To maintain their win streak, the Washington Capitals completely swept the Chicago Blackhawks, but the big story was the big guy. Alex Ovechkin scored number 798 after catching a bouncing puck and camped out at the doorstep to score number 799. Matt Irwin fell late in the first, giving Tyler Johnson an easy goal that gave the Hawks a break.
In the second period, Trevor van Riemsdyk scored a retaliatory goal to make it 3-1, but Chicago came back within a goal with a power-play goal from Jonathan Toews. There was a lot of celebration when Alex Ovechkin scored his 800th goal. To make it six, Anthony Mantha demonstrated to us his monster shot. Max Domi missed out on one. The ecstasy came from Dmitry Orlov’s slap from the blue line.
The caps win! a streak of five victories!
Tonight, nothing can stop us. The 2022-23 Chicago Blackhawks are a terrible hockey team. On Tuesday night, Washington didn’t seem to have to work very hard to control the game. The Hawks scored their first goal at even strength after Irwin’s unfortunate slip. I was comfortable casting this particular spell due to them being so bad, both on defense and in the net. Alex Ovechkin scored three goals in a row while the goalie was on the ice.
Gordie Howe, who played from 1946 to 1980, will hold the record for his next one. Only he and Gretzky remain in the next one. I’m just glad there was a goalie on the ice because these are crucial times. Takes scares me daily. For Chicago, Trevor van Riemsdyk played 158 games. In 225, Dylan Strome played. In the second period, the latter scored a fantastic retaliation goal with help from the former. Both players now play an important role on Washington’s roster.
If Charlie Lindgren hadn’t agreed to play for a ham sandwich instead of a salary, Strome would have been my favorite summer pick. In the 1970s, Todd Rundgren made pop music that was sincere, sophisticated, and a little off-kilter. He also worked on the excellent debut album of Splender. The ESPN play-by-play announcer referred to Charlie Lindgren as “Todd,” I suppose due to the similarity in their last names (German, I believe). I just wanted to talk about Todd Rundgren, so this may be a stretch.
Perhaps I should mention that Charlie Lindgren, the week’s first star, was once more magnificent.
The cast was an embarrassment. It sounded like Mark Messier had been eating peanut butter sandwiches all night. There were no consonants at all. They then cut to an interview with a coach, but the coach’s mic was turned down too low for him to hear.
The play-by-play announcements stopped. Charlie Lindgren’s nickname was “Todd!” This is the coverage we received for Alex Ovechkin’s big game, which is a travesty. On a national platform, this ought to be regarded as an acceptable entertainment product. No Joe B suit (he was profoundly missed), so you’ll make do with a decent pregame tweet from me. This is addressed to my friend who sent the picture above.
I’m getting sick with a bug. I was close to giving up on my game recap duties. Thank goodness I didn’t. I don’t want to repeat the same old refrain about how it’s a privilege to watch Ovi and other things like that. Just having fun. Fun is this. Five straight victories are a Washington Capitals record. 15 of the last 20 points available in the standings have been theirs. They are aflame. Finally. They will now play three games in their own stadium. The Stars, Leafs, and Wings will end the win streak.