championships...without the capital C

Since the dawn of the last decade, the Washington Capitals have not made it past the second round, and last year was as disappointing as it got.  Down years offensively across the board, as well as players not contributing forced the team to shore up those problems.  Everything begins with Alex Ovechkin, who did not break the 100 point barrier last season.  He did show some improved defensive play, but now the task will be improving upon that while not taking away from the offense.  Part of Ovechkin's dip in numbers can be attributed to a steep drop in numbers for Nicklas Backstrom.  He failed to break 70 points, and those struggles continued in the playoffs, where seemingly everyone not named Alex Ovechkin struggled.  Backstrom will be counted upon to get the offense going from the center position.  Troy Brouwer brings a championship and grit to a team that lacked it last year when it counted.  He made life easier for the likes of Patrick Kane, Patrick Sharp, and Jonathan Toews, and now, he will do the same for Ovechkin, Backstrom, and Alex Semin.

Prediction: 1st in East

Movie: Shock

The last movie of Mario Bava, it is one of those movies that relies on scare factor to get reactions.  The Caps' have Ovechkin to provide that for opposing teams.  Doesn't always work, in both cases, but it's worth a shot.