Injury Bug Strikes Again
Joe Juneau began the season on the first line skating alongside
Adam Oates and Brian Bellows. But when Steve Konowalchuk fell ill
to a knee injury on opening night, Juneau was asked to center the
second line with Yogi Svejkovsky and Richard Zednik. That plan
was ruined, too, when Svejkovsky (ankle) and Zednik (shoulder)
were injured last week.
Now Juneau finds himself in the middle of his third line
combination of the young season with players that weren't even on
the opening night roster. His new partners? Tom Chorske and James
Black. Both players were acquired for high draft picks from the
New York Islanders and Chicago Blackhawks, respectfully.
For a team that lost 361 man-games to injury in 1996-97 and a
club record 476 man-games last season, this is no picnic. Similar
to Juneau, players are being placed on unfamiliar lines due to
the seven injured players that are unable to compete (see injury
list above).
How bad is it? Well, it's so haunting that general manager George
McPhee re-signed Andrei Nikolishin Tuesday to a two-year, $1.9
million deal. That's a bargain when considering Nikolishin's
improved statistics. Finally, the Capitals have someone capable
of centering a second line with Peter Bondra. As a result, Juneau
may return to the first line.
What's amazing is that negotiating contracts has never been
McPhee's strong point (refer to the Oates and Peter Bondra
situation last year and the Sergei Gonchar holdouts in each of
the past two seasons). Now, McPhee has found the bargain of a
lifetime in helping turn the Capitals locker room into a version
of "Pleasantville." Nikolishin's signing is crucial, because it
comes on the eve of a three-game road-trip to Western Canada.
"It's real frustrating to start the season the way we have in
terms of injuries," backup goaltender Rick Tabaracci told The
Washington Post. "We had a lot of guys who looked great in
training camp and had a lot of opportunities for some good young
players, but unfortunately we've had a pretty quick rash of
injuries.
"But if they're going to come at some point in the season, let's
hope it's now, and when it's over, it's over."
Despite the rash of injuries, the Capitals are off to a decent
start, although consistency has been hard to find due to the
turnstile-like environment in the trainer's room. Washington has
yet to win two consecutive games, but haven't had a losing streak
that big, either. Nor have the Capitals been blown out by the
opposition in the games they've lost. But don't let that fool
you.
Although Washington's 3-2-2 record looks promising, the biggest
problem besides injuries has been a lack of goal-scoring. Through
seven games, the Capitals have only scored more than two goals
once, in a 4-1 thrashing of the lowly Tampa Bay Lightning.
Similar to the recent playoffs, goaltender Olie Kolzig has been
the savior for his battered Capitals. Unfortunately, Kolzig
cannot score goals. He can only stop them from happening. At this
rate, the red bulb that signals goals will never be replaced.
Yet, coach Ron Wilson is looking the horrific Halloween goblin
straight in the eye and refuses to allow injuries to conquer his
team's psyche.
"The injuries are not an excuse," Wilson told The Washington
Post. "They're an opportunity for someone else to step forward
and take advantage of getting the extra ice time.
"Right now it's up to your top players to kick it up another
notch if it's possible, and then for the role players who get
added duty to take advantage of that opportunity. Everybody
always thinks, 'Oh, I should be playing more,' and it's funny how
your mind changes when all of the sudden you are playing more.
It's like, 'Oh, maybe I'd rather be playing less.'"
