Hopefully HBO’s cameras tonight will document what exactly Bruce Boudreau said to his team during the first intermission Sunday night, but both the fanbase and much of the media that covers this team was at that moment consumed with a lot of dark thoughts. Tuesday night’s relatively easy looking 5-1 victory over the hapless Devils wasn’t assured or easy through 30 minutes, but the patience and resolve the Capitals exhibited was made possible by Sunday night’s stunning turnaround. Truthfully: how many of you thought Here we go again when the Sens strutted out to a 2-0 lead?

Perreault’s heroics Sunday night were important most particularly in the context of this: no one else at that moment was going to step up and do that. Your first-liners? If you watched last night’s game, you saw how beleaguered they remain. The weight of Ralph Friedgen was lifted off this hockey team when Matty struck on Sunday night’s first shift of a do-or-die second period, then followed with the game-winner some six minutes later. The Caps came scintillatingly close to scoring four goals during that turnaround frame, in what was perhaps a season-salvaging stanza, and Matty was the catalyst.

* * * * *

Two wins in a row is nothing to crow about, especially over also-rans Ottawa and Jersey, but with the young season’s most important game up next — and with pretty much all of the hockey world poised to watch that — this scintilla of a turnaround is significant. The Caps will take on the league’s hottest team Thursday night feeling relatively good about themselves. You couldn’t have said that about 60 hours ago.

* * * * *

Now the results are arriving, but this hockey club remains far from full throttle. They’re scaring no one right now. Baby steps toward competency.

We don’t have anything approaching answers for why so sour a streak could have enveloped so strong a club for so long; we have educated guesses, but no answers. We also don’t yet know for sure that this club possesses the leadership required to prosper when it counts most. And so a regular season challenged in meaning four weeks ago now has delivered a crucible of a question near its midpoint, the answer to which ought to be rendered in the second half, and most especially next spring.

One elephant-in-the-room question looms over this franchise: what is wrong with the captain? He’s scored a grand total of 2 goals in his last 19 games. Most checking line forwards are superior producers. What gives?

Think back to his rookie season, when his surrounding personnel was so comparatively unimpressive, and how easily goal scoring came to him then. The greatest scorers in league history endure rough patches of drought, but what Ovi’s enduring in the back half of 2010 is as stunning as it is inexplicable.

* * * * *

Tuesday was a night to salute the reinforcements from Hershey. Andrew Gordon, off of a spectacular feed from Marcus Johansson, tallied his first-ever NHL marker. Jay Beagle notched his first NHL tally of the season. Perreault was kept off the scoresheet but was shifty and active and a catalyst again. “A lot of Bears on the board” is the way John Carlson (+4) described the evening. “I thought they all played great,” the head coach said of his Hershey imports. “They had lots of energy, they followed direction and they played with passion and enthusiasm. When you do that, usually, no matter what league you’re in you’re going to have success.”

Gordon is far and away the most sincere, the most pleasant, and the most thoughtful hockey player I’ve ever interviewed. That beaming smile you saw of his as the Versus cameras panned in on him is SOP for his labor at the rink. He treats every interrogatory like it’s a privilege. He is just a class kid. If you’re not rooting for Andrew Gordon to make it in the big league there’s a malignancy in your hockey heart.

* * * * *

In the place of conference superiority entitlement, the Caps late in 2010 look required to battle for division and conference supremacy during the season’s second half. Relative to the past couple of seasons, and most particularly in consideration of their postseason returns, doesn’t that strike you as potentially a good thing?

* * * * *

Some perspective on NHL wins and losses: We might enjoy a white Christmas in Washington this year. The last relatively significant snow event on that day here occurred in 1962. I’ve long associated blanketing snow with coveted tranquility and redemptive spirituality. That is until I read Mary Rogan’s profile of Brian Burke in the forthcoming January issue of GQ. Burke of course lost his 21-year-old son Brendan back in February, when his car careened into an oncoming track during a severe winter storm. The searing image of this profile is of Burke’s being haunted by thoughts of the final 10 seconds of his lost son’s life.

Rogan writes: “At his feet, on the weathered deck, are wet blotches from the tears [Burke] can’t slap away fast enough. “Brendan died alone in the snow,” he sobs. “And it haunts me that the last ten seconds of his life were filled with terror.”

Do yourself a favor and read this tour de force of journalism this holiday season, and if you’re a prayerful person join me in asking God to grace Brian Burke with the arrival of elusive peace and tranquility — most particularly when it snows.

* * * * *

After his practice skate Friday morning Mike Knuble obliged a youth’s request to part with his stick, which he signed. But of course one youth’s lottery winning with an NHLer’s stick is another’s loss out at kid-packed Kettler. Knuble, taking notice of the disappointment that accompanied his generosity, looked down at the disappointed lad and said,”Next time, I’ll remember you. The kid with a cut on his chin.” The wager here is that indeed the Caps’ right wing comes up with another stick soon for the kid with the nicked chin. Maybe even today.

* * * * *

Craig Laughlin made his maiden appearance at training camp, having just returned from Canada and a summer-long hosting of his summer hockey camp. His thoughts related to the few open roster spots were the popular topic of the morning in the media work room. The long-time Caps’ broadcaster doesn’t see much in the way of competition remaining — if there ever was any. The forward lines are basically set, he suggested, with an extra body perhaps slated for the fourth line, and there’s little doubt about one through five on the Caps’ blueline. I think he’s right. Of Marcus Johansson, who’s had a solid camp thus far? “No way,” said Laughlin. Too much to ask of a kid making the transition from Europe to North American pro puck, the broadcaster claimed. Maybe he’s been reading this blog.

I also had a chance to ask Laughlin about the Southeast division in 2010-11. I suggested to him that few observers believe the Caps are weaker than they were a year ago, and so subsequently a division foe would have to make a dramatic improvement just to halve the Caps’ nearly 40-point division title margin of a season ago. He predicted the Caps winning the division by 20 points, with Tampa improving significantly. That does seem to be the conventional wisdom this preseason.

* * * * *

My sample set is admittedly small, but for my digital recorder there is no more engaging and thoughtful and pleasant an interview in all of hockey than Andrew Gordon. After his workout Friday, still in his gear and soaked with sweat, he obliged a Washington Post interview request, and when that ended I approached him. “I’ve got just two questions for you, Andrew,” I said. “And I’ve got two answers for you,” the right wing replied, beaming. Always he’s smiling and good-natured and blissfully free of cliche and canned response in every encounter with media I’ve observed, here and in Hershey.

* * * * *

Cody Eakin is impressing, no question about it. “He hasn’t looked out of place, I can tell you that,” Gabby said of Eakin. “It’s not like you can tell he’s an 18- or 19-year-old. His maturity is I think beyond his years.” He’s pushing some older guys for a job, the coach added.

* * * * *

Training camp of course is a great deal of work for its participants, filled with scripted drills, lots of conditioning, lots of off-ice workouts. It’s a real grind. Especially for veterans. And so I was curious to see if guys at camp would identify the experience as also affording any moments of genuine fun. I got some interesting reflections on Friday about this.

“It is all about conditioning and preparation and all about business to make the team,” Tomas Fleischmann told me. “But you always get fun if you are spending time with guys in the dressing room. Seeing guys every day and making jokes . . . it’s a way to relax.”

Gym rat Andrew Gordon would have none of my suggesting that conditioning and weight training wasn’t fun. “I think all the preparation and conditioning is fun, for me anyways. I like going to the gym, I like being in shape. Andrew Joudrey and I take [fitness] very seriously all summer long. He’s my workout partner at home.

“It’s fun to come out and have the coaches try to work you into the ground and then you’re not that upset about it. When you work hard you know it’s for a reason and that it’s going to translate to game situations.”

I asked Gordon what he enjoyed doing away from the rink during camp to give his body a bit of a break from all the rigor. This week, he told me, he’s been helping Tyler Sloan “lug furniture up to the 19th floor” of the defenseman’s apartment building. Note to self: Don’t R&R with Gordo.

The ultimate rink rat in the Capitals’ organization, I’ve learned in recent years, is Mathieu Perreault. No surprise: he fairly detests off days, and he spends them wishing he was playing hockey.

“I enjoy playing so much, even the drills,” Matty told me. “I love the game so much that even on the days off, at my house, I’m like, ‘What am I going to do today, I want to play hockey.’ To me being here just to practice is fun.”

Otherwise, Sunday’s action was confined to group B’s end of the ice, as C’s line of Jason Chimera, Mathieu Perreault, and Eric Fehr inflicted heavy damage in the second stanza en route to a 5-0 white-washing. Perreault was a standout performer on the afternoon, notching a goal, an assist, and setting up his linemates for numerous other outstanding scoring opportunities. Andrew Gordon, Keith Aucoin, and Francois Bouchard also offered active and productive shifts for group C, and accounted for the scrimmage’s first tally. Bruce Boudreau credited group C’s waves of forward unit speed, preying upon a relatively young and inexperienced set of B blueliners (excepting Tom Poti and John Erskine). Boudreau counted three breakaways by Chimera alone.

But B, bearing the line of Brooks Laich, Flash, and Alexander Semin, ought to have established more of an offensive threat. On this second day of camp, though, it wasn’t meant to be for B.

(At last year’s camp I wrote about potentially incorporating the names of Capitals’ greats from the past as identifiers for the groups in the Duchesne Cup competition. Team Langway, Team Hunter, Team Kolzig, that kind of thing. Would be so much more interesting — and less awkward a set of identifiers — than the lifeless alphabet approach. Maybe next year.)

On the dasher boards in front of both player benches at Kettler this season there’s a new message carried out in a bright red banner and white lettering: ‘Building America’s Hockey Capital.’ It’s no clever corporate sloganeering, just a faith statement seemingly crafted by this message- and branding-savvy hockey organization. It seemed an accurate and appropriate claim to broadcast on this sunny, still-summer NFL Sunday as an overflow crowd packed the practice facility. The popularity Perreault achieved among the red-clad in Verizon Center last season apparently has carried over to KCI and training camp this fall. Urgings on his behalf could be heard regularly as he quarterbacked an impressive attack during the scrimmage.

Boudreau isn’t being coy about the pairings he’s assembled on camp’s first weekend. He’s admitted that he’s paired John Carlson and Karl Alzner together based on reports and first-hand vewings from Hershey last season, where the pair formed what many American League observers regarded was the best blueline duo on the circuit, as well as the pair’s success briefly in Washington last spring. And so the Chimera-Perreault-Fehr grouping up front could be more than a whim of an experiment as well at this camp.

Andrew Gordon got C’s onslaught started in the first frame off a deft setup from Aucoin. Brian Fahey, who skated with Lake Erie of the American League last season, formed an effective blueline pairing with Joe Finley on Sunday and sent a dribbler through traffic and past Michal Neuvirth to send his squad into the first intermission up 2-0. The first two frames were contested on a running clock, but it didn’t run fast enough for group B in the second stanza. A Chimera breakaway made it 3-0. And on a power play Perreault executed a superb keep-in high in the offensive zone that led to an Eric Fehr tap-in to make it 4-0. Perreault then finished the scoring cleaning up a rebound not long afterward.

It’s the most important audition to date in Perreault’s life. He’s off to a flying start.

The 120-pt.-plus Capitals need an oil change and a new set of tires in this inspection season.

It’s the Rangers who need an engine overhaul.

Automotive tinkering in hockey — new lubricant for efficient engine running, newness of tire treads — principally (but not entirely) arrives from the farm garage, I think. George McPhee has already inspected his engine a bit and identified some well-worn parts: Morrisonn/Morrison valves; a Walker spark plug; a Jurcina gasket; a Corvo thermostat; a Theodore muffler.

But there are two important parts George McPhee has to order on special, for they’re not in his garage: a second-line center and a shutdown Dman.

Let’s start with the most difficult part to replace.

Mike Green, methinks, is a hybrid of a blueliner, a designation that by now ought to be accepted and even celebrated by Capitals’ fans. He works well in this sportscar’s engine. He isn’t the type of part you put in the engine of a family sedan, but if you want to motor out on the Autobahn, spend the dough and rev it up. But accelerating as he does, he’s apt to run hot with overuse. He needs an important supporting part. It’s not in the best interest of this sportscar to treat his overuse with Schultz duct tape.

A Hockeys Future respondent ID’d as Atlas recently went a bit beyond the garage metaphor in describing this challenge:

“The problem with Green, IMO is the same as the problem with Semin. BB expected top production from both guys while matching them with subpar NHL players. Green’s interview after the loss to Montreal looks legit to me. He was pissed. He’s a Canadian boy who cares. I’ll take that. But if he’s gonna be the #1 D you’ve got to pair him with a stud defensive player who can pick up his slack a little. Schultz is a pylon. He doesn’t scare Richards, Carter, Malkin, Crosby. Schultz wouldn’t hurt a fly. He’s a nice guy and I’d buy him a beer but in the NHL playoffs if he’s in the top defensive pair your team will lose. Pronger is on the other side killing babies and Schultz is baking cookies.”

A little vehicular manslaughter is in order on our roadtrip to glory, this HF poster might posit. I would agree that Chris Pronger is a Pirelli on grade A muscle car. Ready to add Pirelli models Carlson and Alzner on the back of their car this summer, can the Capitals locate a third opposite Green via free agency?

I think so. His name is Anton Volchenkov. He’s perhaps the premiere shotblocking blueliner on the planet (insomuch as he blocks every shot Alexander Ovechkin takes). He also likes to throw his weight around. There are reports that the Captials aren’t the least bit interested in his services. Maybe. But I wonder.

Volchenkov is 28, not in his middle thirties as were Michael Nylander or Brendan Morrison or Mike Knuble when they were acquired via free agency. While virtually universally regarded as the premiere UFA blueliner available this summer, Volchenkov’s not expected to command anything close to a Pronger salary or term. Given the Capitals’ glaring need at the top of their blueline, given the relatively little wear on Volchenkov’s tires, were the Capitals not to pursue him, whom exactly would they ever go after in free agency?

I also wonder this: just as George McPhee has acknowledged that he has an ace card to play with premiere Russian talent at every Entry Draft, could it not also be the case that he’d have one with premiere Russian UFAs? Could it not be the case that he could — were he interested — lure someone like Volchenkov to D.C. without necessarily ponying up the market’s best contract? I wonder.

It’s unfair to Jeff Schultz to place him again in the role demanded of him last season. He is serviceable rather than shutdown. He could excel in a more modest role on the Capitals’ blueline. He’s a spare tire of sorts.

A second-line center is another glaring part needed for a longer, safer roadtrip next postseason. In the unrestricted free agency market this summer, however, that candidate part isn’t nearly so identifiable. It’s highly likely that the Capitals have this player in their development pipeline (Mathieu Perreault; Evgeny Kuznetsov; perhaps Marcus Johansson), however in the here and now that part must be ordered.

A trade with another auto shop manager is probably required.

And in changing out his engine’s oil Mechanic McPhee likely has all the grades he needs in his Hershey garage. I’m not sure Andrew Gordon has any more to prove as a Bear. He’s a terrific skater and he uses his speed to deliver hard and bruising thumps. The Caps could use a little more thumping in their lineup. And speaking of bruising thumping, I’d really like to see Steve Pinizzotto given a real long look at fall camp. The road ahead is bumpy indeed; it’s good to have reliable shock absorbers.

photo by On Frozen Blog

I watched John Carlson skate around Giant Center ice in the early moments of his team’s Calder title celebration Monday night with a cell phone to his ear, his eyes scanning the stands, and in that moment I thought of another Captain America in skates, Jim Craig, 30 years earlier, and his iconic search for his father in the stands at Lake Placid, American flag draped over his shoulders.

That image of Craig overpowers the rest of that aspect of his story, doesn’t it — all these years later I can’t quite remember if and when he found his father in the Olympic rink that day. Well, John Carlson had no trouble locating his family Monday night; they joined him on the ice moments later, and I was fortunate enough to meet them. The mother of Captain America 2010 emailed me a few times this past season, expressing appreciation for our coverage, but Monday night she was overseas on business, I learned from her sister and John’s stepfather. In mom’s absence the rest of the family offered me hearty handshakes and warm words that I’ll carry with me all summer long.

Standing among the Carlson clan I wondered how many hockey games young Carlson had played over the course of 2009-10, and his stepfather told me, “Tonight makes one hundred and one — not counting the World Juniors!” I got tired just thinking about such a slate.

Family is so central to the development of hockey players, and in this apex moment in hockey Monday it struck me as powerfully appropriate, and wonderfully warming, to see so much family out on that ice sheet, sharing embraces, exchanging kisses, holding and squeezing hands, laughing gleefully and most especially savoring and securing the moment with hand-helds directed at their brothers, sons, boyfriends, and husbands in skates.

Ray Bourque stood out prominently among the throng of family and girlfriends and friends gathered around the jubilant Bears. Chris’ younger brother Ryan, himself a gifted hockey player, was on the ice as well. The Bourque men bear a striking resemblance to one another. I was able to snap a photo of the Bourques gathered around Chris holding his just-earned Calder Cup playoff MVP trophy.

All forms of media were on the ice amid the celebration, and with respect to those on hard deadline, I could understand their need to interrupt the camaraderie and exuberance to get reaction, but I made a point of trying to remain a bit on the periphery and carefully and respectfully pick my spots to engage players and their families. I found Andrew Gordon alone for a moment and I told him that if things don’t work out in his hockey playing career he had a star candidacy as a hockey blogger. He got a good laugh out of that. If you didn’t follow the finals diary he kept for the wonderful blog Russian Machine Never Breaks, do yourself a favor and start at its beginning and enjoy Gordo’s prose gift to Hershey and Washington hockey fans that followed each game.

Among all the images of family and loving support I bore witness to within that jubilation scene Monday night the most indelible was that exhibited by sports’ best band of brothers: unleashed elation, teammate upon teammate. It was unbridled and boundless and beautiful. Its sound was so striking — banshee screams of glee, nickname to nickname, followed by what appeared to be bruising hugs. All unrehearsed of course, all so organic, and yet also seemingly so orchestrated in its fluid joy.

There was one other family prominently portrayed in the title-glow of Giant Center Monday night — thousands of Bears’ supporters on the other side of the plexiglass. Perhaps a dozen Bears’ players skated along the boards during the celebration and pointed hand-helds at their admirers, a hockey team and hockey town at one in passion and elation.

photo by On Frozen Blog

photo by On Frozen Blog

photo by On Frozen Blog

photo by On Frozen Blog

photo by On Frozen Blog

Trailing 2-0 well into period three Saturday, Hershey confronted the very real possibility of losing game 6 and facing Jonathon Bernier, one of the best young goaltenders on the planet, in an all-deciding game 7.

Squandered opportunity to eliminate an upstart underdog on home ice. Uber-talented and white hot netminder at the other end of the ice. Skaters in front of him, line after line, committed to playing a collapsing, shot-blocking umbrella in front of their goalie, caring little about attacking at the other end. A huge upset in the brewing. Where have we seen this postseason script before?

Making matters worse, a healthy contingent of Washington media was clogging the Giant Center press box Saturday night, bringing with them very bad playoff Mojo. Consider: Hershey entered play Saturday night boasting a tidy 36-1 record their past 37 games at Giant Center. Nearing the midway mark of the final frame Saturday, the Bears had a goose egg on the scoreboard. I was making plans to follow Sunday’s game 7 in the Giant Center parking lot, via John Walton’s radio call. Hockey friendships can only endure so much bad luck in spring.

But overtime, this postseason, belongs to the Bears. Saturday night marked the eighth time this postseason Hershey had to work overtime. They’ve now won seven of them, thanks to Boyd Kane’s heroics 7:06 into the extra session, his first score of the 2010 postseason. The Bears’ seventh triumph in OT this postseason established a new American League record.

“We play with a different swagger in overtime,” Bears bench boss Mark French said afterward. “I don’t say much to them [in the room awaiting OT]. They seem to know what they’re doing.”

Kane, who’d replaced injured Andrew Gordon on the top Bears’ line, was dropped off it in game 6 in favor of Jay Beagle. It was startling to see the Hershey first unit struggle mightily all night, after spending so much of the past two seasons terrorizing the American League in near 100-points-apiece fashion. Earlier this season a number of writers covering the ‘A’ attributed Gordon’s eye-popping production this season (37 goals, 34 assists) to his feeding like a pilot fish hovering about two Great Whites. To watch Keith Aucoin and Alexandre Giroux Saturday night, however, was to suspect that Gordon was very much the missing cog on the top line.

The Bears skated with discipline Saturday night — they didn’t take a single penalty in any of the four frames. But they did not quite skate with a sense of urgency through 40 minutes. Manchester suffocated and frustrated.  The Bears managed just four shots in the first period, two of them coming in the final 90 seconds.

“They’re very committed defensively,” French noted. “They didn’t care what they generated offensively. If you’re picking a strategy to play against us it’s a pretty good one.”

“When things don’t go our way we seem to get frustrated.”

Part of Hershey’s frustration was self-inflicted: they appeared to over-respect Bernier, passing up wide open shots from prime range in favor of pretty passes seeking sweet scores. In playoff hockey, however, ugly scoring usually wins the beauty contest. The Bears generated no traffic in front of Bernier while skating scoreless through the first two periods. Then came a desperation third period, bringing with it a lunch pail ethos and dirty nose drive and determination.

Giroux got Hershey on the board at 7:37 of the final frame, knocking in a reboound while stationed right in front of Bernier. Patrick McNeill knotted the game up at 2 at 14:09 with a seeing-eye shot from the point — but with Francois Bouchard performing pest-work in front of the Monarchs’ netminder. And in OT, Kane banged home a centering feed from Kyle Wilson from about three feet in front of Bernier. Three goals, all aided by sacrifice and grunt work in front of the crease.

How are great goalies most often beaten in big playoff games? With dirty-nose drive directed at chaos-making about the crease. The Bears on Saturday night needed to endure 40-plus minutes of frightening frustration before they warmed to the workman-like task.

And Hershey’s star performers did what stars must do in tough times. Giroux got the home club ignited. Michal Neuvirth held the fort when it was 2-0 Monarchs and a third Manchester goal could have been lights out. John Carlson and Karl Alzner again shined as Mark French’s top blueline pairing.

“I thought Alex [Giroux] struggled tonight,” French acknowledged. “But great players have the ability to rise at important times.”

Boyd Kane picked a very important time to notch his first goal in these playoffs. A Giant center throng in excess of 10,000, provided with noisemakers upon their arrival, needed none of them to shake the Center roof as Kane’s teammates mobbed him at center ice, yet another Eastern conference title secured.

The French Connection poses with its parking lot posse

If you had his game you could wear this suit too

The series-winning goalie signs . . . and signs . . . and signs

. . . and signs

Hershey’s 32 points on the season afford them a 7-pt. cushion for first place in the AHL’s East division over second-place Binghamton and a 10-pt. comfort zone over the mini-Mullets. Such an occasion calls for some aural reveling splendor with the voice of the Bears, John Walton:

Andrew Gordon strikes

Darren Reid ices it

But back in the American League, it was also a memorable night for first-year center Trevor Bruess, signed by the Caps’ this past spring out of Minnesota State. He scored his first goal as a pro last night in Hershey’s 5-2 triumph on the road in Binghamton. John Walton had the call:

Click for John Walton’s call of Trevor Bruess’ first AHL goal

Thanks to the rolling wave of injuries, two more are coming from Hershey (one for the first time).  From the press release:

ARLINGTON, VA – The Washington Capitals have recalled defensemen Bryan Helmer and forward Andrew Gordon from the Hershey Bears of the American Hockey League (AHL), vice president and general manager George McPhee announced today.

Helmer, 36, is a 6’1″, 215-pound 16-year pro from Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. He is the Bears captain and is the active AHL games played (894) and assists (361) leader. The undrafted Helmer, No. 43 with Washington, has 11 assists in 25 AHL games with year. He was recently named captain for the Canadian team in next month’s AHL All-Star Classic. This is Helmer’s second recall of the year, as he recorded one assist in six games with the Capitals from Nov. 28 – Dec. 10. He has 24 points (8g-16a) in 140 career NHL games with Washington, Phoenix, Vancouver and St. Louis.

Gordon, 23, is a 6’0″, 185-pound second-year pro from Halifax, Nova Scotia. He has 20 points (10g-10a) in 30 AHL games this year and is one of only four Bears to have double-digit goals and assists. Gordon has two game-winning goals and has tallied at least one point in 15 games this season.

He was the Capitals’ seventh-round choice, 197th overall, in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft. Gordon skated in 58 games for Hershey last year and in 11 for the ECHL’s South Carolina Stingrays. He ranked third in Hershey and tied for fourth among AHL rookies with 51 points (16g-35a) and tied for second on the team and was fifth among AHL rookies in assists. Gordon, No. 63 with Washington, led Hershey in playoff scoring with five points (3g-2a) in five games. He had 14 points (8g-6a) in the regular season for South Carolina last year and tallied eight points (5g-3a) in nine playoff games for the Stingrays.

Helmer and Gordon are available to play tonight when Washington faces the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden. Gordon would be making his NHL debut.