"I expect him to be a Washington Capital for a long, long, long time."

Hey, don't look at me; I didn't say it. Ted Leonsis did, to Tarik El-Bashir in the Capital Insider today.

Reaction was swift...

Eklund: "e-yuck"

Larry Brooks: "Ovechkin doesn't belong to the Caps, dammit! He doesn't!!...He belongs to the Rangers!! He has to...every player does!!"

Bruce Garrioch: "Sources say this is a prelude to a trade with Nashville for Radek Bonk."

Jack Todd: "It's a crime, I tell ya...a crime!...well, it oughtta be, anyway."

Ted Kulfan: "Hey, then he can afford to buy a ticket to follow Glen Hanlon out of Washington..."

The Hockey News: "pfft...philistines."