The Washington Capitals announced Thursday via press release they re-signed winger Jason Chimera to a two-year deal, which runs through the 2013-14 season.  Terms were not disclosed in accordance with team policy, but several outlets report the deal is worth a total of $3.5 million, resulting in a salary cap hit of $1.75 million per year.

The speedy Chimera plays regularly on the Caps third line and had 10 goals and 16 assists in 81 games last season, finishing minus-10 for the season.  He averaged 13:15 of ice time and had 64 penalty minutes.

In the playoffs the last two seasons, Chimera scored three goals and four assists in 16 games.  He registered a memorable double-overtime game-winning goal against the New York Rangers in Game 4 at MSG last season.

Chimera was a fifth round pick of the Edmonton Oilers in 1997 and has 98 goals and 215 points in 581 career NHL games over 11 seasons.  The Capitals acquired him from Columbus in December of 2008 for then-captain Chris Clark and defenseman Milan Jurcina.

Post by Cheryl Nichols

The Washington Capitals sign Defenseman Tom Poti to a two year contract extension.

"I'm excited about the core group we have here and I think we have the ability to win a Stanley Cup. Not just this year, but year's to come....me and my wife love it here and I'm excited to be here for a couple more years."

Photo 2010 © Cheryl Nichols Photography/

Caps News Network. All Rights Reserved.

Tom Poti was willing to take less money because he has been in the league for twelve years and thinks that his best chance to win the Stanley Cup is in Washington with this team.

"Ultimately what I want to do is win." 

See video for more reaction from Poti.

The Washington Capitals announced today they have signed Nicklas Backstrom to a ten-year deal, $67 million contract extension.  The extension will keep the Swedish-born center under contract until he is 32 years old.

In 2009, Backstrom, 22, had a career-high 101 points (33 goals, 68 assists) and a plus-37 rating in 82 regular-season games this season, his third in the NHL.

The Capitals now have the top-scoring teammates in the NHL this season, Backstrom and Alex Ovechkin (210 combined points), under contract for the next 10 and 11 seasons, respectively.

General Manager George McPhee also announced the team signed their 2009 first round draft pick, Marcus Johansson, to a three-year entry-level deal.

From the press release: 

Johansson, 19, is a 5’11”, 189-pound native of Landskrona, Sweden, who recently finished his second season with Farjestads of the Swedish Elite League (SEL), the top professional league in Sweden.

He recorded 20 points (10 goals, 10 assists) in 42 games this season in the SEL, finishing tied for fourth on the team in goals and sixth in points. Johansson also made his second appearance for Team Sweden in the World Junior Championship. He had six points (one goal, five assists) and a +7 rating in five games and, as Sweden’s captain, led the team to the bronze medal.

Coach Bruce Boudreau commented that the Caps now have “two of the top five players in the league” under contract for their peak seasons, and that todays' announcements will help the Caps achieve their goal of becoming Stanley Cup champions.

According to the Washington Capitals official website, the Caps will be holding a press conference at 10:30 am Monday morning to make a "significant player-related announcement."

Watch it live here.

According to Capitals Insider, the presser is to announce the signing of Nicklas Backstrom to a multi-year contract extension: 

The Caps are expected to announce tomorrow morning that they have re-signed Nicklas Backstrom to a long-term extension, according to a source with knowledge of the situation.

I'm still working to get the particulars of the deal -- team officials are not answering their phones -- but Backstrom's salary is expected to be in the high $6 million per year range, I'm told.

ESPN.com's Pierre Lebrun reports the same:  

The Washington Capitals are set to announce a contract extension for star center Nicklas Backstrom, a source close to the situation told ESPN.com.

This development, despite being a huge hit on the Captials salary cap, will tie the team's two best players, Backstom and Alex Ovechkin, together through their peak years for the Washington Capitals, giving them a dynamic first-line pairing for the forseeable future.

Backstrom, 22, had a career-high 101 points (33 goals, 68 assists) and a plus-37 rating in 82 regular-season games this season, his third in the NHL.

AHL SCORING CHAMP RE-SIGNS WITH HERSHEY BEARS ON TWO-WAY CONTRACT

Alexandre Giroux, the Hershey winger who tallied 60 goals in the AHL regular season and 15 more in the Bears' run to the Calder Cup, has re-signed with the organization, the Bears announced Wednesday.

Giroux, 28, was an unrestricted free agent and signed a one-year, two-way deal, meaning he can be recalled by the Capitals. His NHL salary will be $500,000.

Last season for Hershey, the big winger scored 60 goals in 69 games -- and added 37 assists -- to capture the AHL scoring title. During one stretch, he scored a goal in 15 consecutive contests, surpassing Brett Hull's league record for goal scoring in consecutive games.

He played in 12 games for the Washington Capitals in 2008-09, with one goal and one assist.

"Alexandre Giroux was so important to our team’s success last year both on and off the ice," said Bears President/GM Doug Yingst. "For our organization, for our fans and for this region, we could not be happier that he chose to return next season."

JURICA RE-SIGNS WITH CAPS

Last week, the Capitals announced the re-signing of defenseman Milan Jurcina to a one-year contract. In keeping with club policy, financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. According to Capitals Insider, Jurcina's 2009-10 salary is $1.375 million.

Jurcina, 26, appeared in a career-high 79 games for the Capitals in 2008-09 and led defensemen in games played. He had three goals and set career highs in assists (11) and points (14), and the team was 10-3-0 when he recorded a point.

Jurcina was first on the club with 131 blocked shots and second with 157 hits. He added two goals in 14 playoff games and was third on the team at +6.

Jurcina was invited to Slovakia's pre-Olympic camp, which runs this week.

Several stories this morning pointing toward veteran center and future hall-of-famer Sergei Fedorov is close to an agreement to play for Metallurg Magnitogorsk of the KHL next season.

Capitals Insider reports that the deal is not done and that Fedorov "still has interest in playing for Washington next season," but a decision by the Caps would have to be made soon if they hope to retain his services.

The deal is reportedly a two-year contract worth $3.8 million per, and if that information is correct, it's highly doubtful the Caps will be willing to come close, let alone match, that offer.

The 39-year old Fedorov, an 18-year NHL veteran, had 11 goals and 22 assists this season in 52 games. He was plus-6 with 50 penalty minutes, his highest total in penalties minutes per game in several seasons.

Fedorov is the all-time leader in goals for Russian-born players with 483, and has 1179 points in 1248 career games. He won three Stanley Cups with Detroit and was the 1994 Hart and Pearson trophies winner.