Defenseman will join Ovechkin in Ottawa Dennis Wideman wondered for a brief moment whether he had been traded, then took the phone call from general manager George McPhee and smiled.
Alex Ovechkin had vacation plans ready just in case. Those will have to wait until summer.
Wideman and Ovechkin will be the Capitals’ two representatives at the NHL’s annual All-Star Game, which is being held in Ottawa on Jan. 29. It is the first All-Star Game appearance for Wideman, a 28-year-old who had previously been traded three times in his career. That’s how he ended up in Washington at the trade deadline last season after spending the first five months with the Florida Panthers.
| Capitals note |
| The Capitals placed defenseman Mike Green on long-term injured reserve and recalled forward Cody Eakin from Hershey of the American Hockey League. Green reinjured his right groin in a 5-2 loss at San Jose on Saturday. He has missed 31 of Washington’s last 34 games and 58 of its last 78, including last year’s playoffs. He is not eligible to return until Feb. 1 at the earliest, which means Green will miss at least eight more games. |
Ovechkin, meanwhile, is used to this. He will tie a franchise record previously set by Peter Bondra with his fifth All-Star Game selection. His numbers aren’t what they used to be with 17 goals and 16 assists. That doesn’t even rank among the top 45 players in total points. But the event is as much about star power as stats, and so the NHL committee chosen to fill out the 36 remaining roster spots deemed Ovechkin worthy again.
“It’s great show,” Ovechkin said. “It’s going to be again in Canada. Everybody knows Canada crazy about hockey, and I think everybody going to be excited over there. It’s going to be nice.”
Wideman has helped pick up some of the slack left behind by injured defenseman Mike Green, an offensive force on the blueline who has played just 10 games this season. Wideman has eight goals and ranks fifth in the league among defensemen in points (29). He is also tied for fourth in goals and tied for fifth in assists (21). Wideman leads the Caps in average ice time (24:08), and 12 of his points have come on the power play.
“Guys that have been there eight, nine, 10 times, they might want a break if they’ve been there every year,” Wideman said. “But for me and for guys that get picked their first time, it’s really exciting to get a chance to go and see what it’s all about. I’ve been watching it on TV for years.”
It was unclear whether Caps center Nicklas Backstrom was snubbed by the league or the team simply chose to hold him out of the All-Star Game. Backstrom, who entered play Thursday with 42 points, good for 15th overall, has missed three games in a row with concussion symptoms after taking an elbow to the head last week. He has not participated in a practice or a skate since last Friday.
