Each weekend Half Smokes Heroes will pay some respect to a group or individual flying under the radar who has gone above and beyond the call of duty during the week.
↵Every team in the D.C. area has underong some roster shuffling as of late, including the Washington Post sports section. The big name who will be changing spots in the sports section will be Caps' beat writer Tarik El-Bashir, who will now be shifting his focus primarily to Georgetown basketball. He'll also be tackling auto racing, boxing and MMA coverage (Remember kids: diversify, diversify, diversify).
↵Though I'm sure El-Bashir will do a fine job in his new role, his contributions will be sorely missed on the Capitals beat. Over the last five years, Bashir has become synonymous with Capitals news, in a way that no other beat writer has been able to replicate with their respective beat. And El-Bashir hasn't gotten to that point by making himself part of the story, he does it through his dedication to seeking out stories and covering everything related to Capitals hockey during his time as the team's beat writer.
↵For his outstanding work and his impressive dedication to his craft, we award Tarik El-Bashir with this week's Half Smokes Hero award.
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