Vitek Vanecek, the Capitals starting goaltender last season, was tragically snatched up by the Seattle Kraken in the Expansion Draft on Wednesday. Vitek will form a battery in net with Chris Driedger (FLA) and Joey Daccord (OTT).
During the night, tributes poured in from Vitek’s former (sigh) Capitals’ teammates.
By Ian Oland 1 week ago
Michal Kempny is helping clean up the South Moravia area after an EF-3 tornado ravaged several Czech villages, including his hometown of Hodonín, on Thursday night. The tornado, which had winds of at least 136 mph (219km/h) per the BBC, left five people dead and more than 150 others injured.
“I still can’t believe what kind of a catastrophe struck the south of Moravia yesterday,” Kempny said on Instagram according to a translation by RMNB’s Alexandra Petáková. “The region I hail from and where I love to return. Today’s return is different and personal. Assessing the current situation gives me chills. I am very grateful that my family and closest people are alright and safe, but on the other hand, I know many families were not that lucky and that makes me feel sad. Stay strong south Moravia! We will get through this! #Lužice”
Kempny documented the devastation on his Instagram and it’s stunning.
By Ian Oland 1 month ago
Two 2018 Stanley Cup champions met up halfway across the world for a soccer game, Wednesday.
Michal Kempny and former Capital Jakub Vrana both attended the Euro 2020 game between Portugal and 2018 World Cup champion France. The game was held at Puskás Aréna in Budapest, Hungary.
The two Czechs took a photo together near the field. “Found him,” wrote Kempny on his Instagram Story.
They weren’t the only sports stars to reunite during the game.
Michal Kempny returned to Washington over the weekend disappointed after suffering another unlucky and bizarre injury.
On Saturday, while playing for the Hershey Bears, Kempny was injured during a break in play after being struck by an ice shoveler. The Czech defenseman was in Hershey to rehabilitate a torn Achilles he suffered over the offseason.
“I don’t think it’s too, too bad,” Bears head coach Spencer Carbery said of Kempny’s setback after the game. “Just an unfortunate situation.”
Capitals head coach Peter Laviolette also commented on Kempny’s unfortunate shovel incident.
Michal Kempny, who is on a conditioning stint with the Hershey Bears, got injured during the second period of the team’s 3-0 victory over the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, Saturday.
But *please note* the injury did not happen during actual gameplay. Kempny had “incidental contact” with one of the ice scrapers as play was paused. Spencer Carbery, according to Inside AHL Hockey’s Julie Beidler, said after the game to “chalk that up to the weird things this year.”
He described Kempny’s injury as not “too, too bad.”
By Ian Oland 3 months ago
Michal Kempny’s recovery from a torn Achilles tendon is taking one giant step today. The Capitals announced they are loaning Kempny to the Hershey Bears on a conditioning assignment.
After suffering the devastating injury in October, Kempny skated for the first time in February and rejoined the team for practice in early April. Capitals head coach Peter Laviolette addressed the possibility of this move last week.
By Cara Bahniuk 3 months ago
Michal Kempny continues to practice daily with the Washington Capitals and could end up in Hershey before the start of the playoffs.
Kempny is rehabbing from a torn Achilles that he suffered in the offseason before the start of the 2020-21 regular season.
Capitals head coach Peter Laviolette addressed the possibility after practice on Monday.
By Ian Oland 3 months ago
The Washington Capitals traded Jakub Vrana on Monday. The deal has not just been a difficult deal for many Capitals fans to process. It’s also been hard for many players.
“He’s a nice person,” Capitals general manager Brian MacLellan said during his press conference.
Despite only being 25, Vrana has been a presence in Washington for nearly a decade. First drafted in 2013, Vrana dazzled during development camps with his stickhandling, put up tantalizing numbers abroad and in the AHL, and eventually became a full-time NHL player in 2017-18. That year, Vrana helped the Capitals win their first-ever Stanley Cup, scoring in the championship-clinching Game Five. His championship tattoos and Instagram Stories from the celebration are the stuff of legend.
Vrana’s optimism, talent, and creativity grabbed our attention. His kindness and friendship with his teammates will make him hard to forget.
By Ian Oland 4 months ago
Michal Kempny is one step closer to a big return after suffering a devastating injury in October.
Kempny, wearing a light blue non-contact jersey, participated in Capitals practice for the first time since tearing his Achilles tendon while working out in the Czech Republic.
Capitals players cheered as he took to the ice.
By Ian Oland 4 months ago
After Andre Burakovsy sprung the coop, Jakub Vrana became the last longtime Capital to remain single. But that doesn’t mean Vrana isn’t getting some important training for what’s next.
During the Capitals’ off-day on Monday, the team’s second-leading goalscorer transformed from a hockey player into a Czech Uncle, spending some quality time with Adam Kempny – Michal Kempny’s two-month-old son.
