He Stays

(AP)

No need to worry after all. No specifics yet, but who cares. The words “long term”, “contract”, “Ovechkin”, and “with Capitals” are together at last. Sorry to all those in Montreal, Toronto, New York, Nashville(?), and anyone else anywhere else who enjoyed traficking in false-rumor-slinging and wishful superstar-poaching thinking these last few months. Condolences also to hockey snobs "purists" (Brooks, Larry; Cherry, Don) who wanted this franchise to wither and die and allow its cornerstones to be distributed to more “worthy” clubs and markets. Sorry, fellas, there may just be a legitimate contender being built here. Encourage your home teams to throw their money elsewhere.

UPDATE: Um, 13 YEARS?! Even we 'tism-blinded fanatics weren't expecting that long/sweet a deal. Six, seven, maybe eight, but 13? Looks like those deluded everyone-good-should-play-in-our-true-hockey-town folks will have to wait until Sid's deal expires in a mere half-decade to fall all over each other again. I guess when Ted (and the rest of the organization) continually repeated that #8 would be here for "a long, long time" it was more than just sound-bitey pablum.