Tim Gleason Out: Capitals at Hurricanes, Game Day Preview
by Bob Wage on Mar 18, 2010 2:00 PM EDT
10 comments
The league leading Washington Capitals, (47-14-9) are in town to take on the Carolina Hurricanes, (28-33-8) in a Southeast Division matchup tonight at the RBC. The Caps will be without the services of their captain and leading scorer, Alex Ovechkin, who is serving the second game of his two game suspension for pushing Brian Campbell from behind.
The Canes will be without Tim Gleason, the heart and soul of their blueline. Gleason has a broken bone in his foot and while he tried to play through the pain against Boston, the team finally decided it was time for him to get off the ice and let it heal.
He is expected to be out 2-3 weeks.
Newly recalled Jamie McBain will fill in. I spoke with McBain after the morning skate and he is ready for the opportunity. When asked how his development was progressing as a pro, he was quick to praise the Albany coaching staff.
"My stick work, positioning, and awareness has improved. I owe a lot to coach Daniels and to Geordie Kinnear at Albany for working with me."
After a bit of a slow start, McBain has been one of the top scoring defensemen in the AHL in recent weeks. Maurice said that the rookie will probably stay in town while Gleason is unable to skate.
Caniacs had a first hand view of his slapshot from the point against Boston, when his shot helped to create the rebound chance for Erik Cole's first goal..
Zach Boychuk will return to action. The Canes currently have their lines listed as the following:
- Staal, Cole, Whitney
- Sutter, Ruutu, Jokinen
- Dwyer, Samsonov, LaRose
- Brind'Amour, Kostopoulos, Boychuk
Maurice said that he would be mixing the defensive pairings throughout the game.
Speaking of injuries, Cam Ward is working very hard and is expected to return to the ice with full gear next week. He will be able to take some shots and team officials will monitor his progress at that time.
The Canes have dropped three of four games against the Caps so far this year. While the visitors might seem weakened by the loss of Ovechkin, don't be fooled. They totally dominated Florida on Tuesday night, (7-3), and have an excellent record in previous games without their captain this season.
"It's just an opportunity for some of their other star players to get more ice time," Paul Maurice said when asked about the loss of Ovechkin.
Young Justin Peters will face Semyon Varlamov in net.
The game will be another huge test for the rookie and management will be watching closely.
Of course, this is a homecoming of sorts for Joe Corvo and Scott Walker. In general, ex-Canes love to score against their old team. Will the tradition continue?. Japers' Rink will have more lowdown on the Caps.
FS Carolinas has the telecast starting at 7. We will have the open thread cranked up here at 6:30.
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Really looking forward to seeing McBain get some quality time tonight… A few drinks with Paladin should make for a very interesting evening…. GO CANES!
I agree 100 percent with the first part, hopefully he can stay with us until the Rats start their playoff run as I hope Timmy hangs it up for the year. As for the second part, I have no doubt that is a combonation for an interesting evening. Have fun guys.
by CarolinaCanes on Mar 18, 2010 3:57 PM EDT up reply actions
I’ve had this game marked on my calendar for some time now; it was supposed to be my first time seeing AO. Oh well, I missed Gretzky with Phoenix so missing Oveckin with the Caps shouldn’t be that much of a surprise to me.
I’m really interested to see what McBain does once all the adrenaline from your first start is gone. Plus Walker and Corvo are back, so that should be interesting. I’m just hoping that Joe “Sens Killer” Corvo doesn’t morph into Joe “Canes Killer” Corvo.
For those of you who don’t follow Chip Alexander on Twitter or check the N&O website everyday, he had a nice post up about Walker coming back to Raleigh. Definitely worth a read.
"What Carolina really has going for them is Brandon Sutter. When that kid first showed up, he looked like a skinny little thing that wouldn’t last two weeks. But he’s turned into a real star."
Think Walker is already home sick? That article brought a tear to my eye.
"The increase in pain is way beyond what you would expect a person to play with," said coach Paul Maurice. "Unfortunately it’s even beyond what Tim Gleason can play with, because he can play with just about anything."
My guess? Walker wasn’t even at cruising altitude on the flight to Washington and he was home sick.
"What Carolina really has going for them is Brandon Sutter. When that kid first showed up, he looked like a skinny little thing that wouldn’t last two weeks. But he’s turned into a real star."
by caniacgirl on Mar 18, 2010 4:56 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions
I’m sure you saw the tweet on Ray Whitney giving Scotty’s son grief about wearing a Caps jersey:
RT @TarikElBashir Whitney on ice just gave S Walker’s young son in stands a hard time for wearing a Caps jersey. “What’s that you got on?”
Tarik from DC gives us an inkling of how cool it would be to have a Ray Whitney Twitter account to follow.
Olympian Tim Gleason in Vancouver: "I don’t care what anybody says, to watch an exciting hockey game, there’s nothing like it."
by hockeymomof2 on Mar 18, 2010 5:27 PM EDT up reply actions
Last time...
I saw the Canes play the Caps here in Raleigh, we held Ovechkin to no points no goals. It was awesome. I think that was last year though. :(
Thank you Jim Rutherford and Ray Whitney for working together for Ray to stay a Hurricane! :)
Very sad...
That I Have to watch this from home tonight. Was supposed to be in the corporate box from my work tonight watching this, but unfortunately somebody in charge of that stuff screwed up and gave the tickets away to somebody else. :*(
But I will cheer just as loud from home, and maybe wake up my neighbor if they pull off a great win! :)
Thank you Jim Rutherford and Ray Whitney for working together for Ray to stay a Hurricane! :)
Off topic:
So will our 4 Olympians be playing in the IIHF Men’s Championship tourney in May in Germany?
Olympian Tim Gleason in Vancouver: "I don’t care what anybody says, to watch an exciting hockey game, there’s nothing like it."
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