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Happy Independence Day
by J.P.
on Jul 4, 2009 8:00 AM EDT
7 comments
From all of us at Japers' Rink, have a happy and safe time celebrating the (Capitals) red, white and blue today. Oh, and Happy 37th Birthday, Mike Knuble.
7 comments | 0 recs
Nine Names, Nine No Thank Yous
by J.P.
on Jul 3, 2009 10:32 PM EDT
43 comments
On the eve of the madness that was (and continues to be) NHL free agency 2009, we asked you what the Caps' greatest roster need was. Forty-seven percent of you answered "second-line center."
That need still exists as much as it did three days ago, and Caps bench boss Bruce Boudreau seemed to acknowledge as much this afternoon:
I asked Boudreau whether he felt Brooks Laich could fill the role of second-line center. To my surprise, he sidestepped the issue.
"I think we have a good team, even if there are no more moves," Boudreau said. "I don't know if Brooks would be the second-line center, but we've got July and August before we have to finalize it. I'm not worried about it."
So if not Brooks, then who?"I don't know yet," he said. "I can move people around a lot. But we've got two months to fill that position. If we find somebody [outside of the Caps] who is the right fit, great. If not, we'll go with what we have."
Sounds to me Boudreau is still hopeful that GM George McPhee will find a way to add another center, perhaps through a trade. - Capitals Insider
Barring a trade (or walking away from arbitration decisions), the Caps don't have much room left under the salary ceiling, so the free agent route is likely a non-starter here. But, for purely informational purposes, here (per the NYT's SlapShot blog) are the top nine uncommitted free agent centers still available, with their ages, 2008-09 teams, and 2008-09 salaries:
- Saku Koivu, 34, Mtl, $4.75m
- Mike Comrie, 28, Ott, $4m
- Robert Lang, 38, Mtl, $4m
- Brendan Morrison, 33, Dal, $2.75m
- Todd Marchant, 35, Ana, $2.66m
- Mike Sillinger, 38, NYI, $2.3m
- Jason Williams, 28, Clm, $2.2m
- Rob Niedermayer, 34, Ana, $2m
- Derek Armstrong, 36, LA $1.6m
One interesting name on that list is Morrison's. Mo (can we call him that?) is coming off the worst season of his NHL career and is (and plays) small, but he's going to be cheap, is finally healthy again, and was a teammate of Mike Knuble's for two years at Michigan and then again during the lockout.
Hey, I said "interesting," not "desirable."
Time to get tradin', GMGM.
43 comments
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Capitals announce Development Camp schedule
"The camp’s complete roster is yet to be finalized, but among the confirmed participants are Capitals first-round draft picks Anton Gustafsson (2008), John Carlson (2008) and Joe Finley (2005). Also confirmed are Francois Bouchard (2006 second-round selection) and Mathieu Perreault (2006 sixth-round selection) from the 2009 AHL Calder Cup champion Hershey Bears. The 2009 ECHL Kelly Cup champion South Carolina Stingrays will be represented by Josh Godfrey (2007 second-round selection). Seventh-round selection in 2007 Stefan Della Rovere, who was a member of Canada’s gold-medal winning World Junior Championship team, will also be at development camp. Certain selections from the recently completed 2009 NHL Entry Draft will also attend." - Press Release [Click here for the schedule]
1 day ago
J.P.
39 comments
0 recs
Knubleve It? Mike's a Cap
by J.P.
on Jul 2, 2009 7:00 AM EDT
346 comments
Mike Knuble
#22? / Right Wing / Washington Capitals
6-3
230
Jul 04, 1972
12
2 years/$5.6 million; UFA after 2010-11 season
1 (with autographed photo on eBay to prove it)
So Mike Knuble is a Cap - our wishes granted, Allan Muir vindicated, pundits blowing smoke, etc.
But now that the dust has settled a bit, what, exactly, do the Caps have in their newest addition, a winger who turns 37 this weekend?
- A goal-scorer. Knuble has averaged 27.5 goals over the last half-dozen NHL seasons, and lest you think he's slowing down, the past three seasons have been three of the top five per-game goal-scoring campaigns of his career. Since the outset of the 2002-03 season, Knuble is 19th in the NHL in goals scored (Alex Ovechkin, incidentally, is sixth, despite only playing in two-thirds of those seasons).
- A power-play presence. Did the League's second-ranked power-play really need a shot in the arm? As long as 25.2% is still less than 100%, yes, and Knuble has been a force with the extra man, finishing tenth among NHL forwards in goals-per-sixty-minutes of five-on-four time this past year (minimum 40 games and two minutes of five-on-four time per game). And with that big body causing havoc in front of the net, even when he's not deflecting shots past goalies or burying rebounds, the power play will be better. Scary.
- A veteran presence. While Knuble's career playoff numbers leave a bit to be desired, his leadership doesn't. Put simply, when the old man is crashing the net and getting beaten up in front, it sends the right message to a young team (and whether it's been due to the captain's injury or other veterans' unwillingness to play that game, it's a message that has been sorely missing in D.C. for some time). It's hard to think of a better player for guys like Brooks Laich and Eric Fehr to emulate.
- A durable winger. Knuble has played in all 82 games in four of his last five seasons (and that's a fact, not a jinx).
- A solid defensive forward. Knuble blocked 48 shots last year (11th among NHL wings and more than any Cap forward other than David Steckel), he's only been a minus player once since 2001, and he had 37 takeaways to just 26 giveaways in 2008-09. He even killed more than two minutes of penalties per game last season for the sixth-best PK in the League.
- A Penguin killer... Knuble has scored more goals (23) against the Penguins than he has against any other team in the League over his career, and lit the lamp four times in six regular season games against Pittsburgh last season (he added another two in the playoffs as well).
- ... with something to prove to Philly. "The terms were the same, a 2-year deal, the same terms, but the salary that [general manager Paul Holmgren] could offer, based on his cap situation just wasn’t what we were looking, wasn’t even fair," Knuble said of his efforts to stick with the Flyers. A little extra incentive against a Conference contender can't hurt, can it? (Nor can taking a top six forward away from that contender - the Flyers' loss here is easily overlooked, but shouldn't be.)
Mike Knuble isn't the final piece to the puzzle for the Caps (and no, despite the nickname, Rob Scuderi wouldn't be the piece either), but he's certainly a piece, and a big one at that. When one considers all that the Caps are getting in Mike Knuble and that they're getting it for just $300,000 per year more than they were paying Viktor Kozlov (who literally doesn't have a single one of the attributes detailed above) and only committed themselves for two seasons, there's no way around it - this is a great deal... on paper.
Oh, and one last thought - Knuble wouldn't even criticize the Verizon Center ice when given the opportunity, so you know the guy signing the paycheck is on board.
346 comments
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Free Agent Frenzy Open Thread, Part Deux
Because the other one was getting bogged down under the weight of 600+ comments, here's some fresh thread...
2 days ago
J.P.
161 comments
0 recs
Donald Brashear Signs Two-Year Pact With Rangers
TSN reports that F Donald Brashear has signed a two-year deal with the Rangers at $1.4 million per season.
- TSN.ca
2 days ago
Stephen Pepper
36 comments
0 recs
"Forward Mike Knuble is heading to his fifth NHL team.
The 36-year-old has signed an two-year contract with the Washington Capitals worth $2.8 million a season.
The 6-3, 230 pound forward has played for the Detroit Red Wings, New York Rangers, Boston Bruins and the Flyers."
-TSN
2 days ago
DMG
135 comments
0 recs
Free Agent Frenzy Open Thread
by J.P.
on Jul 1, 2009 12:00 PM EDT
627 comments
And they're off! Which players will be lucky, or unlucky, enough to move from one pinprick on the North American continent to another?
Stick around all afternoon for breaking signings, analysis and discussion in the comments, and keep an eye on the Twitter widget after the jump as well.
627 comments | 0 recs
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![Somebody had to post it...
[April 17, 2008, Mike Knuble taps in game-winner in 2OT. Flyers take 3-1 series lead, go on to win the first-round series in Game 7.]](http://cdn3.sbnation.com/fan_shot_images/58318/default_small.jpg)
Southeast Standings
| GP | W | L | OTL | PT | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Washington
|
82 | 50 | 24 | 8 | 108 |
|
Carolina
|
82 | 45 | 30 | 7 | 97 |
|
Florida
|
82 | 41 | 30 | 11 | 93 |
|
Atlanta
|
82 | 35 | 41 | 6 | 76 |
|
Tampa Bay
|
82 | 24 | 40 | 18 | 66 |
(updated 4.13.2009 at 12:21 PM EDT)
Certain photos copyright © 2009 by Associated Press or Getty Images. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of Associated Press and Getty Images is strictly prohibited.
