HF Audit Of The Caps' System

by J.P. on Nov 17, 2008 10:25 AM EST

"The Capitals decision to rebuild the entire franchise five years ago has proven to be a wise one. They have set themselves up to compete for a Stanley Cup now, but also have the depth in the minors to stay a Stanley Cup contender for the next 7-10 years. Developing a franchise goaltender will be important."

Read the specifics that led to that conclusion here.

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Uh.......

Mentioning Boyd Gordon over 19?

The system's weakness is at C, not LW. Osala is off to a fantastic pro start. The only NHL-possible C in the system, young Anton, is 2-3 years away (at best).

And they left Holtby out of the goaltending conversation. In my book, he's ahead of Neuvirth.

by Tyler on Nov 17, 2008 11:08 AM EST reply actions

I'm not sure you can rule out Perreault quite yet (though I certainly have my doubts), but I agree that it's the position of organizational weakness (outside of those currently in the NHL, of course).

by JP on Nov 17, 2008 11:11 AM EST reply actions

From their lips to God's ears. Or something like that...

by tg on Nov 17, 2008 11:12 AM EST reply actions

I'd probably have a little more faith in their analysis if this wasn't the second sentence:
"It's a season of rookiehood for many FLYER'S prospects, as they move up into the NCAA or into the pro ranks."

by b.orr4 on Nov 17, 2008 11:32 AM EST reply actions

Right, agreed on Perreault, sorry.

by Tyler on Nov 17, 2008 11:37 AM EST reply actions

b.orr4, I had the same reaction to the cut and paste typo.

And the LW vs C vs RW being the system's weakness. I don't think one should look at system depth and leave out the NHL team, even if the focus is on the prospects. I would not have chosen LW either.

And the before/after wording as it related to when players were drafted didn't help as the timelines appeared incorrect on first read. Not an article worth linking, IMO.

by sk84fun_dc on Nov 17, 2008 12:55 PM EST reply actions

oh and since it is sort of related, further down the prospect depth chart - congrats to Andrew Glass for tallying his first NCAA goal/point in BU's win on Sunday in his 4th game of the season. Also, Larson is back playing - has now played in 2 games for the Gophers this season.

by sk84fun_dc on Nov 17, 2008 1:00 PM EST reply actions

oops, 3 posts in a row, but along with Holtby (and Dunn) not being mentioned along with my opinion about some of the other lines in that piece, "Daren Machesney is the likely candidate as he has been in the Capitals organization since being drafted in the fifth round in 2005"

???

by sk84fun_dc on Nov 17, 2008 1:13 PM EST reply actions

It read to me like an article that was largely written early in the summer, and other than basic facts (e.g., the org attempted to loan Neuvirth out to a Cazech team, and then he went back to SC), was not updated to reflect all developments since July.

Though they do rank Carlson very high amongst D prospects, which seems appropriate given what I've been reading and what little I saw on him in July and September.

by pepper on Nov 17, 2008 1:26 PM EST reply actions

I am enjoying the full evisceration this article is getting.

by JP on Nov 17, 2008 1:28 PM EST reply actions

Okay I guess I'm the contraian here, I haven't been in line with Hockey's Future's assessment of the Caps pipeline and strength for some time for the following reasons.

They only look at guys who are not on the NHL team except when they look at the guys on the NHL team. "What's he talking about? you say" RE: "Left wing is the thinnest position in the Capitals system." Except of course when you consider Ovechkin, Semin, and Fleischmann who are: 23, 24, & 24 years of age respectively. However, the same group listed Nicklas Backstrom as a prospect throughout his entire stellar NHL rookie season, lists Chris Bourque as #3 on the LW depth chart and Eric Fehr as #2 on the RW depth chart and STILL doesn't even show Tyler Sloan on the Defensemen Depth chart.

Re: "Defensemen This is the group that has the most potential and depth and it starts with 2007 first-round choice Karl Alzner." Again it's all about the player development pipeline since right now this is the Caps Achilles Heel given they started the season with 6 D-Men on the Rostor + two way player Sergei Federov. Now 6 weeks in we have 2 guys out, and Tom Poti is playing 24 minutes in a game when he has bronchitis...

Yet: "They have set themselves up to compete for a Stanley Cup now, but also have the depth in the minors to stay a Stanley Cup contender for the next 7-10 years. Developing a franchise goaltender will be important."

Gosh I like their conclusion and I hope their right ... about the 7-10 year thing since any idiot can and will say "Developing a franchise goaltender will be important." Glad they picked up on that little nuiance of the game as important.

by Usually Frustrated Caps Fan on Nov 17, 2008 2:31 PM EST reply actions

All who rule out Perreault need only look at the stature of Briere and St Louis for comparisons. I'm sure they were told '''"you're too small for the NHL." I think he has NHL potential. He's a great skater and a good setup guy with a nice shot. He does need to come back to development camp in better shape this year, though.

by Dougeb on Nov 18, 2008 5:13 AM EST reply actions

I also disagree with the comments about Perreault not being a good prospect. He is fast & tricky on his skates like St Louis & has no fear in the corners. Oh & did I mention that he is a great passer?

I thought that the article was very shallow, with no real meaningful content. I have been reading the HF for years & was looking forward to this article & was very disappointed. It was truly worthless.

by sidehillman on Nov 18, 2008 9:25 AM EST reply actions