Your savory breakfast links:
- Congratulations to Barry Trotz, who was named a finalist for the Jack Adams Trophy yesterday along with Lindy Ruff and Gerard Gallant. [Rink, Caps, WaPo, WashTimes, Puck Daddy, AP, RMNB]
- Hear from Trotz himself as the Caps return home to prepare for Game 5. [Monumental video]
- Three things we were talking about yesterday, including the Weber play and being on the brink of elimination. [Rink]
- Our own Jason Rogers chatted with CSN after the loss. [Rink]
- The Caps are still missing a little something… a spark, some desperation, anything. They need to find it fast. [WashTimes, NoVa Caps]
- So they find themselves down 3-1. What now? [Puck Daddy, Stars and Sticks]
- If they’re looking for guidance on how to overcome this deficit, they need look no further than their own very recent history. [WashTimes]
- In fact, if they manage to claw their way to a win, it won’t be the first time they’ve done it… or the first time it’s happened to the Penguins. [WaPo, Rink, Tribune-Review]
- That said, they’re not looking back – they’re looking forward. [ESPN]
- And they’re still feeling confident about their chances to get back into the series. [CBS DC]
- it starts with Game 5, the most important game of their lives. [CSNMA]
- What are their chances of getting back in it? [THN]
- If they’re going to do it, they need to take it one game at a time. [CBS DC]
- They’ll get the benefit of last change in Game 5; could their matchups change? [WaPo]
- The Penguins may be up 3-1, but so far they’ve benefited from a good deal of luck. [WaPo]
- And the Caps may be down 3-1, but they’ve done everything right… except score. Minor detail. [RMNB]
- The Pens haven’t been scoring on the power play at all, thanks to the Caps’ penalty kill. [Post-Gazette]
- Both teams will get a bit of R&R thanks to a two-day break in the schedule before Game 5. [Post-Gazette]
- New coach Mike Sullivan is trying to turn a “fragile” group (the one that has blown two 3-1 leads in five years) into a confident one. Please fail. [Tribune-Review]
- Meanwhile the Caps are longing to get rid of that choker label. [SLAM]
- So about that defensive depth… [WaPo]
- Billed as a battle of superstars, the lesser names are hogging the spotlight instead. [AP]
- A few leftovers from whatever that was on Wednesday night. [Dump ‘n Chase, TSS, ESPN, CSNMA, Pensblog]
- What worked, what didn’t. [Rink, Peerless]
- Five stats to know after the loss. [CSNMA]
- Trotz made the decision to swap Mike Weber in for Nate Schmidt, but doesn’t blame Weber for the play that ultimately led to the overtime winner. [CSNMA]
- Still… it wasn’t a great play. [Pensburgh]
- Oh, thank goodness… Sidney Crosby’s hand is okay after receiving a
completely routine and innocuousvicious slash. Call off the prayer circle, cancel the telethon. [Tribune-Review] - On the flip side, Evgeni Malkin won’t be hearing from the League over his hit on Daniel Winnik. [Post-Gazette]
- The Stingrays demolished the Adirondack last night to even up their series, 2-2. [Caps Outsider]
- Even with superstars like Alex Ovechkin and Evgeni Malkin, Russia’s national team is struggling to keep up with the rest of world. [The National]
- Jason Chimera checks in as one of the top 10 “old guys without a Cup”. [Sportsnet]
- Might the Devils want to sniff around one of the Caps’ Swedes this summer? [All About the Jersey]
- Finally, happy 66th birthday to Bob Gryp.