So Jason Chimera has passed his physical, according to a Caps spokesman, and is on the flight to San Jose. Meanwhile, former Caps defenseman Milan Jurcina is headed to Columbus after Monday’s trade along with team captain Chris Clark. The 26-year-old Slovakian played two full seasons for the Caps and parts of two others. He appeared in 27 games ths season and had an even +/- rating with four assists. His booming shot can be a weapon – though it’s far from accurate most of the time. It’s a new lease on life for a player who was caught in a numbers crunch in Washington with nine NHL-caliber defensemen. One of them had to go. Unfortunately for Jurcina, he was targeted by the last-place Blue Jackets, a playoff team for the first time in franchise history last season but losers of nine in a row before Monday’s 1-0 overtime win vs. Detroit.

“I think for Milan it is really good,” Caps coach Bruce Boudreau said. “We had nine defensemen up here that could play, and you can’t play them all. Even though he’s right-handed and it is a gamble because we only have two righties and six lefties left, it makes room for other guys to come up here who are playing well.”