"We're really happy with what we've acquired.  We've addressed specific needs that we had and they're all good, experienced veteran players." -GM George McPhee.

The Washington Capitals -- as expected -- were busy at the trade deadline, acquiring center Jason Arnott from the New Jersey Devils and defenseman Dennis Wideman from their division-rival Florida Panthers.  Both moves address positions of need for the Caps that have plagued this team all season.

Arnott, 36, waived a no-trade clause to join the Caps for the stretch run and his contract expires at the end of the season.  Arnott told the Newark Star-Ledger:

"I'm at the end of my career. I want a chance at another Stanley Cup. I think Washington has a good potential to be a Cup team."

In exchange for Arnott, the Capitals had to move fan favorite David Steckel and a second round pick in 2012.  The Caps 2011 second rounder belongs to Carolina in last season's Joe Corvo deal.

Arnott has 13 goals and 11 assists in 62 games, playing to a minus-9 rating with the Devils this season.  He had not scored in the Devils last eight games, a strange coincidence with their 7-1 run during that time frame.

Wideman, 27, is a puck-moving defenseman who had 33 points (nine goals, 24 assists) with Florida this year.  He still has another year on his deal and complicates the salary structure, but brings a solid two-way game to D.C.

GM George McPhee surrendered his third round pick in the 2011 draft and ECHL forward Jake Hauswirth to acquire Wideman.

In addition to the waiver wire claim Saturday of winger Marco Sturm (32), the Capitals have added a strong veteran presence to an extremely young NHL locker room.  The Caps have been playing with six full-time rookies in positions where playoff teams usually have veteran leaders, and the mixed results have shown why these deals needed to take place.

Centers Marcus Johansson and Mathieu Perreault are both very talented young players, but they've barely combined for as many assists this season than the veteran Arnott brings at the tail end of his lengthy playing career.

Defensemen John Carlson and Karl Alzner are both extremely talented rookies -- but they are still rookies.  Neither one have played a season this long, logging this many minutes, in this type of spotlight.  Wideman takes some of the heat off these players, especially with Mike Green and Tom Poti's injury status clouding the blue line situation.

All three players acquired bring "two-way" reputations, with Sturm and Wideman expected to provide a boost to the moribund power play which has struggled all season long.

Bottom line: the Caps bring in Arnott, Sturm and Wideman for Steckel, an ECHL forward, and second and third round draft picks in two different years.

"I thought we did really well in that regard," McPhee said.  "We did not give away a first round pick, we did not give away any of our "A" prospects."

It's a significant change to this Washington Capitals roster.

No, none of these three players are all-star caliber talent.  But they are dependable, NHL veterans in positions where they were relying on rookies. 

McPhee explained:  "We've got a young group as we all know, and we [acquired] guys that have been around a long time.  Especially with Arnott, who's been a captain of an NHL team, he's won a cup, and those kinds of intangibles I think are something that we wanted in the room."

The Caps rolled the dice last off-season not acquiring a legitimate second line center, hoping that Tomas Fleischmann would seize the opportunity.  When Flash was dealt to Colorado for Scott Hannan, ending that experiment, the Caps had no other place to turn but 20-year old rookie Johansson and tweener Perreault.

Johansson has had flashes of brilliance, but he is still learning the North American game.  Perreault is just too small to play 2C in the NHL.  The Caps have -- at least temporarily -- addressed their biggest concern heading into the playoffs.

So no blockbuster at the trade deadline, but McPhee identified and addressed three positions of need for the Capitals without decimating either his NHL roster, nor surrendering any of his top prospects.  Whether it's enough to vault the Caps into legitimate contenders will be determined in the weeks to come.

But no one can say McPhee didn't try.

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CAPS NOTES:  McPhee confirmed that Jay Beagle and D.J. King will remain with the Caps for the rest of the season and will not be reassigned to AHL Hershey this season.

McPhee also noted that Tom Poti and Eric Fehr were placed on Long Term Injured List, retroactive to their last games, and both would be eligible to return when they were healthy.  The moves were necessary to make the Capitals compliant with the NHL salary cap with the additions to the team.

Also, McPhee expects the Caps to be very cautious working Mike Green back into the lineup, expecting Green to be out a  "couple weeks" after he returns from his grandmother's funeral in Calgary.  Green is out of the lineup with a head injury, and McPhee confirmed Green has been suffering headaches since being elbowed in the head by Rangers forward Derek Stepan last week.

After a hectic day of waiver claims, roster shuffling, mysterious injuries and healthy scratches, the Washington Capitals actually took care of business, shrugging off a lackadaisical first period and storming back from a 2-0 deficit to knock off a young, energetic New York Islanders crew 3-2 before 16,250 at Nassau County Colosseum, the Islanders' biggest home crowd of the season.

There were plenty of Capitals fans in attendance, as the official fan club and a group from a local pub joined in the festivities on the Island.

The Capitals completed their comeback with three straight goals, capped by Alexander Semin's 22nd of the year at 5:41 of the third period. 

Mike Knuble backhanded a short pass from Brooks Laich to tie the game just three minutes before, and Laich got the Caps on the board mid-way through the second, slipping a wrister through the five-hole of Islanders goalie Max Montoya.

Michal Neuvirth made 29 saves for the win, his 19th of the season.

Coach Bruce Boudreau called a timeout early in the second period shortly after New York went up 2-0, and he had a message to get across.

"Quite frankly, I was telling them 'we stink', and that we were being embarrassed by a bunch of 22 and 23-year olds.  And we were.  We were lucky, up to that point, that it wasn't five-nothing."

Boudreau was 100 percent correct.  Were it not for Neuvirth's stellar play in the first period, we could have seen a repeat of Friday night's debacle.  But the rookie netminder kept his club in the game until the rest of his teammates could shake the funk and find the net against Montoya, one of six goalies the Islanders have used this season.

It was a big two points for the Caps on the road, coming on the heels of a terrible performance against the Rangers Friday.  It pulls Washington back within three of division-leading Tampa Bay and allows them to keep pace four points behind fourth place in the conference Pittsburgh, who were overtime winners over Toronto last night.

The rally capped an eventful day for the team, as roster moves came with a flurry early in the day, and the intrigue continued right up to puck drop, both on the Island and in Hershey, home of the Caps AHL affiliate Hershey.

Washington first made a waiver claim on 13-year veteran left winger Marco Sturm, left available by the Los Angeles Kings.  The speedy, two-way forward was left unprotected as the NHL speeds toward the 3:00 pm Monday trade deadline.  Injured most of the season, if now healthy Sturm could provide some needed pop on the second unit, and has been a valuable penalty killer for his teams in the past as well.

To make room from Sturm, forward D. J. King was placed on waivers.  The pugilist never really fit in with coach Bruce Boudreau's system, but should he clear waivers would report to Hershey in a support role.  To fill out last night's lineup with King off the roster, Jay Beagle was recalled from the Bears.  He skated 17 shifts for 10:27 TOI, had one shot on goal and registered two hits.

As if that weren't enough, goalie Semyon Varlamov was pulled from the morning pre-game skate with a lower body injury and was replaced by ECHL journeyman Todd Ford on the roster.  Ford made his NHL debut -- backing up Neuvirth -- wearing No. 40, Varlamov's old number.

But the most intriguing developments of the day had to involve a pair of players that did not take the ice last night.

Center Mathieu Perreault (7-7-14, -3) was sent out to Hershey in the roster manipulations, but was not on the AHL squad's active roster, and according to Hershey media, will not play for the affiliate all weekend.  In addition, AHL all-star Andrew Gordon was also left off Hershey's active roster a healthy scratch for their 4-3 win over rival Albany.

Both players' absences from an active roster adds fuel to the speculation that Caps GM George McPhee might be working on a significant deal before Monday's trade deadline. 

The acquisition of Sturm gives the Caps a winger that is capable of providing some punch, but with Nick Backstrom's current finger injury they're as weak down the middle as they have been all season long and could really use the services of a dependable, veteran NHL center-iceman as they come down the stretch.

Also, with Mike Green suffering another blow to the head in the Rangers game and Tom Poti's continued inactivity, the Caps might find themselves in the market for a puck-moving defenseman.

Intriguing questions indeed.

The Caps have struggled for much of the season with scoring and intensity.  We'll know in two days what the ramifications of those struggles are -- for the rest of this campaign, and perhaps how those struggles might impact future efforts as well.

General Manager George McPhee completed his busy day right at the deadline, pulling off two of the four deals he swung today.

The Caps acquired defenseman Joe Corvo from the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for D Brian Pothier, AHL forward Oskar Osala and a 2011 second round pick.

Previous to that move, they sent a 2010 sixth rounder to Columbus to re-acquire D Milan Jurcina, fresh off his successful Olympic experience, but recently diagnosed with a sports hernia.

Corvo, 32, recovered from the skate slash that has kept him to just 34 games played this season, has four goals and eight assists (-6) with 10 penalty minutes.  He is known as having a big shot from the point and an effective quarterback of the power play.

He had 38 points with over 200 shots on goal last season for Carolina. 

Jurcina returns to the Caps after being dealt to Columbus along with Chris clark for winger Jason Chimera.  He brings his big frame and powerful (if inaccurate) shot to the Caps blue line.  It's not known at this time how the sports hernia will effect Jurcina's playing time.

For the day, the Caps brought in four players via trade and sent away just one (Pothier) that was on the big league roster.

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It's apparent from the day's dealings that McPhee and Coach Bruce Boudreau like the overall makeup of the team they've assembled, and went about tweaking in certain spots instead of making a big, splashy deal.

Eric Belanger, a second/third line center, is in the top ten in the league in face-off percentage.  He give Boudreau some flexibility in his line combinations and allows Tomas Fleischmann to move back to his more natural wing position.

Corvo, while not being the rugged, stay-at-home defenseman so many fans and bloggers clamored for, is an overall upgrade on the blue line for the Caps.  He's a good puck-moving top four defenseman.

Scott Walker, picked up earlier from Carolina, will provide grit and leadership from the checking line.  He's missed time this season due to a bum shoulder, but has returned to the ice.  He's had a couple 20-goal seasons to his credit as well, so he's capable offensively.

Jurcina brings a big body and big shot.  His addition probably spells the end of Tyler Sloan in a Caps sweater for the foreseeable future.

Further, all the players coming back are expiring contracts, so McPhee did not handicap himself for the future taking on bad money. 

It's interesting to note that Corvo and Belanger had both played for Boudreau before in the AHL.

So while the Caps didn't land a headliner, they filled some cracks and picked up some solid hockey players.  McPhee took the opportunity to gear up for a long playoff run without sacrificing any parts that would affect the long-term viability of the franchise.

The coming weeks will tell if McPhee picked up enough at this deadline to achieve the goal this season.  But as he and owner Ted Leonsis have stated whenever asked, they have built this team to compete for several seasons, not just this year.  And nothing McPhee did today jeopardized that.

Several sources report that the Caps have acquired Eric Belanger, 32-year old centerman from Minnesota, for a second round pick.

Belanger has 13 goals and 22 assists with 28 PIM in 60 games for the Wild this season.

Depending on further deals, Belanger will figure to slide into the third line center spot with the Caps.

Multiple sources confirm that the Washington Capitals traded a seventh round draft pick to the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for RW Scott Walker.

Walker is a 36-year old 14-season veteran with three goals and two assists in 33 games this season with Carolina.

Walker is known as a gritty two-way winger with tremendous heart and leadership qualities.  He's been used as a penalty killer in Carolina, and has not been afraid to drop the gloves if necessary.

Where he fits on the Caps is a big question, other than adding a veteran presence.  If there are no other deals today that move a right winger, he will probably be added to the rotation on the fourth line with Boyd Gordon.

This might be a precursor to a bigger move, as Washington has been rumored to be linked with Florida on a possible Tomas Voukoun deal, Nashville for D Dan Hamhuis or perhaps with Edmonton for D Steve Staois.

Caps News Network will have more as news comes out as the 3:00 Eastern Trade Deadline rapidly approaches.

In the end, General Manager George McPhee didn't pull the trigger on any trade deadline deals this year, and the Washington Capitals will have to improve from within.

Plenty of players moved before the 3:00 p.m. eastern deadline, including several that at one point had been linked to the Capitals in some capacity. But after professing his desire to keep much of the young talent Washington has drafted and cultivated in the last few years, McPhee did just that.

And combined with the fact that he ultimately could not find a partner to take Michael Nylander's hefty contract to create cap room, McPhee fairly tied his own hands at this trading deadline.

All season long, Nylander's name has been featured prominently in trade rumors, at some point going to Chicago, Toronto, Nashville or Columbus--really anywhere that would take the remaining year and $5 million off the Caps' books. But Nyls' No Movement Clause made any deal subject to the player, and he was coy all along with his intentions.

"I'm just going to let it play out," Nylander said early Wednesday. "There's nothing I can do. In my case, I have a little say in what goes on. But I'm like everyone else." --Courtesy of Capitals Insider

There were some big names that traded places, but the really big names (Chris Pronger, Jay Bouwmeester, Ryan Smyth) stayed at home.

The Caps were rumored to be targeting a couple players that eventually did move, and unfortunately for the Caps, they went to conference rivals.

Bill Guerin went from the New York Islanders to Pittsburgh, giving the Penguins some much-needed grit and veteran leadership, and defenseman Derek Morris goes from Phoenix to the New York Rangers, along with Nik Antropov, formerly from Toronto.

McPhee is scheduled to address the media early this afternoon.

The Washington Capitals (40-20-5-85, first in Southeast) played a second straight game full of defensive indifference, sloppy passing and shoddy goaltending in falling to the Carolina Hurricanes 5-2 before 17,903 at Verizon Center last night. The non-capacity crowd halts the Caps' home sellout streak at 11 games.

The Capitals have lost four of their last six at home, all in convincing style.

Indicative of just how bad a night it was for the Capitals, Carolina's first three goals were a penalty shot and two short-handed markers. Patrick Eaves, who had scored three goals in 57 previous games, had a pair for Carolina, including one of the shorties.

The only highlight of the evening for Caps fans was Alexander Semin's 26th goal of the season and 100th of his career, scored from his knees in the left wing faceoff circle at the end of the second period, after the score was already 5-0.

Courtesy of Caps365

The Caps got another goal from Sergei Fedorov toward the end of the third period, but even that goal was marred. After scoring, several teammates came over to congratulate Fedorov and the pile took a tumble to the ice. Coach Bruce Boudreau was not happy at the possibility of perceived overexuberance.

"That was pretty embarrassing," Washington's coach said. "I'm sure if I was on the Carolina bench, I'd be going: 'Look at these idiots.' "

Boudreau's comments after the game were not limited to just the goal celebration.

"There are a lot of individuals making a lot of mistakes," Boudreau said. "And short of sitting them out -- I don't know if we're at the stage yet -- it's bringing them in, showing them, talking to them in front of the [other] players. When you try to do it individually, good things don't happen. Teams win games. Teams win championships. Individuals don't."

Forward Brooks Laich, who is sounding more and more like captain material every day, agreed with his coach.

"They just outworked us," he said. "I don't care what you say about talent and everything, this game is about heart. The team that works the hardest is usually the team that's going to win. Tonight, they wanted it more and that's not easy to sit here and say."

Rookie goalie Michal Neuvirth was shaky as well, allowing five goals on 30 shots, and appeared overmatched at times.

Washington outshot Carolina 41-30.

TRADE DEADLINE TODAY

Today is the NHL trade deadline, and while GM George McPhee has gone on records saying the team would probably not do anything "big", he said as much last season before pulling deadline deals for Fedorov and goalie Cristobal Huet.

Much of the season, Michael Nylander's name has been mentioned in trade rumors, and the fact that the veteran pivot has been a healthy scratch for four straight games adds fuel to the speculation.

Additionally, defenseman Tom Poti was pulled from the lineup last night at the last minute, raising questions about his future. The team said Poti was suffering from a tweak of the groin injury that shelved him earlier in the season, but last night was the first that the injury had been mentioned.

The Caps should be in the market for a stay-at-home defenseman, a veteran backup goaltender, and maybe a gritty forward.