NHL Free Agency Under Way, Are Capitals Looking in the Right Direction?

With NHL free agency now underway, Caps fans everywhere are keeping their fingers crossed for that missing piece of the puzzle. While no one can say for certain what that missing piece may be, I have had my theory for the last 2 years. Defense. This team needs defense.

Last season, the Capitals finished the season ranked 1st in offense and 16th in defense. Their powerplay was ranked 1st and their penalty kill was ranked 25th. Now take a wild guess as to what this team may be missing? When it comes to offense or defense, it seems to make a certain amount of sense for this team to focus on defense. This team is overflowing with offensive talent, but there is a serious lack of defensive talent. I have felt for 2 years that this team still needed a strong defensive player. NHL experts have said since the offseason began that this team should focus on defense. Yet an article from the Washington Post this morning wrote that general manager George McPhee was going to be very cautious heading into free agency. Granted, team projections show that the Capitals might not be working with a lot of money and this is a pretty weak free agent class, but when your team exits the playoffs in the first round, you would like to see some changes made to help the team go forward. But wait, the article was not finished. McPhee went on to talk about how his top priority was a second line center, not a defenseman. He believed our defense would be better with the additions of prospects Karl Alzner and Jon Carlson who now appear ready to take on full time roles with the team and hinted that the team would not re-sign free agent defenseman Shaone Morrisonn. This was a hard pill to swallow.

At the trade deadline last season, it was clear the Capitals were seeking a natural and productive center. Brendan Morison will not be re-signed and I am unclear as to what will happen to Eric Belanger, so this team will be in need of a center. Centers are important for offensive set ups, but also contribute a lot on the penalty kill. Still, you know what would help our defensive game more than a center? A DEFENSEman. I cannot understand why when we are the best offensive team in the league and at best a middle of the pack defensive team we refuse to address the issue. Even when we do seek defensemen, we only take offensive minded ones. Mike Green is a fantastic talent, but the reason why he has never made an Olympic squad, all-star team, or won the Norris Trophy despite being nominated two years in a row and leading all defensemen in goals, assists, and points, is because he is terrible defensively. He was the worst player on the ice for the Capitals in the playoffs last season. At the trade deadline, the Capitals added Joe Corvo which failed the address the problem because he is another offensive minded defenseman. Now, the Capitals are talking about letting Shaone Morrisonn walk, despite the fact that he is one of the few defensive minded players on the team.

And what is their solution? Prospects of course. McPhee's answer to everything. To be fair, Carlson looked fantastic when he was called up last season and really gave the Capitals a spark in the post season, but, of course, he is an offensive minded player. Alzner is more of a defensive, grind it out player, which is good, but I have a hard time believing he is the solution to our defensive woes. I look at the starting six for the Capitals and see Green, Jeff Schultz (if he re-signs with the Capitals), Tom Poti, Tyler Sloan, Alzner, and Carlson. That is just not enough.

Of course there is currently no reason for DC fans to hit the panic button. Goalie Semyon Varlamov continues to develop and the team will not have to deal with the post season problems that have plagued Jose Theodore the past two seasons. A strong goalie obviously helps bring the goal totals down. Plus, this team has shown they are more than capable of handling the regular season and perhaps they could make a deal at the trade deadline to bring in a great defenseman who can help contribute to a long playoff run. And of course, free agency is not over yet. Defenseman Anton Volchenkov is still available and still a perfect fit for this team.

And yet, I am still nervous because of McPhee's sense of patience. I will give him all the credit in the world for building this team. He preached patience for years when he brought in many of today's stalwarts as prospects and the team is now a major playoff contender. He brought in Ovechkin and Varlamov and worked deadline magic in 2008 to help the team win the Southeast Division for the first time in 7 years. But I have also seen the Capitals exit the playoffs far too early the last three years. I heard him preach "patience" in 2009 when the team made no moves at the trade deadline despite being second place in the conference because we needed to "think about the future." I watched the urgent need for a defenseman go ignored in the offseason last summer and at the trade deadline last March and I see it happening again. While he has all the confidence in the world in his prospects, I have to ask, are Alzner and Carlson enough to help this team improve one of the worst penalty kills in the league? Are Alzner and Carlson really going to give the team the bump they needed to get deep into the playoffs? They are good players to be sure and may one day be great, but I would feel a lot more confidant about Washington's Stanley Cup chances in 2010-11 with a Volchenkov rather than two unproven prospects.

There is always a limited window of opportunity in sports. I sincerely hope that McPhee is making the right move now or that he will realize we need a big defenseman before that window has closed completely.