More photos » by Frank Franklin II - AP

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As many of our readers prepare for the Christmas holiday, we thought to add to the holiday cheer in the memory of an instant classic in Washington Capitals lore -- today marks the one year anniversary of the improbable comeback at Madison Square Garden.  Call it the Miracle on 34th Street, or Alex Ovechkin's first great performance on Broadway.  Or just call it tear-jerking beautiful.

On December 23, 2008, the Caps found themselves down 4-0 early in the second period.   Then, we saw a singular performance from the Great Eight to spirit the rest of the team to ultimate, overtime victory.

As J.P. observed post-game on the magical night:

Ovechkin potted a fluke goal more than half way through the game to cut the lead to 4-1, then had one of those shifts that teammates rally behind and opponents fear. At the time, it was mentioned in the Open Thread [  ], that "the shift was great, but you kind of hate to waste one like that especially down three," to which I responded, "Setting an example is never a waste." And it wasn't.

The comeback was on, culminating in a dramatic third period performance by Ovechkin, whose unassisted, breakaway goal (second on the night), victimized Henrik Lundqvist, and concluding with "zero-to-hero" Shaone Morrisonn potting his first goal of the season.  In overtime.  On his birthday.  Dogpile at center ice ensued. 

And in the goaltending department alone, this game was one for the ages.  I wrote adoringly on a Christmas Eve morning:

Early on, Jose Theodore looked far from recovered from his earlier hip flexor injury.  He was simply unable to get over to stop Ryan Callahan’s shot, the latter’s first goal of the evening.  It looked as if his hip just buckled, and he physically could not avoid over-committing to a first attempt and move left to right into the crease, though his mind willed it so. 

Then Brent Johnson takes a turn, the team already blitzed for three against, but finds himself too ill to go on.  Sweating, visibly suffering an apparent fever on the bench.

Theo in again.  Already under considerable pressure, simmering on a bed of scalding coal briquettes, goes from getting a humiliating hook at the Garden to suddenly holding a teetering ship steady in the third, and finishing up with 19 of 20 shots stopped.

Before that game, the Caps were 0-5-1 at the Garden, since 2004.  The Great Eight himself had struggled in his six games played in Manhattan prior to the epic match:

Since then (including playoffs), the team's gone 3-1-1 under the bright lights of the City, and Ovechkin's shone brighter as well:

Here's hoping for another great Christmas gift tonight for Caps fans this season. 

More photos » by Nick Wass - AP

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By now, you've probably heard of OptionIt, a new (to Washington Capitals fans) ticket-buying concept which offers fans the ability to purchase an option now to acquire tickets to a future game at face value. 

As reported by the Washington Business Journal:

Purchasers of an option have three choices. They can let it expire at no additional cost, sell it to someone else in an aftermarket on optionit.com or exercise the option and attend the event. The site guarantees that it can provide a ticket at face value should an option holder decide to exercise.

In the stock markets, an option provides the holder the ability to acquire shares at a certain (sometimes below market) price, in exchange for a small sum paid up front.  Thereby allowing the option holder to benefit from the gain on the market price of the stock between the acquisition and exercise of that option.  Of course, the stock price could fall below that certain price, leaving you out the amount paid for the option should you choose not to exercise it. 

Right, you know all of this.  But in the market for Capitals tickets, where the franchise is going great guns, offering precious few single game seats for sale, and selling out the barn on a nightly basis, the price for those tickets is only rising.  And fast. 

Want a prime seat in Section 116 for the tilt versus the Penguins on March 24th?  $172.50 per billet on ticketexchange.  Face value?  $120 per seat.  With OptionIt, by an "option" for $56 a ticket to purchase seats later at face value, which adds up to $176 per ducat.  For now, only certain seats and sections can be optioned, but there's availability in both the 400 and 100 levels.   

Looks like a wash, except that you're guaranteed today of not paying more later.  Not sure if you can make the game, but don't want to scramble to get a pricey ticket at the last minute, or go through the hassle of re-selling a ticket you've already purchased?  By an option.  You'll be able to "exercise" it when you're set to go, at a fixed price, for an exercise window clearly noted on the site -- if you're not able to go, well then you're, at worst, out the cost of the option.  And there's promised to be a brisk aftermarket for these options on the site.  (You choose the price, minus a hefty 17% fee, 10% paid by you, and 7% paid by the buyer). 

These days, one might be reluctant to embrace classic Wall Street practices.  But here's the best part.  Think the Caps will make the Stanley Cup Finals?  Buy an option now for $78 to purchase two 100 level corner section tickets at face value.  And don't worry about scrambling to score those tickets (at any price) as soon as that oh-so-anticipated playoff game is scheduled.  You're covered.  

But when would that "exercise window" for an undetermined playoff game begin and end, you ask?  Michael Proman, VP of Marketing, breaks it down for us:

Once the Capitals officially qualify for the playoffs, First Round - Home Game One and Home Game Two will become ‘scheduled’ events and the exercise window will likely open two weeks before and close anywhere from 5-7 days before the event.

Where things get a bit tricky is on the "swing games."  Example: Capitals are the #1 seed, up 3-0 in the first round series and playing Game 4 (away).  Fans holding the option on a Game 5 (Home Game Three) ticket will only have the opportunity to exercise if the Capitals lose Game 4.  The exercise window would effectively open up on Game 5 as soon as the result becomes official in Game 4.  Depending on how many days between Game 4 and Game 5, the exercise window would likely close 24 hours before the game.

We will always give fans a reasonable amount of time to exercise their option and will send out reminder emails to customers before the exercise window even opens to remind them that they are holding an option for a particular game and that they will need to be prepared to exercise quickly.

Therein lies the real value.  Might be a good time to ante up now for the reward of a guaranteed great seat in June.  If nothing else, maybe it'll add some good Caps karma for a Finals berth.  (And further squeeze out opposing fans who would buy tickets.)

A timely re-work of the lyrics to the Johnny Cash classic, Folsom Prison Blues:

I hear the Eight Train a comin'; he's charging down the wing,
And if he gets me, I'll be leaving this rink in a sling.
I'm tryin' to hold the blue line; but he keeps rollin' on.
Ovechkin's got those crazed eyes, and now our lead is gone.

When he was just a baby, his mama told him, "Son,
Always play in high gear; and feel free to have your fun."
So he throws around his body, he never stops to ask why.
When I hear Eight's whistle blowin,' I hang my head and cry.

I bet there's rich folk eatin' in a fancy corporate box.
They're loving when he crushes D-men like a wild ox,
They know they had it comin', they know they can't be free,
When I see him hop that bench door, I know he'll torture me.

Well, if they gave him a suspension, let him sit and think,
Surrounded him with ladies, and vodka fit to drink,
They think that he might tone it, play with less reckless glee,
But the Eight Train keeps a rollin,' that's how he's born to be.

More photos » by Gregory Smith - AP

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Early success earned Capitals GM George McPhee a reputation for discovering and fulfilling "reclamation projects."  There's no fixed definition for the scope of that category of player, but my working definition would be:  acquisitions of established NHLers once known or projected as being at least modestly gifted and who, following either significant injury or prolonged struggles, or both, are given another chance to demonstrate that they've got something left in the tank.

More so than ever in the salary cap era, when nearly every contending franchise must push its payroll near the cap ceiling to accommodate the varied needs of a would-be champion, a successful reclamation project, ideally one that entails limited financial risk, is a key component of a winning team.  It's almost as important as astute drafting and trade deadline swaps. 

So, we've compiled a list of McPhee's top five best reclamation projects, and top five busts.  First, the busts. 

"The Busts"

5.  Sergei Berezin - Left Wing

Berezin's arrival in Washington, at the 2002-03 trading deadline, and subsequent performance encapsulates all of the ways in which the "Jagr plan" went horribly wrong in D.C.  He fit squarely into the same category as the offensive corps of skilled but one-dimensional forwards seemingly just past their prime, adding to the developing "country club" atmosphere in Washington. 

Dealt by Chicago for the Caps' 4th round selection in the 2004 draft (defenseman R.J. Anderson, who never played in an NHL game), Berezin's acquisition otherwise cost the remainder of his season's salary.  And, with the Blackhawks, he began to regain the scoring touch for which he was known in Toronto, when he potted 37 goals in the 1998-99 season.  He scored a goal in each of his first three games as a Capital and looked like he could be a real playoff force.  But a mysterious arm ailment dogged him in April, and he was invisible in the post-season,  tallying only a single assist in the disastrous first round playoff exit versus the Tampa Bay Lightning.  He never played in another NHL contest after that, instead signing with CSKA Moscow the following December.

4.  Joe Murphy - Right Wing

Murphy can lay claim to two of the most prized accomplishments of a hockey player's career:  (i) being selected 1st overall in an NHL draft (Detroit, 1986) and (ii) winning a Stanley Cup (Edmonton, 1990).  And he didn't get his name engraved on the chalice by accident:  he scored six goals and 14 points in 22 playoff games that championship spring, on the "kid line" with Adam Graves and Martin Gelinas.  In this respect, he was quite a successful reclamation project for then-Oilers GM Glen Sather, who rescued the "talented misfit" from an impatient Red Wings fan base.  After reaching an offensive peak two seasons later, his career began to unravel.  He played for four different teams and, in November of 1999, was suspended by Boston for insubordination. 

McPhee took a chance and signed him in February of 2000, but he proved uncoachable.  And uncontrollable.

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More photos » by Frank Franklin II - AP

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When anyone asks me what I miss most about my hometown having moved north to Gotham over nine years ago, three things immediately come to mind:  the Black Cat; the C&O Canal; and the potential to attend every home Capitals game.  It is, however, a small consolation that living here affords me the opportunity (sadly now just twice in a regular season) to hop on a subway and, in mere minutes, arrive at the entrance to the Garden and watch Les Capitals.

Yesterday, pulling over a home red Boyd Gordon gamer, I bounded out into the early evening darkness, consumed with thoughts of Alex Ovechkin's continued dominance at the "World's Most Famous Arena."  While gentlemen and ladies in business suits dashed in every direction, obsessed with something else far less compelling, I strode through to the E train platform, just as the magic train to hockey paradise arrived.

Expecting to see a handful of Blueshirted straphangers, perhaps muttering something about Henrik Lundqvist deserving no special reverence unless he, as Mike Richter well before him, delivers another championship to Gotham, I spent my underground ride wholly unmolested.  In fact, not a single passenger on the train was wearing Rangers accoutrement.  Now, I understand that this is a big town, and that there are a myriad of transportation options to get a hockey fan to the arena.  But it was not until I was nearly at the enemy gates that I observed event goers defiling themselves with Rangers jerseys.  

As I stood before the gaping maw of the Garden swallowing the hordes of blue-clad patrons climbing the staircase beside the great marquee, waiting for my arena companion (himself a suburban Rangers fan), I made every effort to greet every red rocker in sight.  This goodwill led to some mockery by Rangers fans, some of which clearly could not comprehend the genuine brother- and sisterhood that we have as citizens of Caps Nation.  'Tis a pity, that their game experience is so lacking.    

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More photos » by Pablo Martinez Monsivais - AP

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While it looks like this brief stretch of the Washington Capitals season without Alex Ovechkin is nearing an end, one thing is for certain.  This team can score goals regardless.  Secondary scoring?  With guys like Tyler Sloan and Mathieu Perreault lighting the lamp, this bunch is getting tertiary scoring. 

But on the other side of the ledger, the Caps are now down to 23rd in the League in GA/G, at 3.06.  Over three goals a game in this era is playing with fire -- Katy is not barring the door.  And of the top eight Eastern Conference squads, the Caps have allowed the second-most even strength goals, with 39, just one fewer than the New York Rangers.

What's keeping the Caps flying high is scoring at a ridiculous pace, nearing four goals per game, a pace which at present exceeds even the 2006 Cup champion Carolina Hurricanes, in the first post-lockout season that saw a bit of a return to firewagon hockey.  Consequently, Les Capitals sit atop the League in 5-on-5 F/A ratio. 

We've hinted at one reason for poor team defense:  the lack of consistent pairings, particularly beyond the top duo of Mike Green and Shaone Morrisonn, on account of having to rotate eight defensemen.  And we'll repeat what GM George McPhee himself said, after the trade of Steve Eminger in June of 2008:

[W]e didn't want to carry eight defensemen again because it's too difficult for everyone to operate that way. It's hard for the head coach because you know you have someone sitting out, and someone is unhappy. And it's hard on the players.

The logjam has been alleviated from time to time due to minor injuries suffered by John Erskine, Green, and Jeff Schultz already in this campaign (and it looks like Milan Jurcina is unable to go tonight, shuffling the deck yet again).  Sloan has done himself a huge favor, and possibility secured indefinitely his spot in the lineup, by gamely playing the "swingman."

But is there any correlation between consistency in the D pairings and a team's defensive performance?  How consistent are the pairings on the top defensive teams in the League right now?  And how inconsistent are those on the sieves of the NHL? 

Turns out that four of the top five teams in GA/G -- New Jersey, Boston, San Jose, Colorado, and Buffalo -- have three regular pairs of defensemen that skate together for at least about 60% of the team's shifts at ES (for the pairs themselves and the breakdown, link on the percentage opposite the team name, all via DobberHockey):

Looking at the bottom five teams in GA/G -- Anaheim, Florida, Columbus, Carolina, and Toronto -- we see a slightly different picture.  Four of these five teams have three regular pairs of defensemen that skate together for less than 53% of the team's shifts at ES:

Significant, or too early in the season to tell?

Is it the injuries that have led to the significant substitution by Bruce Boudreau and Bob Woods, or is it the presence of eight capable D-men in Washington that leads the coaching staff to be a bit more leaned toward resting guys who are less than 100%, sacrificing some consistency for better health down the road?  That theoretical health benefit could prove enormous come playoff time, and as long as the Caps are making fans behind their opposing team's net break out the sunscreen, there's no urgency to trim the roster on the blue line at this stage of the season. 

Putting the salary cup hit of the eight-man collective aside, of course.

More photos » by John Bazemore - AP

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Caps Nation must be crestfallen.  The official, and officially vague, news that Alex Ovechkin is week to week forces us all to contemplate life without Alex. 

Well, one Alex that is.  And that's hinting at one reason why, though the health and speedy recovery of the leader of the Washington Capitals is front of mind, this calamity presents an opportunity to be seized.  A moment to galvanize the rest of the group in the room.  Make no mistake, these are exciting times for the Caps.  They will grant us far greater insight into whether or not this 2009-10 team is Stanley Cup-worthy than any individual honors can.

Had Mike Knuble's and Quintin Laing's heroic efforts in the third period (putting aside the former's minor infraction) on Sunday vs. Columbus resulted in victory, I would have deemed that win the most significant to date in this campaign, and perhaps it would remain amongst the most significant victories by season's end.  We saw glimpses of comprehensive effort and desperate play.  A new clarity of vision.  There was no backstop in #8.

The Penguins, not so long ago, lost their leader in Sidney Crosby from, essentially, January 18, 2008 to March 27, 2008, a span of thirty-one games (he was, of course, in the lineup for three games between March 4th and March 9th, including the "Black and Gold" weekend that Caps fans will not soon forget).  The Pens forged an impressive 16-8-4 record during that stretch of the season. 

But what's most significant is that, before that high-ankle sprain forced Crosby out of the lineup, his team was a respectable 26-17-4 (earning an average of 1.19 standing points per game).  From January 19, 2008 to the end of the 2007-08 season, the Pens went 21-10-4 (an average of 1.31 standing points per game), surging to a #2 seeding in the Eastern Conference.

Further to the point, look at how the Pens' "secondary" scorers' production improved in the absence of #87:

2007-08 Scoring Through January 18, 2008

2007-08 Scoring After January 18, 2008*

*  Regular season only.

So may this 2009-10 Caps supporting cast improve itself.

It's time for Alexander Semin to shoot first . . . and reclaim his own superstar status.

It's time for Tomas Fleischmann (perhaps on a top line?) to possibly crack the 20-goal per season pace, and beyond. 

It's time for Chris Clark to find some semblance of an offensive game again, working consistently with more offensively-gifted linemates.

It's time for the coaching staff, and the members of the power play squads, to invent new strategies of extra-man attack.

It's time for the organization to again test it's heralded offensive depth, including those waiting in Chocolate Town for just this moment.

It's time for the defense, currently sitting at 21st in the league in GA/G, to get a little tighter, a little meaner, its passes crisper, its checking more, well, finished.  Those top scoring lines won't as easily get that goal back.  Ditto for Messrs. Theodore and Varlamov.

It's time for a sixty-minute effort, and not a "fifty-one minute" one.

In short, it's time to get one step closer.

via www.csnwashington.com (Jan. 6, 2009)

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"[I]n training camp I said it was the best I felt since the lockout.  Sooner or later, people are going to realize I didn't say that just for fun."  - José Théodore post-game last night.

Well it wasn't entirely clear who would be the #1 netminder for the Washington Capitals heading into the 2009-10 season.  But at least for now, Théodore est #1 à nouveau!

Théodore is putting up the best GAA (2.47) and SV% (.922) numbers since 2003-04, when he won 33 games for Montréal.  Those season-to-date numbers are seventh-best in the league in GAA, and third-best in SV%, for all goalies who have started at least seven games.  He's carried the momentum of a sensational training camp into a strong early season performance, punctuated by a brilliant 41-save performance last night at le Centre Verizón.  Unlike last autumn, where he didn't really establish himself until shutting out the Canadiens in late November.  And, still, #60 won over 30 games in 2008-09.

Whither Semyon Varlamov this season?  Thus far, he hasn't exactly looked like the world class 'tender that emerged to pull the Washington Capitals out of the depths of despair last April against the Rangers, and an iron curtain for at least the first three games of the second-round Penguins series.  Even though he's earned a 4-0 record.  

Besides already noting a propensity to allow goals in bunches, Varly seems to have added, to a troublesome glove hand that dogged him in the Pens series, a greater vulnerability five-hole.  To roughly break it down (and to be clear, these are characterizations born from my own observations) -- of the fourteen goals that Varly has allowed this season, four have been to the stick side, four to the glove side (but only two of those were high:  one tally by Nashville's Shea Weber and the other by Philadelphia's Mike Richards), and six through the five-hole (or approximately 40%).

But Varlamov's performance last spring was wondrously unexpected, and he's still a 21-year old work-in-progress.  So adjustments and small steps backward for greater strides later is exactly what we all should expect at this point.  New goaltending coach Arturs Irbe's work with young Varly may be akin to breaking a few eggs now for a delicious omelet by mid-season.

All of this is why the Caps still have a veteran "bridge" in Théodore under contract for this season to steady the ship when the young charge struggles.  So everything seems to be going according to plan to date, with the team's goalie of the present and goalie of the future scenario.  And should both of them falter, well, Braden Holtby, goalie of the more distant future, is garnering national recognition for his early season play in the Palmetto State, and Michal Neuvirth, who was the Calder Cup playoff MVP last spring, is also a phone call away, though still looking to regain his form.

But could Théodore be more than just a bridge this season?  Could he remain this strong in April, May?  June?  How long can his current success last?  He's 2-0-1 / 2.04 / .939 in his last four starts.  But we've seen similar stretches of stellar backstopping in his post-lockout career, followed by a return to the average.

• In December of 2006, JT allowed just 11 goals in 5 games, and followed that streak by registering a SV% over .900 in only one game out of the next ten contests, and with a SV% in the .700s in five of those games.
• Théodore followed up a ten start / 2.18 / .919 January last season with an unremarkable ten start / 2.96 /.906 February.  (Yet his record in each month was identical:  6-3-1.)
  
• But his 2007-08 season (his previous contract year, mind you) saw a steady improvement and consistently strong play from January 30 to the end of the regular season, where he allowed three or more GA in consecutive games just once in 27 starts, and allowed two or fewer in 17 of those starts, during that stretch drive to the post-season for Colorado.
  

For all we know, we could see a complete reversal of fortunes for Théodore and Varlamov by March (or even by next month), with #40 on top and JT wearing the ball cap on the end of the bench.  In any event, Coach Bruce Boudreau has the luxury of going with the hot hand.  And "the lefty" sure is hot right now.

More photos » by Manuel Balce Ceneta - AP

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[AP Recap - Game Center - Game Summary - Event Summary]

Imagine a team that combined the astounding offensive skill of the Washington Capitals with the unyielding drive to the net and relentless goal crease presence of the Philadelphia Flyers.  Cup worthy, right?  Fortunately, just one half of the formula was enough to prevail and, to bollix a phrase from baseball, good hitting beat good pitching tonight.  Secondary scoring?  Who needs it?  I kid.

Ten more notes on the game:

• A fresh sheet of ice set down following last Sunday's Washington International Horse Show made for quite a bouncy puck and some fanned shots.  Both Alexander Semin and Shaone Morrisonn had glorious chances to put the Flyers behind very early tonight but, well, you know.
• The reunited top line of 8-19-28 overwhelmed:  thirteen shots; 9 points; 4 goals.  The second line of Brooks Laich, Mike Knuble, and Brendan Morrison, however, were overwhelmed by Mike Richards' line.  And all that hooking to boot.
• José Théodore.  Unconscious.  The most saves in a game (41) for JT in three years.  Left precious few rebounds.  Too bad he got run most of the night, and battled constant traffic left largely unchecked.  That cannot stand. 
• Twenty shots against in the third?  At home?  My goodness, way to reel 'er in boys.  
• For the Caps' part, they made it much easier for Ray Emery, gracing him with plenty of room to see the puck.  Even Laich barely skirted the crease on the PP.  Guess the team preferred to allow Emery every advantage before letting the Big Four humble him with lightning-fast releases and unstoppable shots. 
• Face-off wins for the Caps were back on track:  David Steckel was 16 for 27; Morrison 8 for 14; Keith Aucoin 5 for 8.  Of course there's Nick Backstrom trailing behind again, going 6 for 16, and losing a key 5-on-3 offensive zone draw that effectively killed 15 seconds of two man advantage time for DC.
• We need more of Steckel crushing a puck carrier along the wall and Matt Bradley grabbing the loose puck to rip a quick shot from the face-off circle, as we saw in the second period.  That line sizzled.   
• Shaone Morrisonn saved the game early in the third by blocking a cross-crease pass in front of Théodore, turned away from the pass.
• Worst point of the game to allow Darroll Powe to charge unimpeded down the gut and draw a penalty shot.  Fortunately, it was Darroll Powe taking the penalty shot.
• Aucoin sure made the most of his 10:29 TOI, didn't he?  And still he was on ice for two more minutes and two extra shifts than Captain Chris Clark. 

One more point -- we've talked a lot today about team toughness and retaliation for attacks on our stellar corps of heroes.  Well, there's, of course, a human price to be paid for such a punishing brand of play.  Caps legendary alum Kevin "Killer" Kaminski was hosting the CSN chat in-game tonight, and someone asked the current Mississippi RiverKings head coach:  "How is your health?"  His response?

"My body HURTS 24/7, besides the two shoulder and lower back operations, and the 651 stitches, two plates and twelve screws holding the right side of face together... my health couldnt be better... but it was all worth it to play for the Caps... a dream come true."

Perspective.

via daylife.com

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Suddenly, Caps brothers and sisters, roughly one-eighth of the regular season is in the electronic books.  October is almost through.  (And I hope all of you attending the October 30th home game vs. the N.Y. Islanders have already carefully planned your Halloween get-ups.)

As we noted this morning in the Clips, Peerless looks at the forwards and the defensemen and goaltenders after ten games.  Here we provide a overall team-oriented assessment.  Ten games is an arbitrary milestone, but a lengthy enough period of competitive play to observe trends.  So what do we find?  Some developments positive and refreshing, and some in territory that seems all too familiar.

Here's ten for ten:

Scoring:  anybody but Ovechkin?  Early on, it was virtually all Alex Ovechkin and the top line of Nick Backstrom and Alexander Semin.  But then there was the game in Atlanta last Thursday.  And that Matt Bradley character broke out too, on a 25-goal season pace! 

Kidding aside, fifteen of the Caps' 36 goals scored on the season have found the net from the stick of a "secondary" scorer.  (In my view, secondary means not the Big Four or Mike Knuble.)  And one of those Big Four, Mike Green, broke out offensively in a huge way on Saturday night, leaving the Islanders broadcast team awe-struck, giving effusive praise for Greenie's "Paul Coffey-like" rush to win the game in OT.  He's closing in on a point-a-game pace. 

What Mo can we ask of Brendan?  Brendan Morrison has been a wonderful surprise so far this campaign, a near-perfect solution to the void at second-line center following the departure of Sergei Fedorov. 

For now, his scoring pace is exceeding even my optimistic prediction of 20/30/50 for this season.  He's healthy, and excited to play with a dynamic offensive squad again.  When I chatted with B-Mo at the conclusion of training camp about comparing this Caps team to the earlier days of his career in Vancouver, on a line with Markus Naslund and Todd Bertuzzi, he said, "It's been a long time since I've played with guys with this much skill."  He's proving quite capable of not only keeping up, but keeping the offensive engine running. 

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