Caps give veteran wing a one-year extension
The Capitals signed veteran right wing Mike Knuble to a one-year contract extension worth $2 million Monday.
The 38-year-old started slowly this season with just three goals and five assists through Dec. 1. He has been a consistent force since, however, with 21 goals and 11 assists in the last 57 games, including 13 points over the final 14 contests of the regular season.
“He’s like fine wine, I guess,” Caps coach Bruce Boudreau said. “He just keeps getting better. Last half of the year he’s been arguably our best player.”
| Caps notes |
| » Forward Matt Hendricks was nominated for the Masterton Trophy by the Washington, D.C., chapter of the Professional Hockey Writers Association. |
| » Hendricks is one of 29 nominees. The Masterton is awarded to the NHL player “who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey.” |
| » Defenseman Mike Green (concussion) again skated Monday at practice, and coach Bruce Boudreau said he was “ready for Game 1” of the Capitals’ Stanley Cup playoff first-round series vs. the New York Rangers on Wednesday. |
It is a salary cap-friendly deal for Washington, which had a cap hit of $2.8 million for Knuble the last two seasons and has seven more players who will be unrestricted free agents this summer. The deal provides general manager George McPhee with more financial flexibility and ends any uncertainty after Knuble’s sketchy start.
| FIRST ROUND |
| Caps vs. Rangers |
| Wed. – @ WAS – 7:30 p.m. |
| Fri. – @ WAS – 7:30 p.m. |
| Sun. – @ NYR – 3 p.m. |
| 4/20 – @ NYR – 7 p.m. |
| 4/23 – @ WAS – 3 p.m.* |
| 4/25 – @ NYR – TBD* |
| 4/27 – @ WAS – TBD* |
| * If necessary |
“But that’s just part of the business, and as a more veteran player they’re going to probably put you under the microscope a little bit more and make a harder decision on you sometimes,” Knuble said.
The 6-foot-3, 227-pounder is one of just eight active players with at least eight consecutive 20-goal seasons. Knuble posted 29 goals and 24 assists in his first season with Washington after signing as a free agent in the summer of 2009.
“I’ll be 39 years old next year, and I’ll still have the chance to play this game and play in Washington, and I’ll always be thankful for that,” Knuble said. “It’s something I wasn’t ready to give up yet.”
Knuble is closing in on 1,000 career games. He sits at 968 at the conclusion of the 2010-11 regular season. He has played 14 seasons with five teams — Detroit, the New York Rangers, Boston, Philadelphia and Washington and won a Stanley Cup with the Red Wings in 1998.
Knuble is taking a pay cut and acknowledged he could have gone out on the open market and scouted for a two-year deal or maybe more money. But Knuble, who makes his offseason home in the Grand Rapids, Mich., area, also has three young kids with questions of their own.
“You get to a certain point in your life, and things are not necessarily about dollars and cents all the time,” Knuble said. “Other things are important to you and your family. So I’m lucky I’ll still be able to take advantage of that and have some say where I’m playing, where we live, where our kids go to school. I’m thrilled about it.”
