Winter Classic Predictions

Sean's Ramblings was kind enough to include me on a preview panel for the Winter Classic between the Washington Capitals and the Pittsburgh Penguins. Here are the questions and my answers.

1. Please predict Alexander Ovechkin's stats for the Winter Classic (ex. goals, hits, penalty minutes).

Ovechkin will register a hat trick, have 5 hits and 4 penalty minutes on Saturday. Or he could just skate around, hit people, and maybe register an assist. The Caps hope for the former, the Pens the latter. The truth probably lies somewhere in between.

2. Will Penguins' center Jordan Staal play and if so, how will he do?

If Staal can brainwash the Pens' doctors, he'll be back. If not, then he will begrudgingly watch from somewhere inside Heinz Field. If he plays, it'll be mostly ceremonial.

3. How many times will Capitals coach Bruce Boudreau swear during the game?

The better question is "how many times will a microphone pick up Bruce Boudreau swearing during the game?" Seriously, he'll probably be on his best behavior because of the national prominence of the event.

4. Any predictions and/or funny comments for Friday's Capitals-Penguins alumni game?

Like everything from the past era of the Caps-Pens series, this one heavily tilts towards Pittsburgh. The roster imbalance is a joke, which either speaks volumes about the inequality of the two franchises' alumni base or, more probably, the willingness of the Caps' alumni to put themselves through the experience of playing in bad weather when they're out of shape. Let's hope the NHL doesn't find a way to use this as a tiebreaker for the real players.

5. Who will win the Winter Classic (please include the final score and the player who will score the game-winning goal)?

Caps 3, Penguins 1. GWG by Mathieu Perreault.

Be sure to check out everybody's views on the game.