Your savory breakfast links:
- Previews of tonight’s game against Carolina from Vogs, Peerless, CSN Washington and NHL.com, and be sure to check out our SB Nation partner Canes Country for coverage from the other side of tonight’s match up.
- To refresh your memory, this is the fifth meeting of the season between the Caps and ‘Canes, with the Caps taking three of the first four (by 4-3, 4-3 and 3-2 counts against a 6-3 loss).
- Notes from yesterday’s practice in Raleigh (basically, Boyd Gordon was sent back to D.C. with a bad back, Semyon Varlamov is tonight’s likely starter, and Bruce Boudreau talks Ovi). [CI, CI, CI]
- Brooks Laich continues to win at life. [D.C. Sports Bog]
- We all know that Brendan Morrison has had his ups and downs this year, but has he ever been the subject of such a cheesily-titled article? [WaPo]
- The Caps have two of the top three lines in hockey. OK, fine, they have the second-best line in hockey and two different right-wings they can play in on it (though not at the same time). [TSN]
- Word’s getting out on Nicklas Backstrom. [THN, Corey Masisak (just in case you missed it yesterday)]
- Yes, Alex Ovechkin boarded Brian Campbell four days ago. Yes, Alex Ovechkin was suspended for that hit three days ago (Colin Campbell, by the way, discussed his rationale for the suspension yesterday). And yet, thoughts on the incident and the superstar keep rolling in as people take the time to rehash what has been said and/or come up with something more outrageously dumb than what was out there. [Sportsnet (ridiculous), Versus (absurd), SB Nation (silly), SB Nation (reasonable?), and a poll!]
- On the Caps sans Ovi. [RtR]
- Next up on the list of season goals: the President’s Trophy, which is the Caps’ to lose. [RMNB]
- On the Caps’ dogged determination. [FFODC]
- Marvel at this: “Mike Green is the 7th d-man with consecutive 70-pt seasons before turning 25. The other six are in the Hockey Hall of Fame.” [@washcaps]
- Caps/Hawks drew “meh” ratings. [Puck the Media]
- Mmm… beer. [Puck Daddy]
- If you’re not a stat geek like some of us on the site but want to be or just want a real good introduction to some basics, here’s a great primer for you. [Scarlet Caps]
- We’re up over $1,000 in donations pledged for “Saves for Kids,” and it’s never too late to join in the giving. [FanPost]
- Some killer Caps cards. [Strange But True]
- Anton Gustafsson and Garrett Mitchell are en route to Hershey… [Patriot-News]
- … where they clinched their Division last night (what took you guys so long?), tied a single-season franchise mark for wins, and now have their sights set on the best AHL season ever. [Patriot-News]
- Per the HHoF, on this date back in 1989, “Dino Ciccarelli scored four goals and added three assists to set a Washington club record with seven points, in an 8-2 Capitals‘ win over the Whalers at Harford. It was the 15th hat trick of Ciccarelli’s NHL career and his first with Washington.” Love me some Dino.
- Finally, bunch o’ birthdays today, with Jonas Johansson turning 26, Jan Bulis turning 32, Brantt Myhres turning 36 and Craig Johnson turning 38.