Grab the Antacid: Stress Levels Run High for NHL Playoffs

I was going to do this as a long blog post yesterday, but then I realized, "Wait a second... This should be a column."

So I wrote it up and sent it in, and now it's up on DC Sports Box. So here's the first few paragraphs. To see the rest you'll need to go to the full column.

I was pretty much constantly nervous from March 10 to April 5 as the Capitals went on an improbable and remarkable run to capture the Southeast Division title and earn a spot in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, then I got a few days to celebrate and catch my breath, but now I'm nervous again.

And I mean really nervous. Gut-wrenching, grinding-my-teeth nervous.

It's not so much that the Capitals lost for the first time in over three weeks and the second time since that awful March 8-10 weekend where they dropped heartbreakers against Boston and Pittsburgh, and it's not that Philadelphia has wrestled home-ice advantage away from the Caps by splitting the first two games in Washington. It's how we got here.

Read the rest:
Grab the Antacid: Stress Levels Run High for NHL Playoffs