Philadelphia, PA (SportsNetwork. Kyrie Irving Shoes From China .com) - Its no surprise people wondered how Barry Trotz would get along with Alex Ovechkin. To say Ovechkin is at the center of the storm for the Washington Capitals would be putting it too lightly. The superstar winger has become so utterly synonymous with the only NHL franchise hes ever known that everything the Caps do is quickly related back to Ovechkin. So when Trotz was hired last spring as Washingtons new head coach, the talk of the town was how would the defensive-minded bench boss mesh with the uber- talented but undisciplined Ovechkin. While there have been growing pains for both Ovechkin and the Caps as a whole under Trotz, Thursdays thrilling Winter Classic victory over the Chicago Blackhawks may have been Washingtons coming out party for the hockey world at large. With nearly 43,000 fans in attendance at Nationals Park, the Caps recorded a 3-2 win over the visiting Blackhawks thanks to Troy Brouwers game-winning power-play goal with 12.9 seconds left in regulation. Ovechkin was awarded an assist on Brouwers big goal and also scored earlier in the game. The two-point performance gives Ovechkin 18 goals and 14 assists in 37 games under Trotz. That level of production is not quite up to the standards set by the three-time Hart Trophy winner, but more importantly, Ovi and his team are trending upward in terms of wins and losses. Washington got off to a mediocre 10-10-4 start under Trotz, but the club has really gained traction over the last several weeks. The New Years Day win over Chicago gives the Caps a 9-1-3 mark over their last 13 games, and the latest victory allowed Washington to leap over the New York Rangers for the third and final automatic playoff berth in the Metropolitan Division. While previous Capitals coaches like Bruce Boudreau, Dale Hunter and Adam Oates would at times publicly call Ovechkin out for his lack of discipline, Trotz is seemingly adheres to the old saying if you cant find anything nice to say, dont say anything at all. The former longtime Nashville Predators coach instead has been singing the praises of Ovechkin to anyone who will listen, and for good reason. Although Ovi is not producing at his normal point-per-game pace, his overall game has seemed to thrive under Trotz. Last season, Ovi had a dreadful minus-35 rating in 78 games. This season he is sporting a plus-eight through 37 tilts. Even if you think plus/minus is a useless stat (which most of the times it is) that kind of turnaround simply cant be dismissed or ignored. After the victory over the Blackhawks on the outdoor stage, Trotz offered a full-throated endorsement of his star player and seemed to say the criticism of Ovi over the years has not been fair. A lot of people want to tear him apart, but how many superstars have scored as many goals, how many superstars put people in the seats, how many superstars play as physical as Alex Ovechkin? Theres not very many, Trotz said. And thats what makes him unique. Of course, people will continue to knock Ovechkin until he leads a team to a Stanley Cup title. But at the moment, with Trotz as his biggest fan, things are certainly looking up in D.C. CLASSIC TV RATINGS HIT ALL-TIME LOW On paper, it seemed like this years Winter Classic was a marquee matchup. On one side you had a household name like Ovechkin, and on the other was the Chicago Blackhawks, a team with several recognizable faces thanks to a pair of recent Stanley Cups championships. However, early reports of the television ratings for the NBC broadcast tell a different story as Thursdays game was the lowest-rated Winter Classic since the New Years tradition began at Buffalos Ralph Wilson Stadium in 2008. The Blackhawks-Caps pulled an overnight rating of 2.3, well below the 2.9 rating that last seasons clash between Detroit and Toronto at Michigan Stadium. The previous low was a 2.4 rating for the 2012 Winter Classic between the New York Rangers and Philadelphia Flyers, but that matchup at Citizens Bank Park in Philly may have been hurt by the fact that it was played on Jan. 2 instead of New Years Day. Perhaps, the location hurt the Classic, as Nationals Park is a newer stadium without the cache of places like The Big House, Fenway Park and Wrigley Field. Also, this was the first time the Winter Classic didnt have the documentary series 24/7 on HBO to build up excitement over the weeks leading into the game. There was a similar program called Road To The Winter Classic that aired on EPIX, a channel that simply cant compete with the high profile offered by a place on HBOs airwaves. The NHL should hope that either of those two reasons led to the low ratings this time because the alternative may be the outdoor game is simply losing its luster. That would hardly be a surprise considering the 2013-14 season saturated the market with six outdoor games. There will be another opportunity to gauge the interest in outdoor games on Feb. 21 when the San Jose Sharks welcome the Los Angeles Kings to Levis Stadium in Santa Clara, California. Kyrie Irving Shoes For Sale . I wondered how NHL coaches would feel about a playoff schedule that allowed them to open a best-of-seven series on the road, which many claim to favour, yet still gave them the precious home-ice edge for a seventh game. Cheap Kyrie Irving Shoes . Defensive end Jadeveon Clowney, the Houston Texans No. 1 pick in the draft, was on the field Tuesday for the first time with former NFL Defensive Player of the Year J. https://www.cheapshoeskyrieirving.com/ . PETERSBURG, Fla.Defender Neil Taylor has denied Wales planned to annoy England intentionally ahead of their Euro 2016 clash on Thursday. With so much at stake in Lens, both sides have appeared to try to score psychological points ahead of the Group B meeting.Gareth Bale has been a central figure in the plot, saying England big themselves up before theyve done anything and that they cannot match Wales players for their levels of pride and passion. Wales will be hoping for Gareth Bale to create some magic against England It has been a statement repeated by other Wales players in the build-up to the game, but Swansea defender Taylor insisted it was not a pre-meditated decision to wind up the England camp.Were coming up against a team who are used to playing at this level every week, said Taylor.So we havent had the intention to get under anybodys skin.We just want to play well in the game. Were focused on us, and only us.Wales sit top of the group - level on points with Slovakia, who beat Russia 2-1 on Wednesday - after winning their first-ever game at the Euro finals last weekend. Watch England manager Roy Hodgsons response to Bales remarks that his side lack passion The 2-1 victory over Slovakia, allied to results elsewhere, means Wales will qualify as group winners should they beat England for the firrst time in 32 years at Stade Bollaert-Delelis. Wholesale Kyrie Irving Shoes. And Taylor admits confidence has been coursing through the Wales camp ever since they beat Belgium, then ranked second in the world, in Cardiff just over a year ago.We got over that massive hurdle and that was a turning point for this team, said Taylor.That was when we realised we could be a threat up against anybody.We know the threat we carry and we feel we can beat anybody on our day, whether its England or anyone else. Wales forward Hal Robson-Kanu shoots to score against Slovakia Taylor believes the Slovakia win has set Wales up perfectly for taking on their neighbours.This is the game of this group, said Taylor.Getting a result in that first game was massive for us.To get that win takes quite a bit of pressure off us, even with still a lot of work to do.We knew thered be a circus around the game in the build-up, but its all a bit of fun and hopefully it will be a great spectacle.Wales hope to have goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey available after a back spasm ruled him out of the Slovakia game.Hennessey joined in with the squad at their pre-match work-out in Lens, and if there is no reaction on Thursday he will return in place of Danny Ward.Hal Robson-Kanu is also pressing for a start after coming off the bench to score the winner against Slovakia. Wales coach Chris Coleman celebrates the first goal in the opening match The big thing for us is getting through, said Wales manager Chris Coleman.It wasnt about beating England and not getting through - not for me, not for the players.We have to take care of business and its not the time for us to think were something were not.We know what were about, how we need to perform if were going to be successful.Catch up with all the latest Euro 2016 news with Euro Breakfast each morning on Sky Sports News HQ from 6am. Also See: Wales latest Wales fixtures Wales stats Table Live on Sky ' ' '