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Are the Washington Capitals already banged up?

Image (1) Caps2-thumb-200x300-9154-thumb-250x375-9155.jpg for post 916

Jeez, the Washington Capitals are so eager to follow their amazing regular season with a great playoff run that they’re not even waiting until the games start to carry on post-season traditions. You know, like having a bunch of banged up players, for one. Seriously, it seems like the Presidents Trophy winners are already limping along. The latest news is that Jose Theodore had to leave practice early after taking a shot from Alex Ovechkin, according to Tarik El-Bashir of the Washington Post.

A day after he was named the Capitals’ starting goalie for the playoffs, Jose Theodore left practice after apparently getting struck on the arm by a shot from Alex Ovechkin. Theodore went to the bench for a short time, then went back on the ice before finally leaving the ice for good and walking to the locker room.

If that wasn’t enough, their top two players aren’t exactly 100 percent, either. Nicklas Backstrom needed to sit out yesterday’s practice with “an illness” (note to hockey playoff novices: this is the time of year in which every injury report is filled with dirty, dirty lies). Alex Ovechkin has also prompted concerns from some since he brought his trainer to DC a couple of weeks ago, although that might be a matter of people being overly anxious more than anything else.

Now, most hockey teams are probably a little black and blue already. Playing hurt (and a lot of times, injured) is a time-honored tradition of the playoffs. Still, I can’t help but wonder if they should have rested players even more than they did once they clinched home ice throughout the playoffs. I don’t expect it to be a problem, really, but if the Capitals falter people might ask a few questions.