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Is Bruce Boudreau about to be fired?

Bruce Boudreau

Washington Capitals head coach Bruce Boudreau talks during a news conference at the Kettler Capitals Iceplex in Arlington, Va., Thursday, May 5, 2011. The Capitals we swept out of the playoffs by the Tampa Bay Lightning, losing Game 4 at Tampa on Wednesday night.(AP Photo/Luis M.

AP

The Twitter machine is ablaze this evening with rumors that Washington Capitals head coach Bruce Boudreau will be fired in the next 24-48 hours.

Sparking the fire was Sportsnet’s Nick Kypreos. On the Sunday edition of Hockey Central, Kypreos and host Scott Morrison were speaking about the Caps, who are 3-7-1 over their last 11 games and fresh off a 5-1 pasting at the hands of Buffalo.

“A lot of speculation something could happen in the next 24-48 hours,” Kypreos said. “The name being thrown out there is ex-Washington Capital, a centerman of mine, Dale Hunter.”

Hunter is a Caps icon -- his No. 32 was retired in 2000, along with the penalty box from the old Capital Centre (Hunter is the only NHL player ever to score over 1,000 points and rack up over 3,000 penalty minutes.) But he’s also the current coach and co-owner of the OHL’s London Knights, a position he’s held for the last 10 years.

That could be an issue, according to Kypreos. “Question is whether he [Hunter] would leave his junior program in London, which is off to a great start, in midseason to take this job,” he told Hockey Central.

Stephen Whyno of the Washington Times reached out to Capitals spokesman Sergey Kocharov via email for reaction.

“Not true,” Kocharov replied. “Just speculation.”

Of note: There was some confusion this evening as a Kypreos imposter Twitter account (RealKyper_) tweeted the Boudreau rumor (but taking it a step further, saying Boudreau was fired) within minutes of Kypreos saying it on Sportsnet. This led many to believe that the original rumor was fake. Which is was not.

So, to clarify: Real Nick Kypreos broke the Boudreau rumor on Sportsnet’s Hockey Central this evening. Fake Twitter Nick Kypreos tweeted a follow-up, which cast doubt on its authenticity. (Full marks to Whyno at the Washington Times for getting tape from Sportsnet and transcribing the audio, verifying real Nick Kypreos actually broke the Boudreau rumor on air.)

Isn’t social media fun?