Jeff Schultz, Sami Lepisto, Milan Jurcina, and Karl Azner are all young defensemen who could also earn their way into regular playing time with the Caps this season, although with the expectations placed on Azner, it'll be interesting to see whether or not Washington sees fit to allow him some NHL ice time this season, or to demote him to allow him some more time to gain extra experience.
Either way, when the day comes that Alzner and Green are paired at the top of the Caps' depth chart, they could be one terrific tandem.
Well….at least Jose Theodore isn’t bald yet…
The only problem with the Caps, is that they’re one All-Star away from the trifecta of forward, defense, and goalie. Sure they've got a former All-Star in net, but the Toronot Maple Leafs are also former Stanley Cup champions.
From 2001-2003, Jose Theodore could have provided them with that All-Star presence, and if they had that Theodore, one could easily make a case for the Caps being the Eastern Conference's representative in the Cup finals.
However, the Theodore of recent memory isn’t so heart-warming.
Despite a bounce-back year of sorts with Colorado last season (28-21, 2.44 GAA, .910 save percentage), Theodore’s track record since the lockout is miserable. He’s 31-33 with a GAA over 3.30 (3.35) and a save percentage well under .890 (.887). If Theodore is to justify the Caps investment of $9 million over the next two seasons, then he needs to prove that 2007/08 wasn’t an aberration and that he’s truly back, and able to get even better.
With a young and hungry Caps team he should be able to do that—especially seeing as this team gives him an excellent shot to win in the way they're built, and how they play the game.
If he’s not able to though, then the goaltending reigns fall to Brent Johnson—another former 30-game winner who had an alright season last year. Both he and Theodore need to be ready for the season though, because if they’re not, then the Caps are in big trouble.
Offense can win games, but defense wins championships—and they need that last line bold and underlined if they expect to just get to the first round again this season.
So what does it all mean?
I don’t think there’s any doubt that last year just marked the beginning of a scary run of dominance in the Southeast by the Capitals. As these kids grow together (and they will…Ovechkin’s there for another 13 years), they’re only going to get better and better, and we’ll probably be in store for a few years of Capitals/Penguins finals.
The defense could be a tad overrated, lost in the excitement of Ovechkin, but while they aren't head and shoulders above anyone in the division, they aren't head and shoulders below them either.
Their biggest need is a goalie, and Jose Theodore may have reinvented himself to the point where he can be that solution.
But before we leave, I’d like to say one thing: Sidney Crosby and Alexander Ovechkin are NOT the same player, and are almost too different to compare. Ovechkin energizes his team, leads by example, and cashes in on his opportunities. Although it pains me to say, Crosby doesn’t just drive his teammates to perform better, but his playmaking skills are so mind-boggling he MAKES them better—something that A.O. can’t do yet.
And that will be the nicest thing I say about Crosby until I try to rationalize why the Pens beat the Caps out in the playoffs this year.
1st in Southeast
Bryan Thiel is a Senior Writer and an NHL Community Leader for Bleacher Report. If you'd like to get in contact with Bryan, you can do so through his profile, and you can check out more of his work in his archives.
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