Caps Make AHL Trade

The Capitals and Hersey Bears make a pair of trades at the AHL level. First, per Capitals' PR:

The Washington Capitals have acquired forward Casey Wellman from Florida in exchange for center Zach Hamill, vice president and general manager George McPhee announced today.

Wellman, 25, has recorded 23 points (seven goals, 16 assists) in 37 games this season with San Antonio of the American Hockey League (AHL). He ranked third in points on San Antonio at the time of the trade. The Brentwood, Calif., native has tallied 13 points (four goals, nine assists) in 41 NHL games with Minnesota from 2009-2012, and has recorded 105 points (44 goals, 61 assists) in 136 career AHL games with Houston, Connecticut and San Antonio.

The 6’0”, 185-pound forward was originally signed as an undrafted free agent by Minnesota in March 2010. He spent two seasons at the University of Massachusetts (Amherst) and compiled 78 points (34 goals, 44 assists) in 75 games and was named to the NCAA Hockey East All-Rookie Team in 2009 and the Hockey East All-Academic Team in 2010.

Hamill has registered 22 points (11 goals, 11 assists) in 40 games this season with Hershey (AHL).

Second, the Bears acquired forward Peter LeBlanc from the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for forward Mathieu Beaudoin.

A Night For Hockey

The Metro bustled with hockey sweaters once more. A few Ovechkin Jerseys peppered the Gallery Place/Chinatown platforms, a few more Hershey Jerseys than normal rounded the rest. Fans gathered to catch a glimpse of professional hockey played once again in the District. Unfortunately, it was not the venomous Penguins come to town to take on the beloved home town Caps. Nor any team in the collective 30 teams of the National Hockey League made their presence tonight at the phone booth.

"It's hockey," A fan said to me as he waited in line for his first beer of the 2012-13 "so called" season at Verizon Center. "I can't run up to Hershey with my family like some can, so we are pretty hard pressed for some action on the ice around here."

It was an announced sell out crowd at the arena where the Capitals once played. Although, there seemed to be a few missing patrons in the stands who failed to show for the AHL Showcase game presented by GEICO. A game featuring the AHL affiliates of the Washington Capitals (Hershey Bears) and the Anaheim Ducks (Norfolk Admirals). Even though it was an ice full of professionals, it was different and somewhat distant from what Capitals fans were used to.

"There is no Ovechkin, no Backstrom," A fan quip to his friend as they walked the concourse between periods. "It is like hockey lite."

Fans were also distracted, checking smart phones through out the game not just to smirk at the snide tweets about the action on the ice, but to get the latest coming out of New York on the future of the League's season. Even as the game continued, the talks between the players and NHL executives blew up in just an hour over a miscommunication. The owners thought they had a yes or no on a proposal, the union thought they were still negotiating. The optimism of a full season quickly faded before the Bears and Admirals took the ice for the second period.

A bittersweet occasion as the Bears overtook the Admirals in a 2-1 victory. Even before the final horn sounded, many in the building knew of the talks blowing up in a hotel north of here. The air of disdain towards players and owners seemed to take away from the night's festivities. Fans wondered if they were ever going to be back to see their hometown heroes take to the ice again. In a building that couldn't hide its purpose, the home for the Washington Capitals, seemed even more empty as fans dispersed.

"I don't know if we will be back," A season ticket holder told me as her family and the crowd migrated out of the building. "What ever their differences are seems minute when compared to what my kids want to see, they want to see their team. They can't, and they don't know why."

A Double Cup Friday

Congratulations to the Pittsburgh Penguins on winning the Stanley Cup. You can call it sweet revenge as the Pens defeat the Detroit Red Wings on their ice a year after they lost the Cup on their ice. Boy, did Marion Hossa turn out to be a bad penny. Evgeni Malkin wins MVP honors (the first Russian to do so), although they should have given it to Max Talbot for his clutch goals in the finals or Rob Scuderi for his goaltending prowess.

However (and even more importantly), congratulations to the Hershey Bears on winning their tenth AHL championship last night. They beat the Manitoba Moose on their ice 4-1 to close out the series 4 games to two and hoisting the Calder Cup. Again, the Capitals top development team wins a championship, their second in four years.

Michal Neuvirth earned MVP honors as he posted a 16-6 record with only a 1.19 GAA, a .932 save percentage and four shutouts in the playoffs. He was the big reason for the Bears' championship run, not bad for a player that started the season in the ECHL with the South Carolina Stingrays. In game six he made 24 stops on 25 shots by the Moose. Neuvirth makes the Capitals extremely deep in the goaltending department with Semyon Varlamov, Jose Theodore, Brent Johnson (if the Caps decide to resign him) and a few other prospects.

The Bears got off to a great start in the first, putting the Moose up against a wall with a 3-0 lead in the opening period. Goals by Andrew Gordon, Chris Bourque and Alex Giroux. It was Giroux's playoff leading 15th goal, 28th point. The Moose were able to get a goal in the second, but the Bears held their 3-1 lead through half of the second period and through the third, eventually icing the game with an empty netter scored by Keith Aucoin.

The tandem of Stephan Kronwall and Dean Arsene lead to both players getting a +3 on the game, the Bears' best. Bourque had a goal and an assist as well as the game's number one star. Kyle Wilson had a pair of assists and also was the game's number 3 star.

The last time the Bears won the Calder Cup, many of those players went on to make the Capitals' squad: Mike Green, David Steckel, Eric Fehr, Brooks Laich, Tomas Fleischmann and Boyd Gordon (you could include Jakub Klepis in that list before he went off to play in the KHL). The Bears beat the the Milwaukee Admirals 4 games to two in that series as well. In their game 6 they also jumped up to a 3-0 lead in the first period and went on to win the game 5-1.

Bob Woods, rumored to be in the hunt for Jay Leach's old job, took the Bears to the promise land in just his second year at the helm. He also lead them to a Eastern Conference best 53-22-2-3 record finishing with 111 points.

Highlights of the Bears record breaking tenth AHL championship can be found here. Bryan Helmer, the Bears' captain accepted the Calder Cup along with assistant captains Aucoin and Quintin Laing.

The state of Pennsylvania has to be beaming with pride as they have won two hockey championships (Penguins: Stanley Cup, Bears: Calder Cup), a NHL championship (Steelers) and a MLB championship (Phillies). Pretty impressive in the same year. Now can we stop with all the "Boo hoo, PA teams never win" crap.

Cup Crazy... Take 2

At least one Cup will be awarded tonight. Both the NHL and AHL have games in which the Stanley Cup will be awarded and the Calder Cup could be awarded. Unlike last time, it will not happen in the state of Pennsylvania.

The Detroit Red Wings and the Pittsburgh Penguins will battle it out at Joe Louis Arena in a series deciding game seven. At this point this game is a coin flip, the Penguins have a little momentum after keeping the Red Wings from lifting the Cup in their building for the second straight year. But the visiting team has had trouble getting the win, which favors the Red Wings. Either way, what a series!

What looked to be another domination effort by the Red Wings, the Penguins have done all they could to stay alive for a game seven. This entire post season we have seen some of the best hockey in the new NHL (since the new CBA).

In the AHL the Hershey Bears will try again to win the Calder Cup still up in their series 3 games to two against the Manitoba Moose. The Bears would have liked to have lifted the Calder Cup in their own building, but will have to win now on the road as the final two games in the series are in Winnipeg. This has been a goaltenders series as both the Moose goaltender Cory Schneider and Bears' Micheal Neuvirth have been outstanding for their teams.

The AHL series has also broke attendance records for the finals in both Hershey and Winnipeg. Through five games, just over 62,000 fans have watched the Bears and Moose duke it out. At tonight's game, the number will break the record set in 2003 in the series between Hamilton and Houston.

The Stanley Cup will be awarded, the Calder Cup might be. It is almost sad to see it all come to an end.

In the DC area, game seven in the Stanley Cup Finals will be on NBC channel 4. The Calder Cup Finals will not be televised here, but you can watch on line by going to B2TV.com and pay the "small" fee. Those in central PA will be able to watch the game, check your local listings.

Moose Stay Alive

The Hershey Bears were just a win away from winning the Calder Cup at home, but the Manitoba Moose had other plans. The Moose stay alive with a 3-2 win over the Bears and force a game 6 back in Manitoba. The Calder Cup will have to wait just a bit longer before it is awarded.

The Moose scored a pair of late second period goals. The Bears answered in the third with a Graham Mink goal to make it 2-1, but the Moose stood tall defensively and scored an empty netter to ice the game. The Bears did add a late tally off of a John Carlson point shot but the damage had been done.

Micheal Neuvirth did another fantastic job in net for the Bears stopping 23 shots and his counterpart, Cory Scheinder was no slouch either. Both goaltenders have been great in this series, but it was Scheinder's night to shine with 31 saves.

The series now shifts back to Manitoba where the Bears will try to once again win the Calder Cup. The Bears still hold the series lead 3 games to two and the Moose are pressured to stay perfect through two games.

Cup Crazy

Tonight could be a night when both NHL's Stanley Cup and AHL's Calder Cup could be awarded. The Detroit Red Wings can do away with the Pittsburgh Penguins at Mellon Arena in Pittsburgh and the Hershey Bears can win their 5th championship over the Manitoba Moose at the Giant Center in Hershey. That leaves the possibility of both Cups awarded on the same night in the same state; you wonder if the universe might be collapsing in on itself with such an event.

The Bears series could be done in 5 games after they had split the games in Manitoba and then won two straight at home, including a game three shutout by Micheal Neuvirth. The Red Wings are a bit behind the curve as they are only ahead in their series 3-2. A visiting team has yet to win in the other's building in the Wings/Pens series, a stat that will have to change if the Red Wings wish to win.

The Stanley Cup Finals can be seen on NBC channel 4 locally with a puck drop at 8:18 pm. Good luck trying to find the Hershey Bears game, it will not be shown locally here in the DC area like it had two years ago when they won the Calder Cup. You can however spend a few bucks and watch it on B2TV.com online. Puck drop is at 7:15 pm.

If both teams lose their chance to win a Cup, the Bears will have to travel back to Manitoba will have to try to win it on the road. While the Red Wings will have a chance to beat the Penguins at home in an all important game seven.

Hershey Bears Gives DC Something To Look Foward To

Congratulations to the Hershey Bears on winning the Jack A. Butterfield Trophy by beating the Milwaukee Admirals in their own back yard. In a series that never saw a lead change, the Hershey Bears tied the Cleveland Barons for the most Calder Cups in the AHL (9 if you are counting).

And while the first game was a close 2-1 match, the rest of the series has been lopsided wins. Game six was no different as the Bears explode in the first period with 3 goals went ahead and won the Calder Cup in overwhelming fashion with a 5 goal win.

Comcast Sportsnet in Washington played the game late on tape-delay, but all I got was the first 7 minutes of the game before, for some unexplained reason, the channel was blacked out. It will be replayed again this afternoon (Fri. 6/16) at 3 pm.

Now this creates problems for the Washington Capitals. While this is good news for the Caps prospects, those players wishing to keep their jobs in a Caps sweater may have step aside. Rumors are already flying about who is on the chopping block, and who from Hershey will be in a Washington jersey for good next season.

With a confident core of prospect players and some key free agent pick ups, the Caps could improve on their up and down record of the ’05-’06 season. The AHL Championship is an important win for the Capitals, but it doesn’t mean the Caps are on the right road.

14 players on the Hershey squad have played in the big league. Only two have proven they are ready to play at the NHL level. Brooks Laich and Mike Green are two outstanding players that may be in a Caps sweater for good. But others have struggled. Jakub Klepis was not the outstanding playmaker the Caps had hoped for, Eric Fehr couldn’t get his goal scoring touch going, and Thomas Fleischmann was a -7 for 14 games. It could be say that it’s a long road ahead.

Now that the Bears safely have the Calder Cup at the Giant Center in Hershey, and the AHL season is laid to rest for another year, we will have to see what moves the Capitals make in the off season to build a team around Alex Ovechkin and Olaf Kolzig. Should be an interesting summer.

Congrats to Hershey, and thanks for giving the Capitals a sliver of hope.