Erat Scores First Goal, Caps Fans Wave Goodbye To Forsberg

Martin Erat was traded for Filip Forsberg, one of the Caps top prospects, just a few weeks ago.  The move brought with it a lot of negative fan reaction towards the trade and towards the Caps general manager George McPhee.

But on Tuesday night when an Alex Ovechkin's shot/pass hit Martin Erat perfectly on the stick for the easy tap in goal, Erat earned his first point as a Washington Capital and the trade was immediately vindicated.  At least, that's what a lot of people think (sarcastic or not)...check out the fan reaction on Twitter.

Caps Trade a Guy, Get Other Guys, Fans Are Like WHAT!?

Filip Forsberg has never played a single game as a Washington Capital.  He hasn't even played a game for the Hershey Bears.  However that didn't stop several fans on Twitter from calling for the firing of the Capitals general manager George McPhee after the Caps traded the prospect to the Predators for guy named Erat (not an online store to buy rats) and a minor leaguer.  So what do I think?  Hmmm.

Future? Check!

After last Thursday's signing of rookie Tom Wilson, Washington now has both of it's first round picks under contract.  The Capitals can now focus on the present, knowing that the future is on the right track.

Both the 11th pick Filip Forsberg and the 16th pick Tom Wilson are now signed to 3 year entry-level contracts worth $832,000.

After watching them both in training camp, it appears that Forsberg is closer to NHL form.  He is still young and fairly small, but with another year to work on his skills he should develop quickly.  Fellow Swede Nick Backstrom made the jump straight to the NHL and after Filip's contract in Europe is over, he may do the same.

Wilson on the other hand looked a little rougher around the edges in rookie camp.  From a physical standpoint he is ready to go.  The guy is a beast of a man.  6'4" around 200 pounds and a big strong hockey player.  However, he will need to work on his offensive skills if he wants to get on the ice at the wing for the Caps.

The Capitals are hoping that both these players will be around in a few years to make significant impacts on the ice.  Until then, the team knows that they will at least not have to worry about any holdouts, and both guys can focus on playing hockey.

Caps Development Camp: A Week Of Autographs

===================================================

We spent the entire week at Kettler Iceplex Covering Caps Development Camp.  This is our final entry from the week of hockey.

===================================================

Stewart arrived at the Ballston Mall at 7:00am.  He wasn't going to take a chance with any parking issues.  He wasn't going to try to fight the crowd.  He was going to get Mike Ribeiro's autograph.

The determined Caps fan staked out his territory soon after his arrival and nabbed the first position in line.  It didn't matter that nobody else was there.  It didn't matter that he would have to wait almost 3 whole hours.  Stewart would possess Mike Ribeiro's signature, and nobody would stop him.

(Center) New Caps Center Mike Ribeiro Signing Autographs - (Left) The Line At 9am - (Right) Stewart The Super-Fan

From morning practice sessions on Monday to afternoon scrimmages on Thursday to the Fanfest on Saturday, fans were autograph hungry.  Caps Development Camp was supposed to be a time for the players to learn about NHL-Style hockey but these young prospects learned something else; Caps fans are obsessed with autographs.

D-Camp Day 4: Kostenko Say, No Borscht For You!

===================================================

We will be live at Kettler each day at some point for Development Camp.  So follow us on Twitter @Dru90 @Camcoco10 and @TheDugsSports for live-tweets and check back all week for coverage.

===================================================

Sergei Kostenko was the 203rd player selected in the 2012 NHL Draft.  The Washington Capitals used their final pick, a seventh rounder to select the goalie from a junior hockey team in Russia.  But on Thursday afternoon, Kostenko looked more like an NHL veteran than a 19 year old in his first NHL development camp.

Kostenko made a number of saves that had the people in the crowd's jaws hit the uncomfortable metal bleachers at Kettler Iceplex.  The fans reacted with "oohs" and "ahhs" as well as a number of loud ovations for the Russian goalie.

The highlight of the Thursday scrimmage was a quick battle between first round draft choice Filip Forsberg and Sergei.  

Filip Forsberg & Tom Wilson Chatting With Caps Fans

===================================================

We will be live at Kettler each day at some point for Development Camp.  So follow us on Twitter @Dru90 @Camcoco10 and @TheDugsSports for live-tweets and check back all week for coverage.

===================================================

After camp on Wednesday afternoon some of the players came out to sign autographs and talk to the fans.  Those guys included the Caps 11th pick in the first round, Filip Forsberg from Sweden and the 16th pick Tom Wilson out of the OHL.

Here is Forsberg chatting it up with the crowd:

More photos after the jump

D-Camp Day 3: Picture Perfect

===================================================

We will be live at Kettler each day at some point for Development Camp.  So follow us on Twitter @Dru90 @Camcoco10 and @TheDugsSports for live-tweets and check back all week for coverage.

===================================================

Day 3 of Caps Development Camp took place in Arlington on Wednesday morning with 2 drill sessions and no scrimmage.  The crowd was light but there were still several hardcore Caps fans as well as a handful of puck bunnies.  (seriously they were discussing who was too young to date)

I spoke to one fan who took off from work in order to watch these young guys play.  He commented to me, "George is up there," and pointed above us at the railing.  The fan was mesmerized by his presence as McPhee watched like a hawk from the sky.

During the Second (B) Team drills, Forsberg was clearly who the fans had come to see.  Filip looked a little bigger with Tom Wilson not hovering around and there was just something about him that emits an aura of stardom.  The young Swede missed several open nets and dinged the post as well for the second straight day.  But those are young mistakes by a 17 year old who will have plenty of time to work on them in Sweden or the AHL or wherever he ends up over the next few years.

More Pictures After The Jump

D-Camp Day 2: Stand-Out Players

===================================================

We will be live at Kettler each day at some point for Development Camp.  So follow us on Twitter @Dru90 @Camcoco10 and @TheDugsSports for live-tweets and check back all week for coverage.

===================================================

The second scrimmage at Washington Capitals Development Camp took place on Tuesday afternoon at Kettler Iceplex in Arlington, Virginia with new coach Adam Oates looking on.  The intensity level during this scrimmage was much higher than Monday's iteration and the crowd was larger and louder as well.

One of the fan favorites at camp is Tom Wilson, the first round draft pick out of the OHL.  Wilson towers over most of the other players on the ice and he has provided some of the biggest hits of the camp so far.  At one point in the scrimmage, Wilson was tangled up with another participant and he took his opponent down UFC-style, one step away from throwing the KO punch.  However, during Tuesday's scrimmage Wilson was on the receiving end of a few big shots as well, one such shot laying him out on the ice. (Read about Tom Wilson's first day of camp)

Wilson, who lacked speed when competing in the earlier day's speed drills, can get the puck in good position with his strength, but needs to vastly improve his shooting and passing.

The other player that fans have been extra excited about is the Caps 11th pick Filip Forsberg out of Sweden.  Forsberg clearly needs to add some size to his frame, but he is only 17 years old and was outplaying many of the older guys at camp.  On Tuesday in the course of only a few minutes of ice time, Filip missed 2 "lay-ups", one with a completely empty net.  Forsberg could have easily had 2 goals and been the highlight of the scrimmage.

Andreas Martinsen, a free agent out of Norway, is another big player in the mold of Tom Wilson.  His skill is impressive considering his size, and he seems to have a nose for the puck on the offensive end.  Martinsen did fall down during suicide drills earlier in the day.

One of the quickest and niftiest players that seemed to be able to get off a good number of shots on goal despite his 5'8" size was T.J. Syder.  Syder was a free agent that signed with the Bears in March, so fans will get a chance to watch him up in Hershey this season.

David Vallorani, a free agent that played 4 seasons at UMASS-Lowell, scored an impressive long range goal and put another great attempt on net later in the scrimmage.

Stanislav Galiev looked like one of the most NHL players on the ice in terms of his size and skills, and he should get a chance to put in a lot of minutes in Hershey this season.

The Caps resume D-Camp on Wednesday morning, with no scrimmage scheduled for the day.

Thank You Pittsburgh, We're Touched

As the Pittsburgh crowd booed, Washington Capitals GM George McPhee walked to the podium and addressed the heckling.  "Thank you Pittsburgh, we're touched."  Seconds later the Capitals had selected Filip Forsberg, a center from Sweden.

Lots of fans were calling for some guy named Gredenko, but he tried to kill Jack Baur, so there was no way the Caps were drafting him.  And with KKoKKoookyKK already drafted by the Lightning, there was only one choice for the Capitals, Peter Filip Forsberg.


The best part about this pick is obviously that this guy is going to have a simple nickname, Flip.

According to the people covering the draft (who I hate but probably know more than me), Forsberg was the #3 ranked player in the draft pool.  However, he fell all the way to the 11th pick.  NFL players have fallen in drafts due to character issues, injuries, combine results...so no explanation for Filip's fall was interesting to me.


Pierre bald annoying guy says "The Capitals have had success drafting swedish players" in a tone that suggested that Forsberg was being passed on by teams because of his nationality.  Is there a certain style associated with Swedes?  Do they "flop" more?  Are they too blonde?  Is this racist/nationalist?

More Questions:

• Why is the draft in Pittsburgh?
• Why is the draft on a Friday night?
• What the hell was Pierre talking about with the Swede comments?
• When will Forsberg make an impact with the Caps (estimated time-frame)
• Why did Filip fall down to #11 if he was the 3rd best player?
• Why did the draft go off air at 9pm?
• Where does Filip play next year?  Hershey?
• The #1 pick in the draft's name is Nail!?