The Washington Capitals and Alexander Semin have decided to continue their relationship together for yet another season, with the news that the team has signed Semin to another 1-year deal, this time worth $6.7 million. This deal will go into effect for the 2012 season and it reportedly does not have any clauses that would guard against trades or any other roster transaction.
In the new "defense first" era in Washington, the offensive numbers are down across the board, making no exception for Semin. In 41 games this season, Semin has 35 points (18 goals and 17 assists), ranking him 85th in pool scoring. The new system in place by the coaching staff to improve the overall game of the team has really taken its toll on the team's scoring forwards, as Semin is down from his 2010 ranking of 20th.
Already this season, the Capitals have signed John Erskine to a contract extension and now with Semin locked up for another year, this brings the Capitals totals up to 15 players for the 2012 season, for an annual cap hit of $44.8 million, which under $15 million away from the 2011 salary cap, which has the potential of going up again for next season. With a good portion of their core group already locked up, the Capitals should be in fine shape to have a good team dressed for opening night next season.
It's one heck of a raise for Semin today, which can be spun in a couple of ways from the peanut gallery. Either he's still a very valued member of the Capitals organization, who has a vote of confidence from the coaching staff, or he's just been guaranteed money in 2012 from where ever he plays, thinking there might be a deal in the works to send him to another NHL city. The latter seems a little far-fetched, since there are likely few teams willing to take on that massive contract for a player who has been known to be a bit of a flake. Personally, I would find it hard to justify spending so much cap space on Semin.
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