So was it fraternizing with the enemy or just three old friends catching up? Depends on your point of view, but when Capitals forwards Alex Ovechkin and Alex Semin had an animated chat with fellow Russian Ilya Kovalchuk after Monday’s 5-0 blowout loss to the New Jersey Devils their coach certainly noticed. Bruce Boudreau was momentarily flustered when talking with reporters following the game at Prudential Center after hearing some laughter from the group. He glared in their direction before recovering. When asked as a final question if he was OK with that scene, he answered calmly — “I’ll reserve my thoughts on that, if you don’t mind” — but his demeanor gave him away. Remember, this was the second time in four days the Caps had been blanked 5-0 by an inferior team.
Some will say it was not appropriate behavior for a team captain — especially one who was dropped to the third line for part of Monday’s loss. Others will wonder why Ovechkin isn’t entitled to a laugh or two even after an ugly loss. It is November, after all, and he certainly wasn’t joking around in the locker room when talking with reporters.
Whatever your take on it, though, being a captain is about perception as much as anything. Ovechkin could care less what fans or media say. If his own head coach and teammates are unhappy, then it becomes an issue. That’s not the case here.
– Brian McNally
