Tom Poti thought he had finally pushed the painful memory of the Washington Capitals' Game 7 collapse against the Pittsburgh Penguins into the deep recesses of his mind. But about three weeks later, the defenseman discovered he had not buried it deep enough.

"Just when you're starting to get over it, you see them hoisting the Cup," Poti said Monday, eight months after Penguins captain Sidney Crosby and his teammates beat the Detroit Red Wings in the Stanley Cup Finals. "You start thinking, 'Could that have been us?' "

For the Capitals, the only thing more excruciating than the what-ifs has been the 253 days NHL schedule-makers forced them to wait before facing their archrival again.

The Capitals are already done with the New Jersey Devils, Toronto Maple Leafs and New York Islanders, but tonight's trip to Mellon Arena will mark the first of four meetings between Washington and Pittsburgh.

"To win anything ... you're going to have to go through Pittsburgh this year," Capitals coach Bruce Boudreau said. "It will be a tremendous measuring stick. I know they're going to feel the same way."

The Washington Post