Caps Stone Rangers, Olie Comes Home, Pond Hockey On the Way
Last night I got to play the role of bearer of bad news, as I used every free moment during our own hockey game to update my teammates on the Caps-Rangers score throughout the game. We have a lot of Westchester and southern Connecticut kids on the team, so the Rangers blue is a favorite for several guys. At about 10 pm I gave the 3-1 final, and was roundly booed. But with Johnson getting his third straight start, and the Caps playing a good Rangers team, I couldn't have been happier with the final.
The Caps started off with one of the strangest goals I've ever seen. On the powerplay Alex Semin fires a shot from the faceoff circle that hits Lundqvist, hits the glass behind the net, comes back and bounces off the crossbar, then is whacked out of midair and into the net by Brooks Laich.
The video isn't great, but at the 2 minute mark you can see Semin snipe the puck off Lundqvist and behind the net, then see it come back and bounce off the crossbar before being whacked in. It's not pretty, but we'll take it every time.
Add a 2-on-1 Tom Poti goal and an empty netter by Semin, and you get a win only made close by Aaron Voros' powerplay goal to close the score to 2-1 Caps.
Tomorrow the Bolts come to town, with Olie returning to DC for the first time since signing with Tampa Bay. Tarik notes that Mike Smith has started the past 4 games for Tampa, so Kolzig has a good chance of getting the nod in net. And for the Caps Johnson has been playing out of his mind, so it would be a reasonable assumption to see him get his 4th straight start. At least that's what Boudreau is thinking.
Now, I'll be standing and applauding during that video tribute, but let's try to remember that the relationship between Kolzig and the Caps was a mutually beneficial one (to the tune of more than $42 million for the player and 301 wins for the team) and that while one side of the break-up has been told over and over and over again, the other side has taken the high road and not given the matter a public airing.
More importantly, let's try to remember that Olie Kolzig is coming into the Verizon Center tomorrow night with the intent of taking two points home with him.
If he comes back after he retires for a jersey retirement by the Caps, or makes the hall of fame, or comes back to DC for a similar recognition night, then give him the whole package. Even Monday night I'll be applauding the tribute. But when he's in the building wearing the other team's jersey and actively trying to stop the Capitals from winning a game, then forgive me if I don't think the Caps should roll out the red carpet. They're going out of their way to do something for his first time back, and that's more than acceptable to me.
And lastly, the screening of Pond Hockey at the Avalon is only a week away. Over at On Frozen Blog the guys talk hockey with Pond Hockey filmmakers Tommy Haines and Andrew Sherburne. And as an added bonus, they'll be giving away a pair of free tickets each day to any college student in the DC area who submits the best story about skipping school to play some pond hockey. As long as you use your school e-mail and have a good story, you're golden. Definitely not something to pass up.
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12:46 AM