Yep, its a lot of memories bottled up in this old brain. My first game was live at Cap Center in 1974, their first season. Lets just say that expansion team didn't play like the Vegas expansion team, they won 8 games that year. I remember the massive trade with the Habs in the early 80s that brought Rod Langway to DC and ended their losing ways. I remember cheering for Scott Stevens as a young fighter, he would smile as he pounded people, then the limo ride that sent him and others out of DC to go win Cups elsewhere. I lived in Boston in 1990, the first time they went to the EC finals, and got swept, my local buddies hounded me for months. All the 3-1 lets downs, the 4 OT games, eff the Islanders, on and on it went, perpetual hope and misery.
The last time the Caps went to the ECF, we were discussing it on Washington Post's "Talk Central", which disappeared for years. We migrated over to MsCapsFans personal forum, then ESPN's dreadful boards. For me the Jagr trade sapped my passion, as did moving to California. The Young Guns gave us all hope again, only to douse us with more soul crushing defeats, new and interesting ways to lose to teams you should be demolishing. I'd pretty much given up any hope. I fully expected the Caps to lose this series, this game, just like all the others. I watched with one eye on the PC, one eye on anything else, so I wouldn't get my hopes up too high.
Turns out the Young Guns we really needed came from Australia, or 6th round picks from Sweden, or last minute call ups, that don't know any of this dreadful history. Instead of adding shipheads like Matt Cooke, Martin Erat, Dennis Wideman, or Kevin Shattenkirk, they added no names, kids, with no playoff experience, and they delivered.
Finally, I'm here to eat my crow on Ovi. I still have some beef with his overall game but he showed heart, commitment and most importantly, he delivered. Congrats to Ovi and the Caps, congrats to all you long suffering Caps fans also.
