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A hockey-starved crowd filled the Kettler bleachers Saturday for the final scrimmage in the Washington Capitals' 2009 development camp for prospects. The Blue and White teams went at it for a full three periods Saturday with the White team winning, as they've done in every game this week. Of course, which teams won and lost was of less concern than the young players' individual performances -- DCist was there to dig out the good stuff.
Have the Caps Found Another Varly?
Accurately predicting which of these guys may end up in a Capitals jersey this season is difficult; after all, there's still two months to go before preseason begins. Six players accomplished the jump from summer camp to the big time last year, including goaltender Simeon Varlamov.
Braden Holtby, an 2008 draft pick and a goalie like Varlamov, played for the Western Hockey League's Saskatoon Blades last year and spent time in Hershey practicing with the Bears during the AHL playoffs. In this, his second development camp with Washington, Hotlby allowed three goals in three scrimmages (though each goalie only played a period and a half of each game). Not bad, especially since he reminds Boudreau of the rookie marvel who won a franchise record five consecutive playoff games last season.
"You could tell," Boudreau said. "Just like Holtby you can tell is not bad, and we feel that...Varly was the same way."
Holtby said he and his goalie coach worked out a system last year to keep his mind from wandering in the net: dividing each period into 5-minute increments, the same system used by USA goalie Jim Craig during the Miracle on Ice in Lake Placid.
"That's one of the biggest things as a goalie. You have so much time alone," Holtby told DCist. "You want to keep your mind busy so you're not thinking the negative thoughts."
We didn't get a chance to ask Holtby if he plans to adopt the award-winning Varly mullet, though.
For the most part, Boudreau said the real test for all of the prospects is in September, when the Capitals host their rookie development camp, training camp, and begin playing preseason games. Boudreau noted that's when he really gained confidence in Varlamov last year, especially after he stopped 20 of 20 shots against Carolina in the team's first preseason game.
"I think the big barometer for us is watching them in September to see how much they've learned and what kind of shape they come in," Boudreau said.
Those Who Made an Impression on DCist -- and Boudreau
Before the camp, we read to keep an eye out for young left winger Michael Dubuc. We didn't have to try too hard, since Dubuc scored two goals in Saturday's scrimmage and his shots in warm-ups stood out like Pavarotti in a boys' choir. The 21-year-old spent last season at Hershey and the ECHL's South Carolina Stingrays and has an obvious knack for getting the puck in the net. Center Mathieu Perreault, who also spent last season in Hershey, could also see playing time for the Capitals this year. (Boudreau said Monday that "worst case scenario, we know we can call him up at any point this year.")
On defense, Boudreau made sure to mention both Dmitri Orlov, an '09 draft pick, and Zack Miskovic, who signed as a free agent and spent four years playing college hockey at St. Lawrence, where he didn't miss a single game.
"We've got, I think, as much depth as any organization in the NHL [on] defense," Boudreau said.
Speaking of defensemen: while looking for highly touted and hard to miss 6'7" defenseman Joe Finley, it was impossible to ignore 6'0" defenseman Brett Flemming, who, on a run-in with Finley in the first period, left the aptly nicknamed "Big Joe" shaking his head as he skated away.
"I figured if I stopped, he'd just run me over, so I figured I'd put a little weight into him," said Flemming, who said he thinks he needs to get stronger in light of the collision. "[Finley]'s probably got about 70 to 80 pounds on me, so it didn't work out the best."
Flemming also earned a nod in Boudreau's quick hit list of defensemen.
"We liked the Flemming kid," Boudreau said. "There was a lot of good defensemen that opened our eyes. I think the future, you know, is looking very good for us."
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Caps coverage in the summer? Pinch me!