Leonsis' close relationship with Capitals players was on full display throughout their Cup runGETTY IMAGES
Monumental Sports & Entertainment Chair & CEO Ted Leonsis since buying the Capitals in '99 has "grown enmeshed in the city's fabric, an ever-present driver -- and cheerleader" -- of DC's sporting fate, according to Adam Kilgore of the WASHINGTON POST. Leonsis is "compulsively connected to fans and sometimes, in his deference to patience and loyalty, detached from their sentiments." He "sits next to the Wizards' bench, hollering at officials and encouraging players." He "wears a Capitals jersey in his suite." With Redskins Owner Dan Snyder "increasingly removed from the public eye, Leonsis has become the dean of sports executives" in DC. His MS&E portfolio "has become an empire, a massive influence on nearly every sector of the city's sports scene." MS&E partially owns NBC Sports Washington, which "gives Leonsis a platform to make an imprint on local media." Leonsis had "turned the Capitals, by many measures, into a raging success well before" winning the Stanley Cup this past week. But the team had "never won the Stanley Cup, and those successes made the failures feel weightier." Leonsis said, "I never lost confidence in myself and our leadership group. I just think if you attack things with integrity and you have stick-with-it-ness, then good things will happen." Leonsis: "I still don't feel like a success. I think that's an important thing to always drive you. If you become satisfied, give it up. This is such a high. Our fans love it so much. I'll enjoy it for a couple of days, but then it's, 'What do we have to do next year to do it again?'" (WASHINGTON POST, 6/11).
THAT WINNING FEELING: In DC, Thom Loverro writes armed with the Stanley Cup and the "evidence of the impact it has had in these past few days on the city, don't be surprised if Leonsis starts priming the pump again for a new arena." That will likely be "after the one he is about to open," a 5,000-seat home for the WNBA Mystics and NBA G League Capital City Go Go is "unveiled later this year." Leonsis' "spearheading" the '24 DC Olympic bid "was all about a new arena and leaving Capital One Arena." What may "complicate things is the city's bid for a new stadium for the Redskins," which could "heat up after the mayoral primary election is over next week" (WASHINGTON TIMES, 6/11).
CELEBRATE GOOD TIMES: In DC, Jacob Bogage noted the Capitals organization is "celebrating its title among the people," wasting no time "bringing the celebration to the public." Capitals fan Allison Latham said, "The Caps didn't make it about them. It's about everybody. ... It's about DC. They've showed that by running around the city and crashing parties and sharing it with everyone. It makes me very, very proud to be a Caps fan" (WASHINGTON POST, 6/11). Also in DC, Emily Heil noted the Capitals celebrated Saturday at local restaurant Cafe Milano, where Stanley Cup-cradling LW Alex Ovechkin and his teammates "posed for pictures with fans -- including Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner." The team "ended up behind the bar with magnums of champagne." The celebration saw champagne "flying and the jubilant players in T-shirts and baseball caps" (WASHINGTONPOST.com, 6/10).
