Your savory breakfast links:

• Previews of tonight's brawl in Beantown from Vogs, NHL.com, Peerless, WashTimes, and CRtC, and be sure to check out Stanley Cup of Chowder for more coverage from the other side of tonight's match-up.
  • Say, maybe the Bruins will be distracted by their charity head-shaving. [NESN]
• Notes and assorted whatnot from yesterday out at Kettler:
  • In general. [Caps365 video (Rinkside Update, Hunter, Alzner, Vokoun, Backstrom, Hendricks, Ward), WaPo, WashTimes, CSNW, CRtC]
  • Tomas Vokoun sez he's ready: "You look at it where we are. It’s a lot riding on the season for me, too, so there’s nothing to save anything for." [WaPo, WashTimes (and again), CSNW]
    • Related: Crowded crease. [WashTimes]
  • Nicklas Backstrom may be nearly ready, but not quite ready enough. He's traveling with the team regardless. [Dump 'n' Chase, WaPo, WashTimes, 106.7 The Fan, CSNW, WTOP.com]
  • Goalie prospect Philipp Grubauer had season-ending wrist surgery even as he was named to the ECHL All-Rookie Team. [WashTimes, DSP, Nosebleeds]
• Today's theme: Woe is us:
  • Same old song. [WaPo]
  • Stoic Dale Hunter was stoic ... even as the team struggled in the biggest game of the year. [WaPo]
  • The difference between winnin' and losin'. [WashTimes]
  • Death, Taxes and ... fer crying out loud. [Cape Gazette]
  • Okay, so stop digging already. [WaPo, CSNW, DCEx, NatPo]
  • We haven't been here before, or at least not lately. [WTOP.com]
  • All aboard the Loserville Express. [106.7 The Fan]
  • The End Is Nigh. [Caps Outsider]
  • RIP, Rocking the Red. [Caps Degenerate]
  • MIA, secondary scoring. [KOL]
  • How are the fans holding up in all this? [DSP]
• While the team is in Boston, Alex Ovechkin will be stopping by an international youth tournament he helped set up. [Wicked Local, Boston Star Hockey]
  
• Brooks Laich had his regular gig on the Junkies. [106.7 The Fan]
• Prospect Playoff update: Stanislav Galiev had a goal, two assists, and a plus-2 rating as the Saint John Sea Dogs completed their four-game sweep of the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles and advanced to the second round of the Q playoffs ...
• ... where they will welcome Samuel Carrier and the Baie-Comeau Drakkar, who completed their four-game sweep of the Victoriaville Tigres yesterday as well. Carrier had 2 power play assists, including one on the overtime game-winner.
• Evgeny Kuznetsov and Traktor Chelyabinsk welcome Avangard Omsk to Traktor Arena today to kick off the KHL Eastern Conference Finals. The winner of this best-of-seven will play for the Gagarin Cup.
• Finally, happy 61st birthday to Hartland Monahan and happy 55th to Eddie Godin.