Hockey analyst apologizes for slip of tongue

It was probably bad enough that NBC analyst Mike Milbury referred to the Washington Capitals during Sunday's telecast as the "Crapitals."

But what he said about Alexander Ovechkin could unleash the beast that lurks within the Russian sniper tonight in Game 3 at the Wachovia Center.

Speaking about the Capitals' effort in the 2-0 Flyers victory, Milbury said of Ovechkin's play, "If it looks like a dog, barks like a dog, it is a dog."

According to fellow analyst Pierre McGuire, whose verbal sparring with Milbury has been nothing short of classic theater during recent games, Milbury apologized to Capitals owner Ted Leonsis for the "Crapitals" remark.

"He misspoke," McGuire said yesterday.

Milbury didn't offer apologies to Ovechkin, who did not have a good game Sunday.

"I've got to find what [Milbury] said and show it to Alex," Caps coach Bruce Boudreau said yesterday.

Leonsis commented yesterday about the "Crapitals" remark on his "Ted's Take" blog (http://ted.aol.com).

"I reached out to Mike Milbury last night via NHL commissioner Gary Bettman," Leonsis wrote. "Gary called me, and we spoke. And then Mike called me, and we spoke late last night.

"Mike calmly explained that he meant no harm. He had a slip of the tongue when trying to start a commentary about our play. He meant to say the Washington Caps but instead he said the Washington Craps.

"He laughed and then stated we weren't playing well at that time in the game and we were playing like the 'Crapitals.' He was trying to be funny and trying to recover - on air - and he misspoke."

Leonsis said in the blog that Milbury formally apologized to him and asked that his apology be conveyed to the community.

"He is respectful of our team, our fan base and what we have done of late with the team. He told me he even bought two Alex Ovechkin Caps hats for his children to proudly wear. He was sincere in his apology."