I used to be a pretty big follower of the Caps several years ago. I knew most of their players and I enjoyed watching their games. They went into a rebuilding phase and outside of Ovechkin and Kolzig, I really didn't know who was on their team.
They started out this season in a very disappointing way and ended up firing their coach (Glen Hanlon) and brought in a career minor league coach (Bruce Boudreau). Ever since, they have been a different team. It's been a tough hole to dig themselves out of but they are on the cusp of making the playoffs. They have a core group of very young talented guys that include Ovechkin, Alexander Semin, Nicholas Backstrom, and Mike Green. They added a solid veteran in Sergei Federov and a decent goalie in Cristobal Huet. I have found myself enjoying the Caps again and following the team and getting to know the players. They play exciting hockey and it's good because with their youth, talent, and energy, they should be solid for years to come. The other nice thing is they developed the team the right way...through the draft and added some FAs where needed.
Again, they are only 2 points out of a playoff spot and there are only 4 games left so every game left (and really each of the last several games) have basically been playoff/must win type games. The good thing is that they are (I believe) 7-1 in their last 8 games. They have gotten really hot. The bad thing is the teams they are chasing (Carolina, Philadelphia, Boston) have been equally as hot. As mentioned, there are only a few games left and this is going to come down to the wire. If the Caps manage to get in, I think they can make some noise.
One other point, Ovechkin is leading the league in goals (first player in like 12 years to score more than 60 goals in a season) and points. If the Caps get in the playoffs, he should win the league MVP unanimously. It's great that we have arguably the best all around player in the world on our team.
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