The Washington Capitals announced the roster and schedule for next week's Development Camp, held at Kettler Capitals Iceplex July 11-16. The roster is highlighted with some of the brightest prospects the organization has to offer, including forwards Mattias Sjogren and Cody Eakin and defenseman Dmitri Orlov.

The 6’2”, 214-pound Sjogren (23) spent last season with Farjestad of the Swedish Elite League, recording a career high 24 points (seven goals, 17 assists) and 44 penalty minutes in 51 games. He helped lead his team to the SEL championship after registering nine points (one goal, eight assists) in 13 playoff games. The 23-year-old also played for Sweden at the 2011 World Championship in Slovakia, winning a silver medal while tallying a goal and three assists in nine games. This will be his first season in North America.

Eakin, 20, began the 2010-11 season as the captain of Swift Current before being traded to Kootenay for five players and three draft picks. The Winnipeg native recorded 83 points (36 goals, 47 assists) in 56 games during the regular season and was a key component of his team’s run to the Memorial Cup, adding 11 goals and 27 points in 19 playoff games. He finished tied for second among all WHL players in postseasons scoring as his Kootenay Ice won the WHL championship. Eakin hopes to translate his strong track record of success to the pro level.

Orlov, 20 on July 23, the highly-touted Russian defenseman, won a gold medal for Russia at the World Junior Championship this year and was named to the tournament all-star team while recording the most assists (8) by a defenseman in the tournament. He recorded a career-high 12 points for Metallurg of the KHL before signing an entry level deal with the Caps in March. He appeared in 19 games with Hershey, collecting two goals and seven assists. He will be beginning his first, full season in North America this year.

All on-ice sessions, including the three intersquad games, are free and open to the public.  Fan Fest is Saturday, July 16, a free-to-the-public event that features the team's annual equipment sale, games, autographs and public skating.

FULL ROSTER

29 FLEMMING, Brett D 5-11 184 2/26/91 Mississauga (OHL) Draft ‘09*
31 GRUBAUER, Phillip G 6-0 180 11/25/91 Kingston (OHL)/Germany (WJC) Draft ‘10*
33 SJOGREN, Mattias C 6-1 209 11/27/87 Farjestads BK (SEL)/Sweden (WC) Free Agent ‘11*
38 HAAR, Garrett D 6-0 193 8/16/93 Fargo (USHL) Draft ‘11
40 SOBERG, Steffen G 5-11 176 8/6/93 Manglerud (Norway)/Norway (WJC) Draft ‘11
44 KOUDYS, Patrick D 6-4 210 11/15/92 RPI (NCAA) Draft ‘11
49 GALIEV, Stanislav LW 6-1 188 1/17/92 Saint John (QMJHL) Draft ‘10
50 EAKIN, Cody C 5-11 179 5/25/91 Swift Current/Kootenay (WHL)/Canada (WJC) Draft ‘09*
53 BOYD, Travis F 5-10 185 9/14/93 USNDT/USA (WJC) Draft ‘11
54 BURKE, Greg LW 6-3 205 5/1/90 New Hampshire (NCAA) Draft ‘08
56 WEY, Patrick D 6-2 200 3/21/91 Boston College (NCAA)/USA (WJC) Draft ‘09
65 CARRIER, Samuel D 6-1 186 4/28/92 Lewiston (QMJHL) Draft ‘10
66 STEVENSON, Dustin D 6-5 220 8/12/89 South Carolina (ECHL) Free Agent ‘10*
72 HERBERT, Caleb F 5-11 185 10/12/91 Sioux City (USHL)/USA (WJAC) Draft ‘10
76 MITCHELL, Garrett RW 5-11 195 9/2/91 Regina (WHL)/Hershey (AHL) Draft ‘09*
78 ANDERSON, Brandon G 6-0 163 6/13/92 Lethbridge (WHL)/Hershey (AHL) Free Agent ‘10*
81 ORLOV, Dmitri D 6-0 197 7/23/91 Metallurg (KHL)/Hershey (AHL)/Russia (WJC) Draft ‘09*
93 KUGRYSHEV, Dmitry RW 5-11 193 1/18/90 Hershey (AHL)/S. Carolina (ECHL) Draft ‘08*
96 STEFISHEN, Taylor LW 6-0 185 8/15/90 Prince George (WHL) Trade ‘11


CAMP SCHEDULE

Monday, July 11
9:45 a.m.: Group A on ice
2:00 p.m.: Group B on ice
Approx. 12 p.m.: Media availability

Tuesday, July 12
9:30 a.m.: Group B on ice
11:45 p.m.: Group A on ice
Approx. 2 p.m.: Media availability

Wednesday, July 13
9:00 a.m.: Group A on ice
10:20 a.m.: Group B on ice
3:00 p.m.: Intrasquad scrimmage
Approx. 12:30 p.m.: Media availability

Thursday, July 14
9 a.m.: Intrasquad scrimmage
Approx. 11:30 a.m.: Media availability

Friday, July 15
9:30 a.m.: Group A on ice
11:15 a.m.: Group B on ice
Approx. 12 p.m.: Media availability

Saturday, July 16
Capitals Fan Fest
10 a.m.: Intrasquad scrimmage
Approx. 1:00 p.m.: Media availability

*Player descriptions from Capitals development camp guide.

The Washington Capitals today announced they signed winger Troy Brouwer to a two-year deal, reported to be worth $2.35 million per year.  That's certainly a reasonable contract for a guy that's scored 39 goals the last two years combined, not to mention the physical aspect he brings to the game.

That leaves the Caps with one priority: Signing Karl Alzner.

With the Brouwer signing the Caps are over the salary cap, but the team can carry 10 percent over the cap throughout the summer.  It gives them some time to sign Alzner, then deal to make room.. But where are those deals going to come from?

According to Capgeek.com (and if you don't have it bookmarked, why not?), the Caps are $1.8 million over with 23 players signed for next season.  They currently have the highest payroll in the NHL.  Where do the Caps get relief?

Let's take a look at some of the more obvious candidates:

Tom Poti ($2.875 million):  The veteran defenseman played in just 21 games last season due to a variety of injuries, worst of all his brittle groin.  If the Caps put Poti on the Long Term Injury List, they could save his cap number this season.

Eric Fehr ($2.2 million):  Like Poti, Fehr spent a lot of last season injured, and he's had multiple surgeries on his shoulder.  Reports say he probably will not be ready to play by the start of camp.  But he's still young, and a 20-goal scorer for this team with the limited minutes he gets.  Healthy, and on a team that could give him extensive power play time, he could be a real asset for someone.

Jeff Schultz ($2.75 million): The Caps currently have seven defensemen under contract before Alzner signs.  At the best, it now looks like Schultz will only be the sixth or seventh (or eighth) best defenseman on the team.  Not sure if that warrants the cap hit he carries. But he's big and durable, someone would play him 20 minutes a night.

Jason Chimera ($1.875 million):  Chimera brings a lot of speed and energy, and a fourth line of Chimera-Halpern-Hendricks is awfully enticing.  But his hands of stone really limits him offensive effectiveness for a player making almost $2 million per.

D.J. King ($637,500):  Not a big hit, but still... He was a forgotten player down the stretch, and only managed to dress 16 times the whole season.  This good soldier just doesn't fit into the coach's system or philosophy.  With Hendricks and Brouwer, the Caps have all the pugilists they would need on any given night.  The era of heavyweights is just about finished.

Alexander Semin ($6.7 million): Saved the best and biggest cap hit for last.  What more need be written about The Enigma?  If you could bring back Good Sasha at half the price and let Bad Sasha go, it would be one thing.  The problem with trading him? Where to, and would he report?  A player of his obvious talent would be a real boost to a team's scoring, but he would have to go to a team looking at the cap floor, and those teams generally aren't very attractive to play for, especially for a player that at times has had problems with motivation.  The other problem trading Semin?  None of these problems are a well-kept secret.  For a non-All-Star, he carries more baggage than anyone else in the league.
______________

(ed. 12:32 pm: I was called out for not including Mike Green on the list, which was fair.)

Mike Green ($5.25 million): I don't think the Caps will entertain offers for Mike Green, but it would be understandable if they did.  He's the most gifted offensive defenseman in the game, and a work in progress on the back end.  He now also carries the stigma of a concussion victim, on top of various other elements that have dramatically affected his performance in the playoffs the last two years, including a bum shoulder. 

Just when you thought GM George McPhee was "done" making deals this off-season, he goes off and does it again.  Mid-day Saturday, on his birthday no less, McPhee signed veteran goalie Tomas Vokoun to a one-year deal, reported to be worth $1.5 million.  It was another stunning move for an organization that has now turned over a quarter of their active roster in a week's time.

Less than 24 hours after announcing to all that he was finished chasing free agents, and specifically saying the team would compete next season with Michal Neuvirth and Braden Holtby as their two goalies, McPhee went out and signed the veteran netminder many thought could complete this team.

If you're ever invited to play in a poker game with McPhee, politely decline.

Vokoun, who also celebrated his 35th birthday Saturday, went 22-28-5 with a 2.55 GAA and .922 SV% in 57 games for a Florida Panther team last season that finished last in the Eastern Conference last season.  The 12-year veteran with the Panthers and Nashville Predators owns a lifetime 2.56 GAA and .917 SV%.

Vokoun was expected to be one of the more sought after free agent goalies available, but McPhee was able to snag Czech native for a quarter of what some experts thought he might go for on the open market, and more than $1 million less this season than Colorado gave to Semyon Varlamov and equal to what Florida gave Jose Theodore.

"We are excited to add an elite veteran goaltender to the Capitals," McPhee said via press release. "We now have a nice blend of talent, depth, experience and youth in the goaltending position."

"I'm very excited to join the Washington Capitals organization," Vokoun said in the same press release. "It is a terrific team with a lot of talent and I look forward to doing everything I can for us to reach our ultimate goal of winning the Stanley Cup."

McPhee has now acquired five veteran players in the last week.  It's an easy pattern to recognize that McPhee definitely saw weaknesses in the Capitals lineup and took significant strides to address those needs.  Vokoun was the capper though.  Neuvirth and Holtby were both excellent last season in their starts for the Caps -- both even carried the team at times when the lineup struggled.

The team easily could have come into the season with the Neuvy/Holtby pair to start the season and made additions if they saw fit.  But in Vokoun, McPhee seized an opportunity to be pro-active and upgrade at a position that wasn't even a priority.  Vokoun will bring presence to the cage for the Caps.  Neuvirth and Holtby are both tremendously talented, and Vokoun is only on a one-year contract and is, after all, 35, so it's not like the Caps are signalling that they are unhappy with their two young netminders.

But Neuvirth seemed to lose some luster down the stretch last season as he carried the workload of the No. 1 guy through the playoffs, and Holtby, for all his talent and confidence, still could use another season in the "A" to work on his maturity and decision-making during play.  It's a position of great flexibility for McPhee, being able to stash perhaps his best long-term goalie at Hershey for another season. 

It's also an embarrassment of riches for the team that had the best record in the Eastern Conference last season to have three goalies they can comfortably turn to at any time.

The signing moves the Capitals even closer to the salary cap for the upcoming season, with contracts for Karl Alzner and Troy Brouwer still due.  McPhee has his work cut out for him to make all the pieces fit under the constraints of the cap.  It's entirely possible we will see some players that are under contract traded in the upcoming weeks.  We could see defenseman Tom Poti bought out or enticed to retire.

McPhee has all summer to make things work out.  With what he's done in the last 36 hours, anyone want to bet against him?

CAPITALS SIGN VETERAN FREE AGENTS HALPERN, HAMRLIK AND J.WARD

The news rolled in quicker than most people could keep up with.

Jeff Halpern returned to the team he grew up with and Boyd Gordon walked.  Then, in a shock to everyone's system, Semyon Varlamov was traded away.  There was a brief lull.  Then, all hell broke loose. 

Roman Hamrlik.  Joel Ward.  A couple of veteran scorers for Hershey.  And at the end of it all, GM George McPhee reassured Washington Capitals fans he had enough money to sign RFAs Karl Alzner and Troy Brouwer, acquired just a few days ago.

Head spinning yet?

Yes, the activity at Caps headquarters on this, the first day of the NHL free agency period, was fast and frenzied.  At the end of the day the Caps got tougher and stronger, if not dangerously close to the NHL's salary cap.

McPhee told the media the team was done in his press conference after the signings were announced and reiterated that he still had the room to get deals for Alzner and Brouwer completed.  According to Capgeek.com, a widely respected website that tracks salary numbers for all NHL teams, the Caps have just over $2 million space remaining with the players they currently have under contract.  Until proven otherwise, we'll defer to McPhee that Alzner and Brouwer will indeed be in red at the start of play this season.

The players acquired today all have one thing in common: toughness.  Halpern isn't known for his hitting, but he's a faceoff and penalty kill specialist that will assume Gordon's spot on the fourth line.  Hamrlik, 37, is an 18-year NHL veteran known for his big left-handed shot.  Ward, a 30-year old right winger, led Nashville forwards in blocked shots last year and was their playoff darling, scoring seven goals and six assists in 12 games. He had 29 points in the regular season.

The other thing all three players add, obviously, is experience.  All are established, veteran players and combined with Brouwer -- acquired last week for the Caps first round pick in the 2011 entry draft -- further reinforces the idea that McPhee has adopted a "win-now" philosophy.  The other thing it signals, in no uncertain terms, is that he felt the team as constructed last season was the reason they did not advance further in the playoffs, and not any imagined deficiency in his coaching staff.

The net for Varlamov was a coup: Colorado's first round pick next season and a second round pick in either the 2012 or 2013 draft.  After it became evident in the past week that the player had no designs of returning to Washington, and in fact demanding that he be implanted as starter as a condition of said return or he would take his talents to the KHL, McPhee made quite a haul for a player that he was going to lose anyway.

If indeed McPhee is "done" tinkering this off-season, he got quite a bit accomplished in one day.  Ultimately, the team got older and more experienced without sacrificing long-term assets, and in fact acquired a potential lottery pick in next year's draft to boot.  Quite a day.

Ending their involvement in the strange saga surrounding goaltender Semyon Varlamov, the Washington Capitals traded his rights to the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for Colorado's first round pick in the 2012 entry draft, plus a second round pick in either the 2012 or 2013 draft.  TSN reports the Capitals have their choice of the second round picks.

Colorado's first round pick could very well be a lottery pick in next year's draft, as they were the third worst team in the NHL last season and expect to be in a serious re-building mode.

Apparently, Colorado feels Varlamov's injury history and the drama surrounding the possibility of him playing in the KHL next season are non-factors to surrender such a bounty for the 23-year old netminder.

Varlamov was 11-6-5 last season for the Caps -- including a win New Year's Day in the Winter Classic -- with a .912 save percentage, but injuries to his groin and knee held him to just 27 games.  Terrifically talented but somewhat enigmatic, Varlamov just couldn't stay on the ice enough for the Caps to dedicate themselves to his being their No. 1 goalie.

The deal leaves the Capitals with three goalies with NHL experience: Michael Neuvirth, Braden Holtby and Dany Sabourin.  It will be interesting to follow the Caps during the free agent signing period to see if they bring in a veteran backup, or roll with Neuvirth and Holtby, both young goalies with success in the NHL already.

The NHL free agent frenzy started at noon today and it didn't take too long for the Washington Capitals to make a mark, signing veteran center, and Potomac, MD native, Jeff Halpern to a one-year deal, reported to be worth $825,000, according to TSN.

Halpern, who started his career with the Caps, will center the fourth line and be used as a faceoff specialist, much in the same role that UFA Boyd Gordon has filled the last several seasons.  Moments after the news of Halpern joining the Capitals, it was reported that Gordon signed a free agent contract with the Phoenix Coyotes.  Gordon was the current longest-tenured Capital until today.

Halpern went 11-15-26, +6 with Montreal last season, and finished the year with a faceoff percentage of 56.9%.

Here's the press release from the Caps:

ARLINGTON, Va. – The Washington Capitals have signed free agent center Jeff Halpern to a one-year contract, vice president and general manager George McPhee announced today. In keeping with club policy, financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Halpern, 35, played 438 games for the Capitals from 1999-2006 and captained the team during the 2005-06 season. The 5’11”, 198-pound center has recorded 214 points (87 goals, 127 assists) in his career with Washington, including a career-high 46 points (19 goals, 27 assists) during the 2003-04 season. In 17 playoff games with the Capitals, Halpern has tallied four goals and five assists.

The Potomac, Maryland, native collected 26 points (11 goals, 15 assists) in 72 games with the Montreal Canadiens last season. He logged the second-most shorthanded minutes (2:20) per-game amongst Canadiens forwards and helped lead the team’s penalty kill unit which ranked seventh in the NHL. Halpern also finished second on the team in faceoff percentage (56.9%) and registered one goal in four playoff games.

Halpern has collected 342 points (142 goals, 200 assists) in 792 career NHL games with Washington, Dallas, Tampa Bay, Los Angeles and Montreal. In 34 career postseason playoff games, Halpern has recorded seven goals and six assists.

Halpern first joined the Capitals as an undrafted free agent on March 29, 1999, and made the NHL club as a rookie in 1999-2000.. He has represented the United States in the 2004 World Cup of Hockey and five World Championships (2000, 2001, 2004, 2005, 2008). While in Washington, Halpern was an active member of the community, helping launch Halpern’s Hometown Heroes to benefit local charities.

Halpern played youth hockey for the Little Capitals and former captains Rod Langway and Dale Hunter were among his favorite players. He played junior hockey in Canada and prep school hockey in New Hampshire before enrolling at Princeton University in 1995-96. One of only four players to be named Princeton’s MVP three times, Halpern was the team captain as a senior. He finished his college career ranking first all-time at Princeton in games played (132), third in career points (141) and assists (81) and tied for fifth in career goals (60).