Capitals Insider - The Washington Post’s Tarik El-Bashir on the Capitals and NHL - November 1, 2009

Caps 7, Panthers 4

Who needs Alex Ovechkin and Mike Green when you've got Mathieu Perreault and Quintin Laing? With two of the league's most talented players sidelined with injuries, secondary scoring came from all sorts of sources tonight as the Caps routed the Panthers, 7-4, with a five-goal third period. Mike Knuble...

Tonight's lineup: Panthers at Caps

Jose Theodore will be back between the pipes tonight against the Panthers, but the Caps will be without Mike Green and Jeff Schultz. Both defensemen were injured last night in the Caps' 4-1 win at Florida and are listed as day to day. Scott Clemmensen, meantime, will start for the...

Nylander put on waivers (updated)

It appears more news broke while I was at 35,000 feet this afternoon. According to Bob McKenzie's twitter page -- and now confirmed by a Caps official -- Michael Nylander has been placed on waivers....

Boudreau: 'If you wanna win, you have to pay the price'

Mark Giannotto checking in from a mostly empty Kettler Capitals Iceplex this morning... A groggy Bruce Boudreau just spoke with the media after arriving back into town from Florida at 2 a.m. First and foremost on his mind were the injuries suffered by defensemen Mike Green (upper body) and Jeff...

Ovechkin on IR; Green, Schultz game-time decisions

A few quick updates: The Caps have placed Alex Ovechkin, who is still nursing a strain near his left shoulder, on injured reserve to make room for Eric Fehr on the roster. Ovechkin could, however, still return Wednesday against the Isles. Mike Green and Jeff Schultz, who both left last...

Caps 4, Panthers 1

The Caps snapped a three-game losing streak with a thorough 4-1 win tonight over the Panthers. But the story, once again, was the loss of key players to injury. Already without Alex Ovechkin, Mike Green and Jeff Schultz went down with upper- and lower-body injuries, respectively. Both are questionable...

Updates on Green, Schultz and Morrisonn

Mike Green suffered an upper-body injury in the first period and did not return. He told me on the way to the team bus that he hopes to play Saturday, but won't know whether he'll be able to until tomorrow morning. Jeff Schultz sustained a lower-body injury in the second...

Schultz injured, too

The Caps just lost another defenseman. Jeff Schultz has also suffered an injury and has left the bench, joining Mike Green in the visitors' dressing room here at BankAtlantic Center. The team says he may return. Tyler Sloan, meantime, has been switched back to defense....

Green injured

Defenseman Mike Green suffered an injury in the first period. He may return, the team says. I'll have an update as soon as more info is available....

Tonight's lineup: Caps at Panthers

Jose Theodore will start in goal tonight as the Caps attempt to snap a three game losing streak at BankAtlantic Center. Tomas Vokoun will get the nod for Florida, which has won three straight. Alex Ovechkin won't suit up and is expected to miss Saturday's rematch, as well. The Caps...

Theodore to start vs. Panthers

Based on the morning skate, it looks like Jose Theodore will get the nod in net tonight at BankAtlantic Center against the suddenly surging Panthers. There will also be a change on the Caps' blue line, with John Erskine coming out and Brian Pothier going back in. "He had three...

Ovechkin update: No better, no worse

After returning to practice Thursday, Alex Ovechkin did not take the pre-game skate at BankAtlantic Center this morning. That doesn't necessarily mean he's had a setback, but when asked how he's feeling today, he said only, "Same." Ovechkin is expected to miss at least the next two games with a...

Morning roundup: Ovechkin not ready to return

(Jim McIsaac/Getty Images) Alex Ovechkin skated at practice yesterday (video here), but he said an injury near his left shoulder will likely keep him out of back-to-back games against the Florida Panthers. "It's still a little sore," Ovechkin said of his shoulder. "I feel a little bit better, but...

Video: Ovechkin back on the ice

Here's some video from Tarik down in Sunrise, Fla., where Alex Ovechkin returned to the ice for the first time since injuring his shoulder Sunday....

Ovechkin likely out this weekend

Alex Ovechkin said his injury -- it's obvious now that it's a strain near his left shoulder -- continues to improve by leaps and bounds. But it has not improved enough to allow him to play in this weekend's back-to-back series with the Panthers, he said, after returning to practice...

Ovechkin returns to the ice

The Caps are on the ice here at BankAtlantic Center, and for the first time since Sunday, Alex Ovechkin is among them. He's wearing a different colored jersey and is not assigned to a line, though, so it's obvious that he's not ready to go. Yet. Ovechkin seems to be...

Morning roundup: Minus Ovechkin, Caps fall short

(Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) With Alex Ovechkin out, other players didn't fill the void, instead committing costly penalties in a 3-2 loss to New Jersey last night: The Capitals, who have dropped three straight (0-1-2), were assessed four penalties -- including two offensive-zone penalties taken by Alexander Semin and another...

Devils 3, Caps 2

The Caps claim they are not a one-player team. But it sure looked like it tonight at Prudential Center, where inexcusable penalties and sub-par performances from players expected to step forward with Alex Ovechkin sidelined added up to a 3-2 loss in New Jersey. Alexander Semin, Nicklas Backstrom and...

Tonight's lineup: Caps at Devils

Semyon Varlamov will get the nod in net tonight and oppose Martin Brodeur at Prudential Center as the Caps attempt to snap a two-game losing streak (0-0-2). The rest of the lineup should look like this: Forwards Fleischmann-Morrison-Knuble Laich-Backstrom-Semin Laing-Steckel-Bradley Sloan-Perreault-Clark Defense Morrisonn-Green Schultz-Jurcina Poti-Erskine Goalies Varlamov Theodore I'll have...

Varlamov to start in New Jersey

The big news today is that Alex Ovechkin is feeling 'a lot better'. But not well enough to suit up later, which means the must do without their best offensive player when they face the notoriously stingy Devils. Semyon Varlamov came off the ice before Jose Theodore at the morning...

Ovechkin feeling 'a lot' better

Alex Ovechkin didn't take the morning skate and will miss his first game of the season tonight in New Jersey. But two-time MVP had some encouraging news for Coach Bruce Boudreau when the two spoke at Prudential Center earlier. "He said he's feeling better today, a lot better today," Boudreau...

Poll: Does targeting stars go too far?

Yesterday, Blue Jackets Coach Ken Hitchcock told reporters that he did indeed tell his players to target Alex Ovechkin -- "Run, chase, hunt down, hit, whatever word you want to use that would be correct," he said -- in their game against the Caps on Sunday. "That's the name of...

Morning roundup: 'We're not a one-man team'

(Greg Fiume/Getty Images) The Capitals are eager to prove that they can not only survive, but win, without their marquee player, Alex Ovechkin, who will be watching from the press box beginning tonight against the New Jersey Devils. "As much as he gets all the press, I've gotta believe...

Backstrom: 'We have to keep going'

There's no question from anyone at KCI that the Capitals will miss Alex Ovechkin's presence, but they also agree that it's far from a death knell for a team loaded with talent. And the Capitals are anxious to remind everyone they can not just survive, but win, without the two-time...

Hitchcock: Blue Jackets targeted Ovechkin

Yesterday, Caps Coach Bruce Boudreau said he thought the Columbus Blue Jackets were targeting Alex Ovechkin in Sunday night's game, ultimately leading to the star winger suffering an upper-body strain. "I think the game plan was, every time Alex touches the puck, that somebody run or hit him," Boudreau said....

Ovechkin: 'No better, no worse'

Alex Ovechkin spoke to the media this morning for the first time since Sunday night, when he suffered an upper-body strain against Columbus. The two-time reigning MVP is listed as week to week and expected to miss at least tomorrow night's game against New Jersey. On if he'll be ready...

New line combos in Ovechkin's absence

Practice just started at KCI and Bruce Boudreau rolled out a few new line combinations as the Capitals prepare for tomorrow's game against New Jersey without Alex Ovechkin. Boyd Gordon, who has missed eight straight games, is the only other player not on the ice. Fleischmann-Backstrom-Knuble Laich-Morrison-Semin Fehr-Perreault-Clark Laing-Steckel-Bradley As...

Morning roundup: Caps downgrade Ovechkin

(Greg Fiume/Getty Images) One day after suffering an upper-body injury, Alex Ovechkin had his status downgraded from day to day to week to week: "Ovechkin suffered an upper-body strain in Sunday evening's game against the Columbus Blue Jackets and his status is week-to-week," the team announced in a news...

Caps recall Perreault, assign Aucoin to Hershey

The Caps have recalled 2006 sixth-round draft pick Mathieu Perreault from the Bears, sending Keith Aucoin back down to Hershey. Aucoin, 30, had one goal and four assists in an eight-game stint with Washington. Morning roundup and some practice updates to come in a bit....

Caps: Ovechkin is week to week

The Caps just sent out the following release, identifying Alex Ovechkin's injury as an upper-body strain and changing his status from day to day to a more ominous week to week: Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin suffered an upper-body strain in Sunday evening's game against the Columbus Blue Jackets...

Olympic hockey: Cool, but slippery

Time to break away from the Alex Ovechkin injury for just a bit. Here's a column from Tracee Hamilton on the NHL's future role in the Olympics: Compared to Washington's other professional franchises, the Capitals are one happy family. They aren't facing the extreme dysfunction that surrounds the Redskins or...

Boudreau: Ovechkin might not play Wednesday

Alex Ovechkin managed to sneak out through a back door at Ketter Capitals Iceplex this afternoon after receiving treatment on what is believed to be a left arm or shoulder injury, and thus avoided a handful of reporters who were camped outside of the Arlington practice facility. But Slava Malamud...

Bog: IMG exec talks about Ovechkin deal

Update on Alex Ovechkin to come very soon. In the meantime, Dan Steinberg spoke with an IMG Worldwide executive about the company's new deal with the Caps' superstar winger. Check it out here, and then hurry on back!...

Boudreau: Ovechkin's status still day to day

Bruce Boudreau was just on NHL Live, and he had just a few short comments about the upper-body injury Alex Ovechkin suffered in last night's game. Here's what the Caps' head coach had to say: "As far as I know, it's day to day. I haven't seen him this morning,...

Bog boredom buster: Rolling Stone disses the Caps

Dan Steinberg throws us a bone with his latest post, in which he takes issue with this statement in a Rolling Stone article that's supposed to rip on the Skins but ends up trashing the Caps in the process: You have a responsibility to deliver as a football owner when...

Poll: Will Ovechkin miss time?

Alex Ovechkin left the ice in the middle of the second period last night with a suspected upper-body injury and didn't return. Today, he was seen heading into the Caps' practice facility on an off day, likely to receive treatment and/or be examined by the medical staff. The two-time MVP...

Ovechkin arrives at KCI

Although the Caps have today off, Alex Ovechkin arrived at the team's Arlington training facility around 10:30 a.m., driving his sports car with his dad riding shotgun. Ovechkin, who appeared to suffer a shoulder/arm injury in Sunday's 5-4 overtime loss to the Blue Jackets, hopped out of his car, closed...

IMG inks deal with Ovechkin

Here's an excerpt from the release (great timing, huh?): IMG Worldwide, the premier global sports, media and entertainment company, announced today that it has signed hockey superstar Alex Ovechkin, for exclusive worldwide management, sponsorship, licensing and marketing representation. Ovechkin, the 24 year-old Washington Capitals left wing, is one of the...

Morning roundup: Loss to Columbus is secondary

(Getty Images) The Caps lost, 5-4, in overtime last night to the Columbus Blue Jackets, but the bigger story, of course, was the injury suffered by Alex Ovechkin in the second period: Alex Ovechkin was hurt during a scrum and missed the final 33 minutes 50 seconds of the...

Blue Jackets 5, Caps 4 (OT)

The Caps suffered an another ugly defeat at Verizon Center. But losing, 5-4, in overtime to the Blue Jackets wasn't their biggest concern tonight. The big story, of course, was the injury suffered by Alex Ovechkin in the second period. There's nothing new to report right now, but I'm...

Ovechkin day-to-day with upper body injury

Alex Ovechkin suffered an upper body injury in the second period tonight and did not return. The winger said he's day-to-day. Asked what happened during the scrum, where it appeared he was originally injured, Ovechkin said: "It was just a moment of the game. Nothing happened. [Jason Chimera] hit me,...

Ovechkin hurt (updated)

Alex Ovechkin left today's game at 6:10 of the second period with what could be an pectoral/shoulder/left arm injury. The two-time MVP appeared to be injured earlier in the during a scrum near the Columbus bench that began when Jason Chimera bumped Ovechkin as the two passed one another. Ovechkin...

Tonight's lineup: Blue Jackets at Caps

Jose Theodore will start in net and oppose Steve Mason. It also looks like Mike Green and Nicklas Backstrom will play and that Coach Bruce Boudreau has shuffled his forward combos. Based on warmups, the Caps' lineup should look like this: Forwards Ovechkin-Morrison-Knuble Fleischmann-Backstrom-Semin Laich-Steckel-Bradley Laing-Aucoin-Clark Defense Green-Morrisonn Poti-Jurcina Pothier-Schultz...

Theodore starting, Green limping, Backstrom preparing

Jose Theodore will start in goal for the Caps tonight against Columbus. But that's about all Coach Bruce Boudreau was willing to share with reporters when he spoke moments ago. I can tell you that I saw Mike Green limp into Verizon Center. He missed practice yesterday after taking a...

Laing: 'A couple of days of feeling miserable'

Quintin Laing will return to the Caps' lineup tonight against Columbus after three games with the H1N1 virus, the fourth line winger confirmed moments ago. "I don't know if there will be a close hug or not," Laing joked when asked how he expected his teammates to congratulate him if...

Capitals Insider: November 1, 2009 - November 7, 2009