Niskanen's Uneven Play

Washington Capitals defenseman Matt Niskanen’s uneven play contributed to the Caps recent losing streak. He’s one of the expensive free agent defenseman General Manager Brian MacLellan picked up over the summer, Brooks Orpik being the other. At $40.25 million for 7-years, a lot was expected of the then 27-year old.

During the 2013-2014 NHL season, Niskanen posted a plus-33, first among NHL defensemen. He generated enough offense at 10G-36A-46P to end the season 13^th among blue liners. This, along with an average ice time of 21:07, were career bests for Niskanen. He thrived with the added opportunity he got in Pittsburgh because of injuries to that team. When the Caps played Detroit on October 24^th of this season and Coach Mike Babcock complemented both pickups and talked about how it was harder to play against teams with back ends that can move the puck up the ice, it felt like maybe MacLellan hit the lottery with his defensive pickups.

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Let's go Caps!

Caps MacLellan Era Starts by Adding Ex-Penguin Defensemen

Rookie General Manager Brian MacLellan signed defensemen Brooks Orpik to a staggering  5-year $27.5 million deal and Matt Niskanen to a 7-year $40.25 million deal. There is no question the Caps defense improved over last year's crop of 23 years old and younger crowd, but I'm perplexed by the length of these contracts. That's risky.  

Orpik turns 34-years old before the season starts. Did I mention that I hate him? Orpik is on the downside of his career. Did I mention that I hate him? Will his leadership help Mike Green return to his form by protecting his back? So hard to tell, but it will be interesting to watch. Did I mention that I hate him for his sometimes classless behavior and Pittsburgh whininess? It will be hard for me to root for him, but I can't argue with the fact that he's won a Cup.

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Let's go Caps!