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07Jan

slobberknocker

(photo by Luis M. Alvarez)

The Washington Capitals came into Tuesday night’s game with seemingly everything right in the world (some would say they even had God on their side).
The Caps’ 26-11-3 record was the best in franchise history through 40 games. Their 17-1-1 record at the Verizon Center was the second best in the NHL (behind San Jose’s 19-0-2 mark at home). They were also tied with the Sharks for the NHL’s best winning percentage when scoring the first goal of the game (.826). The Caps were second place in the Eastern Conference, had the fourth most points in the entire NHL, and a 10-point cushion over Carolina in the Southeast Division. Like we said, there were countless reasons to rejoice.

But none of that mattered Tuesday night. Not with the Philadelphia Flyers in town.

Sure, the Caps had won nine out of their last 10 games, but that one loss was a 7-1 drubbing in Philadelphia, Dec. 20. Even coach Bruce Boudreau admitted the teams don’t like each other, while also openly acknowledged the fact that the Flyers kept their top players in the lineup well after the 7-1 game was all but over didn’t sit well with his team.

And, oh by the way, this is the same Flyers squad who eliminated the Caps from the postseason in a game seven overtime thriller the last time they visited the Verizon Center. If this was an old-school wrestling match, the announcers would be talking about how much “personal animosity” these two teams had towards each other heading into this “slobberknocker.”

“We have to be ready,” said Mike Richards, of the Flyers, leading up to rematch. “We kind of took it to them last time, and we have to understand they’re going to be gunning for us.”

So what happened once the puck dropped and these two worthy adversaries collided?

Well, the Caps drew first blood just 19 seconds into their first powerplay and just 2:10 into the contest on a Nicklas Backstrom tally. The Swedish center was standing on the doorstep and slammed the puck past Flyers goalie Martin Biron.

The Flyers came into the game with a league-best 13 shorthanded goals. Call us crazy, but we’re of the mindset that one surefire way to keep them from adding to that total is to score 19 seconds into every powerplay you have.

One thing we’ve noticed this season is that the Capitals get into trouble when their top skill players get too cutesy. If guys like Backstrom stop trying to make the perfect pass and instead crash the net with regularity, then there’s not many teams that can stop this high-powered attack.

Oh, and the last time these two teams faced off, Flyers goalie Antero Niittymaki made 25 first-period saves without allowing a goal. This time around? Biron gave up a goal on just the fourth shot of the night. Biron sir, you are no Niittymaki.

At this point, we leaned over to a fellow media member in the press box and wondered allowed how the Capitals would look after their initial surge. It was fairly easy to predict a fast start for the good guys, what with Boudreau poking his players with a stick leading up to the game and all. But how would they look once the game settled into a groove? No team can keep that level of intensity for an entire game, so what effort would the team have during the second and third periods?

The answer was … well … unanswered. Clearly the players were still giving their best effort, but the second and third periods featured uneven and sometimes sloppy play. One shift the team looked great. The next, the Flyers players seemed to be moving with a higher sense of urgency. After several near misses, the Flyers finally tied the game at 1-1 when defenseman Braydon Coburn scored a powerplay goal 23 seconds into the third period.

In perhaps the only suitable ending for such a highly-touted regular-season matchup, three regulation periods weren’t enough to decide things. Neither was an overtime period, for that matter, which meant a shootout would decide things.

As recent history has shown, the Caps aren’t very good at shootouts. In fact, one might go as far as to say only two players on the current roster are reliable in the one-on-one format – forward Victor Kozlov (who is great in shootouts and not so good in the playoffs) and goalie Jose Theodore (who was 10-3 in shootouts for his career).

As luck would have it, those two were enough to get the job done. Theodore turned away all three Flyers players and Kozlov scored the lone shootout goal to give the Caps their 18th win in 20 games. While winning the 41st game of the season doesn’t guarantee anything, it does go a long way to give this team confidence that they can win in a variety of ways. They’ve shown they can matchs goals with the best of them, but winning these low-scoring affairs is also vital – especially come playoff time when defenses tighten up and scoring is at a premium.

Perhaps most of all, the Capitals beat the Flyers. Was it as satisfying as a 7-1 drubbing or ending a rival team’s postseason hopes? No. But it’s a start. And what logical Caps fan couldn’t be satisfied with that.

The Capitals, like most teams, have a 24-hour rule. They’ll enjoy the win for the rest of the night, but the next day, its back to business as usual. When the puck drops Friday night and the Columbus Blue Jackets are in town, the last thing on their minds will be the Philadelphia Flyers or some media-driven rivalry between goons. We suggest fans do the same. If the rest of this season is any indication, there will plenty more to cheer about between now and the end of the regular season.

07Jan

father knows best

(courtesy photo)

Just before the puck dropped and the Washington Capitals took on the Philadelphia Flyers, we found ourselves walking alongside Capitals general manager George McPhee as we headed towards our seat in a very crowded press box. Unable to pass up the opportunity, we asked GMGM a fairly simple question – do you have a good feeling about tonight’s game?

“I very seldom have anything other than butterflies,” was his reply.

What McPhee failed to mention at the time was that the Caps had a secret weapon in their corner.

As everyone knows by now, the Caps exacted a little revenge on the Flyers with a 2-1 shootout victory at the Verizon Center last night.

The Flyers came in to the game knowing that they can beat the Caps. They did it in the postseason last year and they did it again via beatdown last month. The Caps? Well, they might very well be one of the league’s elite, but there are still a few teams that seem to have their number. And clearly this Philadelphia squad has been one of them.

As fans headed out of the Phone Booth, many credited stellar goaltending by Jose Theodore as the reason the Capitals came out victorious. While it is true Theodore is playing the best he has since arriving in D.C., it appears the Caps also enlisted the help of a higher power Tuesday night.

While we were waiting near the Caps locker room to conduct an interview with defenseman Karl Alzner after the game, we witnessed something we can confidently say we’ve never seen before.

In addition to the various players and equipment managers shuffling up and down the hallway, there was George McPhee, who was followed by roughly 30 priests from the Institute of the Incarnate Word in Chillum, Maryland.

It turns out Raul Fernandez, a part owner of the Washington Capitals, invited these fine men to attend the game and get a little VIP tour of the facilities, which set the scene for the most bizarre and improbable moment in our young blogging career.

Imagine 30 priests huddled in the Capitals locker room, easily filling the room to near maximum capacity. Then, imagine Capitals superstar Alex Ovechkin coming out of the showers wearing nothing more than a towel. He heads to what would typically be an empty locker room only to discover the room has been temporarily taken over by holy men. What’s more, one of the priests is actually posing for a photo in front of Ovechkin’s locker … and wearing his helmet. Seriously, you can’t make this stuff up.

Right about then Alzner comes out as 30 priests shuffle out of the locker room and on their merry way.

Um … Karl, have you ever seen anything like that in a hockey locker room before?

“Never in my entire life, no,” he said pretty much in awe. “I think they might be a little upset if they heard some of the language that goes on in a locker room, but yeah, that was kind of interesting. I didn’t know anything like that was happening.”

So be honest, you guys are trying to win over The Big Guy for a run at the Stanley Cup, aren’t you?

“You know what, that’s not a bad idea,” he said, still laughing at what he just witnessed. “If that’s what they’re doing, then that’s pretty cool. That’s pretty cool for some of them to come see the game and visit the locker room like that. We’ll take any help we can get. That’s cool with me.”

If what we suspect is true and a higher power is indeed at play here, then we feel confident in telling fans everywhere to mortgage it all and bet the farm on the Capitals to win their first Stanley Cup in franchise history. We couldn’t just sit on this secret, for some reason we felt inclined to “spread the good word” and share this insider information. So unless you’re an atheist, or worse – a Devils fan – we highly suggest you take advantage of the situation while you still can. Just be sure to give back your tithes and offerings, or at least tip your bartender, when you win big.

06Jan

resist the urge

(photo by Brian Murphy)

Let us say up front – we love fantasy football. We started back in 1996 and have run multiple teams each season since. That being said, one can’t help but notice the effect fantasy football has had on football.

Not tracking? Keep up.

This is the time of year where every talking head and every person with access to the “interwebs” wants to tell you how to “fix” [insert name of favorite sports franchise here]. Every doofus who has ever played the franchise mode in Madden or come in sixth place in a fantasy league feels compelled to tell you the Redskins should acquire Tank Johnson. Or Darren Sproles. Or Shayne Graham. Wait … what?!?! Someone actually used valuable space on Al Gore’s internet to start a sign Shayne … excuse us … “Shane Grahm” conversation?

Take our advice, you’re probably better off avoiding any team websites (with one notable exception, of course) and messageboards until after the NFL draft because every mouth breather in America apparently has the answers and wants to share them with us.

If that’s not bad enough, even the “pros” are getting in on the act. Locally, we’ve got someone we consider a personal friend, Rick Snider of the D.C. Examiner, throwing out the idea of the Redskins bringing Michael Vick to town. Yes, that Michael Vick. On a national level, there’s Jeffri Chadiha of ESPN.com suggesting that Eagles safety Brian Dawkins will be collecting mail at Redskins Park next season.

Never say never, but these two ideas, from people who are paid to write about sports, are nothing more than a “there’s nothing going on, so maybe I can drum up some hits for the website” cry for attention. And the fact that we linked to both of them plays right into their hands. (Editor’s note: dammit.)

What we should have done is ignored them. Right about now, no one has any clue what their team, including our beloved Redskins in particular, are going to do next. The players and coaches are all taking time off to blow off steam and separate from this past season. Fans should too.

And if anyone is going to make wild suggestions, then it should be outlandish suggestions like “The Redskins should get younger on the offensive line” or “The Redskins should draft a defensive lineman with a first rounder for the first time since football was broadcast in color.”

If we’re talking crazy talk, then we could even suggest The Danny bring in a true football guru like Scott Pioli, the New England Patriots vice president of player personnel, to run things. But honestly, why waste the time and energy? We know damned well that, barring Marty Schottenheimer 2.0 in D.C., we’re getting another year of Vinny. Make your peace with it now.

Yes, this is the leanest time of the year, but do everyone a favor and take a break from the fantasy football talk. No one wants to hear your mock draft simulation for all seven rounds of the upcoming NFL draft. No one even pretends to care when you restructure the entire organization or petition to hand the starting job to the third-string quarterback. We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again – don’t be that guy.

05Jan

redskins year in review

(photo by Brian Murphy)

Now that 2009 is upon us, it seems only fitting that we take a moment to reflect back on the 2008 season for the Washington Redskins. With a rookie head coach and a veteran team, the ‘Skins headed into this past season with more questions that most any other team in football. While many of those questions are still in need of answers, here are, in our humble opinion, the five biggest storylines of the 2008 season. Feel free to post a comment or email us to let us know if we got it right.

1. The Redskins draft well. Kind of.

Vinny Cerrato and the ‘Skins front office left the 2008 NFL draft with a mind-numbing 10 picks. After trading out of the first round, Washington had three second rounders, which the team opted to use on three pass catchers. Wide receivers Devin Thomas and Malcolm Kelly, along with tight end Fred Davis, justifiably earned the most attention, but it was the team’s final selection, a little-known safety out of UCLA by the name of Chris Horton, who had the biggest impact.

Horton, who earned the nickname “The Predator” because of his fierce play and dreadlocked looks, burst onto the scene for the Redskins in just the second week of his rookie season. With safety Reed Doughty sidelined due to illness, Horton was informed he would step into the starting lineup alongside LaRon Landry against the New Orleans Saints. While he admitted after the game that his nerves got the best of him the night before his first NFL start, it definitely didn’t show during the game as Horton recorded what defensive coordinator Greg Blache called a “hat trick,” or three turnovers. From there, Horton never looked back.

The jury is still out on Thomas, Kelly and Davis, as well as Cerrato’s abilities on draft day (anyone remember the name of that punter the ‘Skins wasted a draft pick on?), but Horton was a genuine steal with the 249th pick in the draft.

2. So you think you can dance?

For the Redskins, adversity hit on the very first day of training camp when defensive end Phillip Daniels suffered a season-ending injury to his anterior cruciate knee ligament. Just hours later, the ‘Skins moved quickly to fill the void by acquiring six-time Pro Bowler Jason Taylor for a second-round pick in the 2009 draft and a sixth-rounder in 2010.

“We had to act after losing Phillip,” Cerrato said at the time.

What they thought they were acquiring was a game-changing defensive player. What they got was a big name, and not much else. All flash, not much substance. Taylor made a name for himself as a Miami Dolphin, earning 2006 Associated Press NFL Defensive Player of the Year and the 2007 Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year awards. Unfortunately for the Redskins, he looked more like the Dancin’ with the Stars Jason Taylor than an award-winning defensive lineman.

Taylor was kicked in the calf in the second quarter of a meaningless preseason game against the Carolina Panthers and had to be rushed to the hospital after team doctors noticed unusual swelling. He was later diagnosed with compartmental syndrome, which explained the mass of blood near his ankle.

Though there was initial concern that it could be career threatening, Taylor was able to bounce back and work his way into the regular defensive rotation. But that didn’t translate into production. A year after collecting 11 sacks, Taylor had just 3.5, his lowest total this decade.

Had the team done nothing after the Daniels injury, they would have been in better shape than trading away multiple draft picks and paying more than $8 million this season for 3.5 sacks and one forced fumble. But the front office panicked and did what they felt was best for the team at the time.

And not all of the blame falls on Taylor. He’s at his best when his team has the lead and he’s set free to cause havoc in the opposing team’s backfield. With the Redskins rarely ever having a lead and the defensive staff seemingly confused over the best way to utilize Taylor, it’s tough to lay all of the blame on the defensive end. That being said, Taylor needs to bring much more to the table than his good looks and witty personality if he’s brought back next season.

3. For Pete’s sake.

Pete Kendall has played in 190 games over an impressive 13-year career. As an interior lineman, he’s consistently done an above average job of protecting the quarterback and anchoring talented offensive lines. Coaches can trust the veteran with loads of responsibilities and never have to second guess the decision. But there’s one thing Kendall isn’t – a running back.

Kendall proved such during an October matchup against the previously winless St. Louis Rams when a Jason Campbell pass that was deflected at the line landed in the arms of Kendall. Instead of moving out of the way and letting the ball fall harmlessly to the ground, the 35-year-old, for reasons unknown, decided to catch the ball and make a dash for the endzone. What happened next was one of the two biggest (and unfortunate) in-game moments of the 2008 season.

Pisa Tinoisamoa of the Rams jarred the ball loose from Kendall and Oshiomogho Atogwe swooped in to recover the fumble. Seventy five yards later, Atogwe scored a touchdown that gave the previously lifeless Rams a 10-7 halftime lead. And the rest was history.

“My instinct was – believe it or not – to knock it down and why I didn’t?” Kendall said after the game. “It will bother me for a long time.”

4. Hall of a catch.

Cornerback DeAngelo Hall started the season by signing a seven-year, $70 million deal with the Oakland Raiders. After just eight games (in which he earned a cool $8 million), Hall was let go by owner Al Davis and friends because the team wanted to go in a different direction.

The Redskins then somehow beat out teams like the New England Patriots and the Dallas Cowboys for the services of the former Virginia Tech standout, signing Hall for the remainder of the season for just $492,000. Hall arrived in town with some baggage, namely questions about how a “Me-first” player with potential character issues would fit into a tight-knit Redskins locker room. But fortunately for the maroon and black, Hall was on his best behavior off the field and one of their best defenders on it.

Although he played in just eight games for Washington, Hall finished second on the team in interceptions and gave a top-ranked defense an identity. Before Hall came to town, the Redskins defense had little to no pass rush and an inability to create turnovers. After he arrived, there was still little to no pass rush, but now, suddenly, there was a player in the secondary who was actually capable of picking off a pass from time to time.

Now Hall is a free agent who will certainly command more than the veteran’s minimum to keep in town. If management is smart, and that’s never a guarantee, they’ll make re-signing Hall their top offseason priority – even if that means letting go of someone else in the secondary (see: Rogers, Carlos).

5. A fitting end.

No play summarizes the Redskins’ season more than this one.

Trailing 17-10 against a sorry Cincinnati Bengals team, the ‘Skins faced a third-and-goal situation just nine inches from the endzone. Having failed to score a touchdown on the previous play, a handoff to fullback Mike Sellers, the Redskins decided to run that play again.

Unfortunately, the Redskins suffered the same fate as the previous Sellers carry, as the Bengals again stuffed the bruising back short of the goal line. Adding insult to injury, Sellers actually fumbled the ball when he fully extended in hopes of scoring the tying touchdown. Instead of a 17-17 game or closing the Bengals lead to 17-13, the ‘Skins suffered a stomach punch that they never recovered from.

At that exact moment Redskins fans knew the season was over. Sure, there were two more games to play, but if you can’t beat the bottom-feeding Bengals or the downtrodden Rams, then you don’t deserve to play in the postseason.

Honorable mention: Redskins hire Zorn as offensive coordinator, Redskins hire Zorn as head coach, Blache recommends folks fall in love with strippers, Portis dreams of better offensive line, Portis has words for Brian Mitchell, Portis has words for “genius” coach, Cooley blogs, Cooley blogs in the buff, Campbell grows as franchise QB, Campbell regresses as franchise QB, Wanted: dependable second receiver

03Jan

slap fight!

Washington Capitals wing Alexander Semin is not happy. Don’t believe me? Watch him show Marc Staal of the New York Rangers just how unhappy he is. Trust me, it’s highly enjoyable. The guy has one of the best shots in the entire NHL, but he doesn’t bring much to the table when it’s time to throw down. Donald Brashear, please stay healthy. Your presence in the lineup is sorely missed.

In related news, the Caps won over the Rangers 2-1 and are now 26-11-3 for the season, which gives them the best record at the 40-game mark in franchise history.

31Dec

stop it. just stop it

(photo by Brian Murphy)

The big news of the day is that Vinny Cerrato, the executive vice president for football operations for the Washington Redskins, held a 15-minute press conference today.

Since folks don’t hear much from Cerrato unless he’s on his own radio show, some ‘Skins fans had high hopes in regards to possible topics. But as most rational fans could have guessed, Cerrato had nothing of substance to say just days after the Redskins season ended. Truth be told, only one question and answer from the entire press conference is noteworthy at all.

When asked if Jason Campbell was the Redskins’ quarterback of the future, Cerrato replied: “I think that Jason’ll be back … you know, he’s the starting quarterback. And I think what you do is you just go year to year and you have to evaluate everything.”

That’s it. Of course, since that’s the only memorable quote from the entire dog and pony show, the fanatical types will surely take it 10 steps too far and say, “OMG!!!!! VINNY DISSED CAMPBELL!!!!!!” and go on blathering about nothing. But let us, the sensible types, take a step back and think about it for a moment.

What exactly would the front office have to gain by endorsing Jason Campbell as the Redskins’ long-term solution at quarterback?

The answer? Nothing.

In fact, making that statement, one could argue, would actually hurt the franchise. Why? Because Campbell is set to become a free agent after the 2009 season.

Standing in front of the media and stating unequivocally that Campbell is the man and will be the cornerstone of the franchise for the next decade only drives up the price for the free agent-to-be.

Cerrato is simply playing things safe and not giving Campbell’s agent any unnecessary leverage when it’s time to sit down and negotiate a new deal. Anyone that says different is a moron. Do us all a favor and don’t be that guy.

31Dec

don’t cross the line

(photo by Brian Murphy)

This has been a banner year for the Washington Redskins’ most popular player, tight end Chris Cooley.

In addition to marrying his lovely wife Christy, Cooley also earned his second straight trip to the Pro Bowl, set a team record for most receptions by a tight end and, oh by the way, started the most popular blog by an athlete ever.

One might think that with everything going his way, there’s no stopping Cooley. Well, that person would be slightly mistaken.

We heard rumblings earlier in the season that, although the Redskins as an organization have given little guidance, Cooley does have one rule he’s required to follow – do not talk about the offensive line. No, the front office hasn’t laid down the law. But the offensive line has, which is why, when Cooley mentions “air humping” a fallen lineman Happy Gilmore style, no names are actually used. He has to keep things generic and keep their names off of his website.

We have it on good authority that a certain tight end/blogger is banned from mentioning the offensive line on his website. What say you?

“No names,” said offensive tackle Jon Jansen. “I won’t use any names, but we like to think that what happens in here, in team surroundings, stays with the team and not on the internet.”

Have you ever checked out Cooley’s blog?

“No, no I don’t,” Jansen said.

Obviously someone has, seeing as you guys have brought the issue up with Chris, right?

“Well, whether you see your name or not, you have family, friends or fans who will let you know what’s been on there. But honestly, I’m all for it. It’s something that he enjoys doing and the fans love it and I’m all for it, as long as there’s good taste involved.”

And he keeps his pants on

“There’s always going to be mistakes along the way and you just hope they’re small ones,” Jansen said. “And that was a small one.”

With that, we sought out the blogger himself for answers.

We’ve been told that you’ve been banned from using the names of offensive linemen on your blog. Is that true?

(Laughs). “Yeah, but they like to be on the blog secretly,” Cooley said. “They just like to give me a hard time.”

But they keep track of what you’re posting, right?

“Yeah, they all find out,” he said. “They act like I’m one of the media. Like I’d sell them out or something. They’re fun. It’s always something interesting.”

So there you have it, Cooley can blog as often as he’d like, as long as no names of offensive linemen are used. And for the record, we know which lineman got “air humped.” We’d share with the class, but we’re not about to cross The Dirtbags. If they’re willing to come after one of their best teammates, then think of what they’d do to us.

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