Washington Capitals sign 3 free agents, lose one
The Washington Capitals continued remaking a roster today that has dazzled in the regular season, but disappointed in the playoffs the last two seasons. This ESPN report, that the Capitals had no plans to trade goaltender Semyon Varlamov, turned out to be completely false, since that's just what Washington did today, dealing him to the Colorado Avalanche. Varly has reportedly signed a two-year contract worth $5.5 million with the Avs.
The Capitals got a first and second round pick for Varlamov, which is a pretty decent haul for the oft-injured goaltender. On the other hand, if Colorado can keep Varly healthy, they got a heck of a net-minder. The encouraging development of Braden Holtby [1.79 GAA in 14 games] and Michal Neuvirth [2.45 GAA in 48 games] is what made this deal possible. It remains to be seen if the Caps are content with their two young goaltenders or if they will seek out a veteran at that position.
Team owner Ted Leonsis chimed in on the trade on his blog: , who signed a two-year deal worth $2.65 million with the Phoenix Coyotoes, but the arrival of Halpern made Gordon expendable.
A possible concern is that the Caps got older today, with Ward [30], Halpern [35] and Hamrlik [37] all joining the roster.
