Today's Game Washington hosts the Eastern Conference-leading Boston Bruins at Verizon Center tonight for the Capitals' 23th home game and 46th overall of 2008-09. The Capitals are 28-14-3 (59 points) and hold a 12-point lead in the Southeast Division standings entering Friday's games. The Bruins are 11 points ahead of the second-place Capitals in the Eastern Conference standings with a 33-7-4 record (70 points). They became the first NHL team to reach 70 points this season with their fourth straight victory Thursday night at the New York Islanders, 2-1. Please Note Media and fans attending Saturday night's game should allow for extra time for travel due to traffic congestion and restrictions surrounding Tuesday's Presidential Inauguration. Official Guide The 2008-09 Washington Capitals Official Guide is available for download online at WashingtonCaps.com (click on "Team"). Wireless Access Passwords for wireless Internet access are posted on the bulletin boards near the entrance to the press room and press box. Tonight's Broadcasts WSH TV: Comcast SportsNet (Joe Beninati, Craig Laughlin, Al Koken) WSH Radio: WFED 1500 AM, WWFD 820 AM (Steve Kolbe, Ken Sabourin, Jonathan Warner) BOS TV: NESN (Jack Edwards, Andy Brickley) BOS Radio: WBZ (Dave Goucher, Bob Beers) Lifetime Series This marks the second of four meetings between Washington and the Bruins in 2008-09, the final one at Verizon Center. Washington trails the all-time series, 36-61-21-6, entering the 125th meeting, including a 20-27-12-3 record at home. This Year's Series Dec. 10 at Washington: WSH 3, BOS 1. Brent Johnson turned in an impressive 33-save performance and the Capitals scored goals in each period to hand the Bruins what would be their only loss of December. Jan. 17 at Washington Jan. 27 at Boston Feb. 28 at Boston Series Notes Washington and Boston will meet again in 10 days in Boston, before the Capitals' next home game Washington is 3-0-2 in its last five home games against the Bruins Both teams were 2-0-0 at home last season The 10 goals Washington scored in a 10-2 win March 3, 2008, marked the Capitals' most goals in the series Other than that 10-goal output, neither team scored more than two goals in any game last season Washington held Boston to seven goals in four games and outscored the Bruins 8-0 in the first period Washington was 1-4-1-5 against Boston before winning two of the last three meetings last year More For a complete series history, see pages 217 and 268-269 of the 2008-09 Washington Capitals Official Guide. Recent Washington Capitals Games Last 5 WAS games: 2-3 - 0 Last 10 WAS games: 7-3 - 0 LAST GAME: Washington 6, Pittsburgh 3 January 14, 2009 Mellon Arena, Pittsburgh, Pa. Score by Period Shots Pen/Min PP WSH 0-2-4--6 42 6/12 2-6 PIT 1-1-1--3 29 6/12 1-6
Alex Ovechkin had two goals and an assist in the third period to lead Washington to a 6-3 victory at Pittsburgh, the Capitals' third straight road triumph against the Penguins and second this season. Nicklas Backstrom also had a threepoint night with three assists, as the Capitals erased 1-0 and 2-1 deficits. Washington scored on both of its third-period power-play opportunities. Total Man-Games Lost: 231 Washington Capitals Injuries/Transactions Injuries D Brian Pothier Out indefinitely D Tom Poti Day-to-day, groin C Boyd Gordon Day-to-day D Shaone Morrisonn Day-to-day Recent Transactions Jan. 14: Capitals recalled Bryan Helmer from Hershey (AHL). Jan. 11: Capitals assigned Sean Collins and Tyler Sloan to Hershey (AHL). Jan. 9: Capitals recalled Tyler Sloan from Hershey (AHL). Jan. 3: Capitals assigned Alexandre Giroux to Hershey (AHL). Jan. 2: Capitals assigned Chris Bourque to Hershey (AHL). Jan. 1: Capitals assigned Tyler Sloan to Hershey (AHL). Dec. 30: Capitals recalled Tyler Sloan from Hershey (AHL). Dec. 29: Capitals recalled Chris Bourque from Hershey (AHL) and assigned Simeon Varlamov to Hershey. Washington Capitals Notes Upcoming Games Date Opponent Location Time Caps TV Caps Radio Jan. 19 at NY Islanders Uniondale, N.Y. 2 p.m. CSN WFED 1500 AM, WWFD 820 AM, XM Jan. 20 at Ottawa Ottawa, Ontario 7:30 p.m. VERSUS WFED 1500 AM, WWFD 820 AM, XM NHL All-Star Break Jan. 27 at Boston Boston, Mass. 7 p.m. CSN (HD) WFED 1500 AM, WWFD 820 AM, XM Jan. 31 vs. Detroit Verizon Center 12:30 p.m. CSN (HD) WFED 1500 AM, WWFD 820 AM, XM Feb. 1 vs. Ottawa Verizon Center 12:30 p.m. CSN (HD) WFED 1500 AM, WWFD 820 AM, XM Note of the Night Summit meeting The top two teams in the Eastern Conference meet tonight, with the Bruins entering the game 11 points ahead of the Southeast Division-leading Capitals in the conference standings. Washington has had a great deal of success against the other top teams in conference, going 12-4-2 against teams that would make the playoffs entering Friday's games. Included in that was a 3-1 win against Boston on Dec. 10, the Bruins' only loss of the month. Five More Notes No Media Person Should be Without Parade of wins Washington won its second game of the year in Pittsburgh Wednesday despite never holding a first- or second- period lead in either game. The Capitals have now won three in a row in Pittsburgh for the first time since a fourgame stretch from Jan. 16, 1985, to Nov. 20, 1985. Third term Alex Ovechkin had two goals and an assist Wednesday night, all in the third period, to lead the Capitals to a win. Ovechkin leads all NHL players in third-period goals (15, four more than any other player) and points (29, three more than any other player). Having a Ball Tomas Fleischmann has goals in three straight games for the second time this year, matching his career high. He has scored a career-high 15 goals on the season in 36 games, good for third on the team behind Alex Ovechkin and Alexander Semin. His four game-winning goals are just one behind Ovechkin for the team lead. Fleischmann had 14 goals in 118 career games entering this year. Green party Washington defenseman Mike Green has 11 points (4g-7a) in the last nine games. Washington is 21-8-3 with Green in the lineup and just 7-6-0 when the NHL's top points-per-game defenseman (0.97) was out with an injury. Green is just five points and two goals off the NHL lead by a defenseman in both categories despite missing 13 games due to injury. His nine power-play goals lead the team and all NHL defensemen. Green has 22 points (8g-14a) in his last 19 games and ranked third among NHL defensemen in points in calendar year 2008 (61).
Checks and balance The Capitals, San Jose and Detroit are the only three teams in the league with seven double-digit goal scorers. Washington is the league's only team with three players who have eight or more power-play goals (Calgary, Detroit, Philadelphia and St. Louis are the only teams with two). One-Timers The Capitals are 7-2-1 against Northeast Division teams and 8-1-2 against the Atlantic Division Washington's comeback from 4-0 down at NYR on Dec. 23 matched the biggest comeback in franchise history (three other times, most recently Oct. 23, 1991, at Edmonton) Washington's 25 shots on goal in the first period Dec. 20 at Philadelphia matched the all-time franchise record for shots in a period and set the record for shots in a period on the road Washington's 8-5-2 record in November marked its most November wins since 1996 (9-5-1) and its first November above.500 since 1999 (7-3-2-1) Washington's 11-3-0 record in December was the team's second-best December in history, trailing only the 12-2-2 mark of the 1984-85 team 15 players have assisted on Alex Ovechkin's 29 goals; his game-tying goal at NYR was his first unassisted goal of the year Alex Ovechkin has attempted five penalty shots in his career, two more than any other Caps player in history The Capitals have three of the eight active Hart Trophy winners in the NHL (Alex Ovechkin, Jose Theodore and Sergei Fedorov) More Caps Notes Back me up Capitals center Nicklas Backstrom's 44 points in the last 33 games (12g-32a) have put him among the league's scoring leaders (tied for 10th entering Friday's games). Wednesday night marked his fifth three-assist game of the season. He tied for the league lead with 21 points (6g-15a) in December. In calendar year 2008, Backstrom ranked third in the league in assists (65) and eighth in the league in points (83). Seeking 60 Washington enters tonight's game one point shy of 60 for the season, a mark the Capitals hit on Feb. 13 last year. This would mark the earliest (in terms of games) that Washington reached 60 points since 1985-86 (45 games, Jan. 21). The 1991-92 Caps hit 60 points on Jan. 16 (game 47). Seeking 30 Alex Ovechkin enters tonight's game one goal shy of his fourth straight 30-goal season. Only two players in franchise history have had four straight 30-goal seasons: Peter Bondra (who had five) and Mike Gartner (who had nine en route to an NHL record 15 straight 30-goal seasons). Packed house Washington expects another sellout at Verizon Center tonight, the team's 12th of the season. A few notes on the crowds at Caps home games this year: There was a streak of seven straight sellouts one shy of the franchise record snapped Jan. 13 vs. Edmonton The Caps didn't have their second sellout last year until Feb. 24 The average attendance of 17,959 (98% capacity) is up 30% from this time last year and is the highest attendance through 22 games in franchise history Counting tonight, twenty-four of the last 39 Capitals regular-season and playoff home games have been sold out Home run Despite back-to-back home losses, Washington's 18-3-1 home record is still the second-best in the NHL, trailing only San Jose (20-1-2). The Capitals haven't lost three in a row at home under head coach Bruce Boudreau. Back on track Alexander Semin has points in 10 of the last 11 games he has played (4g-7a). His two-goal game at Montreal marked his first multiple-point effort since Nov. 12 at Carolina, the game before he suffered an injury that forced him to miss 18 games. Semin had five points (two goals, three assists) in that game, his ninth multiple-point game in the first 15 games of the year. Change The Capitals had started the season 3-3-3 in one-goal games and are now 10-4-3. Western woes The Capitals have suffered eight of their 14 losses to Western Conference opponents, including a 1-3-0 mark against the Northwest Division. Shot clock Alex Ovechkin leads the NHL with 282 shots on goal; no other player has 200. Ovechkin is on pace for 525 shots on the season, which would be a career high despite the fact that he missed two games earlier in the season. He has posted seven games of 10 or more shots on goal and has 25 such games in his career, more than any other active player. D powers, activate Washington defensemen have contributed significantly to the team's offense in 2008-09. On the year, a blueliner has either scored or assisted on more than half of the Capitals' 146 goals (74; 22g-64a).
The great 8 Alex Ovechkin has 14 goals and 19 points in his last 16 games, including five two-goal games. Ovechkin has posted 49 points in his last 35 games (26g-23a). He led the NHL in goals in December (12) and ranked tied for fourth in points (19). His 57 points on the season, through 43 games played, rank third in the NHL and put him ahead of his own pace from last season. First 43 GP G-A-PTS +/- 2008-09 29-28-57 +15 2007-08 32-20-52 +6 A real winner Washington is 28-1-1 in the last 30 games when Alex Ovechkin has scored a goal (18-1-1 this season). His five game-winning goals this season lead the team. Washington is 17-0-1 in his last 18 multiple-goal games. Washington hasn't lost a game in which Ovechkin scored a power-play goal in more than a year, since Dec. 17, 2007, at Detriot. Balance of power Washington has scored on 26.8% of its power-play chances (34-of-127) since Nov. 12. The Capitals ranked as low as 27th in the league on the power play (14.8% on Nov. 8). First things first Washington's 47 first-period goals rank tied for third in the NHL. The Capitals are 17-2-1 when leading after the first period, 19-4-1 when scoring first, 27-4-2 in games that they led at any time and 18-8-0 when outshooting an opponent. Finishing strong Washington's 56 third-period goals rank second in the league, trailing only Detroit (60). Climbing the charts In three and a half seasons, Alex Ovechkin already ranks sixth in career goals with the Washington Capitals and is 15th in career points. Washington Capitals Career Goals 1. Peter Bondra 472 2. Mike Gartner 397 3. Mike Ridley 218 4. Bengt Gustafsson 196 5. Dave Christian 193 6. Alex Ovechkin 192 Washington Capitals Career Points 14. Bob Carpenter 395 15. Alex Ovechkin 367 D for depth The Capitals have used 12 defensemen this season (counting Sergei Fedorov, who has played four games on defense, but not including Brian Pothier, who has been sidelined all season). Five defensemen have appeared in a game for Washington after starting the season in Hershey: Karl Alzner, Sean Collins, Bryan Helmer, Sami Lepisto and Tyler Sloan. Those defensemen have contributed 77 games played on the year. Last year Washington leaned on Hershey defensemen for just seven games played, all by Sami Lepisto. Winners Fourteen players have combined for Washington's 28 game-winning goals. Halfway home Washington posted the franchise's best record in the first half of a season. The Capitals' 57 points put them on pace for 114; the franchise record is 107 (1985-86). Best Caps Records at Midseason 27-11-3 (.695) 2008-09 25-11-4 (.675) 1985-86 26-13-1 (.663) 1991-92 22-11-7 (.638) 1984-85 19-11-10 (.600) 1982-83 Depth charge Washington and its two minor-league affiliates Hershey in the AHL and South Carolina in the ECHL have a combined record of 76-36-4-4 and each stands first or second in their respective division. Washington Capitals System Team League Record Division Washington NHL 28-12-3 1st, Southeast Hershey AHL 28-12-0-1 1st, East South Carolina ECHL 20-12-1-3 2nd, South
Year to remember The Capitals closed the book on a remarkable 2008 calendar year, a year that saw them post a 52-23-6 record (trailing only San Jose, 119 points, and Boston, 112, with 110 points). Among the team's other notable achievements in 2008: Won the Southeast Division championship last season and has a 12-point lead in the division this year Reached the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time since 2003 Posted a 31-6-3 home record at Verizon Center with 14 sellouts Alex Ovechkin has scored 60 goals in 2008 (10 more than any other player), posted 113 points (second only to Evgeni Malkin, 124), won four major NHL awards, received the Key to the City of Washington, D.C., signed a new 13-year contract, played in the NHL All-Star Game, led Russia to a gold medal at the World Championship, won NHL First Star of the Month three times and launched his own designer clothing line Bruce Boudreau was named NHL coach of the year and was selected for induction in the AHL Hall of Fame Nicklas Backstrom ranked eighth in the league in points (83), played in the NHL YoungStars Game and was named to the NHL All-Rookie Team Mike Green finished 2007-08 leading all NHL defensemen in goals and ranked third among defensemen in points during calendar year 2008 (61) Recorded three winning streaks of five games or more Retired Mike Gartner s No. 11 Our star Four of the last six NHL First Star of the Month honorees have been Washington Capitals. A Capital has been named the NHL's First Star or Player of the Month 10 times in the franchise's history. NHL First Star of the Month in 2008 January Alex Ovechkin February Evgeni Malkin March Alex Ovechkin October Alexander Semin November Alex Ovechkin December Manny Fernandez and Tim Thomas Reaching 50 Head coach Bruce Boudreau, in his 85th game behind the Capitals bench, became the fastest Capitals coach to reach 50 wins. Winningest Capitals Coaches (with number of games until win #50) 1. Bryan Murray 343 wins (119th game) 2. Ron Wilson 192 wins (112th game) 3. Terry Murray 163 wins (105th game) 4. Jim Schoenfeld 113 wins (98th game) 5. Glen Hanlon 78 wins (150th game) 6. Bruce Boudreau 64 wins (85th game) Washington Capitals How the Caps Were Built Draft (8): Alzner, Backstrom, Fehr, Gordon, Green, Ovechkin, Schultz, Semin Free Agency (9): Bradley, Brashear, Erskine, Helmer, Kozlov, Nylander, Poti, Steckel, Theodore Trade (6): Clark, Fedorov, Fleischmann, Jurcina, Laich, Morrisonn Waivers (1): Johnson Capitals Multiple Games Goals Assists Points 2 3+ Total 2 3+ Total 2 3 4 5+ Total Alex Ovechkin 7 1 8 4 1 5 7 7 2-16 Nicklas Backstrom - - - 3 5 8 6 4-1 11 Alexander Semin 5-5 2 1 3 7 2-1 10 Mike Green 1-1 4-4 8 2 - - 10 Viktor Kozlov 1-1 3-3 3 2 - - 5 Michael Nylander - - - 3-3 4 1 - - 5 Tomas Fleischmann 1-1 1-1 5 - - - 5 Brooks Laich 1-1 2-2 4 - - - 4 Sergei Fedorov 1-1 - 1 1 1 1 - - 2 Eric Fehr - - - 2-2 2 - - - 2 Milan Jurcina - - - 1-1 1 - - - 1 Bryan Helmer - - - 1-1 1 - - - 1 Karl Alzner - - - - - - 1 - - - 1
Matt Bradley - - - - - - 1 - - - 1 Boyd Gordon - - - - - - 1 - - - 1 David Steckel - - - - - - 1 - - - 1 Capitals Penalty Shots Capitals Alexandre Giroux vs. Boston 12/10/08 Manny Fernandez No Goal Alex Ovechkin at Carolina 12/7/08 Michael Leighton No Goal Michael Nylander vs. Vancouver 10/13/08 Roberto Luongo Goal Alex Ovechkin at Atlanta 10/10/08 Kari Lehtonen No Goal Opponents Adam Hall vs. Tampa Bay 1/1/09 Brent Johnson No Goal Chris Drury vs. NY Rangers 11/8/08 Brent Johnson No Goal Capitals in Shootouts Date Shootout Score Rounds Clinching Goal Caps Goaltender Site 1/6/09 Capitals 1, Philadelphia 0 3 Viktor Kozlov Jose Theodore Washington 11/15/08 New Jersey 1, Capitals 0 3 Zach Parise Jose Theodore New Jersey 10/28/08 Capitals 2, Nashville 1 4 Michael Nylander Jose Theodore Washington 10/18/08 New Jersey 1, Capitals 0 3 Zach Parise Brent Johnson Washington Player 1st 2nd 3rd Addl. Total GWG Career Michael Nylander 0/1 - - 1/1 1/2-11/27 Alexander Semin - 1/3 - - 1/3-6/20 Viktor Kozlov 1/3 - - - 1/3-17/35 Alex Ovechkin - 0/1 0/2-0/3-9/34 Nicklas Backstrom - - 0/1-0/1-1/3 Boyd Gordon - - 0/1-0/1-1/4 Matt Bradley - - - - - - 1/3 Donald Brashear - - - - - - 0/2 Chris Clark - - - - - - 0/2 John Erskine - - - - - - 0/1 Sergei Fedorov - - - - - - 2/10 Eric Fehr - - - - - - 0/1 Tomas Fleischmann - - - - - - 0/4 Mike Green - - - - - - 0/3 Brooks Laich - - - - - - 2/10 Tom Poti - - - - - - 0/3 David Steckel - - - - - - 0/1 Goaltenders Brent Johnson Jose Theodore 0-1 record, 3 attempts, 1 GA (Career: 3-7 record, 10 GA on 36 attempts) 2-1 record, 10 attempts, 2 GA (Career: 11-3 record, 9 GA on 50 attempts) Capitals January Birthdays Player Birthday Donald Brashear January 7, 1972 (37) Chris Bourque January 29, 1986 (23) Career Milestones Within Reach Player Milestone Needed Alex Ovechkin 200th NHL goal 8 goals Alexander Semin 100th NHL goal 9 goals Jose Theodore 200th NHL victory 2 wins Career Milestones Reached Player Milestone Date Reached Nicklas Backstrom 100th NHL point 12/13 at MTL Nicklas Backstrom 100th NHL game 11/19 at ANA Matt Bradley 100th NHL point 12/12 vs. OTT
Sergei Fedorov 1200th NHL game 10/16 at PIT Sergei Fedorov 474th NHL goal (RUS record) 10/25 at DAL Mike Green 100th NHL point 1/13 vs. EDM Mike Green 200th NHL game 1/1 vs. TB Brent Johnson 100th NHL victory 10/13 vs. VAN Milan Jurcina 200th NHL game 10/16 at PIT Viktor Kozlov 500th NHL point 11/14 vs. NJ Brooks Laich 100th NHL point 1/14 at PIT Shaone Morrisonn 300th NHL game 12/10 vs. BOS Michael Nylander 100th Caps point 10/16 at PIT Alexander Semin 200th NHL game 10/25 at DAL David Steckel 100th NHL game 11/29 at CBJ