Never Enough C-men
With Nicklas Backstrom suffering a mild ankle strain/sprain during a skating session on Friday, it shed a new light on the whole Nylander - Fedorov debate. What happens if the Caps lost Backs to injury?
Although much has been said regarding Washington’s CAP situation and the dilemma of having 3 elite centerman on the team, the reality is that it never hurts to have a backup plan. In this case, Nylander and Fedorov.
Backstrom is going to be just fine as it was not a serious injury, yet as minor as the tweak in the ankle is, if this was the regular season and Backs was going to be out for an extended period of time, the Caps would be implementing their backup strategy. That backup strategy obviously involves # 91 & 92. For as much as people have speculated over trade scenarios(that would see the Caps shed one of these 2 vet centerman), Washington would be up a creek without a paddle if they lost Backstrom and did not have Nylander and Fedorov to replace him and keep the lineup secure.
As it stands now, speculation is that Nyls will center the 3rd line and Feds would take 2nd line duties. The Caps strength down the middle will be their forte this season, both in terms of talent and in depth.
Heading into the season, only the Montreal Canadiens have similar strength down the middle(in terms of youth, veteran presence and talent). Montreal has Plekanecs, their young stalwart centerman, plus two excellent veteran centermen in Saku Koivu and now, former Cap, Robert Lang.
In comparison, the Caps have Backs, Nyls and Feds down the middle. Which core group of centermen would you rather be starting the season with?
All I know is that if you asked Montreal fans if they would be interested in swapping their top 3 centerman for the Capitals top 3 centerman, chances are they would have to think very seriously about it. As for the rest of the Eastern conference...well they would all be dying to have such a stellar group down the middle.
Here is a look at the depth in the Eastern Conference at Center:(Top 3 C per team)
1. Washington:
Backstrom | Fedorov | Nylander
- Youth coupled with supreme veteran leadership and talent. Best mix of vet and talent in the East if healthy. With the dearth of scoring wingers available(including the best player in the game, Mr.MVP), scoring should not be a problem this year.
2. Montreal:
Plekanecs | Koivu | Lang
- Disturbingly solid. All facets of the game are covered with these centermen. Sundin would have put them well over the top, Lang provides a stable 50 pt. presence on the 3rd line, while Plekanecs will center perhaps the best line in the East and Koivu gets a new sniper to play with.
3. Pittsburgh:
Crosby | Malkin | Staal
- Easily the most talented duo in the league, Crosby and Malkin are 2 of the top 3 players in the league and are teaching all the know to another youngster in Jordan Staal. The only thing they are missing is a quality veteran presence down the middle, otherwise, best 2 centermen in the game(?).
4. Philadelphia:
Briere | Richards | Carter
- On the heels of the top 3, Philly has the right mix. If it were not for the fact that the Pens have more point production from their top two, Philly would be 3rd. Briere will re-align with Gagne this season and that will surely boost his production while relieving pressure on the two youngsters.
5. Rangers:
Gomez | Drury | Dubinsky
- No more Jagr. New team, new line-mates, new chemistry. Same ol’ solid Gomez and Drury. Gomez will need to increase his point production drastically, but with Zherdev and Naslund as new wingers, he will likely not disappoint. Drury now has the chance to be this team’s true captain.
6. New Jersey:
Elias | Zajac | Holik/Madden
- A solid group, that got far better in the off-season. Holik brings an excellent level of support to John Madden. Elias, like Gomez, will need to step it up urgently this season, but with Rolston back on the Devils, expect more scoring and a far better, well - rounded, group of forwards.
7. Boston:
Bergeron | Savard | Krejci
- Ryder won’t help that much. A healthy Bergeron will. The B’s season’s fate hinges on Patrice’s re-emergence as one of the East’s elite pivot-men. Savard is unquestionably one of the game’s finest set-up men and Krejci is learning fast.
8. Carolina:
Staal | Brindamour | Cullen
- The newest member of the $8 million dollar gang has the right blend of vet presence and defense shoring him up. Staal is already a proven point a game player who has hit 100 pts and has a Stanley Cup ring, all before his 25th birthday. The team is not as solid as it was when it won the cup, nonetheless the have all the tools to compete down the middle.
9. Ottawa:
Spezza | Vermette/Fisher | Kelly
- This group should be much higher up in the rankings, but the last 2 seasons have allowed doubt to creep in. A great season of development and success is expected, but if not, all suspicions that the Ottawa train has fully derailed, will come true.
10. Buffalo:
Roy | Connolly | Hecht
- Still overcoming their lack of veteran presence since the loss of Drury and Briere, Buffalo has rebounded extremely well. They are young and still have some growing pains ahead, but Roy and Connolly(if he can stay healthy) are frightening point a game players who can alter games in an instant.
11. Tampa Bay:
Lecavalier | Stamkos | Halpern
- Vinny is the ultimate hockey player. I say this because I know, having watched him skate in August in Montreal. He is unbelievable and if he can return to form this season, there is no reason he can’t be the best player in the game if he wants to be. Stamkos and vet Halpern leave two big question marks behind Vinny, but with T-Bay’s new owners not hesitant to make moves, this team could surprise a lot of people.
12. Islanders:
Comrie | Weight | Sillinger
- Too much vet presence? Not sure how the Isles will fare this season as they have yet to really push themselves into a youth movement. For a team who has given away all-star players like they were candy on Hallowe’en, one can only hope that as the Isles venture forward they begin to give the kids a chance.
13. Florida:
Weiss | Kreps | Matthias
- Young and younger. Not much vet presence here, but a lot of youth on the way and on display. Florida has a lot of question marks up front, but have addressed their defensive situation, leaving us all to believe that it truly is up to the Cats’ kids this season.
14. Toronto:
Stajan | Antropov | Grabovski/Bell
- Speaking of question marks...I see lots of them here. Toronto is in the hunt for Tavares all right, but the real question is, can they be worse than Atlanta?
15. Atlanta:
Christiensen | White | Reasoner
- A decent mix of 3rd liner players to go along with Ilya Kovalchuk? The Thrashers have a lot of work to do in order to keep their franchise player.
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I stand by my choices of Washington and Montreal having the most depth at center, yet the Flyers, Rangers and Penguins all have stellar cores down the middle and can easily challenge as the team with the best group of centers.
How would you rank the East’s centermen?
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91 & 92 Numbers
Although Michael and Sergei differ in age by 3 years and Feds has some rings and trophies on his mantle, their career numbers do not differ all that much. Combining to account for 15.6% of Washington’s salary CAP for this upcoming season, the two centermen are near point a game players through their careers and have always been playoff performers. There are slight differences and age certainly gives Nylander a slight edge, but numbers wise, these two are proven performers who should not be questioned.
Questions are starting to mount as Rookie camp is underway and as training camp approaches, but the general consensus from Caps management is that, although there is CAP problem at the moment, those issues will be resolved and that plan will not involve altering the teams plan for their 3 centermen.
Take a look at the numbers for yourself .
Having mulled this situation over for several weeks now, the team, the fans, myself and anyone else concerned seem to know that losing any of the teams key pieces down the middle will not bode well for a skate around the Verizon Center with Lord Stanley’s cup.
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Michael Nyalnder:
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Position: Center
Shoots: Left
Height: 6' 1
Weight: 195
Born: Oct 3, 1972 (Age 35)
Origin: Stockholm, SWE
Contract
Status: UFA in 2011
Length: 4 year deal with Washington (08/09 = year 2)
Value: $19.5 Million
Cap Hit: $4.875 Million (8.6% of Washington’s CAP)
Regular Season
GP | G | A | P | +/- |PIM | PP | SH | GW | Shots | Pct |
848 | 200 | 446 | 646 | 75 | 436 | 59 | 0 | 31 | 1,584 | 12.6 |
Points Per Game: 0.76
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Last 4 NHL Seasons: ( GP: Wash 43, Bos 15, NYR 160)
GP | G | A | P | +/- |PIM | PP | SH | GW | Shots | Pct |
218 | 61 | 152 | 213 | +28 | 156 | 25 | 0 | 10 | 472 | 11.2 |
Points Per Game: 0.97
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Playoffs
GP | G | A | P | +/- |PIM | PP | SH | GW | Shots | Pct |
44 | 12 | 22 | 34 | 2 | 12 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 89 | 13.5 |
Points Per Game: 0.77
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Sergei Fedorov:
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Position: Center
Shoots: Left
Height: 6' 2
Weight: 207
Born: Dec 13, 1969 (Age 38)
Origin: Pskov, RUS
Contract
Status: UFA in 2009
Length: 1 year deal with Washington
Value: $4 Million
Cap Hit: $4 Million ( 7% of Washington’s CAP)
Regular Season
GP | G | A | P | +/- |PIM | PP | SH | GW | Shots | Pct |
1,196 | 472 | 674 | 1,146 | 257 | 789 | 142 | 36 | 91 | 3,867 | 12.2 |
Points Per Game: 0.96
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Last 4 NHL Seasons: ( GP: ANA 85, CBJ 185, Wash 18)
GP | G | A | P | +/- |PIM | PP | SH | GW | Shots | Pct |
288 | 72 | 120 | 192 | -19 | 202 | 25 | 5 | 12 | 619 | 7.7 |
Points Per Game: 0.67
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Playoffs
GP | G | A | P | +/- |PIM | PP | SH | GW | Shots | Pct |
169 | 51 | 117 | 168 | 37 | 121 | 15 | 5 | 11 | 579 | 8.8 |
Points Per Game: 0.99
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SouthEast Outlook is on its way. The top 3 teams will be posted in the next 3 days.
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