PHILADELPHIA — So much of the joy in sports is based on the expectations that precede a celebration, on the circumstances in which an accomplishment is achieved. So here were the Washington Capitals — not those old Stanley Cup-contending Washington Capitals, but a different version with an altered reality — gathered in a grinning group on the ice at Wells Fargo Center. They vigorously patted each other on the heads, gloves knocking helmets around. And then, with a playoff berth locked up, they bounced as one, a circle of glee following a season of unspeakable grind.
Washington
Perspective | For the Caps, an ‘unreal,’ ‘unbelievable’ triumph keeps a surreal season going
With their bite-the-nails-to-their-nubs 2-1 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers Tuesday night, the Capitals returned to the NHL postseason, nabbing the final wild-card berth in the Eastern Conference, essentially winning Game 7 of Round 0. In doing so, they earned a date with the behemoth New York Rangers. Exhale, because the spot was earned, and the ride was worth it. Now, buckle up again.
But enjoy this much: A team that dealt with underperformance and injury, that banished Stanley Cup hero Evgeny Kuznetsov and got better because of it, that still sold at the trade deadline because the immediate future seemed bleak — that group sneaked in. No, sorry. That group won its last three games in four days to barge in when no other result would have worked.
“Unreal,” said Alex Ovechkin, whose first-period goal was the 31st of his season, the 853rd of his career, and given the way the Caps have been scoring lately, felt something like a miracle.
“We fight through lots of stuff that happen at [the] deadline, injuries, Kuzy,” he continued. “But I think the belief inside the locker room was tremendous. We enjoyed that process. It’s special. That’s why we play hockey.”
And that’s why we watch.
Put the achievement aside for a moment. The wackiness in how it came about can scarcely be overstated. With two points Tuesday — in regulation or overtime — the Capitals would clinch the final spot. But to stay alive, the Flyers needed a regulation win — and help in the form of Montreal beating Detroit.
That meant that a tie late in the game — and the possibility of overtime, in which the Caps would earn their 90th point, eliminating Philadelphia — essentially put the Flyers in a deficit.
So for Philadelphia Coach John Tortorella, pulling goalie Samuel Ersson would come earlier than normal — with more than three minutes remaining, and the score tied. Except at almost that exact same moment nearly 400 miles away, Detroit scored with five seconds left to force overtime in Montreal. The Red Wings had their point. The Flyers were eliminated. Ersson vacated the net anyway — and Caps vet T.J. Oshie, playing with a chronically messed-up back, deposited the game-winner into the empty net.
How fitting — how crazily fitting — for this group.
“Almost every game was Game 7 for us,” Ovechkin said. “Sometimes didn’t get points and we’re still in a battle, and then it was a crazy situation ’til tonight.”
“I got info on the Detroit game right after they scored their empty-netter,” Tortorella said. “I think it happened pretty close together.”
Insanely close together — and for Washington, insanely fortunate. Because this team — which scored two or fewer goals in 42 of 82 games this year, fourth-most in the NHL — didn’t seem capable of forcing another one through if the game stayed five-on-five. That struggle to score contributed to the Caps’ minus-37 goal differential, the worst of any playoff team this century.
They are limited, sure. And yet, there’s so much joy.
“You could see the faces in that room, whether you’re John Carlson or you’re Hendrix Lapierre, Connor McMichael, ‘O,’ they all have different things,” said first-year coach Spencer Carbery, who has been nothing but impressive in methodology and messaging. “They’re all at different stages of their careers and their lives.
“But you could tell no matter what your situation, whether you’re playing in your first year, like a lot of our guys, or you’re playing in your 17th season, this group — you could tell how bad they wanted to find ways to win every night.”
It’s so striking what skin-of-the-teeth qualification means to this roster when cast against how those old juggernaut Capitals teams barreled into the playoffs. In the Cup year of 2018, the most notable aspect of the Caps’ celebration after their first-round victory over Columbus was how subdued it felt. That was a business trip. The second round was expected. What was important was on the horizon, beyond.
These Caps aren’t those Caps. And that’s okay.
“The momentum is on our side,” Oshie said. “I think there’s a lot of players in this room that maybe haven’t been deep in the playoffs or haven’t even played in the playoffs that are starting to learn the dedication and the focus and the intensity and the selflessness that it takes to play playoff hockey.”
Because they have been playing that style for more than a month.
Before the season, the keys to the Capitals being the best version of themselves figured to be a return to form of Kuznetsov, the talented but maddening center who was arguably Washington’s best player during the run to the Cup. They included a return to health of franchise linchpin Nicklas Backstrom, who had to come back from hip resurfacing surgery.
And they probably included a stellar year from goaltender Darcy Kuemper, signed a season earlier to a five-year, $26.25-million contract to bring stability to a position where Washington had enjoyed little.
The results: Kuznetsov was the worst version of himself, dragging the team down, managing just 17 points in 43 games. He was placed on waivers, then traded. Backstrom’s physical limitations quickly became too much. He stepped away from the sport in November with just one point in eight games. And Kuemper was eventually replaced in net by stellar backup Charlie Lindgren, who started 14 of the Caps’ final 15 games and was deemed by Carbery “arguably our MVP.”
So the group that gathered in the fall with hopes of returning to the playoffs isn’t the group that ultimately landed there. The lineup Tuesday night included defenseman Dylan McIlrath, days from his 32nd birthday but playing just his 75th NHL game, the captain of the Caps’ top minor league franchise. Darned if he didn’t assist on Ovechkin’s goal. It included 21-year-old Vincent Iorio, a 2021 draft pick playing his ninth NHL game. This is a hybrid roster for a franchise in transition, the old core winding down and a new core just forming — maybe.
“It’s unbelievable, just because the journey, it hasn’t been easy,” Lindgren said. “ … It’s such a privilege to play for these guys.”
They will be underdogs, and heavy underdogs, against the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Rangers. The kids on this team won’t remember the burden New York has to bear, but maybe some old heads will. The 2010 Capitals won that very same trophy issued to the team with the best record in the NHL. They lost in the first round to eighth-seeded Montreal. The 2016 and ’17 versions of the Caps earned Presidents’ Trophy status and couldn’t make it out of the second round.
The point: Nothing is guaranteed. Washington’s lineup isn’t what it once was or even what it was expected to be this year. But the kids who might well be part of a future core — McMichael, Lapierre, Beck Malenstyn, Aliaksei Protas and others — get this chance following a season in which so much went wrong.
“Just to where we’ve gotten is very, very valuable for development,” Carbery said. “But now, you want to make good on it. Now, we don’t want to just [say], ‘Okay, great.’ We want to play well. …
“And everybody’s going to say, ‘We’ve got no business being here, and the goal differential, blah, blah, blah. That’s going to be the narrative. And that’s fine. It’s warranted. It’s a fact. [But] I know this group isn’t just going to be content showing up in the Stanley Cup playoffs.”
When the horn sounded Tuesday night, Carlson — now with 1,009 NHL games, all in a Caps sweater — pumped his fist and wailed, then headed to Lindgren for an emphatic embrace. The standard isn’t what the standard was. But for these Capitals, this season was a success. Now, the real fun begins.
Washington
Chisholm’s homer keys 3-run 9th as the Yankees rally past Washington 5-3 – WTOP News
Jazz Chisholm Jr. hit a two-run homer in the ninth inning to lift the New York Yankees over the Washington Nationals 5-3 on Friday night.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Jazz Chisholm Jr. hit a two-run homer in the ninth inning to lift the New York Yankees over the Washington Nationals 5-3 on Friday night.
The Yankees and Nationals rank 1-2 in the major leagues in home runs, and all but one run in this game came via the long ball. Ben Rice hit his 29th of the season for the Yankees, and Jasson Domínguez and Austin Wells also went deep for New York.
Keibert Ruiz and James Wood homered on consecutive pitches in the seventh to give Washington a 3-2 lead, but in the ninth, the Nationals brought in left-hander Matt Krook — who had allowed 22 earned runs in 12 2/3 big league innings dating to 2023. Krook (0-1) yielded a one-out single by Domínguez, and Chisholm followed with his 13th homer.
Wells added a solo shot off Justin Lawrence to make it 5-3.
David Bednar (3-3) won in relief, working the final two innings. The Yankees remained four games behind first-place Tampa Bay in the AL East.
Rice homered in the first off Carson Palmquist, but the New York designated hitter fouled a pitch off his right leg in the fifth and was shaken up. He was able to stay in the game.
By that time, Domínguez had given the Yankees a 2-1 lead with a homer off Zack Littell (8-6) in the fourth.
The game was delayed two hours at the start, and a wet field might have prevented Washington from tying it in the sixth. New York starter Ryan Weathers allowed a one-out double to CJ Abrams. Then Jacob Young followed with a single. Abrams looked likely to score, but he slipped rounding third and had to stay there.
Fernando Cruz then replaced Weathers and struck out the next two hitters to strand both runners.
New York’s Paul Goldschmidt singled in the first to snap an 0-for-34 drought, and he also reached on an infield hit in the sixth.
Amed Rosario of the Yankees struck out in all three of his plate appearances and made two errors at third base before being lifted for a pinch-hitter.
Up next
Cam Schlittler (9-5) was scheduled to start for New York on Saturday against Miles Mikolas (3-7) of the Nationals.
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Washington
Washington State Democratic Party draws criticism over reparations, antisemitism language
OLYMPIA, Wash. — Party platforms are typically lengthy documents intended to define political values, not enact law.
But language adopted by the Washington State Democratic Party is drawing scrutiny from Republicans, some Jewish community leaders, and even some Democrats who say they were left out of the conversation.
The debate centers on two planks in the party’s newly approved platform: one supporting continued work on a state reparations study and another linking a recent rise in antisemitism, in part, to actions by the Israeli government.
Stephen Reed, a spokesperson for the Washington State Democratic Party, said the platform is developed every two years by delegates selected from communities across the state.
“They develop the platform. They write all the planks. They debate the planks,” Reed said.
Last month, the Washington State Democratic Party announced that more than 1,000 delegates at its 2026 convention in Spokane unanimously adopted language supporting reparations for descendants of victims of U.S. chattel slavery. The party described the move as the first such addition to a state Democratic Party platform.
The approved language says Democrats support “the study and implementation of reparative action, remedies and reconciliation” for descendants. The party also said Democrats had previously passed a 2024 resolution urging Washington leaders to create and fund a statewide study on reparations, which is currently underway and being managed by the Department of Commerce. A final report with recommendations is due in June 2027.
Reed said the party’s platform does not settle the question of whether Washington should provide direct payments as reparations, noting that other proposals include offering free college tuition to descendants.
But it is the platform’s language on antisemitism that has prompted criticism from both inside and outside the party. The approved platform states: “There has been a dramatic resurgence in antisemitism in recent years on all sides of the political spectrum, due in part to actions taken by the Israeli government. History shows us the dangerous repercussions suffered when collective action to combat antisemitism and promote understanding is not taken. We must ensure that the Jewish community is protected from misinformation, harassment, and violence.”
It is unclear whether the Washington State Jewish Democratic Caucus was consulted before the language was adopted. The Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle criticized the provision.
“By ascribing the rise of antisemitism in the United States, even partially, to the actions of the Israeli government, the Washington State Democratic Party has rationalized, and given cover to, the actions of antisemites rather than full-throatedly condemning them. At a time where the Jewish community, which makes up only 2% of the U.S. population, is the target of nearly 70% of religion-based hate crimes, we urge the Washington State Democratic Party to do everything in its power to reduce antisemitism rather than justify it,” Solly Kane, president and CEO of the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle, said in a statement to KOMO News.
The State GOP, which is no stranger to incorporating national public policy into its regional platform either, criticized the Democrats.
“I read the Washington State Democratic Party platform, and it’s a banquet of trust-fund leftist nonsense,” Washington GOP Chair Jim Walsh said. “A lot of it is just not grounded in any real policy issue facing Washington families.”
Walsh said the platform contains “very little coherent stuff about tax reform or safe communities or improving K-12 schools,” while highlighting what he called “a very bizarre commitment to reparations for slavery.”
Asked why the Washington Republican Party’s 2024 platform includes language calling for limiting federal funding for programs that support critical race theory or The 1619 Project and for ending birthright citizenship, Walsh said, “We’re talking about not spending public resources. That means forcing taxpayers to pay for programs of various controversial sorts.”
“There is really no moral equivalence here,” he added.
Reed said he personally interprets the Democratic platform’s language as criticism of the Israeli government, not of Jewish people.
“I take this language personally to mean that the government of Israel is engaging in actions that are making Israel less safe, that are causing untold harm in the Palestinian community, especially among civilians,” Reed said. “That simply isn’t the right behavior for an ally of the United States.”
Reed acknowledged that the language has prompted concern and debate. He said the party has a Jewish caucus and that party officials tried to provide proposed platform language to caucuses before the convention, but he conceded the process may have fallen short.
“We did our best, and we hear that we may have come up short in those outreach efforts to give them enough time to digest everything,” Reed said. “If we fell short, we apologize to those communities.”
Reed said party platforms are designed to show voters where the party’s grassroots stand, even when the issues are complicated, controversial, or beyond the scope of state government.
“It’s a statement of values,” Reed said. “This lets Washingtonians know where the Democratic Party’s grassroots are, how they’re thinking, and the values they’re going to bring.”
Washington
Bengals 2026 Opponent Preview: Washington Commanders
Over the course of the next few weeks, we will be taking an in-depth look at the Bengals’ 2026 opponents. The Bengals play in Washington on Monday Night Football in Week 11 against the Commanders.
2025
The Commanders went 5-12 last season, finishing third in the NFC East a year after making a run to the NFC Championship Game. QB Jayden Daniels played in just seven games due to injury after winning NFC Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2024. Veteran Marcus Mariota started eight games, going 2-6, while now-Bengal Josh Johnson logged two starts under center.
Washington’s offense averaged 20.9 points per game last season, ranking 22nd in the league. Without their second overall pick quarterback, the Commanders struggled to pass the ball, averaging 184.1 passing yards per game, good for 24th in the league. The team’s top receiver Terry McLaurin played in 10 games as he too struggled with injuries. As a result, former San Francisco 49er Deebo Samuel led Washington with 72 receptions for 727 yards and five touchdowns.
The Commanders were more effective on the ground, ranking fourth in yards per carry (4.7) and yards per game (134.7). Washington primarily featured two backs: rookie Jacory Croskey-Merritt and Chris Rodriguez. Croskey-Merritt paced the team in attempts (175), yards (805) and touchdowns (eight) while Rodriguez added 112 carries for 500 yards and six scores.
On the other side of the ball, the Commanders allowed 26.5 points per game, the sixth most in the NFL, and 384.3 yards per game, the most in the league. Washington allowed the third-most rushing yards per game (141.8) and fifth-most yards per carry (4.8). The defense allowed 242.5 yards per game through the air, the fifth most. The unit struggled to force turnovers as well, notching the second-fewest takeaways in the NFL with 10.
Offseason Changes
Head coach Dan Quinn had to replace both coordinators this offseason, as the team decided to mutually part ways with former offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury and let go of defensive coordinator Joe Whitt Jr. The Commanders hired two first-time coordinators in David Blough (OC) and Daronte Jones (DC).
Washington overhauled its defense this offseason, starting with the defensive line. The Commanders signed former Ravens and Chargers DE Odafe Oweh to a four-year deal, former Texans DT Tim Settle Jr. to a three-year deal and former Jaguars and Patriots DE K’Lavon Chaisson to a one-year deal. They also drafted DE Joshua Josephs from Tennessee in the third round of the 2026 NFL Draft.
The team added LB Leo Chenal from the Chiefs in free agency and spent the seventh overall pick in the draft on LB Sonny Styles Jr. from Ohio State. On the back end, Washington signed S Nick Cross and CB Amik Robertson.
On the offensive side of the ball, Washington let Rodriguez walk in free agency and signed former Browns RB Jerome Ford and former Buccaneers RB Rachaad White instead. It added depth to the receiver room with one-year deals for Dyami Brown and Van Jefferson and used a second-round pick on Clemson WR Antonio Williams. The Commanders also signed TE Chig Okonkwo to a three-year contract from the Titans.
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