Just listening to the game v. the River Rats is enough to give someone nightmares for weeks. Down 4-1 in the first period? Switching goalies to start the second? A teamwide -23 going into the third?

This is not the Hershey Bears we were promised as everyone got healthy and came back. These aren’t even the Hershey Bears who played through adversity as 3/4 of their team went up to DC and came back through the revolving door.

These Hershey Bears have heard that they had their team back and are trying to rest on their laurels. Andrew Gordon, Oskar Osala, Francoise Bouchard and Mattheiu Perrault, your only non-negative plus/minuses cannot carry the whole team. They cannot motivate the whole team, and they cannot force the team to play a game they didn’t all show up for.

It’s one of the worst things that I think the Bears could have done, looking around and seeing that the beginning-of-season team was back, because with all the hooey on how great they should be, it’s been internalized at this point and NOBODY is playing to potential.

Hopefully tonight’s of Jay Beagle and his usual willingness to get scrappy for everything in the corners will come into play soon, because this losing thing, just not what I’m in the mood for right now.

In other news, go check out Stack the Pads for pictures of Cheezer’s new mask.

And greetings to everyone who’s been directed here from the Caps messageboards.