Odd response

As Hockey Bay hounds have come to expect, the Washington Capitals are one of the NHL's roughest teams to hound. Superstar Alex Ovechkin? Don't even waste your breath. Crafty center Nicklas Backstrom? He's hit or miss. Wicked winger Alexander Semin? Him, too.

And, if you can believe this, expect to get shot down by defensemen Shaonne Morrisonn and Tom Poti. Wow! Can you imagine that? Morrisonn and Poti?

That's not to say, though, that yesterday's trip to downtown Tampa was a total waste. To the contrary, never before have I been so satisfied after getting so few autographs. I may have added only nine autographs, but I'm pleased as punch with who signed.

Above all, it's always a good day when you add an autograph from one of your favorite players. In this case, it was Mike Knuble. From his time with the Boston Bruins, Knuble has always been one of the game's most approachable players. That's why I had him sign the Capitals puck (shown above, at left). As we begin closing the loop on the puck collection, it's important to dot the i's and cross the t's with certain players.

The same, too, goes for Brendan Morrison. I'd read in Your Turn II that he, too, was fairly approachable, taking an old-school approach to treating fans/hounds with respect. After having him sign two pucks (Washington and Vancouver Canucks, shown above), the first two of the collection, I'd dare say that's an accurate representation.

Oh, yeah. Washington's most recent acquisition, Jason Chimera, signed these two cards as well. It wasn't so much that Chimera was on my radar screen, I just happened to be close by as he was signing.

Other signings that made the day memorable:

~ Catching up with former NHL goalie Arturs Irbe; and
~ having goalie Jose Theodore add to the Threads collection.