прибытие в театры большого и вынуждать и культур-уничтожая отечественного киноего. I’m speaking of course of the new Batman movie, ‘The Dark Knight.’ It isn’t merely exceptionally well reviewed by critics, who are discussing it in terms of Oscars and “classic.” For its Uptown Theater debut Thursday night at midnight city youths arrived to stand in line some time near 2:00 that afternoon — in Washington July heat. It will be even hotter this weekend, and thousands more, already with tickets, will stand in line hours just to get the seats they want for the screening.

If you can imagine, the nationwide midnight screenings of the film Thursday grossed nearly $20 million. To put that number in terms we hockey fans can understand, that’s a Koules-Aid kind of July budget for free agency to assemble a lottery contender for next June.

Area theaters will have Batman screenings this weekend beginning at 9:00 a.m.! The notion of arriving at any area theater this weekend a few minutes before screening and securing just a single ticket is preposterous. By early yesterday afternoon Craigslist had pages of the movie’s tickets for sale priced solidly above regular box office rate.

Yesterday I found myself marveling at so novel a cultural moment, grateful for its very belated arrival but also melancholy when I considered that Hollywood needs more or less a full decade to render it. It’s true: approximately 99.7 percent of domestic cinematic fare is altogether ordinary or outright rotten. The true gotta-see-it — because of its greatness — cinema spectacle is in frequency of theater runs not dissimilar to the prevalence of Alexander Ovechkins in NHL entry drafts. Anyway, as Americans, we have a special place in our hearts for the buzz-generators on the big-screen that actually deliver the goods. So it’s a moment indeed to savor — history suggests that we won’t see it again for quite some time.

This special moment also led me to think of something special in hockey being crafted, right here in Washington. Like the great summer blockbuster, it’s exceptionally rare for hockey here. It could very well be the case that Verizon Center, beginning this October, will be akin to the great old moviehouse showing just a single feature, for months on end, with weekend tickets very much in demand.

I wouldn’t quite call the 2008-09 Capitals’ season a sequel, however. I think in its forecasted critical acclaim, in its culminating sense of a roster’s arriving very near the peak of elite contention, it will very much be a first run of its kind.

The differences from a summer ago are rather extraordinary. In July 2007 Washington hockey fans thought they had a gifted young star left wing in Alexander Ovechkin. But in his coming off a 46-goal campaign in his sophomore season, most here hoped he’d merely return to the 50-goal club in season three. Who then thought that he’d fairly obliterate competition for the Hart Trophy last season? Today he is regarded as a game-changing force, and the greatest player on the planet.

Additionally, last summer no one even in team management knew that a no. 1 stud of a defender was already in the organization, and poised to break out. But Mike Green will enter the 2008-09 season on a short list of Norris trophy candidates.

Count Brooks Laich as a key component to a glory run in 2008-09, and yet a summer ago he was in a fierce competition among a seeming glut of third and fourth-line center candidates just to make the club. Indeed, if any of the organization’s young centers was thought to have some unexpected offensive upside heading into last season, it was Boyd Gordon, who in ‘06-07 fell one point shy of 30 and flashed a penchant for fits and bursts of well-timed production. Now Laich’s regarded as one of the league’s bright young two-way pivots. And paid like it.

Last summer, who would have imagined that a hockey legend (Sergei Fedorov) would arrive here two-thirds of the way through the season and settle a green and nervous young roster and guide it to an against-all-odds Southeast division title? And then announce, mere weeks after his arrival here, that the atmosphere in Verizon Center ranked as the best he’d ever competed in, and that despite the formation of a very well funded super league in his home country of Russia, that he’d very much like a return engagement in Washington?

There are, indisputably, one or two important areas for Director Boudreau to address in final editing this summer, one of which (the acting in net) is largely out of his control. But given that all of the East’s well built teams for next season possess question marks of their own, it’s certain that the Caps will enter 2008-09 as consensus contenders in the East. They possess star quality principal actors, on-screen chemistry in abundance, and a director newly acknowledged by his peers to be among the best in the business.

Actually, insomuch as there looks to be high-achieving hockey rostered both in Washington and in Hershey this coming season, we appear slated for long run of a great double feature.

Filed in Alexander Ovechkin, American Hockey League, Boyd Gordon, Brooks Laich, Bruce Boudreau, Hershey Bears, Mike Green, Morning cup-a-joe, Nicklas Backstrom, Sergei Fedorov, Verizon Center, Washington Capitals| Permalink| Comments (4)

Gabby Gets Honored

By pucksandbooks
Thursday, July 17, 2008
AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Frank Gunn

AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Frank Gunn

Tim Leone, blogging for the Patriot News, captured as he always does the flavor of the moment in Harrisburg, Pa., yesterday, where Caps’ head coach Bruce Boudreau was honored alongside Bears’ GM Doug Yingst. The Dauphin County Commissioners declared Wednesday Bruce Boudreau Day in the county. Bears’ GM Yingst was also honored for his years of service to his community.

Gabby the stand-up comedian was in good form for the occasion.

“I can honestly say that I never used steroids,” he cracked.

Bears’ winger Louis Robitaille attended the ceremony, which, Leone pointed out, “set up an easy one-liner when Commissioner George Hartwick said that Boudreau’s recognition also included a get out of jail free card for the day.

“I’ll give it to Louis,” Boudreau quipped.

Broadcast coverage of Gabby’s big day can be followed via this link to CBS affiliate WHP out of Harrisburg.

[Update] Be sure to check out John Walton’s blog entry which depicts the events leading up to events at the Dauphin County Commissioners office.  It is sure to warm your heart and soul.

Filed in American Hockey League, Bruce Boudreau, Hershey Bears, Hockey, Washington Capitals| Permalink| Comments (0)

On the Road Again for Rock

By pucksandbooks
Thursday, July 17, 2008

I’m in Hershey amid some Bears’ hard-rockers for the Rush concert in Hershey Stadium tonight. I’ve had good sport with DC Sports Chick the past 24 hours, whose Canuck husband wanted to name their first child Geddy (irrespective of gender) but who herself would prefer a life free of any more Spirit of the Radio. When I learned yesterday that the band would be making their first television appearance in more than 30 years Wednesday night, on The Colbert Report, I made sure she knew right away [Colbert: "The band Rush is here tonight . . . either that or a drum factory exploded in my studio . . . They are the J.D. Salinger of Canadian pro rock."] Then later yesterday the band turned up as one of Yahoo’s most popular search topics. (I informed her of that as well.)

Still later yesterday I found this on YouTube: a 9-year-old gallantly attempting to play Rush’s shimmering new acoustic track ‘Hope’ at a music recital. I suggested to my music-challenged bloggermate that if under-10 youths were finding inspiration still in these Great White North geezers’ tuneage, that that suggested some level of cultural currency and relevancy. When you consider how small this 9-year-old’s hands are, and the relative weakness of his fingers, the recital result is rather stunning — certainly he captures the track’s basic melody :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WndCYpPGayI

Master Lifeson performs the adult version of ‘Hope’ live here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qxHYhsQKvYM

Filed in American Hockey League, Frivolous Summer File, Hershey Bears, Music, Rush| Permalink| Comments (5)

Ahead, a Promising Harvest on the Farm

By pucksandbooks
Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Development camps such as that recently completed by the Capitals have a way of imbuing DraftGeeks and even the more balanced of hockey fan with horizons of heightened optimism. Always it seems there are a handful of young standouts there, among them compelling stories of no-name collegians or free agents making next-season names for themselves. This July’s camp in Washington was no different. Jake Hausworth, a USHL graduate (Omaha) headed for Michigan Tech this autumn, may in his hockey career make no greater imprint than what he did in Washington this past week. All that would make him, then, would be a special hockey player.

Capitals’ fans, I think, ought to delight in the accomplishments of the team’s scouts — high in drafts with lottery selections but also deep into draft Saturdays (Perreault, Gordon). Hershey Bears’ fans, however, ought to be downright giddy at what’s coming their way this autumn, in year four of the team’s affiliation with the Caps.

It’s not out of the realm of possibility, for instance, that Hershey hockey fans could see more of Eric Fehr this coming season. The injury-hampered right wing signed a two-way deal with the Caps last week. He gave great effort in D.C. upon his recall last spring, but a full season of apprentice seasoning in Hershey, earning top line minutes, may not be the worst thing for his career development.

I’m imagining an Eric Fehr, Chris Bourque, Mathieu Perreault, Sami Lepisto, and Andrew Gordon Bears power play at the moment . . . Fehr and Gordon owning the corners, Perreault and CBourque with the puck Krazy-Glued to their sticks, Lepisto making like Mike Green with his passing and hockey sense on the point . . .

Mother, hold me.

Oh, and there’s a bit of a talent infusion in net in the organization to discuss this summer.

Last September, Capitals’ rookies reported first to fall camp and, on Saturday, September 8, skated an exhibition game at the Philadelphia Flyers’ practice facility in Voorhees, N.J. Plans call for the Flyers to reciprocate, and visit Kettler Capitals this September. The Caps haven’t finalized a date for that game yet, but it promises to be a spirited, first-of-its kind event for the facility. If this past Saturday’s SRO turnout for Development Camp’s concluding scrimmage is any indication, Craigslist and or eBay may be involved in admissions with that Rookie Camp tilt.

That game may also inaugurate a season-long intrigue affair between Washington hockey fans and the team’s prospects in Hershey. It’s no secret that the affiliation between the Caps and Bears has been a fruitful one — really a perfect one in terms of the parent club drafting well and feeding quality to the farm, as well as offering fans a friendly proximity by which to travel to one another’s games. But what’s in store this coming season on the farm may be the most appealing that the affiliation has offered to date.

For this coming season in Hershey there will be bluechip prospects for the Caps dressed in Bears’ sweaters at virtually every position, from the goal cage on out: a Rookie of the Year in Finland’s top professional league; an MVP of the QMJHL; the two most recent scoring champions from the Q; at least one member of Team Canada’s gold-medal-winning World Junior champions last year; the backstopper of five shutouts in Russia’s top professional league this most recent postseason; potentially two OHL All -Stars. In other words: fairly an embarrassment of prospect riches.

We live-blogged from Kettler this past Saturday, and joining us in the fun was Bears’ PR guy Chris Poisal. If you followed our musings you absorbed Chris’ significant enthusiasm for the coming campaign. Last year’s Bears may have been somewhat short in the leadership department, and ravaged by injury beyond belief, but this summer’s signings of Dean Arsene, Keith Aucoin, and Hershey 2006 Calder Cup hero Graham Mink have vanquished any leadership concerns. They’ll be expected to mentor a crop of recent Caps’ draft picks abundant in skill but relatively short on pro league experience.

Alluding to Hershey’s offseason signings, and the promise of more help arriving from the parent club, Bears’ head coach Bob Woods on Saturday said, “Leadership was the big thing we were looking to move on, and while we don’t know what’s going to happen here [in Washington] in the fall, you get a [Keith] Aucoin, you get a [Graham] Mink, a healthy [Dean] Arsene back, now you’ve filled a lot of those voids.

“We’ve got a great group of young guys returning,” he added.

Woods admitted that in net, “we’re gonna be young, but from what I’ve seen this week, there’s a lot of promise there.

“Look at a team like Wilkes Barre last year,” he added, “They had two rookie goaltenders and they went right to the finals.”

The ride ought to be fun, and entertaining. A potent potential lineup could include a lot of these names:

Alexandre Giroux Keith Aucoin Eric Fehr/Graham Mink
Chris Bourque Kyle Wilson Andrew Gordon
Oskar Osala Mathieu Perreault / Jay Beagle Francois Bouchard
Maxime Lacroix Andrew Joudrey Scott Barney
Dean Arsene Sami Lepisto
Josh Godfrey Tyler Sloan
Patrick McNeill/Sasha Pokulok
Machesney / Varlamov
Filed in American Hockey League, Andrew Gordon, Chris Bourque, College Hockey, Development Camp, Eric Fehr, Free Agents, Hershey Bears, Kettler Capitals Iceplex, Mathieu Perreault, Minor Pro Hockey, Morning cup-a-joe, Oskar Osala, Prospects, Rookie Camp, Sami Lepisto, Simeon Varlamov, Training Camp, Washington Capitals| Permalink| Comments (19)

2008 Development Camp Final Scrimmage Live Blog

By The OFB Team
Saturday, July 12, 2008

Join us at 10:00am today when we will join Eric McErlain of the Sporting News and the AOL Fanhouse and Chris Poisal, Public Relations Assistant for the Hershey Bears, for some live blogging of the action. If you cannot make it out to Kettler, join us right here with your Saturday morning cup-a-joe.

Filed in Blogs, Development Camp, Francois Bouchard, Hershey Bears, Internet, John Carlson, Josh Godfrey, Karl Alzner, Keith Seabrook, Mathieu Perreault, Michal Neuvirth, OFB, Oskar Osala, Sasha Pokulok, Simeon Varlamov, Washington Capitals| Permalink| Comments (7)

A Bear Cub on IR

By The OFB Team
Friday, July 11, 2008

Our thoughts this morning are with John Walton and his family, in Cincinnati, where John’s son Jack is having surgery today. We’re expecting him to be good and healed up and ready for Caps’ and Bears’ training camps come fall.

Filed in American Hockey League, Hardcore Hockey Fans, Hershey Bears, John Walton| Permalink| Comments (1)

Saturday Live Blogging from Kettler Capitals

By The OFB Team
Thursday, July 10, 2008
For this Saturday’s Development Camp concluding scrimmage at 10:00, we’ll join Eric McErlain of the Sporting News and the AOL Fanhouse and Chris Poisal, Public Relations Assistant for the Hershey Bears, for some live blogging of the action. For those of you who cannot make it out to Kettler, join us right here with your Saturday morning cup-a-joe.
Filed in Blogs, Development Camp, Hershey Bears, Internet, Kettler Capitals Iceplex, Media, Prospects, Washington Capitals| Permalink| Comments (0)

Ten Top Storylines for Development Camp 2008

By pucksandbooks
Monday, July 7, 2008

This morning the Capitals welcome 21 skaters and 4 goaltenders to their 2008 Development Camp. Almost all of the campers are recent Caps’ draft picks, and first-rounders from each of the the team’s past four drafts are present (Alzner, Varlamov, Carlson, Pokulok).

Camp will culminate with a 10:00 scrimmage on Saturday. Hockey is back! Herewith, 10 top storylines to follow at this July’s camp:

(10) All Eyes on Alzner. 2007 first round pick Karl Alzner impressed observers of Development Camp last July, and then he went on to captain the gold medal winning Canadians at the World Junior Championships in December and earn WHL Defenseman of the Year and Player of the Year honors with the Calgary Hitmen. Not a bad season, huh? As soon as his season in Calgary was completed he was called up by Hershey, but the Bears didn’t advance out of the American League postseason’s first round, so he’s yet to get a taste of pro hockey. He’ll get a chance at training camp in September to crack the Caps’ opening night roster, but he can make a real strong impression on and off the ice this week.

(9) Souring on Sasha? No team got screwed more by Gary Bettman’s inane Entry Draft scheme during the summer lockout of 2005 than the Caps. The league all but came out and said that by virtue of having had the first pick in 2004, the Caps shouldn’t have a reasonable shot at it again. But outside the top 10? A pre-lockout cellar dwellar, the Caps drew the 14th pick in the first round in the ‘05 draft. A lot of quality was already off the table by then, including Sidney Crosby, Carey Price, Anze Kopitar, and Jack Johnson. The Caps took a gamble on Cornell defenseman Sasha Pokulok. He hasn’t impressed. This could be a make-or-break year for him. He’d do well to have a solid week.

(8) College Hockey’s Biggest Weekend Isn’t that Far Away. Washington will host its first-ever Frozen Four next spring, and the Frozen Four Organizing Committee will visit Kettler on Wednesday, conduct a meeting there, and take in that day’s scrimmage. I have plenty of questions I’d like to put to them.

(7) The Big Finn with the Big Game. Oskar Osala had a big year in 2007-08 with 18 goals and 35 points in 53 games with the Espoo Blues in Finland’s top pro league. The 6 ‘4, 217-lb. left wing was named the Finnish League’s Rookie of the Year. He also shined at the 2007 World Junior Championships, where he shared the lead in goal scoring with 5 goals in 6 games. A lot of folks from Hershey are excited to see him.

(6) Not that Carlson, but John’s Big and Physical Too. No relation to Jack, but John Carlson may well make a name for himself in pro hockey, too. The Caps may have landed another late first-round blueline gem last month with Carlson, who’s already blessed with a pro physique. His coach with the Indiana Ice of the USHL said of his defenseman, “without a doubt, he’s going to be a star in the NHL.”

(5) Media Matters. All of HockeyWashington was stunned by the breadth, depth, and overall quality of media coverage of the Caps this past spring. This week at Kettler — where there will be stories to tell — is an opportunity to see if that was anomalous. After all, the Redskins don’t report to training camp for another two weeks. Bloggers will be out at Kettler covering, and we hope to reprise our coalition from Entry Draft Friday and live blog this Saturday’s camp-concluding scrimmage.

(4) Where’s Big Joe? Joe Finley, Hurting Force, isn’t in town this week. The 2005 first-rounder showed a lot of promise at last summer’s Development Camp, and he also shook a lot of plexiglass with his corner work. The Capitals are going to great lengths to make this week appealing to Washington youths, and Finley’s instincts for violence may not have been a good fit for that agenda. He’ll be returning to North Dakota for his senior season with the Fighting Sioux this fall.

(3) They Harken from a Scorer’s League. The leading scorers from the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League each of the past two seasons, Francois Bouchard and Mathieu Perreault, will be present. Perreault in particular, with his dazzling stickwork-in-a-phone-booth and world-class agility and hockey sense, ought to be a fan favorite this week.

(2) Prior a Priority. Capitals’ Goaltender Coach Dave Prior has spent 11 seasons in Washington. He may not have a more important one than the one ahead. He will break in yet another no. 1 goalie in Jose Theodore — the team’s third in just the last six months — and perhaps just as importantly, in Simeon Varlamov and Michal Neuvirth tutor two of the organization’s finest goaltending prospects in 15 years. That work begins this week.

(1) Speaking of Goalies . . . It would be comforting for Capitals’ fans to see both Varlamov and Neuvirth stop every shot that each faces the entirety of this week.

Filed in American Hockey League, College Hockey, Development Camp, Francois Bouchard, Frozen Four, Hardcore Hockey Fans, Hershey Bears, Hockey Rituals, Joe Finley, John Carlson, Karl Alzner, Kettler Capitals Iceplex, Mathieu Perreault, Michal Neuvirth, Prospects, Sasha Pokulok, Simeon Varlamov, WJC, Washington Capitals| Permalink| Comments (10)

Welcoming Home a Warrior

By pucksandbooks
Wednesday, July 2, 2008

The Hershey Bears today announced the return of a key cog from a glorious past: Graham Mink will be back in a Bears’ sweater for the 2009-09 season. Mink played a huge role in the Bears’ 2006 Calder Cup championship. From the Bears’ press release:

“Mink, 29, returns to HERSHEY after two seasons with the Worcester Sharks (AHL).  In his two years in Massachusetts, he scored 55 goals and 118 points in 132 games played.  Despite the laudable personal statistics, the Sharks only played in six postseason games in that span. 

“It feels like I’m coming home” Mink said. ”We had so much success the year I was there, (in Hershey) and when you leave and don’t have that success, it makes you want it all the more.  Being a part of a championship team is an honor, and it’s something that meant so much to me. It’s something you strive for and something you want.” 

“Mink’s season in Hershey was one of the best statistical seasons of his career, as he compiled 21 goals and 40 points in just 43 regular season games.  He shone brightest in the 2006 Calder Cup Playoffs however, scoring eight goals and assisting on 13 others for 21 points in 21 games played.  Perhaps the biggest goal of his professional life came in Game 7 of the 2006 Eastern Conference Finals against the Portland Pirates when he scored in the closing moments to tie the game and force sudden death overtime.  With Eric Fehr’s eventual OT winner, the game put the Bears back in the Calder Cup Finals for the first time in nine seasons.

“Any given year, there are four or five teams that can win it all, and I want Hershey to be one of those teams this year” Mink said.  “It’s an honor to play for the HERSHEY BEARS, and I can’t wait for the season to start.”

Filed in American Hockey League, Calder Cup, Hershey Bears, Washington Capitals| Permalink| Comments (1)

A Draft Hole Impacting the Washington-Pittsburgh Rivalry Years Hence?

By The OFB Team
Monday, June 16, 2008

Below you will find the order of selection for next weekend’s first four rounds of the 2008 NHL Entry Draft, held in Ottawa. You will note from our highlighting in bold the wealth of selections the Capitals enjoy — six picks among the first 93 of the draft. This draft is universally regarded as distinctive for the quality of its depth; there will be solid NHL contributors selected liberally throughout rounds one, two, and three.

We would have you take particular note of the absence of any selections in the high-end range by your 2008 Eastern Conference champion. Their first pick arrives after 119 other 18-year-olds have been plucked.

The Penguins’ American League affiliate in Wilkes Barre-Scranton raced all the way to the Calder Cup finals this month, but unlike the Hershey Bears’ appearances there in 2006 and 2007, the junior Penguins aren’t believed to be chock full of promising young future talent for the parent club — that talent’s already in Pittsburgh. One reason they’re missing both high picks this year and high-end talent on the farm was February’s trade for Marian Hossa and Hal Gill as well as last year’s acquisition of geriatric Gary Roberts.

Penguins’ GM Ray Shero has his share of challenges this summer: 13 unrestricted and 4 restricted free agents to ink for next season. While it’s not impossible for teams to acquire young talent after round 3 of the NHL Entry Draft, the odds plummet precipitously. One’s thing’s for sure: 29 other NHL clubs will be helping themselves from this talent-rich draft before the Penguins do. As recent rebuilders, they’re ahead of the Capitals in both achievement and status, but that gap could close a healthy bit this summer.

  ROUND 1   ROUND 2   ROUND 3   ROUND 4
1 Tampa Bay 31 Florida (from T.B.) 62 Tampa Bay 92 Los Angeles (from T.B.)
2 Los Angeles 32 Los Angeles 63 Los Angeles 93 Washington (from L.A.)
3 Atlanta 33 St. Louis (from ATL) 64 Atlanta 94 Atlanta
4 St. Louis 34 St. Louis 65 St. Louis 95 St. Louis
5 NY Islanders 35 Phoenix 66 NY Islanders 96 NY Islanders
6 Columbus 36 NY Islanders 67 Columbus 97 Columbus
7 Toronto 37 Columbus 68 Toronto 98 Toronto
8 Phoenix 38 Phoenix (from TOR) 69 Phoenix 99 Phoenix
9 Nashville (from FLA) 39 Phoenix 70 Toronto (from FLA) 100 Florida
10 Vancouver 40 Nashville (from FLA) 71 Anaheim (from VAN) 101 Los Angeles (from VAN)
11 Chicago 41 Vancouver 72 Chicago 102 Chicago
12 Anaheim (from EDM) 42 Ottawa (from CHI) 73 NY Islanders (from EDM-ANA) 103 Edmonton
13 Buffalo 43 Anaheim (from EDM) 74 Buffalo 104 Buffalo
14 Carolina 44 Buffalo 75 NY Rangers (from CAR) 105 Carolina
15 Nashville 45 Carolina 76 Nashville 106 Nashville
16 Boston 46 Nashville 77 Boston 107 Boston
17 Calgary 47 Boston 78 Calgary 108 Calgary
18 Ottawa 48 Los Angeles (from CGY) 79 Ottawa 109 Ottawa
19 Columbus (from COL) 49 Phoenix (from OTT) 80 Florida (from COL) 110 Colorado
20 NY Rangers 50 Colorado 81 Los Angeles (from NYR) 111 St. Louis (from NYR)
21 New Jersey 51 NY Rangers 82 New Jersey 112 New Jersey
22 Edmonton (from ANA) 52 New Jersey 83 Anaheim 113 Anaheim
23 Washington 53 NY Islanders (from ANA-EDM) 84 Washington 114 Calgary (from WSH-BOS)
24 Minnesota 54 Washington 85 Anaheim (from MIN) 115 Minnesota
25 Montreal 55 Minnesota 86 Montreal 116 Montreal
26 Buffalo (from S.J.) 56 Montreal 87 St. Louis (from S.J.) 117 San Jose
27 Philadelphia 57 Washington (from S.J.) 88 Los Angeles (from PHI) 118 Philadelphia
28 Los Angeles (from DAL) 58 Washington (from PHI) 89 Dallas 119 Ottawa (from DAL-T.B.)
29 Atlanta (from PIT) 59 Dallas 90 Phoenix (from PIT) 120 Pittsburgh
30 Detroit 60 Toronto (from PIT) 91 Detroit 121 Detroit
    61 Los Angeles (from DET)        

ENTRY DRAFT ORDER OF SELECTION NOTES
Round 1

  • Pick 29 (Pittsburgh to Atlanta): Pittsburgh traded RW Colby Armstrong, C Erik Christensen, C Angelo Esposito and its 1st-round pick in the 2008 Entry Draft to Atlanta for RW Marian Hossa and RW Pascal Dupuis (Feb. 26, 2008).

Round 2

  • Pick 57 (San Jose to Washington): San Jose traded Carolina’s 2nd-round pick in the 2007 Entry Draft (previously acquired) and San Jose’s 2nd-round pick in 2008 to Washington for Buffalo’s 1st-round pick in 2007 (previously acquired) (June 22, 2007).
  • Pick 58 (Philadelphia to Washington): Washington traded Carolina’s 2nd-round pick in the 2007 Entry Draft (previously acquired) to Philadelphia for Nashville’s 3rd-round pick in 2007 (previously acquired) and Philadelphia’s 2nd-round pick in 2008 (June 23, 2007).

Round 3

  • Pick 90 (Pittsburgh to Phoenix): Pittsburgh traded LW Dan Carcillo and its 3rd-round pick in the 2008 Entry Draft to Phoenix for RW Georges Laraque (Feb. 27, 2007).

Round 4

  • Pick 93 (Los Angeles to Washington): Washington traded its 4th-round pick in the 2007 Entry Draft to Los Angeles for Los Angeles’ 6th-round pick in 2007 and 4th-round pick in 2008 (June 23, 2007).
  • Pick 114 (Washington to Boston, conditional to Calgary):
    (1) Washington to Boston: Boston traded D Milan Jurcina to Washington for Washington’s 4th-round pick in the 2008 Entry Draft (Feb. 1, 2007).
    (2) Boston to Calgary, conditional: Calgary traded D Andrew Ference and RW Chuck Kobasew to Boston for D Brad Stuart, C Wayne Primeau and a conditional pick in the 2008 Entry Draft.
Filed in American Hockey League, Calder Cup, DraftGeek, Entry Draft, Hershey Bears, National Hockey League, Pittsburgh Penguins, Schadenfreude, Washington Capitals| Permalink| Comments (8)

Today Hershey, Too, Is Thinking About Gabby

By pucksandbooks
Thursday, June 12, 2008

No surprise that on one of the biggest days of Bruce Boudreau’s hockey life the Patriot News’ Tim Leone has a fantastic file on the moment. It begins thusly:

“On June 7, 2007, Bruce Boudreau bused home from Hamilton, Ontario, with the Hershey Bears after they were defeated in the Calder Cup finals.

“This June, he is making a triumphant return visit to Ontario.”

You needed less than a full season with Gabby to realize what a terrific quote machine he is. Check out what Leone captures about the coach’s attempt to bring the family along to Toronto:

“When I first heard about this, I thought, ‘Wow, I’m going to get all four of my kids there and get my mom there, my bother there.’ Then we phoned and asked for tickets. They were $450 per ticket. I said, ‘You guys are all watching it on TV.’”

 

Filed in Bruce Boudreau, Hershey Bears, Media, Print, The Patriot News| Permalink| Comments (0)

“I know for sure [Fedorov] wants to stay [in Washington]“

By Gustafsson
Wednesday, May 28, 2008

At a ceremony in Pittsburgh at 2 p.m. today, Alex Ovechkin will officially be awarded the Art Ross Trophy and the Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy. Prior to the award ceremony, Alex met with the press on a conference call.

Alex said he was happy to win these awards and feels it is important to the fans to know that their “players win something and have good players.” He also said that the recently completed World Championship was “unbelievable,” especially beating Canada in Canada.

I asked Alex if Alexander Semin’s play in the postseason and again at the Worlds shows that he’s maturing into a world-class talent and if they would be battling for these same awards next year. He responded that watching Semin for the last three years that “you’re right, he’s going to be a great player and I’ll happy if he wins awards next year.”

With the talk turning to the Worlds he was asked if he had spoken with Sergei Fedorov in trying to convince him to return to Washington to play next year. Without hesitation, Ovechkin responded, “I know for sure he wants to stay. I know for sure.”

Filed in Boyd Gordon, Brooks Laich, Conferences, Hershey Bears, Prospects, Tomas Fleischmann| Permalink| Comments (11)

Netminder Logjam Continuing to Ease

By The OFB Team
Wednesday, May 28, 2008

First came the news that Olaf Kolzig will not be a Washington Capital next year. Now, up in Hershey, it appears that Frederic Cassivi’s career with the Bears has come to an end.

Tim Leone reports, per eurohockey.net, that Cassivi has signed to play for the Sinupret Ice Tigers in Nurnberg, Germany next season. Cassivi’s departure opens a slot for either Michal Neuvirth or Simeon Varlamov. Or both.

Cassivi of course backstopped the Bears to the Calder Cup finals in both 2006 and 2007, with the Bears winning it all in 2006.

Filed in American Hockey League, Hershey Bears, Hockey, Michal Neuvirth, Simeon Varlamov, Washington Capitals| Permalink| Comments (7)

Bear Sightings to Continue for Another Year or Two

By The OFB Team
Thursday, May 22, 2008

The Washington Capitals and the Hershey Bears have jointly announced that the affiliation agreement between the two clubs have been extended through the 2009-10 season with an option for the 2010-11 season.

Previously affiliated for seven seasons from 1977 to 1984, this next season will be the fourth in this most recent marriage. Currently, the Capitals are also affiliated with the East Coast Hockey League’s South Carolina Stingrays.

Additionally, per Tim Leone, it was also announced that Bob Woods’ contract was extended and will be the head coach of the Bears for 2008-09 with Mark French as an assistant.

Filed in American Hockey League, ECHL, Hershey Bears, National Hockey League, South Carolina Stingrays, Washington Capitals| Permalink| Comments (5)

Swan Song for the Skilled Sioux?

By pucksandbooks
Wednesday, May 14, 2008

A number of the North Dakota Fighting Sioux’ top players made a pact after the 2006-07 season to remain on campus and pursue a national title in 2007-08. They did, and the Sioux advanced to this April’s Frozen Four in Denver, where eventual national champion Boston College smashed them in the semis.

Caps’ 2005 first-round draft pick Joe Finley, a junior this season, was a part of that impact core for North Dakota. Such a commitment by the team’s upper classmen will be a lot more difficult for next season, as on Tuesday the St. Louis Blues announced the signing of T.J. Oshie, North Dakota’s leading scorer last season. The Sioux also lose senior starting goaltender Jean-Philippe Lamoureux.

Is this the impetus for Joe Finley to begin his pro career in the Capitals’ organization? If you’re a Hershey Bears’ fan, you sure hope so.

Filed in American Hockey League, College Hockey, Frozen Four, Hershey Bears, Joe Finley, Prospects| Permalink| Comments (0)

Washington Capitals’ Top Prospects, Spring 2008

By pucksandbooks
Monday, May 5, 2008

Continuing an OFB tradition, we present our rankings of the Capitals’ prospects at the conclusion of the hockey season. Many of the names below you’ll have a chance to see at Kettler Capitals Iceplex this July, for Development Camp (July 7-12). What’s the lead storyline among the futures holdings? Gotta be the arrival of one of the best young hockey players in Western Canada, Karl Alzner — one of the best young players in Canada or anywhere else, for that matter. If he has a strong training camp come September he’ll bypass the American League this fall and begin his NHL career fresh from an awards-rich CHL career.

Another gleaning: that a Q-league scoring champ and MVP can’t crack the top 10 of an organization’s prospect rankings. That tells us that Ross Mahoney and his stable of scouts the globe over are getting it done.

Name Draft Class ‘07-’08 Club The skinny
Karl Alzner, D ‘07, 1st Rd. Calgary (WHL) WHL Player of the Year, Defenseman of the Year, CHL MVP Finalist. Any questions?
Simeon Varlamov, G ‘06, 1st Rd. Lokomotiv (RSL) Excellent RSL regular season stats, then, in the postseason, sublime: 16 games, 1.56 GA, five shutouts. Welcome to North American professional hockey, Simeon.
Sami Lepisto, D ‘04, 3rd Rd. Hershey Bears So much for struggle in a rookie pro season in North America: 45 pts. in 55 Bears’ games, and a +29. A Tier I candidate for promotion to the parent club in the fall.
Andrew Gordon, RW ‘04, 7th Rd. South Carolina (ECHL); Hershey Fought through early-season demotion, matured into reliable two-way, impact forward. Two hat tricks in his American League rookie season. Bright, bright future.
Chris Bourque, LW ‘04, 2nd Rd. Hershey Bears Bears’ MVP; became a top performer in the American League the final month of the season; ready to stake his claim to a lasting promotion.
Josef Boumedienne, D acquired from Ottawa, Dec. 2002 Hershey Bears Injury-marred ‘07-’08 campaign, but still posted 7 & 35 in 52 games, and a +18; less a prospect and more a quality depth signee; draft day trade bait?
Kyle Wilson, C Signed as a free agent, July 2007 Hershey Bears Only Bear to play in every regular season game; nearly a point-per-game performer through two American League seasons.
Jay Beagle, C Signed with Washington in March 2008 Hershey Bears Diamond in the rough? Big-bodied, mobile, and fancies the contact game; one goal shy of 20 in his freshman AHL campaign.
Francois Bouchard, RW ‘06, 2nd Rd. Baie-Comeau (QMJHL) Strong but unspectacular ‘07-’08 campaign; much improved skater; needs AHL seasoning.
Joe Finley, D ‘05, 1st Rd. North Dakota (WCHA) Enjoyed third straight season of statistical improvement — and ‘07-’08’s numbers included a conspicuous spike in offensive production; a team-leading +24; still magnificently mean and nasty.
Josh Godfrey, D ‘07, 2nd Rd. Sault Ste. Marie (OHL) 17 & 34 , +31, in 60 Greyhound games; Western Conference All Star; Team Canada WJC selection; time for pro hockey.
Michal Neuvirth, G ‘06, 2nd Rd. Windsor, Oshawa (OHL) More prime-time performing: 7-2 for the Generals with a 2.48 GA, .932 SP this postseason; led Plymouth to the Memorial Cup last spring; time for pro hockey — South Carolina or Hershey?
Mathieu Perreault, C ‘06, 6th Rd. Acadie Bathurst 2007 Q MVP, 2008 Q scoring champ; nothing left to dominate in major juniors; time for pro hockey.
Oskar Osala, LW ‘06, 4th Rd. Espoo Blues (Fin) Returning to Europe to advance his development, Osala put up impressive numbers in Finland’s top pro league: 18 & 17 and a + 12 in 53 games; will be interesting to see what’s in store for him in ‘08-’09.
Daren Machesney, G ‘05, 5th Rd. Hershey Bears Exceeding expectations — everyone’s — was the story of “Cheese’s” season. He got in 38 games with Hershey and went 22-10 with a 2.55 goals-against. He’s on track to be an elite goaltender in the American League; question is, with what Washington has arriving this summer in goal, is there room in the organization for Cheese?
Andrew Joudrey, C ‘03, 8th Rd. Hershey Bears Solid first full pro season, often centering another prized Caps’ NCAA prospect, Andrew Gordon; strong on his skates, superb hockey sense, makes smart plays.
Stephen Werner ‘03, 3rd Rd. South Carolina, Hershey Remains a longshot to see anything but a cup of coffee in the bigs. But his game matured in ‘07-’08. Skated a +4 for the Bears in just 8 games. Does have a pro stride.
Travis Morin, C ‘04, 9th Rd. South Carolina Big, big numbers for the Stingray pivot: 34 & 50 in 68 games, including 14 power play markers; still has issues with skating and strength at the pro level.
Patrick McNeill, D ‘05, 4th Rd. South Carolina, Hershey Split time between Carolina and Hershey this season; he’s undersized but not physically overmatched in the A; should enjoy a full year with the Bears in ‘08-’09.
Oscar Hedman, D ‘04, 5th Rd. Modo (Swe.) A top-4 pairing blueliner who by the age of 22 had completed five seasons in the Swedish Elite League. Though I’ve seen only glimpses of him in WJC play, I wasn’t going to pass on the opportunity to have two Oscars in my table. Should Osala and he connect on a scoring play in a game with the Caps, it’d be the first Oskar-from-Oscar feat in NHL history. I really want that.
Filed in American Hockey League, Andrew Gordon, Chris Bourque, Daren Machesney, Francois Bouchard, Hershey Bears, Jay Beagle, Joe Finley, Josh Godfrey, Karl Alzner, Mathieu Perreault, Michal Neuvirth, Prospects, Russia, Sami Lepisto, Simeon Varlamov, Travis Morin, Washington Capitals| Permalink| Comments (17)

Pittsburgh Wins; Ovechkin to NFL

By OrderedChaos (Mike Rucki)
Friday, May 2, 2008

Pittsburgh won on Thursday . . . no, not the Penguins, who were shut out by the Rangers, but Pittsburgh itself won the title of Sootiest City in the country, snatching the title from former champion Los Angeles. Click here to read more about it on CNN.

The Friday funnies continue: equal-opportunity offenders at The Onion mock both hockey and the mainstream media’s hockey ignorance/dismissal (yes, we’re looking at you ESPN) in their latest ONN (Onion News Network) video, sort of starring Alex Ovechkin with some surprising news:

NHL Star Called Up To Big Leagues To Play For NFL Team

Filed in Alexander Ovechkin, American Hockey League, Hershey Bears, Hockey Wit, Morning cup-a-joe, National Hockey League, Pittsburgh Penguins, Ted Leonsis, Video Clips, Washington Capitals| Permalink| Comments (1)

The Capitals’ Top 10 Storylines for 2007-08

By pucksandbooks
Monday, April 28, 2008

10. The Rebuild Is Over. Owner Leonsis uttered this proclamation during the preseason, later claiming that the season’s barometer for success would be qualifying for the postseason. Through the middle of November both seemed delusionally wishful thinking. But when the right guy arrived behind the bench, when the Caps’ skilled young core was encouraged to attack, the team took off, rampaging from last in the league at Thanksgiving to a Southeast Division crown on the regular season’s final Saturday. The right pieces indeed were in place, and the team’s future has never been as promising.

9. Backstrom: the no. 1 Pivot of the Future — and the Present. Really nobody knew what Nicklas Backstrom’s rookie season in the NHL would bring. During last July’s Development Camp, he seemed to struggle a bit with making plays on a smaller sheet. But he looked better at the end of camp than at its start, and by September’s training camp he looked even more adjusted. Like other skilled players in Glen Hanlon’s system, he struggled. Like other skilled players under Bruce Boudreau, he blossomed.

His 69 points on the season represented the second-most prolific rookie season in Caps’ history (behind a certain precocious Russian in 2005-06). Most telling: 60 of his points came in the final 61 games. He adjusted all right. He played his finest hockey of the season when you want a player to — in the postseason. In so doing he defied a long tradition of rookies fading under the rigors of an 82-game season. And he rightfully earned a nomination for the Calder trophy.

8. One Seriously Sorry Sheet. Washington’s never been known to offer a quality sheet of ice for its NHL games, but the matter gained unprecedented urgency when in December team captain Chris Clark spoke with commendable candor to the Washington Post about the indefensible ice at home. This surface wasn’t merely bad aesthetically, it was, suggested Clark, injurious to players. Clark himself lost virtually the entire season to a groin injury. Flyers’ winger Mike Knuble injured his leg when he caught it in a Verizon Center rut in the playoffs. And game 7’s sheet was so ill-prepared that arena workers could be seen repairing it on their hands and knees in the moments before puck-drop — and throughout the game.

Whatever greatly skilled and exciting roster Capitals’ management assembles for the future, it won’t much matter if at home it’s asked to compete on an ability-leveling and integrity-sacrificing surface.

7. Deadline Day Doozies. Trade deadline day was supposed to be quiet for the Caps. It turned out to be anything but. General manager George McPhee engineered a dramatic infusion of postseason experience and skill in areas of weakness on February 26, including securing a no.1 netminder in Cristobal Huet from Montreal for merely a second-round pick in the 2009 Entry Draft. All three players acquired on deadline day played pivotal roles in the season’s final 18 games.

In his Capitals’ debut on February 29, Huet stopped all 18 shots he faced in backstopping the Caps to a 4-0 win in New Jersey. He went 11-2 in his 13 starts for the Caps, winning the final nine games he started. In the biggest game the Caps played in years, Sergei Fedorov, acquired for 2007 second round selection Teddy Ruth, was named the game’s first star in the Caps’ 3-1 win over Florida on April 5, which vaulted the team to the SouthEast title and the postseason for the first time since 2003. He was especially adept in the faceoff circle. Matt Cooke played a less significant part statistically during the stretch run but recaptured his active, pest-like play from years ago in Vancouver night in and night out. All three veterans were credited with providing vital leadership to the young and inexperienced Caps.

6. Mike Green: the no. 1 Gun Arrives. If there was one overarching question confronting the Caps’ blueline heading into the 2007-08 season, it was: is there a no.1 Gun among? If last September you thought there was, you knew something the rest of hockey didn’t. In 2006-07, Mike Green played 70 games for the Caps, tallying just 2 goals and 10 assists. He offered glimpses of high-end promise, but he also seemed years away from becoming consistent and reliable and earning a top pairing assignment. But this past season Green blossomed into a dominant, mature-for-his-years force. He led the entire league in goals by a defenseman during the regular season, and he followed that with a superb playoff series — so much so that Flyers’ head coach John Stevens very publicly made it known that Mike Green was a weapon his team had to strategize to stop. The no.1 Gun on the Caps’ blueline has arrived.

5. AO: The Best Hockey Player on the Planet. Alexander Ovechkin’s hardware-hogging brilliance during 2007-08 earned him broadcasts of “Ovechkin Ovations” on the NHL Network and, more importantly, ascension over the Nova Scotian as the game’s greatest talent. His 65 goals during the regular season were the most scored by a Capital in franchise history, and he became just the 19th player in NHL history to score 60 goals in a season. By the end of the regular season he’d staked unassailable claims to both the Richard and Ross trophies and was a near mortal lock to command both the Hart trophy and the Lester Pearson award for his most valuable performance. At one point no less than the Great One suggested that his seemingly unbreakable record of 92 goals scored in a single season could be within Ovechkin’s visored viewfinder.

4. Canning Glen; Finding the Right Guy Right up the Road. After winning their first three games of the season, the Capitals proceeded to lose 15 of their next 18 and plummet to the very bottom of the NHL standings. While Glen Hanlon may well have been the right coach to preside over the rebuilding Caps beginning not long before the team began its purge of high-priced, under-achieving talent in the 2003-04 season, autumn 2007 seemed to deliver a resoundingly rotten verdict on his ability to advance the team to where management deemed appropriate for 2007-08.

No one would suggest that Hanlon didn’t offer the organization his fullest possible effort. But by late 2007 that effort wasn’t working. “He knew as soon as he saw me this morning,” McPhee told the Washington Post on Thanksgiving day. “He said, ‘I wouldn’t have known what to do today.’ ”

Enter Bruce Boudreau, aka “Gabby.” On Thanksgiving Eve Bruce Boudreau was in his third season behind the Hershey Bears’ bench. He’d enjoyed an auspicious first two seasons there: a Calder Cup title in his first season in Hershey in the spring of 2006 and a return to the finals the following season. He’d won a Kelly Cup title in the East Coast League as well. Still, to many Capitals’ fans, he appeared to be just another “no name” plucked from the farm.

Probably it was with this in mind that Hershey Bears’ Senior Manager for Communications John Walton authored a memorable open letter to Capitals’ fans on the day that Gabby was announced as the new Caps’ coach. “Know this first and foremost,” Walton wrote in his letter. “He’s a winner . . . For what it’s worth, we have seen the magic here. We’re more than willing to share.” Continue reading ›

Filed in Alexander Ovechkin, American Hockey League, Bruce Boudreau, Calder Cup, Chris Clark, Cristobal Huet, Development Camp, Eastern Conference, Entry Draft, Front Office, George McPhee, Hershey Bears, Ice, John Walton, Kettler Capitals Iceplex, Matt Cooke, Media, Mike Green, NHL Network, NHL Trades, National Hockey League, Nicklas Backstrom, Philadelphia Flyers, Print, Sergei Fedorov, Stanley Cup Playoffs, TV, Ted Leonsis, The Big Deal, Training Camp, Verizon Center, Washington Capitals, Washington Post| Permalink| Comments (11)

(Seriously) Working Overtime

By pucksandbooks
Friday, April 25, 2008

Ever heard of a goalie making 100 saves in a professional hockey game? It almost happened last night.

The Philadelphia Phantoms and the Albany River Rats last night played the longest game in the American Hockey League’s 72-year history. They went into five overtimes! The Phantoms’ Ryan Potulny scored at 2:58 of the fifth OT to end it, giving Philly a 3-2 lead in the series.

The Phantoms fired an astounding 101 shots on the Albany net. River Rats’ netminder Michael Leighton made 98 saves.

Incidentally, the referee who worked last night’s Phantoms-River Rats’ marathon, Frederic L’Ecuyer, is slated to make his way to Wilkes Barre-Scranton to work tonight’s game 5 between the Bears and the Penguins. As of early this afternoon, according to the Bears’ John Walton, L’Ecuyer was still scheduled to work it. I’d have taken L’Ecuyer and his six-OT legs to work our game 7 here on Tuesday before either Koharski or Devorski.

Filed in American Hockey League, Hershey Bears, John Walton| Permalink| Comments (0)

Reinforcements for the Farm

By pucksandbooks
Friday, April 25, 2008

Word out of Hershey: both Josh Godfrey and Karl Alzner have joined the Bears. Alzner will not play in tonight’s game 5 at Wilkes Barre-Scranton, as he’s sidelined by the flu, but he could dress in game 6 tomorrow back at Giant Center if Hershey can get a win tonight.

The Bears trail the Penguins three games to one but earned their first victory in overtime on Wednesday night.

Filed in American Hockey League, Hershey Bears, Josh Godfrey, Karl Alzner, Prospects, Washington Capitals| Permalink| Comments (3)
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