bulldog
September-26th-2003, 08:15 PM
Ted Leonsis finally realized after last season that the Caps are clearly the #3 team in Washington after the Redskins and Wizards.
That doesn't mean there aren't enough fans to make Washington a viable franchise, but DC will never be a 'hockey town' the way that Detroit and Boston are.
The Capitals CAN contend for a Stanley Cup but to do so the front office needs to use the draft to find the bulk of the talent.
In the future I see the Caps in the free agent market to find a stay at home defenseman or mid-tier forward, but cleary the days of signing players such as Jagr and Lang, etc.. are over.
And that does not depend on what the team is able to accomplish while these two players are still on the roster in 2003 (even if the team bounces back with a playoff season), although my guess is Jagr will be in a Rangers uniform by the second month of the regular season.
Lang at almost 33 years of age is going to be a $5 million salary buster for another couple of years unfortunately.
I say 'unfortunately' because the Caps were able to acquire a forward like Michael Nylander who did as much as Lang did in 2002 for far less money.
The value in Lang is just not there.
The Caps system has a host of players that will be hitting the NHL over the next 2-3 years.
We were in this situation once before and traded our younger players away in an act of frustration by David Poile, giving up Jason Allison and Anson Carter for Ranford, Oates and Tocchet.
That type of deal must never be made again.
Unlike the Rangers or Red Wings, the Capitals cannot afford to take on large veteran salaries, deplete their farm system and watch some of those vets fade out, the cash flow from the TV contracts and marketing is just not there to support that type of operation.
As an aside, I think the Wizards are finally turning their own corner.
Instead of hiring the players first again this time, Pollin went out and got Eddie Jordan and Ernie Grunfeld to run the team.
Grunfeld turned around and has started to put the foundation in place.
the team now has a true point guard (something Jordan refused to acquire seemingly under any circumstances) and has added Whitney and Hayes for their accuracy from the perimeter.
Hughes and Dixon are finally back as shooting guards.
The team is VERY young and has holes in the front court.
BUT, 2 out of 3 in one offseason ain't bad :)
That doesn't mean there aren't enough fans to make Washington a viable franchise, but DC will never be a 'hockey town' the way that Detroit and Boston are.
The Capitals CAN contend for a Stanley Cup but to do so the front office needs to use the draft to find the bulk of the talent.
In the future I see the Caps in the free agent market to find a stay at home defenseman or mid-tier forward, but cleary the days of signing players such as Jagr and Lang, etc.. are over.
And that does not depend on what the team is able to accomplish while these two players are still on the roster in 2003 (even if the team bounces back with a playoff season), although my guess is Jagr will be in a Rangers uniform by the second month of the regular season.
Lang at almost 33 years of age is going to be a $5 million salary buster for another couple of years unfortunately.
I say 'unfortunately' because the Caps were able to acquire a forward like Michael Nylander who did as much as Lang did in 2002 for far less money.
The value in Lang is just not there.
The Caps system has a host of players that will be hitting the NHL over the next 2-3 years.
We were in this situation once before and traded our younger players away in an act of frustration by David Poile, giving up Jason Allison and Anson Carter for Ranford, Oates and Tocchet.
That type of deal must never be made again.
Unlike the Rangers or Red Wings, the Capitals cannot afford to take on large veteran salaries, deplete their farm system and watch some of those vets fade out, the cash flow from the TV contracts and marketing is just not there to support that type of operation.
As an aside, I think the Wizards are finally turning their own corner.
Instead of hiring the players first again this time, Pollin went out and got Eddie Jordan and Ernie Grunfeld to run the team.
Grunfeld turned around and has started to put the foundation in place.
the team now has a true point guard (something Jordan refused to acquire seemingly under any circumstances) and has added Whitney and Hayes for their accuracy from the perimeter.
Hughes and Dixon are finally back as shooting guards.
The team is VERY young and has holes in the front court.
BUT, 2 out of 3 in one offseason ain't bad :)