Usually at this time of year the Washington Capitals are a distant memory and an icy dream in the warm hearts of their fans. Today, though, we watched 14 likely team members (12 returning Capitals plus Karl Alzner and Jose Theodore) practice together at Kettler Capital Iceplex. This unusual level of commitment is a positive sign for a team on the rise. Even better, we are pleased to report that Caps captain Chris Clark looks ready to play hockey.

The former 30-goal scorer missed most of last season after he pulled his groin and it didn’t heal properly. Team officials have said they expect him to participate in training camp, which begins September 20, but Clark also said he had scheduled one more visit to a specialist in Vancouver, so it still sounded fairly iffy. Today, almost two weeks ahead of training camp, Clark participated in all the same drills and non-contact scrimmages as his teammates. He kept up with everybody and clearly had a good time.

At one point, while waiting for a skating drill to start, Clark collected a loose puck in the corner and wristed a shot 200 feet toward the opposite goal. It hit the post and the few in attendance shrugged. What did it matter if a guy who no longer even has to be the team’s second best goal-scorer can’t quite hit an empty net from two hundred feet away? How often is he going to have to shoot from that far? At least he was close. At least he was skating and shooting again.