It was an interesting weekend in Blueland, but overall a bit underwhelming I think. I guess I will have a better idea of judging it after going to next year's game in Montreal. The first five minutes and the last 20 of the game were pretty exciting, but there was a lot of guys trying to make the perfect pass and failing in the middle. I saw Alex Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom as we snaked past each other in the security line at the airport. I had not thought about it before that, but it makes sense that they had to fly commercial. I can guarantee they won't be able to move through the Montreal airport in such anonimity next year. They were not on my flight, but Elliot from DC 101 and Washington Nationals president Stan Kasten were. One of them was in first class, but maybe not the one most people would expect.

As for Caps practice, it is pretty much status quo from before the break. The forward lines are the same (with Brooks Laich on the second line and Boyd Gordon on the fourth), while Chris Clark and Brian Pothier are not out there. Ovechkin is not skating either, but Backstrom is.

UPDATE: Bruce Boudreau said he wanted to give Ovechkin a day off since he really didn't have a break. He also said that while Shaone Morrisonn practiced, he is not a lock to move back into the lineup because of lingering soreness in his foot. There was also no update on Chris Clark (groin) or Brian Pothier (concussion), so don't look for either of them in the next few days.
-- Corey Masisak