The Washington Capitals defeated the Vancouver Canucks 3-1 Tuesday for their tenth straight win at home. While that’s awesome, I’m going to have to speak with a therapist tomorrow to process all the bizarre stuff that happened during the game.
To use a Stranger Things metaphor, this game felt like it was played at Capital One Arena in the Upside Down. All that was missing was the Mind Flayer.
Here’s a list.
Monday night, a game between the Minnesota Wild and Winnipeg Jets got heated late in the second period. Wild forward Daniel Winnik tripped Jets defenseman Josh Morrissey before a face-off.
Several Winnipeg players, including former Capital Mathieu Perreault, protested Winnik’s underhanded play. Shortly after the puck was dropped, former Capital Matt Hendricks laid down the law and fought former Capital Daniel Winnik.
Except there was not a lot of face punching.
The Capitals lost approximately a quarter of their team during the offseason and now it’s time for the reckoning.
Monday morning, former Capitals forward Marcus Johansson posted a photo of his new New Jersey Devils gear that came in the mail. It’s weird.
Braden Holtby got the start tonight in the second of Canada’s back-to-back series with the United States. He got a rude welcome from Caps teammate John Carlson, who had the audacity to score on him.
In what is becoming an annual tradition, Santa Claus flew down early from the North Pole to make an appearance at the Verizon Center before the Washington Capitals took on the Tampa Bay Lightning. And before puck drop, we were even treated to a stirring rendition of the national anthem from Claus which sounded a lot like Bob McDonald.
There was fist pumping and gyrating. Santa went HAM.
Photo: @capsredrockers
On Monday, the Washington Capitals broke out a special surprise for the seventh day of Hanukkah. Before their game against the Ottawa Senators, Santa Claus sung the national anthems. In sonorous tones reminiscent of Bob McDonald, Santa, who was definitely not Bob McDonald, belted out “The Star-Spangled Banner” and “O Canada” to the hundreds of fans in attendance, who cheered with bewilderment and amusement.
By Chris Gordon 8 years ago
I feel like maybe we’re intruding on Liam O’Brien here. One minute after fighting Deryk Engelland in a brutal bout, O’Brien, he of tongue-wagging John Scott fame, smiled, licked his fingers, and adjusted his mustache in the penalty box. He seemed none the worse for wear, despite a fresh welt on his cheek.
Photo: Doug Pensinger
In Patrick Roy’s first game as head coach of the Colorado Avalanche, he set the tone of the Avs’ season when he got into a glass-shoving incident with Bruce Boudreau on the bench. The Avs, who went from worst to first this season, have taken on Roy’s fiery personality.
Even young Russian daffodil Semyon Varlamov has allowed parts of Roy’s take no shit attitude to seep into his game. Consider Friday night against the Minnesota Wild.
In Game One, as the Wild’s Mikko Koivu attempted to pressure an Avs breakout, he got a bit too close to Varlamov’s crease and he learned that you DON’T SASS THE VARLAMONSTER.
