Happy Caps

Just one tenth of the chaos that erupted on and off the ice after Clarkie's game-winning goal...

- Winning is great, and winning in overtime is even better. Still, I don't think that winning would be quite as sweet if I thought there was bad blood in the locker room. I've only started paying attention to the behind the scenes stuff over the last half dozen years or so, but I've never seen so many stories come out about how much fun this Caps team is having as I've read in the last two seasons. Certainly not during the Jagr years, that's for sure.

During my time in Montreal as well, there was always coverage of the Habs - front page of the paper, headline on local sports news, etc. But I never got the feeling that the dressing room was a particularly happy place. It wasn't all out war, and they played soccer together and occasionally joked around, but stories were all about their most recent win or loss, or the latest blowup involving Kovalev.

This Caps team is different. We all know it, we see it every day in the media, and we saw it last night on the ice. No doubt about it, this is a tight group of guys - just look what happens when the somewhat odd combo of Brashear, Ovie and Semin join forces against their PR guy.

By the way, good to see that Semin is part of the locker room fun - I have a funny image in my head of him jumping around like a little kid saying "Brash, let's go, let's go!"

- Ottawa Citizen: Brian Murray says Atlanta, Ottawa's next opponent, is a much more offensive team than the Caps...he must mean offensive as in obnoxious, which I thoroughly agree with, because the Thrashers don't average that many goals per game more than Caps. Incidentally, these less dangerous Caps put 4 big ones up against Gerber and the Sens last night. (I do like the reference to the Caps as an emerging talent in the league and Ovie as Alex "the Great" Ovechkin, though...Canadian media rocks.)

- Ottawa Sun

- You know, I've never really had that much of a problem with the Sens despite their need to beat up on the Caps over the past few years. However, I start to get a little annoyed when I read stuff like this:

"Toward the end of the first period last night, with Ottawa enjoying what should have been an insurmountable lead over Washington, the Senators started making fun of the Capitals, chuckling and making snide remarks."

There's just no need for that, especially from a team that has now lost 4 straight, including the previous game in which they also held a lead and blew it. Apparently they have short memories.

- On a non-hockey related note - everyone regardless of party preference should be sure to get out there and vote. And a reminder - Democrats vote today, Republicans vote tomorrow.

Just another friendly public service announcement from your friend here in the Cheap Seats!