Well, here we are again, patienly waiting and wanting for our beloved Capitals head office to play another round of "Let's Make a Deal" with the rest of the league. As much as we may respect, loathe, admire, or want to bodily injur GM GM due to his head-scratchers (to be read: Poti extension) and heart-warmers (Hendricks), George McPhee is indeed one of the most well regarded and heavily feared General Managers in the league.

However, as we have waited and watched for weeks as Brain Burke made a deal with the devil (Peter Chiarelli), Ray Shero do his best to offset the single most amazing and karmic injury-induced winter plunges a Team has experienced, we Washington fans have been waiting on pins and needles... and for what? Thus far, 2 more years for a 4th liner having a career year. Yippety-skippety.

So what are your predictions for the Monday, February 28th trade deadline? Are the Caps brass being patient predators circling around that amazing kill, or will we be much like last year the ugly girl who gets left behind at the prom? A fan poll and color commentary (yours) after the jump.

I would be remiss, however, not to mention Mr. McPhee's clairvoiyent Flash-Hannon trade that helped eventually spur a 0.2 Goals Allowed per Game reduction. However, in the words of the timeless and infinitely wise Janet Jackson, "what have you done for me lately?"

We all seem to have the sense that he's working something up his sleeve. He's gone on record, even in the midst of our 8-game losing streak, that our goaltending hasn't been a problem he's not moving our 22-year old netminders. And with Green returning and Hannon finally settling into form, our D has more or less sorted itself out for now.

So, doing a little group therapy we realize that Marcus Johansson was a NHL second-line center failure as predicted by those that witnessed his development best. And, my friends, when you're putting up 0.35 points per game when your own General Manager stated you were "ahead of Backstrom's [development]" at one point this season yet no where near his 0.84 points per game his freshman debut, that is in fact the definition of a failure. Especially when only 8, yest that's right, EIGHT of those 17 points have been assists. (I only didn't go after Perrault here because his fiesty 0.41 points per game are a tremendous improvement over last year's numbers and given he averages 2'05" less ice time per game than Marcus, he gets a pass.) This leaves us with the elephant in the room, the oft-discussed 2C position.

Like it or hate it the above aren't even third-liner numbers so we must logically turn our efforts towards who we would want to address that clear and immediate playoff need. Limiting our sample size to the slim pickings you find in the Eastern Conference, please weigh in on the poll below and tell us what you'd be willing to offer up (including MJ90 himself) to obtain said player.