As the 2011-12 season has come to a close, the time has come to evaluate what it meant for the Capitals, both as a team and as individuals.  As such, as the summer progresses, I will be writing a report card, or individual evaluation, for each player who played in 9 (~10%) of the team's games, or 4 playoff games. Next up is center Nicklas Backstrom, who finished his fifth NHL season, all with the Capitals, on this past year's campaign.

Season Summary: Marred by a concussion that caused him to miss 40 games between early January and late March, Backstrom's 2011-12 campaign was very good nonetheless.  Playing in 42 games, Backstrom was the only Capital to average more than a point per game and led the team in scoring for more than a month after he was hurt on January 3rd - it took Alex Ovechkin that long to catch him.  All told, the Swedish pivot had 14 goals, 30 assists, 24 penalty minutes, and a minus-four rating.  The bad rating was fueled by the fact that he was both unlucky (PDO of 986, fourth worst among Capitals forwards), and the fact that Capitals goaltenders only had a .900 save percentage when he was on the ice (second worst among forwards).  Backstrom was also one of only five Washington forwards to have a positive corsi rating for puck possession at 3.76, though he did it against very soft minutes. Grade: A-

Role Play: Coming off a very poor (by his standards) 2010-11, Backstrom was the Capitals' best player when he was healthy, producing steadily offensively and playing reliable defense as Washington's only above-average center.  His injury was obviously a huge loss for the Capitals, and with him out of the lineup, the team struggled mightily, but it't not in any way his fault that Rene Bourque decided to behead him.  In short, when he was able to lace them up, Nicky was a monster, which is what I expected - he's too good a player to be as average as he was two seasons ago. Grade: A

Playoffs: Backstrom played in 13 playoff games and was second on the team in playoff scoring with two goals, six assists, and a plus-two rating.  One of his goals was a game winner, in game two against the Bruins, and it was actually his suspension for cross checking Rich Peverley that led to Mike Knuble being inserted to the lineup - which helped DC win their series against Boston.  Backstrom was also the only (!!!) Capitals forward to have a positive puck possession rating in the playoffs at 0.27 - and this time, he did it against middle of the pack competition instead of easy competition.  Overall, I was impressed by a player who only played in four regular season games after a concussion before starting postseason play. Grade: A-

Future Potential: Now 24, Backstrom has become the best player on the Capitals, replacing Alex Ovechkin.  There is nothing that Nick cannot do - he can score, pass, run a power play, play defense, win faceoffs at a respectable clip, and possess the puck.  He is reliable, smart with the puck, and if the Caps are to win a Cup in the next eight years, he will be right at the center of it as the best and most complete player on the roster (pending a trade for one of the top 10 players in the NHL).  For his skill set and reliability, Backstrom's contract (eight more years at $6.7 million per) is a good value for all that he brings, too.  The only variable is the possible recurrence of concussion symptoms, which - as we all know from watching Sidney Crosby - are volatile and unpredictable. Grade: A

The next and final report card will feature winger and captain Ovechkin.

As always, follow me on Twitter here for news and updates.

The big day is near.

With the end of June right around the corner, the day Caps fans have been eagerly waiting for is near. It’s going to be amazing. People will talk. Money will be spent. Lives will change.

After June 30^th, nothing will be the same around here.

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Are you interested in becoming a professional sports writer? Want to enhance your resume by covering professional hockey as a credentialed reporter?

Rock the Red is seeking 2-3 local college students to intern with us for next hockey season.  Successful applicants will have strong writing skills, a good knowledge of sports in general and hockey in particular, and a desire to become a professional sports writer.

Applicants must:
-Be enrolled at a Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Area college or university.  Writers will be expected to cover 12-20 Capitals home games and home practices.
-Be a rising sophomore or higher and must have passed English 101 and Journalism 101 or equivalents.
-Prior sports writing experience is preferred.
-Application must include a resume, a college transcript, a cover letter stating your college plans and career goals, contact information for 2 references (professors or editors), and 3 writing samples.  Please do not include your student number or social security number in your application.
Applicants will be rated upon materials provided and will be contacted for interviews this summer.

Please forward your application materials to:  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

With the Washington Capitals entering a summer of salary cap uncertainty with a new Collective Bargaining Agreement looming, they still have several decisions to make regarding their pending free agents.  Chief among their restricted free agents this off-season is defenseman John Carlson.  Carlson made a base salary of $787,500 last season, the last of his entry-level deal, meaning the qualifying offer tendered to him by the Washington Capitals is for at least $826,875.  Judging by other young defenseman around the league, Carlson should earn quite a bit more than that as a top-pairing defenseman, likely a 4-year deal worth $3 million per season.

Read more about Carlson's expected new income!

Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images

Photo by Elsa/NHL via Getty Images

Every time a team lifts the Stanley Cup, a different emotion runs through my body.

When the Ducks won in 2007, it was happiness for Chris Pronger, who was my favorite player growing up and had finally won his first (and now, seemingly, last) championship.

When Detroit won in 2008, it was relief that the Penguins had not.

When the Penguins and Bruins won in 2009 and 2011, respectively, it was disbelief and anger, pure jealously for archrivals.

But when the Kings won on Monday night, it was something completely different.   It was sadness.  Not jealousy, just sadness.

Don’t get me wrong.  I was thrilled to see the Kings win the Stanley Cup and see players like Drew Doughty, Anze Kopitar, and Jonathan Quick celebrate on the ice like ten year olds.  It was an unbelievable moment, just like it always is.  The Stanley Cup is the hardest trophy in all of sports to win, and winning it is the crowning achievement for any hockey player.  You walk together forever with the men you win it with.

Watching that moment, however, made me think of the Capitals more than I have in years past.  Of course, I was sad because for another year, a team other than the Caps are popping $200 bottles of champagne in their locker room.  But also because I think the Caps are not closer, but farther away, than last season and in seasons past, when good, deep teams had come unglued in the playoffs for whatever reason.

Coming off another season in which they fell woefully short of preseason expectations, the Capitals are in a state of turmoil.  Currently without a head coach, whoever is pegged to be the next bench boss is likely to be a rookie, based on George McPhee’s track record; those rarely win the Stanley Cup.  In addition, having so much turnover among head coaches often does not lead to success. Since 1994, more than half of the teams to have three head coaches in two years since did not make the playoffs in the first year under their third coach and only one hoisted the Stanley Cup.

Moreover, the Kings have the pieces to set up a dynasty at important positions.  They have three of the very best centers in the NHL in Mike Richards, Kopitar, and Jeff Carter.  The Capitals have one center of that quality – Nicklas Backstrom.  The Kings have Doughty, a top-five defenseman on both sides of the puck, and a deep defensive corps that blends youth and experience.  The Capitals may have that soon, but they don’t now.  The Kings have Quick, who is now undoubtedly the best goaltender on the planet, while the Capitals have not had a true bona-fide number one goaltender in ten years.  They are a favorite every year now.

When looking at this past year’s Capitals team, you just didn’t see that.  The Capitals had a below average regular season, and they never really looked like a bona fide Stanley Cup contender to me.  Yes, they came together and won seven playoff games to match their deepest plunge into the postseason in 14 years.  But I never really got the feeling that they were good enough, really good enough, to bring it all home.  I sure wanted to, but I never saw it.

It sucks.  Especially with the way the three seasons before this past one played out.  You knew that the Capitals were a very good team after those seasons.  Now, you wonder, while watching a great team like the Kings win it all.

And that, friends, is why Monday night made me sad.  We all know how badly all of us want it as fans, and in that moment, success and achievement seem so far away.  But at the same time, it also gave me hope.  Because eventually, it will come.  It may not come next year, or the year after that, or any time in the next decade.  But it will come.

One day, we will get our damn parade.  We will get the champagne and the raucous celebrations.  We’ll get to celebrate like little kids while watching our team do the exact same thing.  We will all stand and cheer when the captain of the Capitals receives Stanley from the commissioner.

And all of this?  Well, all of this will be worth it.

The Los Angeles Kings won the Stanley Cup on Monday night, defeating in New Jersey Devils inside Staples Center to capture the first championship in franchise history.

Taking advantage of a five minute major for boarding handed to Steve Bernier in the first period, the Kings scored three goals during the major power play – one each from Dustin Brown, Jeff Carter, and Trevor Lewis.  The Devils never had a chance after that, as the team that had scored first in the Final was 5-0 up to that point.  Carter would score another and Adam Henrique would keep his team from being shut out at the end of the second period, but all that achieved was a bit of dignity.  The Kings would add two more, one into an empty net and one right after Martin Brodeur was replaced, and closed it out with a 6-1 win.

Jonathan Quick was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy for playoff MVP, the second consecutive American goaltender to win the award.  Quick, who was the reason the Kings even made the playoffs in the first place, was superb all playoffs and really only had one below average game: game five of the Final.

And so closed one of the most dominant postseasons in the history of the National Hockey League.  For the first time in history, an eight seed won the Stanley Cup, and they did it while only losing four contests and conceding 30 goals across 20 games played.  Los Angeles took a 3-0 lead in all four series, the first time in NHL history that happened, and never felt any pressure except in the Final.

With the Collective Bargaining Agreement set to expire on September 15 and negotiations far apart, it could be the last hockey we see in 2012.  But for now, it’s time to celebrate the Kings – who smoked everyone on their way to the start of a dynasty.

The Black Parade, indeed.

Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty

NEWARK, N.J. – For the New Jersey Devils, a hero has arisen from an unlikely source.

Bryce Salvador, who missed all of the 2010-11 season because of injuries and did not score during this past regular season, scored his fourth goal of the 2012 Playoffs in the second period Saturday night to lift the Devils to a 2-1 victory inside the Prudential Center.

“It’s pretty impressive,” Devils goaltender Martin Brodeur said of Salvador.  “We’re looking for him to score a goal all year, so he peaked at the right time if you ask me. But I think it’s great and deserved, especially where he came from with spending all year on the sidelines.”

With their victory, the Devils now trail the Stanley Cup Final three games to two, heading back to Los Angeles for game six Monday night.

“We’ve gotta win another game to keep playing,” said Devils head coach Peter DeBoer.  “I said all along that our group has a confidence in ourselves.”

In a first period that was played at breakneck speed so unlike the other games in the series, it was the Devils who would strike first.  On the power play slightly past the midway mark of the opening frame, Zach Parise cashed in on a net mouth scramble.  The American captain, who may play his final game for the Devils in the next five days, scored for the first time in the series and ignited his team when they needed him most – especially during a lackluster first period.

“Right, we needed the first goal,” said Peter DeBoer.  “Regardless of how it looked…especially because I thought they controlled the first period and they were the better team in the first period.  It was a little surprising, I don’t know if it was nerves for us or what.  But they controlled the period, and we capitalized on a mistake.”

“We survived out there,” added Brodeur, who made 25 saves and was named the games first star.

Read more here.

NEW YORK, N.Y. -- Ever since Dale Hunter stepped down as the head coach of the Washington Capitals on May 14, everyone has had their say over who should be the next head coach of the Capitals.  I published a list of qualities that I wanted in the next coach, but I did not name a single guy.

That’s because I don’t think there is one man that I think can lead the Capitals to the Promised Land.  There are a few out there with potential in my mind.

Marc Crawford, who won the Stanley Cup with Colorado in the late 1990s, is one.  Craig MacTavish, who last coached the Oilers in their miracle run to the 2006 Stanley Cup Final, is another.  Mike Sullivan, a current assistant to John Tortorella with the Rangers, is a third.

But late Thursday, TSN’s Bob McKenzie, while enjoying some $17.95 in-flight internet, responded to a question about the Caps’ coaching search by Adam Vingan of NBCWashington.com.

“Do not seem to be in a hurry,” McKenize tweeted.  “Asst Dean Evason will get a look.”

Um, no.

Look, I have nothing against Dean Evason.  Really, I don’t.  I think he’s a fine assistant, and he’s always done his job well, as far as I can tell.  He’s been in Washington for seven seasons now.  He has paid his dues, for the most part.  Eventually, he will probably get his shot as a head coach in the NHL.

It should not be with the Washington Capitals.  And the reasoning is simple: it’s more of the same.

It’s common knowledge for most that Albert Einstein once said: “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, and expecting a different result.”

Ta-dahhh!

Since George McPhee and Ron Wilson were named General Manager and Head Coach, respectively, before the 1997-1998 season, McPhee has never once hired a head coach that had NHL coaching experience.  Not one.

Read more about the Caps' former rookie bench bosses here.

We learned yesterday that the Wasington Capitals informed winger Mike Knuble they would not be re-signing him for the 2012-12 season.  In an interview with Elliot in the Morning today, he admitted his 2011-12 season was very trying but still wants to "play this game for as long as [he] can."

Knuble, who has played three seasons with the Caps, tallied 220 regular season games, contributing 59 goals and 52 assists during his time in the red, white, and blue. In 24 playoff games with the Caps, he netted 6 goals and added 5 assists for 11 points.

According to Merriam-Webster, the definition of rival is "one of two or more striving to reach or obtain something that only one can possess; one striving for competitive advantage."  An archrival is "a principal rival."  For most NHL hockey teams, a principal rival is a team in their division, one that they have to duke it out with to win a top-3 seed in the conference and home-ice advantage, as division rivals play each other 6 times per season and only one team can win the division any given year.  For the teams that do not win the division, they fight with other teams in their division and conference for the remaining 5 playoff seeds, and conference opponents play each other 4 times per season.  Once the playoffs begin, playoff rivalries take shape, as two teams enter each series and only one will emerge victorious.  It is not just the Stanley Cup at stake, players that perform well in the Stanley Cup playoffs nearly always see a pay increase in their next contract, have better job options after retirement, and so on.  Teams that perform well in the playoffs have an easier time attracting quality free agents, their executives stay employed longer, and they sell more merchandise.  Rivalries have real meaning beyond just what happens on the ice and at the bank, too, as the fans will pay more money to see rivalry games, and those games often get prime-time television spots and national coverage.  Like Colorado-Detroit in the 1990s, Boston-Montreal every year, and Alien versus Predator, some rivalries never seem to go away, no matter how old or outdated they seem. 

Considering the Washington Capitals play in the Southeast Division, their only divisional archrival candidate from the past 18 seasons is the Tampa Bay Lightning.  The Lightning were a threat for the 2011 division crown and also knocked the Capitals out of the playoffs in 2003 and 2011.  None of the other teams have been good enough consistently to be a threat in the regular season, and the Capitals have also never faced any other division rival in the playoffs.  The Lightning never seem to be good enough consistently to hold the mantle for very long, though, and that creates a rivalry vacuum for the Capitals within the Southeast.  The next best thing to a division rival is a conference playoff rival, a team you play in the playoffs every season, a team you hate so much even your star players get into fights.  It's a team that you have clear memories of events that had nothing to do with the outcome of the game, whether it's the fans, the coaches, or the fights.  That new primary rival for the Capitals over the past four seasons has been the New York Rangers, and they are the team's new archrival. 

Read on.