Your savory breakfast links:
- Previews of tonight’s rumble with the Jets from Vogs, NHL.com, AP, and Caps Outsider, and be sure to check out our SB Nation pals over at Arctic Ice Hockey for the other side of tonight’s matchup.
- After a win against one of the West’s best, the Jets are exactly what the Caps don’t want them to be – red hot and confident. [Winnipeg Free Press]
- The hockey world continues to remember – and honor – Matthew Wuest, the trailblazing founder of CapGeek who sadly succumbed to cancer on Thursday. [Mirtle, Globe and Mail, THN, National Post]
- News and notes from yesterday’s practice out at MTS Centre:
- In general. [Monumental video (Trotz, Rinkside Update/Kuznetsov)]
- Everyone cross your fingers, make a wish and pray to all the deities – because Dmitry Orlov is possibly inching closer to a conditioning stint in Hershey. [WaPo]
- A few leftovers from Thursday night’s big win in Minny. [WaPo (and again), CSNW]
- Nate Schmidt talks about playing his first pro game in his home state of Minnesota. And smiles. A lot. [1390 the Fan]
- John Carlson: Norris Trophy candidate? [Stars and Sticks]
- Nothing’s settled until it’s settled, but thanks to the Caps’ recent three-game run, the playoffs are looking more and more likely. [PHT]
- Of course, if they get there, they’ll need to be more than a one-line team – and right now they don’t seem to be that. [PHT]
- But at least Alex Ovechkin is ready for the postseason. [WaPo]
- Predicting the future for the Capitals–Curtis Glencross relationship. [CSNW]
- After a month and a half off with a vascular injury, Henrik Lundqvist will likely make his return to action next Sunday… against the Caps. Awesome. [ESPN]
- Prospect watch:
- Congrats to the Stingrays, who earned their 20th-straight win last night on the backs of goalie Jeff Jakaitis‘s ECHL-record fourth-straight shutout (and 12th-straight victory in his own right). [@scstingrayshockey, AP]
- And congrats to Riley Barber and the Miami U. Redhawks, who will play in the NCHC Final for a second-straight year after downing Denver last night. [RedHawks, WCPO, Denver Post]
- Andre Burakovsky finally has his first AHL goal (many months after his first NHL goal, of course), and it’s a big one, lifting the Bears over Portland in overtime. [Patriot-News]
- Take a closer look at Caps’ prospect Thomas Dipauli. [Stars and Sticks]
- Kettler will play host to the Congressional Hockey Challenge this week, pitting lobbyists and politicos against members of Congress and Canada’s Parliament. [Caps]
- Finally, happy 49th birthday to Al “Wild Thing” Iafrate.