Showing posts with label Pictures. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Pictures. Show all posts
Saturday, April 12, 2008
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Wednesday, March 05, 2008
Olie Says Suck It
It is a week of exorcising demons.
It feels good. Great. Fantastic. Like an enormous weight has been lifted.
It wasn't a pretty game to say the least, but that tells you that the Caps played a perfect road game. They jumped on mistakes, got odd-man rushes, clogged up the neutral zone and shut it down in net. It may not have been necessarily enjoyable to watch and you certainly never felt completely comfortable, but in the end it served it's purpose.
At one end of the ice, we had Olie Kolzig - the elder statesman of the team, the much-maligned goalie who was unfairly pinned as the scapegoat for the loss last weekend, the man fighting for his job with fresh blood being brought in just a week ago. Fans around here seem to have written him off, dismissing him as nothing more than a has-been (and conveniently forgetting his 22 wins).
Has he lost a step or two? Yes. Is he the goalie he once was? No. Can he still come in and play a dominant game?
25 of 26 shots turned away say yes, he can.
He was everything they needed him to be and sometimes more, making the routine saves and occasionally the saves of the more sparkling variety. He corraled the rebounds that his defense did not and even made a great save on Milan Jurcina - probably the best save of the night.
And at the other end of the ice...Ovechkin Ovechkin Ovechkin. It seems this whole practice of booing him just pumps him up more, because he scored two goals and was a huge factor in the third one, the eventual game-winner. They gave him chances and space and he took advantage of both, and then he used his body (in a perfectly legal check, by the way, watch the clip) to give Backstrom and Kozlov room to maneuver.
The shiny, pretty, puck possession game of two nights ago was gone, replaced with the grittier visage of a road team desperate for points. There were few glaring mistakes, few costly blunders, and just the one power play goal through a crowd that beat Zilla.
Speaking of power plays - one call. One. With eighteen seconds remaining. Thanks, refs, that was...not helpful at all.
In the end it doesn't matter, though. A win is a win is a win, and the Caps creep closer to 8th place now to sit two points back of Philadelphia and three points back of Carolina for the division lead (Atlanta is useless...for a change). Two days off and we're back in action once more, facing the almost certainly bitter Bruins for a Saturday matinee in Beantown.
And in case you've been under a rock lately and missed the hype machine starting up again, Sunday brings a pack of mullets to the Phone Booth. Can't wait to greet them.
Sunday, January 27, 2008
All-Star Photos
Special Cheap Seats correspondent Geneen is at the All-Star Festivities this weekend and sent back some great shots from last night's red carpet event: Kimmo Timonen, Philadelphia Flyers Rick DiPietro, New York Islanders Tomas Vokoun, Florida Panthers
Martin St. Louis, Tampa Bay Lightning
Ilya Kovalchuk, Atlanta Thrashers
Vincent Lecavalier, Tampa Bay Lightning
Alex Ovechkin
More to come!
All photos courtesy of Geneen Boyd
Thursday, January 17, 2008
A Picture Says It All
...but which one?
This one?
Or this one?
You decide. Good game, great win, fantastic smiles all around.
Photos courtesy of AP
This one?
Or this one?
You decide. Good game, great win, fantastic smiles all around.Photos courtesy of AP
Friday, January 11, 2008
Thursday, November 22, 2007
It Could Be Worse...
...you could be this guy:
HAPPY THANKSGIVING
FROM THE CHEAP SEATS
And to my Canadian friends...Happy Thursday.
HAPPY THANKSGIVINGFROM THE CHEAP SEATS
And to my Canadian friends...Happy Thursday.
Friday, November 16, 2007
A Kiss for Luck
He scored a goal.
...maybe the rest of the team should give it a shot.
Thursday, October 25, 2007
More Caps-Bolts Pictures
Here are some fantastic pictures from last night's game provided to me by my friend (and recovering Thrashers fan) Geneen:
Pettinger pre-game
A pensive moment for Olie before the game
Kozlov with his distinctive bright yellow stick
Backstrom
Johnny in his new mask
Gordon getting warmed up
Jurcina, Ovechkin and Semin
Brooks Laich stretching it out
Ovechkin
Captain Clark flanked by two Russian superstars
A gap-toothed grin for Steckel's first goal
St. Louis is hiding...
Ovechkin, always focused
They're fighting...really.
See? Ouch. Poor Morrisonn.
And that would be it for Vinny's night.
Semin keeps his eye on the puck
Well done.
Goal!!
A pensive moment for Olie before the game Kozlov with his distinctive bright yellow stick Backstrom Johnny in his new mask
Gordon getting warmed up
Jurcina, Ovechkin and Semin
Brooks Laich stretching it out
OvechkinCaptain Clark flanked by two Russian superstars A gap-toothed grin for Steckel's first goal
St. Louis is hiding...
Ovechkin, always focusedThey're fighting...really.
See? Ouch. Poor Morrisonn. And that would be it for Vinny's night.Semin keeps his eye on the puck
Well done.
Goal!!
Vinny the Goon and Other Tall Tales
There was a loud whooshing sound last night as the clock ticked down the final seconds - did you hear it? It was the sound of the Caps faithful breathing a collective sigh of relief as the losing streak is over.
It's never good to go through stretches like that, but you have to think that the team learned a thing or two about themselves and they got it out of the way early in the season. For one thing, they saw what happens when they play a team game, everyone chipping in - 3-0. They saw what happens when they don't...0-3. And they learned that even playing well doesn't always get the win, especially if your offense and power play production are sputtering (i.e., the Penguins game).
I thought overall the Caps looked solid and it is amazing how much a difference being back with Ovechkin has made in Clark's game. The checking line played great against what is essentially Tampa's one big line, even though St. Louis did get on the board, and having Semin back, albeit a slightly rusty Semin, was a nice boost for the club and the fans. Ovechkin had another complete game, doing more to convince me that this new well-rounded thing he's taken on might be here to stay.
I could talk about the power play continuing to falter, and it did, but it looked markedly improved even with the shorthanded goal. There are tweaks to be made, sure - getting Semin back in game shape is job one, and that will happen soon enough. Shooting the puck needs to be a priority, as well, but the Tampa penalty killers are renowned for being not only well-positioned but also aggressive...hence the shortie. I'm okay with how things seem to be progressing, at least.
Congrats to Clark, who not only saw his pointless streak end with two goals last night but also probably got home in time to see his beloved Red Sox take game one of the World Series. Congrats to Dave Steckel, who scored his first NHL goal and point off of a beautiful cross-ice pass from Ovechkin. Best wishes to Shaone Morrisonn as his face heals after being jumped by Vinny Lecavalier of all people.
UPDATE: If you missed it last night, here's the Lecavalier-Morrisonn fight courtesy of the good people at hockeyfights.com. You can see at the end why Mo had to get 10 stitches over his right eye, and it wasn't because of Vinny's wicked right hook.
And now some pictures...ooh, pretty:
Dave Steckel's first NHL goal
Kozlov and Ovechkin ready for the draw
Semin and Ovechkin during warm-ups 
Clark, Kozlov and Ovechkin lining up for the draw
Slightly blurry evidence of offensive zone pressure
Another faceoff 
GOAL!
Johnny's relieved this is just warm-ups...
Monday, October 01, 2007
Caps Tee Off for Charity
The Caps hit the links today for the Caps Care Classic golf tournament in Springfield, VA and I was there to bring you all the useless tidbits and gossip that no one else will print.
- Almost every team consisted of a Capital and three "regular folks", although there were a few alumni/media groups. There was the ever entertaining team of Sylvain Cote, Joe Reekie, CSN's Lisa Hillary, and Ken Sabourin as well as a team consisting of Ron Weber, Yvon Labre, Paul Mulvie and Blair Stewart (who apparently are former Caps, according to my dad...I only knew Labre and Weber).
- A handful of Caps were merely spectators, spending the afternoon wandering around the clubhouse or hopping in golf carts for a quick spin around the course. Jurcina, Klepis, Kozlov and Semin all sat out the festivities; Mike Green was slated to play but apparently there weren't enough players to form a team so he joined the others.
- Spotted around the 13th green: Joe Reekie introducing himself to Kozlov, who was riding around on the beverage cart for some reason. Reekie then asked Viktor how Sergei Gonchar was doing and was informed that Gonch got hit with the puck a few times against Buffalo the other night. Where? "In the [rear]," said Kozlov. Ouch.
- Semin got his own cart and followed Ovechkin and his team around for most of the day. He was joined later by Kozlov and the two chatted while Ovie teed up; at one point Semin shouted out "come on!" right when Ovie was about to swing. Proof that he speaks English...and is a little bit of a brat, which I love.
- Brooks Laich had the best shot in his group from the fairway of the 18th, which garnered a little round of applause from the half-dozen of us watching. He took a series of bows...and then missed the putt. Oh, well.
- Tom Poti and his team were passing by Laich and Brooks informed him that his team was 10 under. Tom wasn't buying it (and neither were we).
- Jurcina and Klepis were running around the clubhouse for a while, popping in and out to check on the action. Later in the day Milan sat in a rocking chair right next to me and was text messaging people for about 10 minutes before disappearing again. I tried to get him to stay but he wouldn't fit in my purse...
- I think by the end of the day some of the guys who weren't playing were starting to get a little antsy - Jurcina hijacked a golf cart and he and Green went for a spin around the course, looping around several times and even stopping right next to the 18th hole to watch Erskine. And heckle him.
- Ovechkin's team finished a hole and rather than moving on to the next one Ovie decided to stand right on the green as Michael Nylander took his fairway shot. Nylander just missed him with the ball, which Ovie then pretended to poke at with his club. He scampered off before Nylander could catch him, sadly.
- Matt Pettinger is a very impressive golfer. Ovechkin is...Ovechkin.
- The five non-golfers eventually ended up at the bar, grabbing some munchies and beer while the rest of the team finished up. Can't say that didn't look like more fun than the golfing thing, frankly, but whatever.
- Erskine shanked his fairway shot on the 18th so that it was propelled over to the 1st tee. As he drove up to collect his ball he endured some ribbing from Backstrom of all people. You have to love that.
Check out pics and video from the day's activities:
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Hockey Action Captured on Film
The interwebs have been busy today, buzzing with all kinds of good stuff about the Caps. As for me, I got nothing - so check out what other people are saying...
First up, Mike Vogel talks about last night's game, which despite the loss held lots of things that should make any Caps fan optimistic. OnFrozenBlog looks at the amazing chemistry the Caps have developed since the lockout. A couple of defensemen find the spotlight today, with the Post looking at little Greenie all growed up and the Times investigates newcomer Tom Poti's role on the team.
The Hockey News thinks Ovechkin is one to watch this season (going out on a limb, eh?), you can go see the Caps take on the Sens for free this Sunday but only if you're a United fan too, and Vogel investigates the tough decisions lying ahead as roster deadline day fast approaches.And of course, wrap it all up with JP's mother of all previews as he takes a look at the Capitals over at AOL's fanhouse - it's excellent, definitely check it out.So what do I bring you? Pictures - pictures stolen from other people, no less! Enjoy!
These first pictures come courtesy of loyal reader Victor, who got some great pictures from Tuesday's OT win over the Canes:
Anticipation...anticipay-ay-shun...
Anticipation...anticipay-ay-shun...
Quit giggling, you loons! This is war...
Kozlov makes it 2-0
And Backstrom is about to finish it off
The final score, on the beautiful new scoreboard
And now some pictures from last night's Flyers game courtesy of Teka, Hershey Bears fan and fellow HLOGger (and I think she likes some NHL team, too, but we ignore that part):
Evil has a face, a name...and now a new jersey. Take him down, Laich.
Little Backstrom
Flash 
I'm sure they're just chatting about the weather...
Steckel causing trouble for Biron...good boy.
JOHNNY!!
The only safe place for a Briere. Quick, someone get the tranquilizer gun!
There were a few scuffles...
Okay, more than a few scuffles...
(I love Jurcina just pushing little Briere out of the way with one hand.)
Okay, maybe there were some fights, too. Here Erskine takes on Jesse Boulerice. 
Any coincidence that the Flyers are selling shirts that say "Back with a Vengeance"? Didn't think so. Welcome back, Broad Street Bullies - can't say I missed you.
Special thanks to Teka for sharing her pictures, of which these are just a tiny fraction - you can view the rest of the action here, and be sure to check out her recap of the game as well. For a non-Caps fan she's got a healthy dose of Briere-hate, which I think we can all sympathize with.
Got pictures? Send them along and see them posted here as we countdown to the regular season. It's tantalizingly close now...
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