Capitals general manager George McPhee was conflicted about his trade deadline plans last week. At this point he has no more clarity about his struggling squad. Washington earned a critical win at first-place Florida last week to keep a Southeast Division title and a No. 3 seed in the Stanley Cup playoffs within reach. Then in the span of three days it lost at Tampa Bay on Saturday, 2-1, and was embarrassed at Carolina – the worst team in the Eastern Conference - 5-0 on Monday.
So what do you do? The Caps could be just a single win from jumping back into first place. Or, believe it or not, they are just six points above the Hurricanes and New York Islanders for worst record in the conference. That’s the thin line between buying pieces at the NHL’s trade deadline – 3 p.m. on Feb. 27 – or selling. Over a couple of posts, let’s look at players Washington has to offer if a retooling is in order. Given the amount of young, cost-controlled players on the roster I’d reject any use of the term “rebuild”. Obviously, a win Wednesday at Ottawa means it’s open season on Stanley Cup talk again and all “sellers” questions are prohibited. Until they lose at home to Montreal on Friday, of course.
First up in this exercise: Defenseman Dennis Wideman. An unrestricted free agent at the end of the season. He still has a decent shot at topping his personal-best of 50 points. Ranks fifth in the league among all defenseman with 38 points (10 goals, 28 assists) and – for what’s it’s worth – was named an NHL All-Star for the first time last month. Wideman’s shooting percentage is a career best (8.3%), but not out of line with his 6.1% mark entering the season.
But players like this get paid on the open market. Toronto defenseman John-Michael Liles was just awarded a four-year, $15 million contract extension before he even reached free agency. He is 31 – more than two years older than Wideman – and has 22 points this season. Some would argue the Maple Leafs are insane for handing out that deal. But welcome to the open market. It IS insane. And in the summer teams are desperate to shell out cash to get better fast. Wideman’s salary-cap hit is $3.9 million in 2011-12. At this point, it’s hard to believe he gets less than $5 million. If you’re the Caps, with right-sided players like Mike Green (RFA), John Carlson (RFA) and Dmitry Orlov under team control, would you really pay Wideman that much?
If McPhee believes center Nicklas Backstrom (concussion) is out for the season and his team isn’t a contender anyway then it stands to reason trading players like Wideman becomes easier. But only if you can get a piece back that make sense for next season. Would have to find a team that doesn’t mind giving up an offensive forward one month before the playoffs and needs a puck-moving defenseman. Don’t see Washington moving a guy like Wideman simply for draft picks or low-ceiling prospects because for that return you might as well roll the dice and keep him. Maybe you sneak into the postseason even without Backstrom and then get him back for the playoffs.
Follow me on Twitter @bmcnally14
