Monday Caps Clips: No Joy in Chocolateville

Your savory breakfast links:

• Be sure to catch up on the Saturday and Sunday Clips that you might have missed.
• Nicklas Backstrom speaks ahead of making his debut as half of the Caps' Dynamo duo. [Japers' Rink]
• Over in Switzerland, Brooks Laich is already making his mark on his new (hopefully temporary) team. [EuroHockey.com, RMNB]
• And down on the farm, despite some heroics from Philipp Grubauer in his first AHL game, the Bears lose a second straight one-goal game after a video replay gives Binghamton the OT winner. [AHL, Capitals, Dump 'n Chase]
• Lockout news! Get yer lockout news right here!
  • The NHL believes a deal to end the lockout is on the table. Right next to the pepper, behind the butter dish. [National Post]
  • Donald Fehr and the NHLPA are standing their ground for now in the face of the first real negative PR they've faced. Y'know, in a crazy alternate world where the fans' voices actually matter. [NY Times]
  • Regardless, it's a really important week ahead. Like, really really important. [ESPN]
  • But don't let that dissuade you from letting that voice be heard - would you like to take a survey? [Qualtrics]
• In honor of the (mercifully final) presidential debate tonight, JFK and hockey? [Puck Buddys]
  
• Finally, happy 44th birthday to Terry Yake and happy 32nd to Matt Pettinger.

Bäckström: "I Will Be Like the Swedish Nicklas Bäckström"

Nicklas Bäckström chatted with reporters as he prepares for to make his Dynamo debut, and Malin Anderson provides this transcription:

When you decided to come over did it take long for you to make the decision to come over?

"No, it didn’t. I told Ovi and you and everybody two weeks ago maybe. And that’s when I decided that I wanted to play and this was a good option for me and I’m glad that Dynamo wanted to have me here."

As you may or may not know Ovechkin was having critical comment on the NHL negotiation do you have any opinion on that?

"Yeah, not really. I heard what he said but I mean but I don’t have any comments right now, we will see what happens. The one thing I can tell right now is that nothing is happening. So we will see what’s going to happen."

When you were given bunch of numbers to choose, why did you choose number 99?

"Because I had a 9 in my 19 and 19 was taken and then I didn’t like the other numbers so 99 was the only one."

So you will be like the Swedish Gretzky?

"No. I will be like the Swedish Nicklas Bäckström."

Do you know anything particular about Dynamo or their history, or former stars or players?

"Yeah, they have a lot of history and last night at the museum I was looking around at pictures and stuff, for me as a Swede I saw a couple of Swedes that’s been playing there. It’s a famous club in Russia."

After watching a Dynamo game you had a chance to look at the system. Do you think this will be a system that is interesting to play?

"Yeah, I’m excited I mean. I think [...] is a great club and I’m excited to start playing and I think everything looks good, the system and everything."

Ovi and Backy from the capital in U.S. to the capital of Russia. Do you think it will be as comfortable for you as before?

"I hope so. I think so, I mean me and Ovi have been playing with each other for five years now so hopefully we know where we are on the ice."

From Jim Carey to Alex Semin and Other Trail Tales

Last week, we kinda sorta geeked out and ran an updated version of an old post regarding the ongoing legacy of the Caps' first pick in the 1982 Entry Draft, Scott Stevens. Tracing transactional trails in this manner is like a cross between "Where's George?" and the Kevin Bacon game (Bruce Boudreau to Ben Affleck or Charlie Chaplin in three steps, by the way), which is to say it's great fun for people who may or may not know what great fun really is.

But we digress... and provide a couple more asset legacy trees because why not?

First up, let's take a look at what became of a couple of 1970s first rounders, Rick Green and Ryan Walter (click to enlarge):

The first thing you notice, of course, is "The Trade" that brought Rod Langway to D.C., which literally was the most essential transaction in team history. But Langway isn't the only big name in this tree. In fact, four future Hall of Fame players (Langway, Larry Murphy, Mike Gartner and Dino Ciccarelli) appear somewhere in the branches. So do three key contributors to the Caps team that went to the Finals in 1998 (Calle Johansson, Joé Juneau and Joe Reekie). But it's not all positive, as two of the worst moves the club has ever made are here - the drafting of Alexandre Volchkov and trade of Ciccarelli for Kevin Miller. Plus, Al Iafrate! And, from a probably-only-interesting-to-me standpoint, after Juneau was traded to Buffalo, the player (Alexei Tezikov) reconnected the Brian Engblom "branch" with the Craig Laughlin branch in a blockbuster (not really) deal for Jason Marshall, while the pick paired with Miika Elomo (a key node in the Stevens tree) in exchange for the pick that became Matt Pettinger. (Sorry, ladies, I'm taken.)

Our second tree centers on one of the top centers in club history, head coach Adam Oates (click to enlarge):

There's an awful lot of fail on that tree, both in picks and players. But the trade that brought Oates to Washington includes one of the great strokes of good fortune in team history, Oates and Alexander Semin... but yeah, not much else to write home about (though Anson Carter appearing twice in the tree is cool, err, "cool"), and letting Semin walk for nothing is less-than-ideal asset management.

Anyway, what's particularly interesting is that each of these trees has completely died out, while the Stevens pick goes on. Regardless, assets have "lives," some longer than others, and the general managers that can extend the utility of a given asset beyond a single player's contributions are likely maximizing the value of those assets.

Sunday Caps Clips: Bring the Pane

Your savory breakfast links:

• Alex Ovechkin, meet glass. Glass, meet Alex O... oh. Right. [Puck Daddy, CSNW, RMNB, Alex Ovetjkin, USA Today]
  
  • Aftermath. [Sportbox]
• Oh, and you'll want to read the Captain's comments about the CBA negotiations. Until you actually read them, that is. Then you won't. [SportsNet.ca, TSN.ca, RMNB]
• Wojtek Wolski remembers where he came from, even if he really hasn't been here ... [Shelf 3D]
  • ... awwwww. He's making his mama happy. [eSanok (pics)]
• Nicklas Backstrom dishes to the Russian press. Forward! [Alex Ovetjkin]
• According to this handy NHL-on-European-holiday tracker, Ovi is doing just fine, Brooks Laich is pretty good, and Michal Neuvirth is ... gulp. [Dirty Dangle]
• Fifteen goals mark a new scoring record for a Hershey home opener, but the Bears came up on the short end of an 8-7 (ugh) final versus the Rochester Americans. [Gamesheet, Glove & Blogger, Patriot-News, Dump 'n' Chase, SHoE, Caps Outsider]
  • The Bears auctioned off their jerseys post-game, and Stanislav Galiev's sweater edged out that of Dmitry Orlov. [@M_Ann]
    
• In which the Caps lose to the Habs twice on the same night without ever taking the ice. [Montreal Gazette, Peerless]
• Finally, Troy Brouwer is enjoying his first week as a new papa. [CSNW]

Backstrom to Second-Choice Dynamo Not Quite a Done Deal?

Nicklas Backstrom has signed with the KHL's Dynamo Moscow, reuniting him with Alex Ovechkin for the duration of the lockout... or has he?

Per Aftonbladet's Sportbladet:

Nicklas Bäckström hasn't signed the contract with Dynamo Moscow yet. One of the things that still remains to be negotiated is the length of the contract. Bäckström wants an opportunity to break the contract with Dynamo if the lockout lasts all season. That is something the KHL club is not particularly interested in according to Sportbladet’s sources. Nicklas Bäckström has been very clear all along that he wants to play with Brynäs, if they let him, but so far they are turning him down.

"I don’t comment on ongoing negotiations, but I can confirm that all the details are not yet finalized." says, Gunnar Svensson, Nicklas Bäckström’s Swedish agent, to Sportbladet.

It's unlikely that anything here will cause a deal to fall through at this point, but stranger things have happened. And, to clarify, it sounds as if Dynamo would be fine with Backstrom leaving in the event that the NHL lockout ends, but wouldn't want to give him an out should an opportunity with another non-NHL club become available... which brings us to the next point, that bit about his former Swedish club, Brynäs, being Backstrom's first choice, which is something Backstrom himself told Expressen (see also here), as he spoke of his decision to head to Moscow:

"Brynäs was my first choice so of course I’m disappointed, but it is what it is. I just couldn't sit around and wait for them indefinitely, this was my only alternative. I’m really looking forward to playing some hockey again. I’m not sure when I will play my first game for Dynamo Moscow, it depends on how I feel when I get over there.

"It’s always fun to have another Swede on the team. I know Richard Gynge from when we both played together with Brynäs. He is a good guy.

"I’m really looking forward to finally play some games. I have been on ice over here in the States, but I probably am not in real game shape just yet. "

Brynäs is in a bit of a spot here, given the Swedish Elite League's lack of desire to make use potentially short-term NHL labor, something the club apparently supports and intends to honor. Back to Sportbladet:

"Of course it's a very strange feeling. It’s been an incredibly tough decision to say no thanks to Nicklas. But there are two dimensions to this: Nicklas - the man, is an incredible person and a true ambassador for Brynäs. But at the same time, we made a decision early on that we that we think will be the best for us in the long run and then you have to stay by that decision," says club director Hans-Göran Karlsson.

According to Sportbladet’s calculations Nicklas Bäckström insurance would cost Brynäs around 600,000 kronor per month. And they have financial means to afford to pay his insurance.

"Yes, we have the economy to bring him home, the fact that we do have the money makes this decision extra tough for us."

So there you have it - two Leagues (the NHL and SEL) now have said "No" to the Caps' top pivot, so he's off to Moscow to pair up with his pal Ovi... assuming the i's get dotted and t's get crossed. As with seemingly everything related to this lockout, it's clear as mud.

(H/t to Malin on the translations - super work, as always.)

Saturday Caps Clips: Another Week Bites the Dust

Your savory breakfast links:

• The League announced yesterday that the schedule through November 1 has now been cancelled, which can only be considered mildly surprising... and then only because of the relatively small number of dates s-canned this time around. [Puck Daddy, WaPo, CSNW, PHT]
• It sounds as if the lingering contractual deets have been ironed out and Nicklas Backstrom is all systems go in Moscow, where the gap-toothed chairman of the welcoming committee is doing his thing. [RMNB, Alex Ovetjkin (and again), Dynamo (pics), CSNW, USA Today, VChillin]
• News and views from Lockoutland, where I believe we're at PUCKCON 2:
  • Bad faith negotiating, unsurprisingly, does not advance the ball, err, puck. [Puck Daddy]
  • But if you're looking for reasons for optimism, look at actions, not words. [mc79hockey]
  • On the leaders, Gary Bettman... [Sportsnet]
    
  • ... and his chief adversary, Donald Fehr. [Globe and Mail]
  • Other assorted interesting reads abound (one of the few positives of the lockout - good writing about it). [Backhand Shelf (and again), NHL Numbers, Hockey Analysis]
• Wojtek Wolski made his debut back in Poland. [eSanok, gwizdek24 via Google Trans]
• The Kettler crowd is shrinking. [CSN]
• A game worn Alex Ovechkin sweater from the Winter Classic can be yours if... the price is right. [Classic Auctions]
• Speaking of Ovi's gear, a look at his rather fitting - like a glove, in fact - tribute to his late brother. [RMNB]
• ESPN's KHL ratings, like the product itself, is rather "meh." [Puck Daddy]
• Braden Holtby is day-to-day with an undisclosed injury in Hershey, so Philipp Grubauer has been called up (and could make his AHL debut this weekend). [Capitals]
• Speaking of the Bears, they got their first win of the season, thanks to a big time performance in net from Dany Sabourin. [Dump 'n Chase, Patriot-News, SHoE]
  
• Oh, and it sounds as if Dmitry Orlov blew up some dude with a hip check early in that tilt. [Stucc's Glove and Blogger]
• Finally, happy 34th birthday to Mike Farrell.

Friday Caps Clips: Bäckis in the USSR

Your savory breakfast links:

' The rumors have resolved to reality - Nicklas Backstrom heeded Alex Ovechkin's advice (and numerous phone calls) and has signed with Dynamo Moscow in the Kontinental Hockey League. Do svidaniya, Mean Lars. [Japers' Rink, WaPo, WashTimes, PHT, Eye on Hockey, NBC4]

' Agent Ovi negotiated the deal... [Aftonbladet, Alex Ovetjkin]

' ... and Kristoffer Backstrom asks the important question - with 19 and 91 already spoken for on the Dynamo roster, under what number will Bäckis play? [@kbackstrom85]

' Of course, this signing just throws the lockout into sharper relief. The players provided the league with three counter-offers today, none of which was apparently acceptable. [WaPo, NYT, ESPN, Toronto Sun, NYDN, Globe & Mail]

' Here's the gist of the players' proposals. [Globe & Mail]

' Ifs and buts, squirrels and nuts. What a terrible party this is. [ESPN, Sporting News]

' But maybe there's a way out behind door number three. [CBC]

' When "mutual" isn't really. [WashTimes]

' Braden Holtby retains his #2 ranking, but four goals-against in that first game bear watching. [The Goalie Guild]

' Where are they now? Lockout alt-hockey Caps prospect edition:

' Caleb Herbert had to be helped off the ice but returned for an assist as Minny-Duluth beat Notre Dame 3-1. Thomas DiPauli and Austin Wuthrich went pointless for the Irish. [CHS, @DavidMcCoyWSBT]

' Jaynen Rissling had a bit of a go with Tim Trayber. [HockeyFights]

' Connor Carrick had a goal and Thomas Wilson an assist as the Whalers prevailed over the Petes 2-1. [@PWhalers]

' Finally, happy 29th birthday to Boyd Gordon.