Washington Capitals give more details on 50th anniversary celebrations

Today the Washington Capitals announced an exciting lineup of special events and initiatives that will comemorate the team's 50th anniversary throughout the 2024-25 season. The plans include fan celebrations, community programs, captivating content, storytelling and other related merchendise. This celebration will be aimed to unite fans, players, alumni and personnel alike and Caps fans are encouraged to sign up for more details at WashCaps.coom/Caps50th to stay up to date on the info.

Ted Leonsis said in a statement:

Our amazing fans are the heart of our organization, and we are excited for a special season long celebration in honor of our 50th anniversary. Our incredible community drives all our celebratory events and initiatives. We look forward to commemorating our historic season with our passionate fanbase, dedicated players, esteemed alumni and devoted supporters.

Dick Patrick would add:

This upcoming season presents our organization a unique opportunity to celebrate our history and the great contributions our alumni have made to the Capitals franchise. We are excited to welcome them back and recognize their achievements with our extraordinary fanbase.

Event highlights in October include the Caps 50 Fest presented by TikTok featuring Third Eye Blind on Thursday Oct. 10 at Capital One Arena where fans of all ages are encouraged to attend. Tickets start as low as $19.74 and you can purchase them at washcaps.com/50fest.

The next day is the Alumni Game at MedStar Capitals Iceplex at 2 p.m. in a free event that's open to the public. The next day is the home opener featuring the Rock the Red Carpet and Pregame Ceremony to celebrate 50 years of Capitals Hockey.

The Caps additonally announced Era Nights with a total of five of them. Starting on Nov. 8 against the Pittsburgh Penguins the team will celebrate "The Pioneers" from 1974-1982, on Dec. 14 against the Buffalo Sabres it's the Coming of Age night from 1982-97. On Feb. 1 The Dot Com Caps will be celebrated against the Winnipeg Jets from 1997 through 2005. On March 7 against the Detroit Red Wings it's Rock the Red Era night from 2005-14 then on April 4 against the Chicago Blackhawks it's ALL CAPS and the Stanley Cup era from 2014 through the present time.

Per the press release from the Caps there will be a specalty 50th anniversary giveaway at each of the game, in game content and features, an in game enviroment based on the the eras colors and theme and additonal nods to the specific decade of Capitals hockey history.

Also noted in the press release the Caps are offering a pregame experience featuring a chat with Caps alumni prior to the game and each experience includes two to five alumni participating in a discussion moderated by a Caps personality, a ticket package, a special 50th item and food and beverage.

The new 50th anniversary jersey

The Caps today released a special edition 50th anniversary comemorative edition jersey. To read more about it click here. The game dates will be on Nov. 6 against the Nashville Predators, the 29th against the New York Islanders, Dec. 31st vs. the Boston Bruins, Jan. 18 against the Pittsburgh Penguins, Saturday Feb. 1 against the Winnipeg Jets, and Sunday April 13 vs. the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Capit-Ale Golden IPA

The Caps and Devils Backbone Brewing Company debuted a special 50th anniversary themed Capit-Ale golden IPA which is a classic, easy drinking, golden IPA that is 6 percent APV and brewed in celebration of the Capitals 50th "Golden" Anniversary.

Capit-Ale will be available on draft and in four packs of 16 ounce cans in Capital One Arena beginning with the Caps September 22nd preseason game. It is also now available at local bars, restaurants and retailers within a 150 mile radius of Capital One Arena

Per the release, this will mark the third version of the beverage that the Capitals and Devils Backbone collaborated on and features a fresh new can design and a new recipe.

Youth Hockey Development

The Caps have always been committed to growing the game throughout the DMV and on Saturday Nov. 16 the team will host a Caps Street Hockey Extravaganza which will be a one day ball hockey tournament at Eagle Bank Arena in Fairfax, VA. The event will pay homage to the original Capitals Street Hockey Extravaganza, an annual event that was presented by the team in the 70s that saw more than 2,000 youth come together for a day of simultaneous street hockey games, More info will be announced at a later date.

Capital Hockey Classic

The Caps are hosting an inagural Capital Hockey Classic this Dec. on Thursday the 12th featuring a contest between Army and Navy's club hockey teams at 5 p.m. followed by a matchup between Army and Penn State's Division 1 programs at 8 p.m. This celebration will take place just two days before Army vs. Navy at Northwest Stadium on Dec. 14. Tickets will go on sale on Wednesday September 18th at 10 a.m.

This is just a small sample size of the many things the Capitals are offering to celebrate 50 years of Capitals hockey. It'll be cool seeing us all come together in ALLCAPS as we gear up for a big season.