Beagle, King are also named to 23-player roster The Capitals made their final roster cuts on Tuesday to reach the NHL-mandated 23-player limit heading into Saturday’s season opener against the Carolina Hurricanes at Verizon Center.
Forwards Jay Beagle, Mathieu Perreault and D.J. King made the team while rookie forwards Cody Eakin and Mattias Sjogren and defenseman Dmitry Orlov were sent to Hershey of the American Hockey League.
One of those 23 players may be unavailable for a while yet. Veteran defenseman John Erskine will likely start the season on injured reserve. He had shoulder surgery over the summer and says he is likely two weeks away from trying to gain clearance from team doctors to practice with contact. That would mean Washington would start the year with six healthy defensemen — though with road trips only to Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, recalling a seventh defenseman from Hershey on short notice poses little problem.
| Ovechkin mourning |
| Capitals forward Alex Ovechkin practiced with the team on Tuesday at Kettler Iceplex before flying to Moscow to attend funeral services for a paternal uncle who died suddenly Monday. Team officials expect Ovechkin to be back in the United States on Friday and available for the season opener Saturday at Verizon Center. Ovechkin missed two games early during the 2008-09 season after the passing of a grandfather. |
Perreault had been singled out for praise by Washington coach Bruce Boudreau after Sunday’s preseason finale against the Chicago Blackhawks. The 23-year-old has struggled early in his career to build on strong initial performances after being promoted from Hershey. That must change if he wants to do more than just make the team.
“It’s a day-to-day thing. It starts with your preparation,” Perreault said. “I’ve got to do better with preparation, I think. Get more sleep, get good food in me and take care of myself a little better and then from there come to the game and be in great shape ready to go. When my legs are there, there’s no problems. This is what happened to me last year. Sometimes I would get tired and then this is when my game wasn’t as consistent.”
Eakin and Orlov are still just 20 and Sjogren, at 23 and a native of Sweden, is in his first professional season in North America. It is likely all three will see time in Washington this season. But it didn’t make sense to have them sit on the bench watching when they could gain valuable experience at the AHL level.
And, according to Boudreau, Perreault just played better than the rookies during training camp. Eakin and Sjogren are both natural centers. Beagle was long expected to make the team as a fourth-line right wing. King is the Caps’ lone enforcer capable of fighting with the oppositions’ toughest players and protecting his teammates.
“Ice time is so valuable,” Boudreau said. “We think [Eakin, Orlov and Sjogren] are all NHL players. Might be in two games, might be in 10 games, might be 30 games. Down the road they’re NHL players. But where are they going to get the best training? Is it sitting on the bench or in the stands or is it playing in the second-best league in the world?”
