Around the Capitals Rink (2/19)

News is pretty slow given the Caps take a breather until tomorrow.
Tarik posts a nice article on the Post about newest Cap, prospect Sami Lepisto.  Lepisto was summoned from hershey after Tom Poti bruised his thigh.  It is unclear for now how long Lepisto will remain in DC, but one thing is for sure, Lepisto impressed Coach Bruce Boudreau and the Capitals brass in his play on Saturday against Tampa Bay.
I have watched Lepisto several times glass front at The Giant Center.  He has quickly, in his young AHL career, won over the masses in Hershey.  He has a tough streak in him, utilizes excellent closing speed, and positions himself where he needs and is supposed to be.  Lepisto leads all defensemen in Hershey with 32 points, 3 goals and 29 assists.  Lepisto also leads the Bears with a whopping +27 rating.

Mike Green has not had the opportunity to play with Lepisto in Hershey, since this was Lepisto’s first year with the Caps, but he was impressed right from Go.

“The first time I seen him, he cradled the puck,” defenseman Mike Green said. “That showed me a lot.”

Goalie Olie Kolzig was impressed as well, but hey, as a goalie that gets battered with shots, you need to do more to be completely impressive.

He moves the puck very well and skates very well, but the thing is, and every player has gone through it, in your first game you’re playing on pure adrenaline,” Kolzig said. “Let’s see five, six games into it, when the excitement wears off and you’re settling into the grind and other teams have a read on you.

Lepisto will likely rejoin Hershey when Poti return, but for now, his debut was quite impressive and gave the Capitals a glimpse of the near future at the blue line.   It is also exciting from the aspect of the 4 young guns the team already boasts in Alexander Ovechkin, Alexander Semin, Green, and Nicklas Backstrom, all of which are under 23.  Add Lepisto to that mix along with 2007 first rounder Karl Alzner, likely coming in 2008/09, and the Capitals have plenty of youthful reasons to grin.

“He’s a future Cap, that’s for sure,” Boudreau said.

In the Southeast … New Jersey batter Carolina yesterday 5-1 to keep the Southeast a 2 point conference.   Washington and Atlanta remain tied for second with 62 points, 2 behind Carolina’s 64.
Minors … Hershey won Saturday night 6-5 over the Albany River Rats,   Hershey got all 4 of the 6 goals from two guys, Grant Potulny and Kyle Wilson both had 2 goal nights.  Wilson finished with 4 points, adding two assists.  Joe Motzko  tallied 3 helpers and youngster Patrick McNeill has 2 assists.  Frederick Cassivi piked up his 13th win and is not 13-12.  Youngster Goalie Daren Machesney is an impressive 16-4 with a 2.33 GAA and a .924 save percentage.  The Bears stand in second place with 63 points,  13 behind division leader Philadlephia.
In the ECHL, the Caps affiliate, the South Carolina Stingrays, picked up a 6-2 win over Mississippi on Saturday night.   It was their 3rd straight win and 5th win of their last 8 games.  The Rays were powered by Cail Maclain who scored two goals and prospect Travis Morin who had a 4 point night, tallying 1 goal and 3 assists.  Chirs Chaput also had 1 goal and 2 assists.  South Carolina remains in second place in the Southeast division.