Opinion

An Unsettled Lineup

Will Jason Chimera be wearing new colors soon? (Photo by Capitals Outsider)

After last season brought an end to the six-year playoff streak, the Washington Capitals made a change in the front office and behind the bench. In came longtime Nashville Predator head coach Barry Trotz and promoted to the title of general manager was former assistant GM Brian MacLellan. The changes were made with the belief that the team would get back to their winning ways and again make an attempt at winning Lord Stanley’s Cup. MacLellan made major changes in the offseason by bringing in defensemen Brooks Orpik and Matt Niskanen and the team would appear to be doing better then last season statistically, there are questions as to if this lineup is the right fit for the new head coach and GM.

Before his offseason injury, Tom Wilson was penciled in to the first line right wing spot as said by Trotz. With stars Alex Ovechin and Nicklas Backstrom not losing their spots anytime soon, the first line is set with those three. The second line has more questions as rookies Evgeny Kuznetsov and Andre Burakovsky have both seen ice time as the center between mainstays Marcus Johansson and Troy Brouwer. While Johansson appears to have finally found his place on the left wing, there have been questions surrounding Brouwer. He is currently sixth on the team in points with eight goals and six assists, fairly decent numbers, though he is two points behind third line right winger Joel Ward who has taken 11 less shots. Brouwer also has seen a lot of power play time in front of the net, but only has three power play goals to show for it. Part of the reason for the lower numbers can be attributed to the lack of proficiency all around by the Capitals power play, but there have been many times where Brouwer has completely missed the puck when it is sent to him. Although he is under contract through next season with a salary cap hit of 3.66 million, his offensive production has slowed from last year. While he is unlikely to be traded, his numbers need to come up if he is going to stay on the second line.

Another player who has seen his ice time go down over the past few weeks is Jason Chimera. Starting the season in his customary role as the third line left wing, he recently saw his spot given to Brooks Laich while Chimera has been put on the fourth line to the left of either of the rookie centers, Michael Latta and/or Jay Beagle. After his unnecessary and point costing penalty in overtime against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday the 11th, Chimera found himself sitting up in the press box watching the Capitals defeat Tampa Bay. While Chimera’s speed and forechecking have been consistent during his time with the Capitals, his point production has dropped. In 28 games he has six points, putting him 14th on the team in points with a 5.4 shot percentage. While a checking line player is not expected to lead the team in points, both of his former line mates in Eric Fehr and Ward have double digits in the points column in 10 and 16, respectively. His salary cap is 2 million, far more then any fourth line winger should be making. With the Capitals in need of salary cap relief and Chimera being under contract through next season, he may be the easiest player to move while freeing up a significant portion of salary cap space and having a readily available replacement who can contribute equally in Latta, Beagle or Hershey Bear forward Chris Brown. Any of the three can suit up next to either of the rookie centers and the production is unlikely to go down.

While Brouwer and Chimera are a concern for their lack of production, there is the concern that neither Mike Green or Brooks Laich are long term players for this team due to injuries. While both players when healthy contribute with numbers that equal their salary cap hit, neither has shown over the past few seasons that they can stay on the ice consistently. Green is only just returning from missing the past seven games and Laich has only played in 14 of the first 29 games of the year. While Laich is under contract through the 2016-17 season, Green is an unrestricted free agent after this season. MacLellan and his staff will have to decide if he is worth whatever Green an his agent may be seeking.  If they decide that he is not, it may make more sense to move Green before the trading deadline in the spring instead of possibly losing him for nothing in the summer. Should Dmitry Orlov recover from his ankle wrist injury this season, he could be a readily available replacement for Green on the third pairing with Nate Schmidt. While Orlov may not have the same offensive skill set that Green does, he has shown an ability to contribute offensively while costing the team less.

Laich is a different story, as he is under contract after this season. His production when is he healthy is solid, but his amount of games played is not. While they are unlikely to get anything of equal value in return for him due to his injury history, his 4.5 million salary cap could be used on another player acquired through a trade or during the summer. If Laich can stay healthy though, he is unlikely to be moved out.

In early December, TSN‘s Pierre LeBrun stated that he believes that MacLellan is “ready to move a number of parts.” The reason behind this rumor, and the likely hood that the team will make a trade in the coming weeks, is that even though the organization has made numerous coaching changes since the firing of Bruce Boudreau, some of the same problems exist. The team still gets down on itself when the opposition scores, and they still have problems giving up a goal shortly after scoring one themselves. The one consistent during all of this has been the players. While some have left, the main parts of this team have not.

LeBrun states that Ovechkin and Backstrom are not going to be the ones dealt. However, a shake up of this roster could be just what this team needs. The team has the same problems and has the depth at certain positions to afford to make a move. Changing the coaches and rearranging the front office has not fixed all of the problems. Maybe it is time to move a player or two and see what comes out of the shake up.

For more of my views on Capitals hockey, check out What The Puck Podcast every Thursday on iTunes, Stitcher and Tune In Radio!

Daniel Hayden

Daniel is a lifelong Caps fan, even during the lean years. He currently co-hosts a podcast called What The Puck?!, which focuses on the Caps, as well as updates on the Hershey Bears and South Carolina Stingrays, and NHL news. You can find it at the shows official website on iTunes, Stitcher Radio and as part of the Baltimore Sports Report Network and Capitals Hill.

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