Ballston, Va. has been invaded; the small Virginia neighborhood is housing over 70 NHL players from Russia, Sweden, Finland and Canada for Washington Capitals training camp.
Camp started Sept. 6 for the rookies, with the veterans joining them Sept. 13. This year's camp is particularly important for the Caps, as they have several new faces and many positions to fill. The team is looking to improve on their Southeast Division Championship season that landed them in the second round of the playoffs.
Over the past three years the Washington hockey franchise has made several strides towards an appearance in the Stanley Cup Finals. It started with a jersey redesign two years ago and may end with a stud-rookie taking the starting goalie spot this year.
Last year's talk of the playoffs was Semyon Varlamov, a rookie who was thrust into the spotlight in the second game of the first round. Veteran Jose Theodore was the original keeper of the pipes, but after a poor showing in his first game against the New York Rangers, he was replaced.
Varlamov, a native of Russia, took over the job and showed the world that he can handle the pressure. He recorded seven wins and two shutouts in his limited time in the playoffs. He is looked at as the future of the franchise but is not guaranteed the spot this year.
Head Coach Bruce Boudreau has already named Theodore as the team's number one goalie coming into camp. That said, if Varly is clearly better than Theo, you can bet the rookie will be protecting the crease Oct. 1.
On top of the battle for goalkeeper, training camp will feature several new faces that are looking to make an immediate impact. The most prominent is Mike Knuble, the former Philadelphia Flyer who signed with Washington in the offseason. A tall forward, standing at 6'3'', Knuble is going to specialize in crashing the net, something that Caps could not do in the playoffs.
It was clear that there was no big man to dominate the front of the net during the power-play for the Caps last season. Knuble is going to be looked at as that presence. He is a bruising style forward on a team that sorely lacked the ability to get the dirty, doorstep goal.
The veteran offseason signing isn't the only new face to Capitals training camp. Rookies John Carlson, Braden Holtby, Michal Neuvirth, Joe Finley and Anton Gustafsson will all be in attendance vying for the right to be on the team's opening day roster. While almost all of them are long shots to be on the ice for Washington's season opener against the Boston Bruins, a few of them have the potential to be a late camp surprise.
Carlson has the best shot at being the surprise name added to the roster. Despite being only 18 years old, Carlson is a big defenseman who would improve an aging, skill-oriented core. Carlson was the talk of the town during Capitals development camp in July and his performance on the ice showed why.
During several scrimmages, the Massachusetts native was all over the ice. Carlson has shown that he has the ability to clear the puck out, back check, move the play up the ice, make a move on a break away and set up the tic-tac-toe goal. He is, in essence, the complete package, a defender that has the defensive abilities of a Brian Pothier but the offensive upside of Mike Green.
Rookies are not the only important people to watch out for at training camp. Another training camp means the Capitals budding superstars are a year older. Alex Semin, Mike Green, Brooks Laich and that guy from Russia named Alex Ovechkin are sure to impress. While these guys are the obvious players to keep an eye on, fans and media alike must look at what David Steckel does with his time in camp.
The Wisconsin man, who shoots left-handed, came into his own in the playoffs last year. It appeared as if Steckel may have finally realized his size and used it to his advantage last year against the Pittsburgh Penguins, scoring several important goals including one in overtime.
Whether the focus of training camp is on Varlamov, Knuble, Carlson or some other sleeper, a productive camp is important for the team. If Washington is to improve on its path to success, then this year should mean the team is an Eastern Conference Finals contender. By all means, it is too early to makes those predictions, but with training camp starting, it isn't too early to start getting excited for hockey season.
You can reach this staff writer at atomlinson@theeagleonline.com.
