-body injury during Thursday’s 3-1 victory over the Hurricanes but is still listed as day-to-day.

The Capitals’ forward lines remain the same. Pheonix Copley will get the start in net, giving Braden Holtby the night off. Copley got his first career shutout against the bottom-dwelling Senators the last time these two teams met.

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By Alex Hayes On December 29, 2018 1 Comment

Matt Niskanen misses practice after face-first collision with boards (Updated)

After leaving Thursday’s game with an injury, Caps defenseman Matt Niskanen is absent from practice on Friday morning.

Update, 1 PM: Niskanen’s status is day-to-day. He will travel with the team.

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By Ian Oland On December 28, 2018 1 Comment

Matt Niskanen leaves game after scary face-first hit into boards

In the third period of Thursday’s Caps-Canes game, Matt Niskanen was apparently injured in a boarding-like collision with Clark Bishop and Justin Williams.

It was an awful and scary hit, but Niskanen was able to walk off the ice on his own.

Watch it for yourself.

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By Ian Oland On December 27, 2018 4 Comments

The Capitals spread holiday cheer by visiting children at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital

Monday afternoon, the Washington Capitals made their annual visit to MedStar Georgetown University Hospital. Donning their red home jerseys and Christmas-themed hats, the players interacted with children, while signing autographs and taking photos.

“It’s just about whatever [kids] want us to do,” John Carlson said to the Capitals about the annual event. “As much or as little as they want us to participate in things. Whatever we can do to bring smiles – that’s our focus.”

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By Cara Bahniuk On December 17, 2018 0 Comment

Devante Smith-Pelly briefly resembles Bambi on ice after losing skate blade

Devante Smith-Pelly had an extreme ice adventure late in the first period against the Montreal Canadiens.

Smith-Pelly lost his skate blade after absorbing a rough run into the boards by Kenny Agostino.

This was problematic (and funny) because skating is hard without one of your skate blades. Who knew?

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By Ian Oland On November 19, 2018 0 Comment

77 photos from the Caps Dog Calendar shoot featuring puppies, the Stanley Cup, and puppies IN the Stanley Cup

The happiest day of the Capitals regular season happened on Saturday when they participated in the annual canine calendar photoshoot. Partnering with Homeward Trails Animal Rescue, the guys posed with dogs up for adoption, as well as their own family-owned pups.

This year’s shoot was more relaxed, with each Caps player sporting their own style with a special guest: the STANLEY CUP! And what’s better than tiny puppies in the Cup? Not much.

Capitals players John Carlson, Brett Connolly, Nic Dowd, Lars Eller, TJ Oshie, Alex Ovechkin, Matt Niskanen, and Chandler Stephenson all posed with their own dogs. Nicklas Backstrom, Madison Bowey, Travis Boyd, Andre Burakovsky, Pheonix Copley, Christian Djoos, Braden Holtby, Dmitrij Jaskin, Michal Kempny, Evgeny Kuznetsov, Dmitry Orlov, Devante Smith-Pelly, Jakub Vrana, Nathan Walker, and Tom Wilson took their photos with dogs available for adoption through Homeward Trails.

Since the calendar began in 2014, the Caps have raised almost $250,000 for Homeward Trails. A limited number of calendars will be available for $20 at the November 21 game against the Chicago Blackhawks. The calendar will be sold online and details will be announced at a later date.

While the official photos won’t be seen until the release, we hope these adorable photos will hold you over until then.

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By Cara Bahniuk On October 7, 2018 2 Comments

Highly-fashionable Capitals players rocked the red carpet ahead of banner-raising night (Photos)

After the shortest offseason in franchise history, the Capitals got back to business on Wednesday.

Before their banner raising and 7-0 beatdown on the Boston Bruins, Capitals players walked a red carpet outside Capital One Arena. There was a remarkable turnout from fans who crowded F street in anticipation.

As Lexuses dropped the guys off at the corner of 6th and F, they were escorted down the rug with fans chosen by the team. The Caps spent time signing autographs and taking quick selfies with the fans. Some of them, including Craig Laughlin, Alex Ovechkin, and TJ Oshie, were even wearing their Stanley Cup championship ring.

Last season, TJ Oshie brought in the most cheers as his arrival was announced. He brought on the same excitement this season but Lars Eller also received a massive reception from the crowd. The scorer of the game-winning Stanley Cup Final may be one of the most popular players on the team, for good reason of course.

Nothing has changed with this well-dressed group of weirdos — some players wore custom suits (we’ll have more on John Carlson’s ditty later). Ovechkin also wore another classic blue suit. Never change, Ovi.

Check out all the photos from the event below.

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By Cara Bahniuk On October 5, 2018 1 Comment

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