The Capitals signed right wing Alexander Semin to a one-year contract extension Thursday worth $6.7 million. It’s the second year in a row Semin has accepted a one-year deal. This time he was set to become an unrestricted free agent July 1. The 26-year-old is second on the team with 18 goals this season and third in points with 35 despite missing 12 games because of injury.
“We were wide open to [long-term] discussions. We said we could do one, two, three years or longer if you want to talk about it,” Caps general manager George McPhee said. “The player came back and said they were comfortable with a one or a two and last week said a one-year deal would be fine. And we said, ‘OK.’ After that, it was a matter of working up a number.”
Semin — thanks in large part to a left groin injury — has cooled off after scoring 18 goals in his first 25 games this season. He then went 14 games without a goal, took a hit to the thigh in a game Jan. 8 against Florida and hasn’t played since, missing the last nine games. Semin did practice on consecutive days before Wednesday’s game at Atlanta, and McPhee thinks he will return shortly after the All-Star break.
| Caps notes |
| » Alexander Semin‘s new contract will pay him the exact same amount — $6.7 million — as Washington center Nicklas Backstrom. |
| » Semin was a first-round pick by the Caps in 2002, No. 13 overall. He is one of only 12 NHL players to top 25 goals each of the last four seasons. |
| » With no games until Tuesday because of the NHL All-Star break, the Caps sent rookies Mathieu Perreault, Braden Holtby and Jay Beagle back to Hershey of the American Hockey League. Holtby was an AHL All-Star selection. |
Semin posted his first 40-goal season in 2009-10 and was seventh in the NHL in goals and 13th in points (84). Semin, in his sixth season with Washington, has 156 goals since the 2006-07 season. Only nine NHL players have scored more during that time. The Caps hope his return can boost an offense that has dropped from first in the NHL (3.82 goals per game last season) to 17th (2.71 goals a game) this season.
“[Semin] has always been a streaky scorer, and when he gets hot, look out, he can score from anywhere at any time,” McPhee said. “We are trying to be better defensively, so we may have a lot of players who don’t get the numbers they typically get. But they’ll get good enough numbers to help us win.”
Washington next plays Tuesday against the Montreal Canadiens. With a 27-15-9 record and 63 points, the Caps are still second in the Southeast Division and fifth in the Eastern Conference playoff race. Defenseman Mike Green and star left wing Alex Ovechkin will participate in this weekend’s NHL All-Star festivities.
