Midway through the Washington Capitals' playoff run during the 2008-09 season, Pittsburgh's love for the smooth sounds of Yanni forced the Caps and the Penguins to play Games 4 and 5 in back-to-back nights in two different cities. The Pens, amped from watching footage of Yanni Live at the Acropolis, were able to win Games 4 and 5 to take a 3-2 lead in the series. While most Caps fans used more colorful language, Capitals majority owner Ted Leonsis stated that this occurrence was "a shame" and that Mellon Arena acted against "against NHL rules."  Very interesting unfortunate, yes -but the Caps' AHL affiliate, the Hershey Bears, might be headed for a similar predicament.

Live at the Giant Center? Find out after the jump!

Ryan Zimmerman. Devin Thomas. John Wall.

What do each of these players have in common? Each are young superstars, highly touted in their sport, and are expected to be a catalyst on the field - making plays to lead their team to victory. Even though Wall is not an official member of the Washington Wizards roster yet, his addition will no doubt make a tangible impact on the franchise.

These athletes are also united in another way - they each wear the uniform number of 11. Will another #11 be the spark that the Capitals need to reach the next level? The answer lies in Keith Aucoin.

Click to read more.

In addition to his nomination for this years' Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy, Washington Capitals' goaltender Jose Theodore was nominated today by his teammates for the King Clancy Memorial Trophy*. The trophy, which is awarded annually "to the player who best exemplifies leadership qualities on and off the ice and has made a noteworthy humanitarian contribution in his community," will be awarded at the NHL Awards Show in Las Vegas on June 23. The winner is selected by "a special panel of representatives" from the Professional Hockey Writers' Association and the NHL Broadcasters' Association.

If victorious, Theo will join Olie Kolzig as the only other member of the Caps roster to earn the distinction in the trophy's 23-year history. No player has won the award more than once in its history.

*Please note, this is for the NHL's actual King Clancy Memorial Trophy, not one of our made up shenanigans.

The perfect off season acquistion for any fan of the Washington Capitals? New Rock the Red stickers! If you've voyaged over to our Extras Page, you've seen the pictures of Rock the Red's stickers being plastered in various locations the world over (and if you haven't, you really should).

The crew will be cooking at the Chili Cook Off Saturday, May 22nd at RFK Stadium so feel free to stop by and say hi and nab a sticker or two. If you can't make it out for some of RtR's Red, shoot us an email via the aptly named "Contact" tab, and we'll mail some off to ya - 'cause were nice guys like that! We only ask that you send us some pictures of where you slapped the sticker in return.

Chad Dukes models the new sticker

With yesterday's announcement, the Washington Capitals were able to confirm everyone's suspicions as to what may transpire regarding Nicklas Backstrom's expiring contract. His new 10 year deal, starting at $6M for the first 4 years and extending to $8M in its final year, made Caps fans everywhere joyous as two members of their top line have now been cemented to DC for a combined 21 years. And while a lot will transpire in the next decade- injury, roster changes, overall game plan- the question on most fans minds is what should we expect from #19?

While extrapolating the data over 10-years might not be feasible (230 points in his 10th year, winning 66.3% of his draws and skating 27:02 a game) it is a confident feeling to know that Nick keeps getting better every year, and that he will be able to shoulder the Capitals for about 86 points each season.

It's hard to believe that Backstrom was once the kid, so overwhelmed by the closing seconds of a game, that he own-goaled in panic as he tried to clear the puck (March 8, 2008 against the Pittsburgh Penguins). Since then we have seen Lars emerge as an assist king, and then to a player who is not afraid to crash the net and dive through (or over) players to score goals. We can only assume as his play matures, Backstrom will prove to hockey fans world-wide that his top-four point performance of this season was no fluke.

Following the Hershey Bears 3-2 victory over the Manchester Monarchs on Saturday, I was able to meet up with young goalie Braden Holtby and deliver him a present. I told him I was from RocktheRed.net, and briefly explained that RtR is a Capitals fan-run blog out of DC. I went on to mention that he had caught the eye of quite a few Caps fans and that he’s the only current Bear with a shirt named for him.  He held it up - it was dark, so he turned to hold it under the light and read it – “Holtby… Moly!  Hahaha! That’s awesome!” He seemed surprised that a Caps’ blog in DC had taken enough interest in him to put his name on a shirt.

After a few more words of praise - me for his play, and he for putting his likeness on a shirt, I then I told him it was for him from us and he said “This is mine?  Thanks… wow!”  I also mentioned that all proceeds from the shirts go to Saves for Kids, fellow goaltender Jose Theodore's charity supporting Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Children's National Medical Center, to which he was spell bound - since the Bears work so closely with the Milton S. Hershey Medical Center and see the effects charity has on those receiving treatment. *Okay, so this middle paragraph may be slightly embellished, but I was rushed... and excited*

Make sure to cheer on Holtby, and the rest of the Bears as they look avenge last night's loss against the Manchester Monarchs tonight at 7PM from Verizon Wireless Arena! Go Bears!

At the team's 10:30 press conference at Kettler Capitals Iceplex today, the Washington Capitals announced two recently signed contracts: Nicklas Backstrom and Marcus Johansson.

Backstrom re-signed with the team with a 10-year contract worth $6.7 million per year (per Tarik El-Bashir) while the Caps' 24th overall pick in the 2009 Draft signed his three-year entry level deal and will be the first Cap since Joe Juneau to wear #90 (Per Mike Vogel).

Mean Lars ended his 2009-10 campaign with personal bests in goals, assists, points, plus/minus, and shots on goal and is best summed up by this quote from my wife: "He's as vital to our success as #8."

How Swede it is, indeed. I'd say it's safe to get your #19 sweaters now, everyone.

The Tom Green Award is awarded annually to the Washington Capitals player who took it upon themselves to "unleash the fury", as has become the rally-cry of the Washington Capitals. "Unleashing the fury" is determined by a player rising to the occasion to battle the Capitals back from deficit and on to victory.  There is no current holder of the trophy, as this is the inaugural season for the award.

And the nominees are...

The Dale Hunter Award is presented annually to the Washington Capitals player who had the most exciting fight of the year. The award is justly named for former Capitals captain who is known being a foul artist, pest, nuisance and all around bad-ass. A genuine good hearted and humble teammate off the ice, Hunter was a wolverine on it and accumulated 3565 penalty minutes in his NHL career, the most of any player to reach the 1000-point mark and currently ranks 2nd all time for the NHL. Standing 5’10” at weighing in at 200 lbs he still managed to amass 222 “official” fights with a record of 21-20-31.

And the nominees are...