Last night, I finished my three hour-long script writing class at 6 p.m. It took me 15 minutes to cycle through the soaking and traffic-packed streets of London to my cozy flat, where a night of sport was about to consume me. First thing’s first, though. Nap time. When you’re trying to follow these Olympics, and European football, as I am, where I am, naps are key....

Aleksey MorozovRussia's Olympic team included nine non-NHL players, all from the domestic KHL of course.North Americans are well aware of the likes of Sergei Fedorov, Viktor Kozlov, Alexander Radulov, and to a lesser extent Dmitri Kalinin, so I wanted to focus on the curios players we don't know too much about.To learn more about these players I turned to Sergey Averiyanov...

Ugh.  The Caps don't look like a team with high aspirations for the post season, so far. They started out on fire, while I worked my tail off in Las Vegas and couldn't watch.  Caps started out with a 4-1 victory over Boston and 6-4 win over Toronto which wasn't as close as it sounds.  Tonight, they blew it against the New Jersey Devils and lost in a 3-2 shootout.Some...

Let The Games Begin! The Caps are set to embark on possibly their strongest campaign in franchise history. They are quite similar to the squad they iced last season, having lost only Sergei Fedorov and Viktor Kozlov while newcomers Mike Knuble and Brendan Morrison will replace the veteran Russians and bring a new dynamic to an already dangerous Capitals club. Led by head...

While the defense remains largely in tact, the Capitals did see center Sergei Fedorov and Viktor Kozlov head home to Russian to play in the KHL, but both players were adequately replaced in forward Mike Knuble and center Brendan Morrison.

Late this summer we joined in on a roundtable of Southeast division bloggers for a preview of the season ahead, at View from My Seats -- Sports views from the cheap seats. We were especially flattered to be asked to participate by virtue of the roundtable company we kept: Canes Country, Litter Box Cats, the Blueland Blog, and Raw Charge. Here's a preview of OFB's prognostication...

Today, Russia announced the list of players who will be invited to participate in the tryouts for the national team in the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver. The team is almost split evenly between NHL players and KHL players as Russia looks for their third major title in as many years. Most of the players who were featured in the team’s 2009 World Championship campaign were invited...

via Russia Today, Washington Capitals superstar Aleksandr Ovechkin says it’s a pity that his partners Sergey Fedorov and Viktor Kozlov quit NHL and returned to Russian hockey. “My attitude towards their departure is negative. We became great friends – that’s why I was a little upset when they left. But it’s their decision and I won’t judge them,” Aleksandr...

Well folks, we've been spending too much time playing Poker online (not for real money, we're using our real names on Facebook) to do much blogging but after the signing of Brendan Morrrissonn yesterday, we felt as though we needed to chime in.First of all, backing up to the first of the month, the signing of Mike Knuble looks to be a dangerous move for us. While CW says...

I'll be so much happier to see you in a Capitals uniform than a Flyers uniform.  I like what I've read about Knuble's vocal leadership.  The Caps need that in the locker room. Thank you GMGM for finding a RW replacement for Viktor Kozlov that scored more last year and crashes the net.  Whippee.Now, onto the criticism.  "At defense, we're fine."  Seriously...

MONTREAL | Two league executives who requested anonymity said they expect Washington Capitals general manager George McPhee to actively pursue trades during this weekend's NHL draft, when several elite players could be on the move. Multiple reports Thursday said Sergei Fedorov had signed a two-year contract with Magnitogorsk, but a team source said his agent, Pat Brisson, told...

Paul Kelly, per Puck Daddy: Q. Viktor Kozlov(notes) signed in Russia earlier this week. There is also talk in Russia that Avangard Omsk is trying to get Michael Nylander over to the KHL. This brings the following question: in the absence of the transfer agreement between the NHL and the Russians, how can a player, like [...]

Today's Examiner file from Dmitry Chesnokov is even more bizarre than yesterday's; in it he doesn't merely suggest that Viktor Kozlov has left the Caps and the NHL for good, but cites a new interview Kozlov had with SovetskySport in which the right wing claims to have had a return to Russia in mind even before signing with the Caps two years ago. Wow. Anyway, there'...

With the news swirling around Sergei Fedorov and Viktor Kozlov regarding their possible moves to the KHL, it's good news for Capitals fans to see a young prospect moving the other way. Mikhael Yunkov, the Capitals' 62nd overall draft pick in 2004, has expressed his desire to play in North America next year, and will be attending the Capitals' rookie camp. The playmaking...

Well, if there was anything that could snap us out of our funk over the abrupt ending to a promising season (oh, who are we kidding, we bought Guitar Hero for our P.C., trust us folks, this isn't a pretty site which is why we haven't been around lately) it was the reports of the Caps and Natinals being sold steroids.We happen to be a little too jaded and cynical (shocking...

We have seen the last of Markus Naslund and Bobby Holik. Viktor Kozlov and Richard Zednik have also left the NHL, returning to Russia to play. Reports in Russia suggest Sergei Fedorov may leave, too.As the off season is here for most teams, player movement becomes a focal point. Retirements are always watched with interest, as we often fondly remember our recent favorite players. Others slide

RALEIGH, N.C. | The Washington Capitals are facing a new threat in the battle to re-sign several of their key players - an upstart Russian league hungry for NHL talent. According to reports, Viktor Kozlov - one of the team's four unrestricted free agents - has signed with a team in the Kontinental Hockey League, which recently completed its first year of operation. Meanwhile, two...

From TSN: The Washington Capitals could be losing another player to the Kontinental Hockey League. RDS is reporting that forward Viktor Kozlov has signed a deal to play with Salavat of the KHL for next season. Details of the contract were not reported. Read report here. I have to be honest, the names here (Kozlov and Fedorov) have far [...]

Our friend Dmitry Chesnokov chatted with Viktor Kozlov recently; you can find the original Russian interview at Sovetsky Sport. DC: How would you rate the Capitals' season? VK: "I have never had anything like that in my career.  I was playing for a team that from the first game of the regular season was considered one of the favorites in the East.  I was trusted...

Well folks, we knew we shouldn't have bothered going to the game tonight. Our heads told us not to go tonight. Our guts told us not to go tonight. But our hearts were insisting that we did.So much for listening to your heart...We knew right away after finding out that Martin Brodeur had choked away the series to Carolina that we were going to lose to the Penguin Scum. We...

DMV is a daily roundup of District-Maryland-Virginia (mostly) sporting links. Caps win an epic Game 6 to set up an even more epic Game 7. [WaPo] Game-winning goal scorer David Steckel is the Caps’ top star. [Puck Daddy] Viktor Kozlov and Tomas Fleischmann are among the unsung heroes. [Japers’ Rink] A Pens fan with magnificent chest hair. [D.C. Sports [...]

I have to admit. I had no faith. As a lifelong Caps fan, I have seen it so many times before. The bitter disappointment after Saturday night was an oh-so-familiar feeling. Any Caps fan can tell you that. It was almost a sure thing that the Caps would not be able to survive and win Game 6. After all, these are the Capitals. But maybe they are not. Maybe these are not the old...

7 will eventually beat 5... Onto the Battle Damage Assessment...THE GOOD:Simeon "the Saviour" Varlamov is quickly becoming the MVP of this series. 39 saves tonight on 42 shots against. You can't ask any goalie to do much more than he did tonight. Two of the Penguin Scum goals came from bad bounces off the defense in front of him and the third goal was a classic...

CAPITALS 4CROSBY 3All that talk about the Penguins' offense being top-heavy? Yeah, it pretty much stayed exactly the same on Monday night. Sidney Crosby scored each and every Pittsburgh goal, matching Alex Ovechkin's hat trick, but it was that one extra from the Capitals' Dave Steckel that was the difference, giving the Capitals a 2-0 series lead heading back to the Steel...

—CAPITALS vs PENGUINS — No. 1 line: LW Alex Ovechkin - C Sergei Fedorov - C Viktor Kozlov No. 1 line: LW Chris Kunitz - C Sidney Crosby - RW Bill Guerin ********** No. 2 line: LW Tomas Fleischmann - C Nicklas Backstrom - RW Alex Semin No. 2 line: LW Ruslan Fedotenko - C Evgeni Malkin - RW Max [...]