Say goodbye to Cooke.

Yeah, I know right... Cooke is gone.

To me, they are very very similar players...

I just posted a long rant on the previous post - don't feel like posting it here too.

I would have rather kept Cooke. Either way, lets get Huet signed.

Per their repective playoff performances and their roles on & off the ice I think GMGM made a great decision.

I think it's great we got Brads back. Looks like the signings will be starting soon, a few appetizers first, then the main course in due time. Man that's making me hungry for lunch

Cooke was a better offensive player than Bradley, though their numbers are the same. Cooke did his scoring when he got to DC. Brads had all year.

@Greg S.

You beat me to it!

Cooke has a better offensive upside, but is also more expensive. We still have some big slots to fill. Brads is a leader in the locker room. Before BB, I wanted him gone, but he has really proved himself after the coaching change. I'll take it, though agree, I'll miss cookie.

This no-salary-figures-released nonsense is killing me. Come on McPhee, it's not like we won't know eventually. Sheesh!

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

This makes my day! Hell, it makes my week!

Great minds, Keef!

Sweet. I really like Bradley last season so I feel pretty good about this. Interested to see the salary figures.....

Best of luck to you Cooke where ever you end up.

While I enjoyed Cookie while he was here the fact is Brads drops the gloves when required... Cooke never does. This gives us a second enforcer and paves the way for the departure of Erskine. More offense is not at issue here, improved defense is.

Let's sign Huet but not break the bank in doing so... he can't possibly continue on the roll he was on at the end of last season. Wasn't he in the net the night Ovie went nuts in Montreal? That Huet needs to be kept in mind as well as the one that led the Caps' mad charge to the play-offs.

excellent. you get what you earn.

congrats Brads.

Not sure if this really means no Cooke, but we are more likely to end up with extra forwards and be short on D-men. Hey Tarik, any word on Pothier or Clark?

And, speaking of folks we haven't seen in a while, has there been any luck in finding Pittsburg's hockey team. Since it's been well over three days has the FBI been informed that they've gone missing?

While I like Cooke, his stats have been anything but consistent from year to year.

I like Brads for the known positive locker room presence and hard nose checking.

Both are 29, both are +1, both are ornery. Brads is known to drop them, Cooke isn't.

I'll take the offensive side. And I'm the guy who's been crying for Defense all year...

I'm right there with you Greg. I was looking forward to seeing how Cooke produced during a full year with the Caps.

$1M is not bad, not bad a'tall. Way to go, Brads!

Last I heard, Pothier was feeling better but not out of the woods yet. Clark was also feeling better and the team is hopeful he'll be ready for camp.

I sure won't miss Cooke's penalties, and I'm glad to have Brads around the locker room. If nothing else, he'll make the post game interviews a lot funnier.

I like it. Glad Brads is staying around. I can't put my finger on it, but I'm just not sold on Cooke as much as some of you are.

I like this-Continuity is good and Brads had a good year. For old school Caps fans, he reminds me of Greg Adams from the plumbers line. Tough guy who could fight but also pump in 10-15 goals with a good year.

I am very happy right now. First, because the signings have begun. Second, because Matt Bradley is staying. Love that guy.

After all he is a fan favorite, was Rookie of the Month once, and scores amazing shootout goals when he finally gets a chance :)

man GMGM keeps giving me less ammo to hate him. Great steal at $1mil a year. Everyone wants to play with OVIE. In the salary cap era you need cheap decent players. Although I like cooke better he would cost way more than 1mil. With the raises to OVIE,semin,green,backstrom,laich,etc. we need financially flexibility in the words of GMGM.

Green is going to get signed, he won't hit FA. The only other ? is HUET. CAPS want to do a 2-3yr deal but HUET wants 5-6yr.

Feds case is easy. GMGM wont pay him more than 1.5mil for a 3rd line center;maybe a little more with incentives.

CAPS wont sign a D man cause GMGM already said he expects Alzer to be here next year and lepisto is there to.

POTHIER is done in the NHL.

Clark will be back full strenght next season more of a reason not to see cooke in a CAPS jersey next year.

Only thing I question is the $ amount. 1 Mill a year is a bit high, but only by about 100k, not THAT big of a deal.

Thanks for the memories Cooke. It was a good run.

Oh, and Cooke's a +5 as a Cap. Based upon his 17 games as a Cap, he should produce 14 goals and 18 assists for 32 points, and 124 PIMs. How was Brads doing?

Good things happen to those who recycle.

$1M for the 4th line seems a little steep, but everything I've read is that he's a good guy in the Room. That's always worth something. No real complaints about him other than the lack of goals, but I imagine that's in part due to minutes and being paired with Brashear who isn't exactly known for his soft hands.

I would feel better if Brent Johnson wasn't #1 on the depth chart right now...

Cooke's shot percentage was 16.67% as a Cap, 26.96% for the year vs. 6.31% for Bradley.

Bradley DID outshoot Cooke 111 vs. 18/68/86 for Cooke.

@828

Nobody is happier than me to see the Pens struggle. The only reason I thought it would be good for the series to go longer is that people were actually watching. The more people that watch and see how fun hockey is the better. Went to a Nats game this weekend. Great ballpark, good fun, boring game. However, I am deep down secretly hoping for another shut out on Sat. Will be so funny to watch the NBC folks trying to find something to say. The Versus guys have all definitely jumped on the Wings bandwagon.

...fingers crossed that Boyd's still here. If this is an indication of $$ being spent, they'll need to save it somewhere. :(

NBC (Nuthin but Crosby) good point Kim, oughta be interesting! I'm thinking the Penns will gather themselves at some point and give us a series. My pick was Wings in 6 and I won't be surprised if it still goes that long. Of course, SOMEBODY HAS TO SCORE AGAINST OSGOOD!

heh heh heh...

Since I think we may not hear anything about Green and Huet until after the Finals, here's hoping that the next few days bring word of Mo and Laich signings.

Personally, I am rooting for a sweep. For many reasons. But if the Pens do have to win one, I am hoping that it comes Sat. vs. Wed. Would love to see them with their backs to the wall for a change. Would be interesting to see the playoff storyline and ending switched up on them. Plus, then Detroit would get the Cup at home. And I am still waiting for Sid to get pegged with that Octopus. Right now I would not mind seeing Roberts getting an eight legged friend upside the head either.

By my count, including Laing who may or may not be with the club next season, we already have $41,141,434 committed to salaries for next season and we still have Fedorov, Huet, Eminger, Morrisonn, Green, Fehr, Gordon and Laich as UFA's/RFA's.

Assuming the Cap moves up from 50.3 million to the 55 million range, we are going to have to make some tough choices. Hopefully Green isn't expecting to become the league's highest paid D-man....

Sombrero - is that with Kolzig too?

Sombrero,

If Feds gets signed, does Boyd get dealt? Or Stecks? Backs, Nyls, Feds and who as 4th center...

Kim, I guess I was just trying to make the point that it does not matter if other people get involved in the NHL or not. It's not about who is out there, its about good hockey. And right now, the NHL made a mistake about building this Cup Finals as Crosby the hero and the savoir of the NHL instead of looking at other guys that are here building a better NHL. And I am not talking about just Ovechkin... there are a ton of good young guys that are helping. I just want to see the Pens grounded - they are not that good when they are playing a good team, eh?

I would love it if they never scored a goal... I think the Caps have a few of those low-ly or lonely records...

828,

Lowly records, eh? You know that this is only the 4th time that a SC finals have started out with 2 shutouts? Glad that Sid can hang that one on his mantle.

Brads will make $1 mil per.

Cook was making $1.5 mil and probably wants more.

Gotta same money to pay Green, Huet and Feds (hopefully).

@828 - Since Kolzig is an UFA, I did not include any salary figures for him. I basically took the roster from here http://www.nhlscap.com/capnumbers/washington.htm
and updated it with Alzner and Bradley. Since you have to include all possible bonuses for rookies contracts, Alzner's cap number is 1,675,000. That also explains why Backstrom's cap number is 2.4 million but his salary is only $850,000

If we think we have issues, the commentators last night said the Pens have 14 UFA's. If they don't win it this year, it might be awhile before they get back as they went for broke this year. They can't keep Crosby and Malkin as they will both be at OV money and that is too much of a drain.

@Steve R - Its hard to say what will happen if we sign Feds. Gordon is cheap and should not be due a significant raise other than a qualifying offer. Among the centers you mentioned, I would personally rank them Backstom, Nylander, Fedorov, Steckel, Gordon. Since Gordon can also play they wing, there is no reason why we might not bring him back for another season even if we sign Fedorov, but we certainly have options.

I read a prediction that next year's Cap will be pushing 56 million. We obviously don't want to be right up against that number since we'll have to extend Backstrom at some point in the next season or two.

Green's contract situation has to be the most interesting part of the offseason.

You don't want to lose him, but you also don't want to overpay and come too close to the cap that it limits flexibility to A) bring in deadline trades and B) sign players a few years down the road.

This is the downside of Ovechkin's contract. It magnifies the risk involved in overpaying anyone else.

How often does a D-man with Green's offensive upside come along?

Everybody seems like such a bargain after jagr.

"And I am still waiting for Sid to get pegged with that Octopus." hahaha, thanks Kim!
I was agreeing with Kim for basically the same reasons. The saying goes, "Any publicity is good publicity." Now, I hate the Pens as much as anybody here and I have the same reasons plus a few to strongly dislike Sidney Crosby, but the league needs publicity and this series promised a good fight til the end. For a while, I only tuned into the playoffs, because that's what is televised in non-hockey markets. There have been some really great series thus far and some that probably should have ended differently, but this series, once it was decided, was pegged to be the marquee series. The only thing the league's marketers would probably have shat themselves over more would have been Caps-Pens ECF. The fact that the Pens are getting manhandled by the more experienced Wings doesn't make for a super interesting series to a casual watcher. Crosby & Malkin have been dead quiet, except when it comes to postgame interviews, it seems. (Doc nearly gives himself a heart attack every time he gets to call out Crosby's name, so thankfully it hasn't happened often. :D) I just think that, for the league, in the interest of turning casual fans into fans that will help generate revenue (which equals a higher cap (54% of rev goes to players in the CBA, I think)), this series going just four, highly amusing (for us), but altogether lacking in competitiveness from one side, games, doesn't help. The business major in me is yelling at Pitt to get its act together and at least put up a fight, while the Caps fan in me is telling Detroit to steamroll them into their shiny new stadium grounds. I've helped convert a few people to hockey fans this season, I think Pitt should do its part, with or without help from their fearless leaders. However, having said this, if Pitt wins it all, I will yak.

Oh, and I'm happy about Brads. He's awesome and as much as Cooke made me laugh, there's a special place in my heart for Brads.

Not happy with this signing. With that term, the contract can be a problem pretty quickly. This is feeling like Clymer all over again. I'd rather see Steckel in that spot for now until guys like Andrew Gordon or Oskar Osala are ready to try their hands, but the roster may get too tight for that soon.

Fedorov can be creatively handled. He had a one year contract with CBJ. We can give him one, too. We can give him a one yr base with bonuses. The bonuses will NOT count against the cap.

We can negotiate a 3 year deal with Green giving him a nice pay raise.

UFA's for the caps:
Fedorov 6.08M
Kolzig gone
Huet 2.75M
Cooke 1.5
Bradley re-signed
Boumedienne 500K
Cassivi 500K
Morgan 500K
Arsene 475K

IMHO, the last 4 are gone. Kolzig burnt his bridge. Get creative with Fedorov, keep Huet, Cooke. Trade either Bradley or Cooke after camp. One stays the other goes.

RFA's
Eminger 1M
Morrisonn 900K
Green 850K
Fehr 800K
Laich 750K
Gordon 650K
Werner 615K
Hunt 605K

Both Eminger and Morrisonn are eligible for arbitration. Given that management has Eminger on their S#$% list, give him a qualifying offer and let someone else pick him up for a compensatory pick. Double up Morrison, Fehr, Laich; maybe a little more depending upon the other negotiations. Gordo to 900K. I can't talk to Werner or Hunt.

On Green's pay, you can't tell me that he's a $6M or better player. He's not that good. He's no Rafalski, Pronger, Blake, Gonchar. I would argue he's not even a $5M player. Kronwall had better numbers than Green vis points and +/- makes $3M and has a better (by far) defensive side. Green IS a D-man - or is supposed to be!

Agree with Nomad insofar as keeping him closer to $700k would be more apt and we don't want to be stuck with his $1m/yr, say, two years from now when some kid is ready to outperform Bradley at half the cost.

The flipside of the argument is that $300k isn't huge in the big picture and at least we didn't sign Cooke for the same term at twice the cost as Bradley.

I liked Cookie, but Brads costs half as much, has been here (continuity is always good when the individual is fulfilling his role). As for stats, there were many times I was impressed by Bradley's acceleration and awareness ("jump") in the offensive zone. He's playing with Cement Hands, so cut him some slack by comparison.

Also, speaking of Brash, Bradley can take Brashear's spot in '09/'10. Cooke can't, unless you just want a guy to avoid fights.

Another smart move. That said, I won't exhale until Green and Huet/Other Legit #1 Goalie are sorted out.

And my desire to have FedOrov at 3rd line C, Stecks at 4th line C, Laich, ShaMo and Eminger locked up.

Hopefully Feds for 1 yr, Eminger for 2, Laich and ShaMo for 3 years.

Agree with Nomad insofar as keeping him closer to $700k would be more apt and we don't want to be stuck with his $1m/yr, say, two years from now when some kid is ready to outperform Bradley at half the cost.

The flipside of the argument is that $300k isn't huge in the big picture and at least we didn't sign Cooke for the same term at twice the cost as Bradley.

I liked Cookie, but Brads costs half as much, has been here (continuity is always good when the individual is fulfilling his role). As for stats, there were many times I was impressed by Bradley's acceleration and awareness ("jump") in the offensive zone. He's playing with Cement Hands, so cut him some slack by comparison.

Also, speaking of Brash, Bradley can take Brashear's spot in '09/'10. Cooke can't, unless you just want a guy to avoid fights.

Another smart move. That said, I won't exhale until Green and Huet/Other Legit #1 Goalie are sorted out.

And my desire to have FedOrov at 3rd line C, Stecks at 4th line C, Laich, ShaMo and Eminger locked up.

Hopefully Feds for 1 yr, Eminger for 2 (and let him actually play - better than Jurcina or Erskine - one of whom should be gone before by Fall, Laich and ShaMo for 3 years. Fehr I could take or leave given other priorities. Preferably re-signed cheap for 1-2 years.

Sorry for double-post. WashingtonPost loves its Java Script. My secure browser, less so.

What's the deal with BBs new contract, Tarik? Have you been able to find anything out?? THANKS

This isn't high school where the most popular guys get elected to school council. We're trying to win a cup.

If he has cement hands, we don't need him unless he's in a role. We need Defense, or a lot of goals. It'd be nice to have both. Cooke gives us a defensive winger that can score. Brads gives us a little offense and a little defense and not much else.

Wow, signed a utility guy to a Million per, what a genius of a MIDGET.

There is something to be said however about a player who understands what their role on the team is. Not every player will accept being a 4th line winger with little chance of ever moving up. I liked Cooke a lot while he was here, but with Clarkie most likely back next year, where would that leave Cooke? Most likely a 4th liner. Any chance he'd accept that role?

Ovechkin/Fedorov/Semin
Kozlov/Nylander/Laich
Cooke/Backstrom/Fehr
Brahshere/Steckle/Gordon

Brads??? Flash??? Bourque??? Bouchard???

I just dont see any room for Brads, I would take Cooke, Laich, Steckle, then Gordo just becuz of his Faceoffs/Penalty Killing before Brads but thats just my opinion!

Cant wait for training camp! it should be a dog fight to make this team and im sure Hershey we be a POWER HOUSE in the AHL next year! GO CAPS!

Reekie

There is a place for role players. But we have enough role players on the team. We need guys that will push the ones ahead, or else take their spot in the line-up. That's how the team gets better. That's how the players get better. That's how their stock price increases. If they don't have it, they should be out.

We have a boxer in Brashear who is also a leader in the locker room. We don't need another.

This was a bad move, I think.

Wow i even forgot Capt Clarkie! but who knows with him or Pothier... They defintley dont have the best injuries to have in a Concussion/Groin... Y I K E S

I really like it. If Pots or Brash is out for whatever, I see Brads getting an "A". BB knows leaders in any role and Brads is one. Locker room presence is invaluable.

Look at the big picture Caps Fans. Matt Bradley was a posative factor during the season and in the playoffs. 1M/3Yrs is very symbiotic.

I would suspect (hope):
Ovechkin/Backstrom/Kozlov
Semin/Nylander/Laich
Clark/Fedorov/Bradley
Brashear/Steckel/Gordon
Fehr

assumptions:
Clark returns, BB sees more offensive ability in Bradley vs. Gordon, Fedorov re-signs to play exactly where he should, BB sees Laich ready to step up with his advances this last season vs. Fehr's potential. Kozlov doesn't get traded for an upgrade (or his spot isn't given to Laich/Clark/Fehr with focus on improving D).

another well thought out, usefull comment from chief. thanks again for not disappointing.

Ovechkin - Nylander - Kozlov*
Semin - Backstrom - Laich
Fleischmann - Federov - Clark
Brashear*-Steckel*-Bradley

Fehr replaces Kozlov by week 3 in the season. Kozlov follows Friesen and Zednik.
Brashear splits time with Bourque.
Steckel splits time with B.Gordon.

D is simple...

Green - Morrisonn
Poti - Alzner
Eminger - Schultz

Lepisto/Jurcina fill in for the sick/lame/lazy.

Huet
Johnson
Yo mama.

Completely agree with Nomad. I'm actually surprised it took someone so long to bring up the negative about the term. 3 years? For Bradley? I like the guy but his kind is a dime a dozen. I'm sorry to say that, but its true. 1 year at $1M, sure I'd be okay with that. 2 years? Maybe, just maybe, at $900K per. 3 years? No way I'd have done that. Not with the youth in waiting in this organization.

To the person who asked about Boudreau's contract, its a 3 year deal (don't know the $$ amount though).

An interesting signing at least in terms of how early it came down. I do not think Cooke is a goner, at least not yet. What I do think is that this signing signals no free agents signings other than the ones who played for the Caps last year.

Say what you want about what Green is worth or not worth. The NHL players, if you believe the Sporting News, have annointed him a "1". He is going to get his $5M or (much) more. Someone or several someones may very well make that offer if the Caps don't get him signed.

Cooke is not going to be re-signed and apparently already knows it. With the term of the Bradley deal it wouldn't surprise me if Boyd Gordon isn't on the squad opening night (one way or another).

Dream set up

Ovechkin-Backstrom-Clark
Semin-Fedorov-Nylander
Laich-Steckle-Fehr
Brash-Prospect or Gordon-Bradley

Keep Flash for depth. Fedorov to center the second line because he's way better at face-offs than Nylander and his main purpose if for chemistry with Semin. I put Nylander on the wing because Steckle's a great face-off guy and a gritty player making him ideal of third line center, and because i think Nylander might actually do well there. Lastly TRADE KOZLOV!!!

I was a bit concerned when I saw the length of 3 years. My first thought was Ben Clymer's deal. Oops on that one. But that said, I'm still okay with the deal. Speaking of Clymer though, does his contract come off the books, or one more year?

Shmoo, Bradley will NOT be on the 3rd line.

the wildcard is really whether Feds comes back. But until any news about him getting re-signed I'm operating under the assumption of something like this

OV/Backstrom/Kozlov
Semin/Nylander/Fehr
Clarkie/Stecks/Laich
Brash/Gordo/Bradley

Flash steps in and plays about 30 games, Bourque gets the call up for any injured center and gets in about 20 games next year. Laing fills a similar role as this year.

THe difference here is that Clymer ended up not getting along with his teammates, simple as that. Bradley is a hard hitting grinder who acts as glue in the locker room and gives everything he has every shift of every game. He has given his all and he's the type of role player you want on your 4th line in the playoffs, where his energy negates the opposing offense. He can skate, he's fast and the line he was on worked great. Steckel-Bradley-Brash was a great line, wasn't it?

As for Green, he's a premiere #1 defenseman. Lock him up long term for big bucks, so that he's a deal 3 years down the road. He's elite and he is a core component to this team. Whats the point of drafting elite talent if you're going to trade it away before you reap the rewards of his play?

Also, Ovechkin, Fedorov and Semin clicked at the worlds and formed a potent line. I expect to see those three out there together a lot.

Ah, DC Fury???

Kozlov leads the Caps in +/- with +28 with 16 goals and 38 assists for a total of 54 points. He had 18 PIMs.

No. KEEP Kozlov.

Wow! Nothing like a signing to bring everyone back to the board!! :-) I like Bradley (I especially liked it when he put himself in for the shootout and scored the winning goal!), but I was really torn between him and Cooke. Regardless, I would not assume that Cooke it out - anything can happen.

JSchon:
I am a little concerned that you know those lyrics, but happy that you did not forget the SHA LA LA LAAA. ;-)

828:
I read your rant - I could not agree more. Did you see the pre-pre-game show about Syd last night? They had other players compare him to Ovie and at least one of them said that Syd is a better all around player. Whatever ...

@Boo!
Would you be surprised if I knew those lyrics too? That was one of my favorite shows when I was a kid :D

The signing of Brads over Cooke doesnt surprise me. Brads is a 4th line RW and Cooke is a 3rd line LW. We have so many LW's right now. Flash, whether anyone likes it will get a every opportunity to succeed, last time I checked he played LW and nothing else.

Brads role is defined, more so than Cookies. Scoring had nothing to do with it. Flash is going to be the 3rd line LW.

This signing doesnt bode well for Gordon either, which I'm fine with. The big question is where Fehr is going to play?

The Bradley re-signing really is a blip on the big picture... I just love the fact that people are into it.

I hope Varlemnov will be the back-up next year or atleast be the starting goaltender in Hershey he needs to come over here asap and get adjusted him/Neuvrith are the Capitals goalies of the future... Yes right now its all Huets net, which is fine with me for now, cant wait to see thoe what Varlemnov/Neurith have to offer!

If u want to Trade Kozlov ur an idiot! Kozlov will be just fine next year you watch...

P.S. to Bruce keep the Russian Line intact for the start of the season!
OVECHKIN/FEDS/SEMIN = Goals Goals Goals and more goals! probaly one of the top 5 lines in the NHL i say! Go Caps

So, we're back to a love-fest? Like when Olie tossed it all away? We should write a huge contract for his dedication to the team during the lean years? And Brads - he's a trooper and salutes smartly and tries to do what he's told to do. Same with Flash? He's trying real hard.

None of them got the job done. Olie was a seive, like it or not. Flash is molasses in January in the Arctic and can't hit the broad side of a barn. Brads is cheap and can't score, can't play D but will drop the gloves.

Be still my trembling heart.

This is a business. Non-performers are pushed aside. Or should be. Paint it in pretty colors and make it smell sweet, but there's the door.

Cooke has much better upside than Brads. Flash is an experiment that's over - or should be. Fortunately, Olie stepped aside on his own.

Now, before all of you call me Chief reincarnate, I don't think that Olie's separation was handled properly. 1M for Brads is a lot, but maybe he can be traded. Same with Flash. Eminger should be traded for his own good and the teams. He's a waste of money sitting in the press box, get something for him and let him get on with what's left of his career.

Does anyone know if the awards to Ovechkin and others at 2PM today will be televised?

Bradley, Brash lines were good last year.

Total Spark Plug, and locker room leaders.

Im glad he is back. It shows loyalty in the club house for hard work.

I think they are going to trade Nylander - he is too much for what he brings to the table. The Caps have shown that they can win without him - I would not be surprised if they traded him for a good d-man.

Plus, Pothier should be off the books as well.

I don't think we are hurting as much as we think we are. The big signings are Huet and Green. I would say Laich is a big one as well and possibly Morrison. Federov, well, that is the icing on the cake, but if he can't deal with making less, then send him on his way... although, I truely hope he stays.

If you take Nylander and Clymer off the books, then you have almost 6 mil less. They could sign Huet, Mo, and Laich with that lot.

We will be alright... is it training camp yet?

Sombrero:

Also, at the top of that sheet, Expected '08-09 Upper Limit Charge 37,979,434. Where did you get 41 mil from?

If you add Pothier to the Nylander and Clymer list - that's close to 9 mil.

@828

I updated their numbers with Alzner (875K in salary + 800K in POSSIBLE incentives) and Bradley (1,000,000. The discrepancy after that is about a million and probably has to do with which players they're counting on the roster and which ones they aren't. e-mail me at blwiseass at yahoo dot com and i'll send ya the sheet I have worked up.

nobodys getting traded, not poti, not nylander, not gordon. just relax, we have a winner here (ok, you can relax once we sign huet, fedorov and green)

not trading kozlov either, silly arses

Nylander has a no trade clause? I would be fine with out him. Do I sound like I am panicking? Plus, never said Poti - he can stay... Pothier on the other hand.

no on the no trade clause, just a stupid blog name; wasnt entirely directed at you 828(the nylander part was); pothier wont be traded, maybe retirement though; dont sound panicky but that doesnt mean you cant still relax a bit when it comes to calling for players on your team to be traded, especially those that are highly likely to score 80+ points for you next year

Well, I am just looking at the people that made our run possible and Pothier and Nylander had absolutely nothing to do with it. Why "need" them... So, not too worried about it. Nylander has scored 80+ (barely) only once in his career (83) - I am just saying he is not worth 4+ mil. Would you rather have Fedorov or Nylander? I take Feds.

Why am I not saying Clark in that mix - well, because I think Clark has things to offer that other players on the team can't offer.

mauree:
LOL!! That's pretty funny! :-) What did they sound like in Italian?!? ;-)

828:
I don't think they will trade Nyls unless they sign Fed. Even then they may make room for both ...

Boo! - not saying that are going to trade him - just saying that it's a possibility, or that's what I meant to say. I should have said that on my first post. I am rusty at this whole blog thing!!! ;)

828:
Yes, we are all a bit rusty!! ;-) I willbe curious to see what happens with Pothier. All indications are that he will not come back, but then he surely won't be traded. Very precarious ...

Some people here are really making the roster much more complicated than it needs to be.

This season's roster will come down to WHO can play WHERE.

Flash can not go to Hershey, Fehr can. Keep that in mind. I expect Fehr to start in Hershey and wait for the first injury/stumble.

GMGM never said Alzner would be a CAP next season, he only said he would not be playing juniors. If this kid is ready to jump from a short (60-some game) Junior Season RIGHT to the caps Blueline, then we've got a hell of a Dman there. I don't see him sniffing time outside of PA unless something goes really bad.

This team is deep. VERY deep with fresh, young talent. We have quite a few C's and I would fully expect to ONLY see Gordon resigned if a Feds deal can not get done.

Signed Caps that can play C:
Nylander
Backstrom
Steckel
Laich
Kozlov

This Bradley deal makes me very happy. Watching the dominance of the Brash/Stecks-Gordo/Bradley cycle in the O-zone puts a smile on my face much more than cooke's "Offensive upside..." Keeping B/S/B together for another year will only make that line more powerful. I enjoyed Cooke for what he did while here, but face it, he was not here to replace Bradley, he was here to replace injured CLARK, and honestly, Clark has MUCH more offensive upside than Cooke.

We are in a unique position. We had a 100+ point team last year. We don't have to make many adjustments to keep that going. I would be very surprised to see many adjustments to the D or the O. Since everyone else is, here's my 2008-2009 season opening roster (note, this is what I see, not how I'd line them up): (* are unsigned)
Ovie/Backs/KOZLOV
Semin/Nyls/CLARK
Flash/Feds*/Laich*
Brash/Steck/Brads

Green*/Mo*
Poti/Juice
Erskine/Schultz

Fehr starts in hershey or as healthy scracth platooning time with Flash. While Flash is my new whipping boy (Semin was until his playoff dominance) I am not willing to give up on a kid after his first full year in the NHL. He's got more upside than down if he can find it. If not, Fehr or Bourque will be more than willing to fill it.

Injury call-up on D should be Lepisto, but it will depend of the "handedness" of the hurt D-man. BB is clearly more comfortable with a R and L playing together.

Fedorov is also a very important signing cause it gives this team defensive flexibility.

Take my lines from above. Say we lose a Dman. We can rotate Fehr into the lineup. Laich C's the 3rd line and Feds takes the spot on D.

I'd be happy with a 1-2 year, 2M deal for Feds. Any more $ than that and let's keep Gordo and sacrifice some flexibility.

Nothing like a resigning to bring back the arm chair GM's. :(

I'm very happy with this move.

@Boo!

hehe different. But the song was the same (in english), shalalala and all :).

@Steve
I understand your passion for Green, but how much would you be willing to pay for him? Give me a number and explanation. I too like him as a player and as a character, but this ain't a fraternity, I want to win the SC :D. Green right now is an average D and I'd rather wait at least one more year before throwing a big contract at him.

Sombrero - where's the sheet?

mauree - you can teach D... it's a lot harder to teach offensive. Green is getting more and more recognition each time he steps on the ice. Now, I am agreeing with you... at defense, he is okay... but it's his offensive threats that make him a really good/valuable defender.

I think he is going to get a long contract at 4-5 mil a year... maybe an increasing one... 3 mil first couple of years, then 6-7 mil towards that end... all the young guns are going to get long contract extensions. After Green, Semin and Backstrom are next. They didn't do that cool poster for nothing ya know...

Got it... you must have been typing that email.

@828 - just sent it. I was traveling for a meeting this morning.

@ everyone else - if you want a copy of the spreadsheet just e-mail me at blwiseass at yahoo dot com

if i had to choose its nylander. he had nothing to do with the run because he was injured. while he was playing the team was in good shape. after he went out, they were missing something (as stated by gm) and that void was filled by federov. now that we have both, we need to keep both and make it work. those are the kind of roster decisions that MUST be made if you want to win a cup. lets just hope feds wants back enough to 'play nice' with the teams budget

Agree - if we can keep both, do it, but if we can't I would choose Feds. Nyls was the worst +/- on the team when he left and to be honest, the team did do better without him... better winning % (and that is without the run). Now, I will give him some credit as he was injured most of the year... so, we shall see what happens this year when he is healthy. Either way, we need more guys like Feds - we have enough offense, we need more defensive forwards. - guys like Richards from Philly.

I honestly think Gordon is a good defensive forward... same with Steckle... however, those guys need to be able to put the biscuit in the basket at will.

We need everything - new jerseys, new coach, new fans, new faces... oh wait, we got all those!

i agree that feds is a great defensive center and is especially usefull on the pk, but you cant compare a 38 year old with a 24 year old just because they play responsible D. our richards if we had one, and i dont like saying this because i dont really know what it means and i hate richards, is brooks laich. federove is the veteran that we need who posesses the perfect mix of skill, defense, leadership and experience.

... and would be perfect centering our third line behind backstrom AND nylander, with spot duty on the top two lines and plenty of special teams minutes. quite frankly i cant possibly think of a better situation for federov or the caps.

@828, all

don't get me wrong I really like Green, and hope we sign him.

Green is great for the regular season. But the D I'm seeing in the playoffs is another level. So my question is: can Green ever reach that level? This is what I'm not sure about, and wish one more year to test. I admire his offensive skills but, will they shine in the playoffs?

I'd just ask for more time. Then again, we don't want to lose his potential.

I think Laich is a very very solid player... he's not one to make mistakes. And I too hate Richards. He did give a lil girl wearing an Ovechkin jersey a puck though... other than those few moments of respect, I stopped heckling him.

mauree - I would say it shined in the World Championship tourney... sorta similar to the playoffs. I thought he did fine in the playoffs. He made mistakes, but the guy is "perfect" for BB's system. That is what we should be looking at. Who will be a good fit into BB's system... not, who we think is good or bad. And, I think Green is a great fit into the system. Would Green be just as good on the Devils - probably not.

i know its fedorov alright, sorry.

I "hate" richards because he's a Flyer, but would love him if he played for us. Briere however would not be welcome on my team.

Nylander... 37 points, 40 games played, 1 shoulder...

17 players averaged a point a game in 2007/08...

Nylander is a +75 in his 13 year NHL career, including his -19 this past season.

Nylander is a damn good hockey player and at this stage in their careers, Nylander is better than Fedorov.

Fedorov, Nylander, Backstrom and Steckel would be a top 3 centering group.

He's not worth close to 5 mill...

He is an average to above average hockey player. He's replaceable and I would rather see Huet, Green, and Fedorov signed... "IF" it came down to that.

You can't really compare Nylander to those 17 players that scored 82+ points. Look at number #18, Roy scored 81 points in 78 games. #25, Richards - 75 points in 73 games.

Nyls was also playing with a shoulder problem, i believe this was his +/- problem. IF we re-sign Feds (which i hope we do) it will most likely be for a 1 year deal. Nyles is here for a few more. You can never have too many good centers. You could even move Feds to a wing position should you need to.

I know Nyles was not here for the run, but realistically it is hard to expect any injured team to continue at that pace for a whole year (without depth) - IMO, a healthy Nyles back in the lineup will give this team depth and the ability to perform stronly all year long.

Grape8 - I am cool with that... as stated before, I will cut him some slack because he was pretty much injured most of the year.

My point is, if the Caps really really really needed cap space in order to get Green, Huet, and Feds in... then I would not be surprised if we see Nyls traded.

Oh, don't forget the savoir of the NHL - Crosby... 72 points in ONLY 53 games. He reminds me of Gretzky, oh wait, Lemuiex, or is it Howe, or Brett Hull... heck, he is like them all. Think I can get a job on Verses?

@828 - definatley a job on versus, perhaps even NBC with talk. I actually saw on tsn (i think) they were making comparisons to the 80's Olier cup team, so maybe you could even get a job up north.

@828

Nylander is an average to above average hockey player?

3yrs 200 games played and 199 points +24 in his last 3 seasons is an average to above average.

3yrs
Rick Nash 209 games 180 points +0 $7M
Scott Gomez 235 games 214 points +18 $8M
Brad Richards 238 games 223 points -46 $8M
Saku Koivu 230 games 193 points -24 $5M
Ryan Smyth 283 games 230 points +4 $6.5M

Are all these players average to above average players?

If they are then what is Chris Clark?

Tarik,

Do you strictly cover the Caps or do you cover other stuff during the off-season?

Any word on signing Green - Huet?

http://www.onfrozenblog.com/2008/05/28/netminder-logjam-continuing-to-ease/

JSchon,

Well no, those are not average players. Chris Clark is a different type of player - I never brought up the points, you did. I do not determine a player's skill by points. Clark puts in other duties besides his point total, as does Laich, Brashear, etc. You do not get any points for standing in front of the net and taking one to the ear. You do not get any points for playing 110% every time you are out on the ice.

Those players that you named are "impact" players. Ovechkin is an impact player - a player that can change the outcome of a game. Nylander is not an impact player so therefor, I do not believe he is worth 5 mil a year. Check out career totals for those guys and Nylander and see what comes up. Nylander has 646 points in 848 games. So, that just tells me, he has had really good seasons the past few years. The season that stands out was his season with the Rangers 06-07 where he doubled up on his PP Goals alone. In the 3 seasons that he has played with the Caps - out of 246 games, he has played 114 games.

I don't know what to say, he is an average to above average player.

Those players that you mentioned play on the PK as well...

A healthy Nylander, a healthy Clark, Alzner being the real D that we need, Backstrom being a year better, OV being OV, plus someone in goal and we win the cup.

http://www.onfrozenblog.com/2008/05/28/i-know-for-sure-fedorov-wants-to-stay-in-washington/

The list is interesting..

sign Green
sign Huet/Ellis/?
sign Fedorov

Going to be fun seeing how this plays out

@828
Did I read you saying the World Championship is similar to the playoffs? I watched a few games and it looks completely different to me.

In the WC a guy like Green can shine due to his stick handling ability. Not that I don't like that, but the NHL playoffs are a different beast. As of now, he's nowhere near the level of a Lidstrom or a Rafalski. Honestly I don't care he did well in the WC, and I *gasp* don't care much about the WC either. If hockey was the one played in the WC, I probably would not love/watch it as much as I do.

Anyway, I'm playing devil's advocate here but in reality I want him signed haha - just not for 5M a season (at least not yet, later we'll see).

@828
I do agree on Nylander. I like him a lot, especially the last two weeks with the Cap he was scoring, assisting. But he's not a 5M/year player.

A healthy Nylander can only make the team stronger.

The Brashear, Gordon, Bradley line was very effective. I hope Gordon gets signed as well.

@828

I don't think goals you are on the ice for during PK will affect your +/-. Not exactly sure how NHL records it, but typically special teams won't apply to your +/-

Mauree, I thought you were talking about format and the # of games of the playoffs like the WC. A bunch of games in a small amount of time... as for the style of play, yes, it is different. The WC, the ice is bigger, right? So, a guy like Green will do better. I just thought you were talking about clutch-ness and the amount of games there were. No time to be tired!!!

reekie, that was not my point - the +/-... they are not affected on special teams.

I was just simply pointing out that they are on the ice doing other things as well, hence, a higher salary and their worth. Getting a guy like Nash is like getting a half Ovechkin and a Mike Richards.

Make sense?

The WC was played on North American dimension ice this year.

gotcha, just thought you were saying that there +/- was so low from playing on PK from the way you wrote it

@Greg s.
yeah i know Kozov was more than solid he just takes up space i'd rather see filled with young talent like Fehr, Bourque, or Bouchard. I capitalized it because he's value's probably pretty close to it's peek at this point. Also, for a six five 200 plus guy he's a total cupcake