After all of the hype and build-up to the 2015 Winter Classic, the Chicago Blackhawks leave Washington, D.C., with zero points and a disappointing loss to the Capitals. With Chicago captain Jonathan Toews in the box for holding, former Hawk Troy Brouwer scored the...
During the first intermission of the Winter Classic, with pop-rock singer Gavin DeGraw performing and pyrotechnics lighting up the infield of Nationals Park, a group of about 20 youth hockey players tossed around a puck on an auxiliary rink in what is usually center...
When the Chicago Blackhawks hosted the Detroit Red Wings at Wrigley Field for the 2009 Winter Classic, they were a team in transition. Out of the playoff picture for seven years, and without a Stanley Cup for 48 years, the Hawks were revitalized after the arrivals of...
"My belief is that New Year's Day used to be about college football, and now New Year's Day is about the NHL." That was Ted Leonsis, speaking this past September at a Winter Classic press conference, on the NHL's marquee event of the regular season. Leonsis has wanted...
Bridgestone and the NHL’s annual Winter Classic has become a must-see event for sports fans. For the first time, the league is taking the yearly hockey showcase below the Mason-Dixon line for an outdoor game in the Nation’s semi-southern Capital. Read below for Winter...
The world’s largest mobile refrigeration unit arrived at Nationals Stadium Monday morning as the countdown to the 2015 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic continues. Arriving from Toronto after five days and 480 miles, the Winter Classic Ice Plant Presented by York is a...
The 2015 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic, which will be held at Nationals Stadium, is less than three weeks away. Capitals players are starting to think about the event, especially with EPIX cameras shadowing them on and off the ice for the miniseries “Road to the NHL...
Chimera’s loss is Burakovsky’s gain? Jason Chimera refused to speak with the media after being chided by his coach last night for taking a costly penalty in overtime. Head Coach Barry Trotz had the following harsh comments after the game. “The only thing I’m...
Alex Ovechkin snapped his 5-game scoreless streak Saturday night, but the Washington Capitals losing skid extended to three as they fell to the Tampa Bay Lightning, 4-3. Washington and Tampa traded goals for 40 minutes, entering the third period locked in a 3-3 tie...
After a disappointing road trip through Western Canada, where the Caps managed only 5 goals in 3 games, Barry Trotz debuted yet another set of line combinations at the Capitals practice Tuesday morning. The most notable trio was a first line that had Andre Burakovsky...
The Capitals notched their third win of the season Saturday night and remain the only team in the Eastern Conference not to lose a game in regulation. After regulation and overtime finished with Washington and Florida still knotted at 1, Evgeny Kuznetsov, Nicklas...
Teammate, star center, father, Olympian, mentor to the Capitals newest breakout star – plenty of labels can be applied to 26-year-old Washington forward Nicklas Backstrom. Tonight, he’ll join the NHL’s 500 (games played) club. “I think it’s great,” Backstrom said. “I...
Leading up to the 2014-2015 season, Capitals players, coaches and management addressed the press at the team’s annual media luncheon. Inside Hockey contributing writer Alex Nseir caught up with first-year general manager Brian MacLellan to talk about Barry Trotz,...
As if sacking the head coach and general manager at the end of last season, signing high-profile free agents to bolster a weak defensive corps, nabbing Barry Trotz as a new head coach and bringing in fresh goaltending coaches and assistant coaches wasn’t enough to...
The weekend before NHL Free Agency began, 33-year-old defenseman Brooks Oprik paid a visit to Washington. He spent hours with the Capitals coaches and staff, met General Manager Brian MacLellan, and finally sat down with Capitals Owner Ted Leonsis and COO Dick...
In the days leading up to NHL free agency, well after new Penguins General Manager Jim Rutherford made it clear that Matt Niskanen was no longer in his team’s long-term plans, Niskanen started sorting through all of the interest from different teams around the league....
After a season during which they never seemed to find consistency or an identity, Sunday afternoon the Capitals went out, appropriately, with a whimper. Washington’s 1-0 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning marked the former’s 21st shootout contest of the season, a new NHL...
“I wish I (knew).” That was Adam Oates’ response to a question regarding the Caps tendency to allow goals quickly after scoring their own. Apparently, he’s just as confounded by the problem as everyone else. It’s been a troubling trend for Washington this year, one...
Lawmakers top Lobbyists in sixth annual charity game The Capitals may have been out of town Wednesday night, but there was no dearth of hockey action in the D.C. Metro area. Federal lawmakers, Congressional staff, administration officials, USA Warriors (an...
Dmitry Orlov could have been the hero in the Caps matinee game against the Philadelphia Flyers on Sunday. Instead, he and the Capitals found a new way to lose a two-goal lead. This time, though, they couldn’t manage to muscle out a win, falling to the Philadelphia...
Something about the Olympics brings out the conspiratorial suspicions of athletes, coaches and fans. Underage Chinese gymansts; over-scored Russian figure skaters; goalpost-moving American goalies; even NBC, in one of the most cravenly unnecessary hours of television...
The Capitals bested the hottest team in the league Thursday night with a 4-2 win over Winnipeg. Going into their game against Washington, the Jets had posted a 9-2 record since replacing coach Claude Noel with former Carolina bench boss Paul Maurice. The Caps,...
In a game with several thrilling chances, near misses and quality goaltending by both teams, an unassuming third-period shot from the point ended up determining the outcome of the Capitals-Islanders tilt, a 1-0 win for the away team. After two-plus periods of...
On the surface, the Capitals 2-1 loss to the Buffalo Sabres, which came in their 13th shootout of the season, was largely forgettable. A mentally and physically fatigued Washington team failed to dictate the play against a weaker opponent, instead following Buffalo’s...
The Capitals marked the mid-point of their season with a 4-3 overtime loss to the Carolina Hurricanes Thursday night. Jeff Skinner completed his second career hat trick 1:20 into the extra session to give the ‘Canes their second win in as many nights. Just a few days...
“It’s a dream come true,” John Carlson said of his selection to the 2014 U.S. Olympic team. Watching the Winter Classic at home with his girlfriend, Carlson, who said the Olympics had been in the back of his mind for months, found out he made the team the same way...
The Capitals, playing in the final tilt of a three-game homestand, gave themselves a six-point cushion over the New York Rangers with a 3-2 win against the Blueshirts Friday night. In the 200th regular season meeting between the former Patrick and current Metropolitan...
The Capitals entered Friday night’s game against the Canadiens knowing that the sloppy passing and neutral and defensive zone turnovers that marked their loss against Pittsburgh could not continue. They also acknowledged that they could not take too many penalties and...
From 1998 to 2013, the Washington Capitals won seven Southeast Division titles. That feat, however, doesn’t impress many people. Despite producing two Stanley Cup winners and a President’s Trophy winner, the Southeast Division, formed in 1998 after expansion, was...
Forty-eight of the best American hockey players are gathering this week at Kettler, the Washington Capitals practice facility in Arlington, Va. Here are a few things Inside Hockey contributing writer Alex Nseir gleaned from the first day of interviews and press...
