ARLINGTON, V.A. — As a journalist, it's easy to sit back and watch hockey and break it down from above. On the ice, it's a whole different game — and the Washington Capitals gave the media that experience on Tuesday. The Capitals brought back their media fantasy camp, inviting members of the media to the facility to essentially be a Washington Capital for a day. It's what every kid dreams of (10-year-old Sammi would be freaking out), and as a D4 scrappy forward who's not earning an NHL deal anytime soon, it's a once-in-a-lifetime experience. There were some nerves — as there always are for me when it comes to hockey — as I walked up to MedStar Capitals Iceplex lugging my 20-pound bag of gear (add in 10 pounds because I forgot to empty my team's puck bag before coming), but once I walked through the doors, it hit. Me and my trusty cameraman and beer league teammate, Ryan Rudy, took all of it in, and the once-in-a-lifetime experience went far beyond the ice. First, we headed to the locker room for a quick introduction from new head coach Spencer Carbery. Then, assistant general manager Don Fishman broke down the salary cap and CBA while also discussing the fundamentals of contracts and negotiations. "You listening, Spencer?" he joked during the chat. After that, video coach Brett Leonhardt gave us a glimpse into his day-to-day, which includes rigorous behind-the-scenes work of getting footage together, going over player tendencies and during live games, making adjustments on the fly and watching for potential challenges. An interesting tidbit from that: Leonhardt and the video coaching staff don't scramble after a goal is scored to look for a potential challenge. He and fellow video coach Emily Engel-Natzke watch closely for offsides, goaltender interference or any other violations and will wait and see what happens while storing it away for later. After that, it was time for the gym with assistant strength and conditioning coach Zach Leddon — which is probably something that I need, considering my morning run with my dog turned into me having to sit down and eat a couple of mozzarella sticks before heading to the rink. It was a good way to get loose as we stretched it out and did some light running and stretching (I wasn't always going in the right direction, but that's not important to this write-up. Guess we'll keep it in, y'know, for SEO). Then, it was time to take the ice, where we rotated through three stations, led by some Capitals players, members of the staff and youth coaches. Our first session involved a mini-scrimmage with help from Alex Alexeyev. Then, newest Capitals winger Alex Limoges helped us with forward and backward skating, transitions and my favorite part of every practice, edge work. Lastly, it was some stickhandling and shooting work with Joe Snively. After that, it was time for the media game. I lined up at center, and the start was rocky, as I was blown past for a quick goal and then, the puck went off my boot and right to Tarik El-Bashir, who sped down on a breakaway. My hustle on the backcheck was there, but it fell short, as El-Bashir scored while I also ended up int he back of the net. I was able to make it up to my team, though. After some pushing and shoving, I did what I do best: crashed the net. The puck landed right on my tape, and I was able to lift it in to pull my team to 2-1. Then a bit later, I received a great cross-ice pass right on the tape for my second — another result of crashing the net — for an easy goal. Striking twice on my first day as a Capital, give me my entry-level deal now. I also challenged a couple of guys to drop 'em, but I think I scared them off. I got some bouts in at the end with goaltender Bill Douglas and Brandon Alter. The most important part of the day, though, was getting a glimpse at the life of NHLers and a look into their day-to-day, and the Capitals did an outstanding job at making that happen. Here's a video recap: Washington Capitals media camp
