Washington Capitals

Photos: Ovechkin’s ‘Virtual Statue’ Shoot

By ARLnow.com
1/3

Attendees at the upcoming Taste of Arlington festival will be able to get cozy with Ovie.

Capitals star Alex Ovechkin posed in front of a green screen at Kettler Capitals Iceplex in Ballston yesterday for a “virtual statue” video shoot. The video will be be used to allow smart phone users to take a photo with a virtual Ovechkin at Taste of Arlington, which is scheduled for Sunday, May 19.

As reported earlier this month, Ovechkin is one of three “virtual statues” that will be set up around the festival. The other two are Washington Wizards point guard John Wall or D.C. United midfielder Chris Pontius.

Users will be able to walk up to a posted “Augmented Reality” (AR) marker at Taste of Arlington, scan a code with their phone, and see a brief video of a sports star. From a press release:

The AR marker is similar to a QR or “quick response” code. By targeting an AR marker with the camera on their phone or tablet, users will view a short video and have the opportunity to pose for a photo with the celebrity. After capturing their virtual photo op with the celebrity, guests may share the images to Facebook or Twitter, and are eligible to enter a contest sponsored by the Ballston BID to win a sports prize package including sporting event tickets and signed memorabilia.

The digital statue custom displays will be located throughout Taste of Arlington. Each display will have a backdrop, a statue base, and an event assistant to help facilitate the process or provide a tablet for those without a compatible mobile device.

The mobile app required to view the virtual statues will be available via the Google Play Market for Android and the Apple App Store, according to the Ballston Business Improvement District. Taste of Arlington will be held in Ballston on May 19th from noon to 5 p.m.

Disclosure: Ballston BID is an ARLnow.com advertiser

‘Hockey is for Everyone’ Events in February

By Katie Pyzyk

Washington Capitals logoHockey is back in full swing and the Washington Capitals are celebrating with activities during the NHL’s “Hockey is for Everyone” Month.

The Hockey is for Everyone (HIFE) campaign is the official youth development program of the National Hockey League. It celebrates grassroots hockey and the growing diversity of the game. Many activities throughout the month are aimed at giving kids of all backgrounds opportunities to play the sport. The programs highlight essential life skills and the core values of hockey such as commitment, perseverance and teamwork. The initiative also supports hockey programs that assist disabled military personnel in returning to active lifestyles.

There are numerous events throughout the D.C. area for HIFE Month. The following events will take place in Arlington:

  • February 8 — The Capitals will team up with children’s charity Dreams for Kids to host an Extreme Recess Hockey Clinic at Kettler Capitals Iceplex. Washington Capitals defenseman Karl Alzner, forward Jason Chimera and goaltender Braden Holtby will skate and play hockey with more than 100 children with physical and developmental disabilities.
  • February 14 — The Capitals have partnered with the Junior Women’s Hockey League (JWHL) to provide an all-girls hockey clinic for players ages 6-14. It will be held from 6:20-7:20 p.m. at the Kettler Capitals Iceplex. Participants must bring their own gear and pre-register online.
  • February 14-18 — The Capitals and Washington Pride will host the annual JWHL Challenge Cup at Kettler Capitals Iceplex (627 N. Glebe Road). Various teams from across the country will play in the tournament. Game schedules for the preliminary rounds can be found online.

A full schedule of all the HIFE Month events occurring throughout the D.C. area is available online.

In addition to the HIFE events, hockey fans in Arlington can catch a free high school hockey game at Kettler Capitals Iceplex this week. The Yorktown Ice Hockey Club will face off against Madison at 6:40 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 8.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Foggy lights at Washington-Lee High School by Ddimick

No More Checks for State Tax Refunds — Starting this year, Virginia is no longer sending checks for state tax refunds. Instead, the Commonwealth will only issue refunds by direct deposit or by prepaid debit card. The debit cards are issued by a vendor at no cost to the state; the change is expected to save taxpayers about $200,000 in printing and mailing costs. [Virginia Dept. of Taxation]

Jobs, Wages Decline in Arlington — While wages in Arlington remain high, average wages and the number of jobs in Arlington both declined in the second quarter of 2012, according to new federal data. The decline is worrying some local real estate developers. [Sun Gazette]

Ovechkin Collides With Teammate at Kettler — At a practice yesterday morning at Kettler Capitals Iceplex in Ballston, Capitals star winger Alex Ovechkin and center Marcus Johansson collided at mid-ice. The collision sent both players to the ground, but they’re both said to be “okay.” [CSN Washington, Washington Post]

Flickr pool photo by Ddimick

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

D.C. and the Capitol building at night, as seen from Skyline Towers

Arlington’s ‘Bicycle Man’ Dies — Arlington resident Randy Lokke, 62, died late last month. Lokke was known as a prolific follower of local high school sports, riding his bike to games in and around the District. Lokke was a graduate of Wakefield High School. [Georgetowner]

Ovie Returns to Arlington — Alexander Ovechkin and his Washington Capitals teammates are back on the practice ice at Kettler Capitals Iceplex in Ballston. The Capitals and other NHL teams are expected to begin a 48-game regular season on Jan. 19. [Washington Post]

Chick-fil-A Offers Free Breakfast — D.C. area Chick-fil-A restaurants, including the locations in Ballston and Crystal City, are offering free breakfast entrees through Jan. 30 to those who make “reservations” online. [Chick-fil-A]

Catalog Opt-Out Service Saves Paper — Arlington County says Arlington residents have saved 35,855 lbs of waste by participating in the county-sponsored “Catalog Choice” service. The free service allows residents to opt out of unwanted mail, catalogs and phone books. [Twitter, Arlington County]

Arlington Couple Promoting Phone Holder — An Arlington couple who spent several years and $25,000 to design “DashIT,” a car dashboard hold for smart phones, is selling and promoting the gadget at the Consumer Electronic Show in Las Vegas. [Washington Business Journal]

Flickr pool photo by GmdVT. Hat tip to Brendan Lilly.

Photos: Family Holiday Party at Kettler

By ARLnow.com
1/7

The Washington Wizards, Mystics and Capitals hosted a holiday party for underprivileged D.C. area families at Kettler Capitals Iceplex in Ballston over the weekend.

The holiday party, held from 10:00 a.m. to noon on Sunday, is a tradition for team owner Monumental Sports & Entertainment.

“This year 21 families were adopted through Family-to-Family, an initiative created by the Wizards 16 years ago that provides holiday cheer to underserved, deserving families in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area,” Monumental said in a press release.

At the party, families were able to skate on the Capitals ice, play games, and meet Santa Claus, Wizards mascot G-Wiz, Wizard Girls, Capitals mascot Slapshot and the Red Rockers. The parents were also given gifts, to be opened in celebration of the holidays later this month. The presents were purchased during a $25,000 holiday shopping spree by Wizards and Capitals wives and girlfriends, funded by Monumental.

Photos courtesy Monumental Sports & Entertainment

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

First Day of Spring / Tornado Drill — Today’s the first official day of spring, though it’s hard to think of the warm weather the past couple of weeks as “winter.” Along with the start of spring comes the start of the most active time for tornadoes. With that in mind, Virginia is holding a statewide tornado drill at 9:45 this morning.

County Budget Hearing Tonight — Arlington County is hearing a public hearing on its proposed FY 2013 budget tonight. The hearing is being held in the County Board room at 2100 Clarendon Boulevard and is scheduled to start at 7:00 p.m. A public hearing on the county’s proposed tax rate changes is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. [Arlington County]

Leonsis Helps Raise Money for AFAC — Washington Capitals owner Ted Leonsis has helped the Arlington Food Assistance Center raise an additional $21,000. Lenonsis offered tickets to his box at the Verizon Center to anybody willing to donate $3,500 to AFAC, which six donors quickly did. [Sun Gazette]

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Ovechkin Buys New House — Capitals star Alex Ovechkin may be ditching his $1.6 million home in Arlington’s Waycroft-Woodlawn neighborhood for some tonier digs. Ovechkin recently bought a $4.2 million, 11,000 square foot house in Fairfax County. He’ll have some extra time to get settled — the Capitals captain just decided to skip the NHL All-Star game after being suspended for three games. [ProHockeyTalk]

Grocery Store Bike Parking Guide — Need to do some grocery shopping, but worried about where to park your bike while you’re in the store? If so, the BikeArlington web site has just the resource for you: a complete guide to bike parking at 16 Arlington grocery stories. [BikeArlington]

Live Music Comes to Melody Tavern — Live music has come to Melody Tavern (3650 S. Glebe Road), a recently-opened music-themed restaurant/lounge near Potomac Yard in south Arlington. Live jazz and blues performances will start at Melody Tavern tonight, and will continue on nearly every night except Mondays through the end of February. The restaurant will also be holding a grand opening event from 7:00 to 10:00 p.m on Feb. 3. Arlington County granted Melody Tavern a live entertainment permit over the weekend. [Facebook]

Homeless Count Underway — An effort to provide a count of the number of homeless individuals living in Arlington County started at 4:00 this morning and will continue through midnight. The annual volunteer effort is being organized by the Arlington Street People’s Assistance Network. “This local count is part of a nation-wide count that occurs during the last ten days in January in order to collect accurate data, understand trends, justify requests for federal funding, and measure community progress towards preventing and ending homelessness,” A-SPAN said.

Flickr pool photo by Alex

Caps Players Visit Randolph Elementary

By ARLnow.com

Two Washington Capitals players, a coach and the team’s mascot visited Randolph Elementary School last week.

Defensemen Mike Green and Karl Alzner joined assistant coach Jim Johnson and mascot SlapShot at the school for “Capitals Hockey School.” The players answered questions from students in the school’s gymnasium before conducting a floor hockey clinic for 175 third through sixth graders.

“Alzner and Green instructed the students on basic hockey skills such as stick-handling, passing and shooting,” the Capitals noted in a press release. “The students were then called on to try out the skills in front of their peers.”

A boys versus girls shootout competition was held, resulting in a 1-0 win for the boys. A subsequent scrimmage resulted in a 0-0 tie between Alzner and the boys and Green and the girls. Three school staff members then scrimmaged against Alzner, Green and Johnson — and won by a score of 2-1.

Following the hour-long event — the eighth Capitals Hockey School in the D.C. area this season — Randolph Elementary was presented with donated street hockey equipment and all participating students were given autographed photos, squishy pucks and Hockey 101 booklets.

Green is expected to undergo surgery this afternoon to repair a sports hernia suffered earlier in the season. Alzner, meanwhile, was involved in his first NHL fight on Friday.

Photos courtesy Washington Capitals

Spotted in Arlington: Ovie’s New Girlfriend

By ARLnow.com

Via the Montreal Gazette, of all places, comes word that Capitals star Alex Ovechkin’s new girlfriend has been hanging around Arlington as of late.

Russian tennis star Maria Kirilenko has been photographed working out with the George Washington University tennis team, presumably at the indoor Sport & Health Club courts in Crystal City. She has also been spotted at Capitals practices, presumably at the Kettler Capitals Iceplex in Ballston, according to the Gazette.

Ovechkin, who lives in a $1.6 million home in Arlington’s Waycroft-Woodlawn neighborhood, recently confirmed the relationship by Tweeting out a photo of the happy couple (left). Before that Tweet, however, the Gazette could only speculate as to why Kirilenko seemed to be spending so much time in our fair county.

“In all seriousness, putting aside the fact that this is pretty good gossip, if you’re a Russian tennis player and you choose … Arlington, Va. for some indoor practice, it’s probably not because you’re an American history buff,” the paper said.

Let us know via email or the comments if you spot Ovie and his new GF out on the town.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Hard Times Cafe Opens in Verizon Center — Local staple Hard Times Cafe has opened a new concession stand in the Verizon Center. Located on the main concourse near section 119, the stand opened in time for the first Capitals preseason game on Monday. In addition to brick-and-mortar locations in Clarendon and around the D.C. suburbs, Hard Times also operates a stand in Nationals Park.

Arlington Sheriff Elected to Association — Arlington Sheriff Beth Arthur has been elected vice president of the Virginia Sheriffs’ Association. [Sun Gazette]

Housing Fair This Weekend — The Arlington County Housing Fair will be held on Saturday, from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. The event features “practical advice for managing money, improving credit and avoiding eviction or foreclosure;” home buyer workshops; meetings with county staff, housing specialists, landlords, real estate agents and finance professionals; and “access federal, state and local housing programs and resources.” The fair is being held at the NRECA Conference Center in Ballston (4301 Wilson Blvd). [Arlington County Housing Fair]

The Arlington County Housing Fair is an ARLnow.com advertiser

Outdoor Caps Rally in Clarendon Tomorrow

By ARLnow.com

The Capitals are planning an outdoor rally next to the Clarendon Metro station Sunday afternoon.

The Caps pep band and drumline will be on hand starting at 1:00 p.m., along with Slapshot (the Capitals mascot) and the Red Rockers cheerleaders. There will also be balloons for the kids and a slapshot cage for fans to test their hockey skills.

At 3:00 p.m., the rally will head into Hard Times Cafe (3028 Wilson Blvd) to watch Game 3 of the Capitals playoff with the New York Rangers. During the game, there will be raffles of autographed items and a giveaway of two Game 5 playoff tickets.

“We are proud to host this event and bring the Caps Playoff excitement to the streets of Clarendon,” said Hard Times owner Doug Welsh.

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