For a morning skate, it was kind of busy at Kettler Iceplex this morning. The Caps said that forward Alex Semin will return tonight. That will be a boost to a team struggling to score goals. Semin has 18 goals and 17 assists, but hasn’t played since Jan. 8. He missed 12 games total, but wasn’t completely healthy during his 14-game goal drought in December and early January.
“Let’s give [Semin] credit here. He played hurt for three weeks and when he wasn’t having success because he was playing hurt that’s when he decided to shut it down,” said Caps coach Bruce Boudreau. “In reality I think he got hurt in the beginning of December or in the middle of December and he just kept playing on it.”
This will also be Semin’s first game since signing a one-year, $6.7 million contract extension last month. There’s no questioning the impact he can bring to the lineup. The Caps have topped three goals in a game just twice since Dec. 21. That’s a span of 18 games. The previous two seasons it seemed to happen almost every other night.
“We’ll see how [Semin] plays. He was struggling a little bit before his injury, but the rest and time off should invigorate him,” Boudreau said. “When he’s on top of his game he’s in the Top 5 players in the NHL. I don’t think that’s a stretch by saying that…And if he’s on top of his game it gives us another line that can really bring it offensively. And that’s what you need. You need people not being able to focus on one line.”
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