Caps goalie Braden Holtby talks with head coach Adam Oates at Sundays training Session. Photo courtesy of the Washington Capitals.
2013 Schedule Released: Capitals fans got their first look at the 2013 regular season schedule on Saturday evening, shortened 34 games by the lockout. The Caps won’t play any out-of-conference match-ups in their 48 regular season games, and 18 of them will come against division opponents.
The Capitals will travel to Tampa Bay on Saturday to open the season against the Lightning before playing their home opener on January 22 against the Winnipeg Jets. With four games in the first seven days of the 2013 campaign—including a January 25 match-up against the defending Eastern Conference Champion New Jersey Devils—the Caps won’t have much time to jell and shake off the rust. (Then again, neither will anyone else.)
On eight different occasions during the regular season the Caps will play back-to-back games, a product of the condensed schedule. They’ll close the season out in late April with a trio of home matches against the Jets, Bruins and Senators. They’ll also face Pittsburgh and Philadelphia three times each, providing Caps fans with ample opportunity to show their absolute, unabashed hatred for rivals like Claude Giroux and Sidney Crosby.
Tickets go on sale at 2 p.m. on Tuesday afternoon. In the first of what will surely be many olive branches extended to NHL fans, Ticketmaster fees have been waived for all home games through February 13.
Eric Fehr Signed: Sunday’s training session marked the return of right-winger Eric Fehr, who after spending last season with Winnipeg was happy to be back with the Capitals, where he spent the first six years of his career.
“Last year I came back before I should have and after that it was just spiraling out of control,” Fehr told the Washington Post, referring to a disappointing season with the Jets that saw him come back from injury only to post his lowest point total since his rookie year. “In hindsight I would have loved to have waited longer and felt a little better but when I’m playing in my home town [Fehr is from Winkler, Manitoba, some 50 miles from Winnipeg] the team wasn’t winning, I just wanted to get back in and help out but it didn’t work out.”
Fehr spent the lockout playing in Finland, a move that helped him move past his lackluster campaign with the Jets. “A big reason why I wanted to play during the lockout was just to put the whole year behind me. Now being back here I can almost forget that that year ever happened and continue my career here in Washington.”
Fehr, 27, recorded 25 points (13 goals, 12 assists) and was a plus-13 in 21 games with HPK of the Finnish SM-liiga this season. He led the team in goals and was tied for second in points despite playing in just 21 of the team’s 39 games.
Braden Holtby, Cameron Shilling and Tom Wilson Recalled, Tom Poti Loaned to Hershey: The Caps also recalled goaltender Braden Holtby and defenseman Cameron Schilling from the Hershey Bears of the American Hockey League and forward Tom Wilson from the Plymouth Whalers of the Ontario Hockey League. The players joined the team for Sunday’s skate.
The Capitals also loaned defenseman Tom Poti to Hershey on a conditioning assignment. Poti, 35, hasn’t played in an NHL game in two years due to a groin injury and fractured pelvis. Poti passed his team physical, the first step towards returning to NHL action, but will need to work out the kinks and get his game fitness back.
“We just get him going quicker,” Caps General Manager George McPhee told the media on Sunday when asked why Poti was sent down. ”To throw him in here and play an NHL game, he might not be ready for that. So this is why Hershey’s there—to not only develop players, but let other players go down and condition themselves and see how they are.”
In Brief: Brooks Laich wasn’t on the ice on Sunday. He’s been dealing with a nagging groin injury picked up while playing in Switzerland during the lockout. TSN’s Bob McKenzie reported late on Saturday night that Laich will likely miss the first week of the 2013 season.
