Random Friday Musings

It's old news now, but the Capitals dropped yet another frustrating overtime game to the Carolina Hurricanes, who beat their Southeastern Conference rivals without the services of Cam Ward and Tuomo Ruutu. The highlight of the evening was that three game goals came from rookies, one of which marked young d-man John Carlson's first-ever NHL goal! On another bright note, we also got some flashes of the Varlamov we all know and love as the acrobatic net minder was solid in the crease and looks to be regaining the form and confidence we saw from him last spring. Unfortunately, those bright spots weren't enough to win this one and the the boys will have to regroup to face a seldom seen Calgary Flames club on Sunday.

Until then, here are some tidbits Hockey Mom found interesting to ponder until the Caps hit the ice again in two days:

• Some Jose Theodore love from Crash the Crease.
• Per our favorite mucker and grinder, Mike Knuble - you're not a real hockey player until you've smashed your face and/or lost a few teeth. (D.C. Sports Bog)
• The Sedins? You bet they deserve respect, even though they dance like 12-year old boys at a wedding (google Dancing Swedes NHL commercial and you'll know of what I speak)
• With all the talk about revising the rules on head shots, here's a tutorial on what will be considered legal versus illegal (tap of the stick to The Bruins Blog) - Matt Cooke, you may need to plan a marathon watching of this video before the playoffs start, eh?
• Speaking of head shots, HM's favorite Florida Panther David Booth just can't catch a break. Booth has yet another concussion after getting walloped by Montreal's Jaroslav Spacek. Wishes to Booth for a speedy recovery - talk about tough luck...