O'Donnell on Caps matchup
Defenseman Sean O'Donnell and Drew Doughty draw a tough assignment as they'll probably log the most ice time when Alex Ovechkin and the Captials' top line is on the ice.
Here's a couple of things from O'Donnell, who turned on last night's Ducks-Capitals game when the Capitals already had a 2-0 lead.
``You hear a lot about Ovechkin and Semin. Last night, I watched most of the Ducks-Capitals game. They seem like an exciting team to watch. They've got speed and skill. They're at the top of their division and they've beaten good teams for a reason.''
Does he like the challenge of facing Ovechkin, the reigning MVP, and the young and talented Capitals?
``There's some good players around the league, obviously. Ovechkin is a special player. If he's not the best, he's certainly 1A. You can make a strong argument he is the best. There's nothing he doesn't do well. He's big, he has speed, good shot, physical. Realistically, you're supposed to get up the same for all 82 games and ideally that's what you should do. I think most players would be lying if there weren't certain matchups or players we play against that we don't get more excited for. You go up against a guy like Ovechkin and their power play and the way they're going, it's an easy game to get excited for.''

Rich Hammond has covered the Kings, on a full-time or part-time basis, since the 2000-01 season. He was the beat writer for the entire John Torchetti era and has witnessed Bob Miller singing country music in a Nashville honky-tonk bar. A native of Los Angeles, Rich has worked at the Daily News since 1999 and also serves as the paper's deputy sports editor. E-mail Rich at
Jill Painter joined the Daily News in 2000 and during the last eight years she's covered the Dodgers, Cal State Northridge, UCLA, Kings, golf and everything in between. Even though she's from Colorado, she still freezes in the Staples Center press box but always manages to thaw her fingers in time to make deadline. E-mail Jill at 

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