Your savory breakfast links:
- All the news that’s fit to print, tweet, photograph or watch from the last day of Team USA’s orientation camp at Kettler:
- Want to hear from every single invitee at this year’s camp? The NHL’s got you covered with more video than you can shake a stick at. [NHL.com]
- After a somewhat unexpected silver medal at the Vancouver games, Team USA heads to Sochi on the cusp of favorite status. U-S-A! U-S-A! [ESPN (Burnside, Custance ($)]
- The big ice could be an issue for both North American teams, as it has been in years past, and will need to be a focus – but not an excuse. [ESPN, Frankovic]
- Another focus for this year’s team will be on speed and youth, and this should lead to some tough decisions. [CSNW, Newsday]
- The Caps’ lone representative at USA’s orientation camp, John Carlson, chatted about his experience. [Caps OT, DSP]
- The highlight, such as it was, of yesterday’s festivities, was the unveiling of Team USA’s jersey. Sparkly. [Monumental video, Puck Daddy, SI.com, WaPo (with gallery), NBCW, CSNW]
- Naturally a new jersey means new headshots, which means a number of new and awesomely horrifying pictures. (Not Carlson, though, because he smiled pretty). [Puck Daddy]
- All in all, Kettler proved to be the perfect setting for Team USA’s camp. Feel free to come back – and maybe even skate! – in a few years. [CSNW]
- And at the end of the day, it was off to Nats park for a baseball game, a handshake from Bryce Harper and some customized jerseys that look eerily (and awesomely) familiar… [Capitals Overtime (and again and again), @acomak, @russostrib, @masnkerr, @usahockey]
- Meanwhile in the true north, strong and free:
- TSN’s panel has projected Team Canada’s roster for Sochi, and none of the Caps seem to have made the cut… [TSN]
- …although they might be on the bubble, so there’s that. [CBC]
- Mike Green probably shouldn’t be on the bubble, but either way he’s feeling confident about his development since being left off of the 2010 squad. [WaPo]
- Canada’s goaltending is the topic of much discussion and much hand-wringing in Canada because it’s Canada and it’s August. [Globe and Mail, ESPN]
- Unlike their lazy American counterparts out at the ballpark, the Canadians were hard at work playing ball hockey and learning systems. Which should matter greatly since no one’s made the team yet… and did we mention it’s August? [KK, NHL.com]
- Interesting read on the Russian ban on “gay propaganda” and selective moral outrage. [RMNB]
- Scoping out the salary cap situation in the Metropolitan Division – decidedly middle-class, oddly enough. [Lighthouse Hockey]
- They may not be the top duo, but there’s something nice about where Adam Oates and George McPhee fall on this ranking of the 30 GM/coach combos. [CSNPhilly]
- Still more on the Mikhail Grabovski signing – does it make the Caps better? Hang on, I’ll get my crystal ball. [WaPo, Sport Exec in Training]
- Five games to watch on the Capitals‘ 2013-14 schedule. Personally, I plan on watching more than five, but you do what you want. [THW]
- There’s not a whole lot left on the free agent market, but the trade market could be hopping… and some might be coveting a Cap or two as a potential trade target. Hey, hands off Brouwer. [Copper & Blue]
- The Caps could use a pest. [GM On A Couch]
- Tom Wilson chats about rookie camp and the prospect of becoming an everyday NHLer. [Fan590]
- According to Maria Kirilenko (and probably just about anyone else), hockey is tougher than tennis. [The Score]
- The Hershey Bears are set to play another game at an NHL arena, this time heading to the wilds of Philadelphia to take on Adirondack at Wells Fargo Center February 1 – get your tickets now! [Pennlive]
- Finally, happy 64th birthday to Murray Anderson.