Photo illustration by Ian Oland.

Guess what tomorrow is? That’s right! Canada Day!

It also happens to be NHL Free Agency, the wildest and kookiest hockey day of the year. The Capitals aren’t expected to make any world-shaking moves this year, but you never know. The spirit of capitalism can possess even the most level-headed of GMs and make them act like crazy people, so stay tuned here tomorrow while we update you on what’s going down. The Caps have a few holes to fill, a few free agents who will find new homes — and who knows, maybe McPhee will trade Backstrom for Jeff Skinner or something, and we’ll all have to drink ourselves into oblivion.

Anything is possible! But luckily, not everything is likely, so follow us below the jump for your Guide to Free Agency 2012.

How much cap space do the Caps have?

from capgeek.com

The Caps have $20,805,428 to spend this offseason, but they also have a good part of their own roster to re-sign. Expect most of the unrestricted free agents to walk; expect most of the restricted free agents to sign. The Caps have made qualifying offers to Jay Beagle, Mathieu Perreault, Mike Green, and John Carlson, and though Perreault and Green may warrant some thought, they will likely be signed.

Once the Capitals have taken care of their own free agents, expect them to have anywhere from $10-15 M to spend. With that, they could buy this beautiful home in McLean, Virginia! Alternately, they could sign some hockey players.

Who is likely leaving?

Photo credit: Clydeorama

Mike Knuble:  Shut up. We’re not crying, it’s raining on our faces.

Jeff Halpern:  We bear no ill feelings for the former Caps captain as he gets set to leave Washington. Quite the opposite, in fact, Halpern filled the role that he was brought in to fill admirably, and was good-natured about adversity when things weren’t going his way. Jay Beagle seems set to step into his shoes, but we have no issues recommending Halpern’s services to a good home. Four stars, would acquire again.

Dennis Wideman:  Already traded and signed with the Calgary Flames, to a 5-year, $5.25 M/year contract with a no-movement clause. Well okay. You do whatever you feel is good, Calgary.

Where will Semin go?

Photo credit: Greg Flume

Sadly, probably not here. For the first time in his NHL career, Semin will explore the possibility of signing with a team other than the Washington Capitals, maybe even in the KHL. We love him, but that’s why we’re letting him go. We heard that in a country song one time.

What are the Caps’ needs?

Photo credit: Kathy Kmonicek

The Caps have gone a long way towards replacing Semin’s production with the acquisition of Mike Ribeiro, who scores 20 goals like clockwork and will be a capable 2C. However, as far as positional depth goes, we still have big hole on wing that will need to be filled. There aren’t many top-six quality wingers on the free agency market, and the Caps probably won’t be in on any of the big names. Nonetheless, here’s who’s available.

P.A. Parenteau: The 29-year-old winger is a relative unknown, which is a side effect of playing with the New York Islanders. Caps fans should know him, however, as the pain in the neck who seemed to score against us at every opportunity.  We recognize this as the cry for help that it is, and would be happy to rescue him from Long Island Purgatory if the price is right.

Ray Whitney:  Another underrated winger playing some of the best hockey of his life at the age of 40. The Caps haven’t been too kind to their senior citizens in recent years, but maybe new coach Adam Oates can tempt a fellow playmaker into our ranks. Of course, the rumor is that he wants to go back to Carolina where he still owns a home — which leads us to wonder, why does everyone always want to go to Carolina? Do they know something we don’t? Is it the weather, what is it?

Dustin Penner:  Penner hasn’t played up to expectations for awhile now, but this last season with the L.A. Kings was a disaster, with the left winger scoring only seven goals in 65 games, not to mention his unfortunate run-in with a stack of pancakes. Still, L.A. fans weren’t complaining when he scored the OT goal to send the Kings to the Stanley Cup Finals. He can’t hear you, he’s got his two Stanley Cup Rings plugging his ears.

What about defense?

Photo credit: Jim McIsaac

Dmitry Orlov stepped up as a surprisingly NHL-ready defenseman last year, which means we have one less hole to fill, but with with Dennis Wideman’s absence the Caps are in need of one more solid D.

Jason Garrisson: Garrison is coming off a career year with the Panthers, scoring 16 goals and 33 points as a defenseman. He’s recently been credited as a player who “does everything Wideman does and more”, a power play quarterback who can actually defend as well. A defenseman who can defend? Sign us up!

Matt Carle: The Caps would do well to stay away from this one. Wideman’s signing made the market for an offensive defenseman look awfully scary, and there will be many teams who will be interested in the former Flyer’s services. That said, he’s a heck of a player, and we wouldn’t be upset about acquiring him as long as we didn’t have to sell any limbs to do it.

Bryan Allen: A much more reasonable option. Canes’ GM Jim Rutherford made Allen an offer, but Allen wasn’t interested, choosing to go to free agency instead. Allen won’t get the kind of paydays that some of his more offensive counterparts will, a defensive defenseman who logs tons of minutes and regularly kills penalties, who also led the Canes with 188 blocked shots. That sounds fine by us.

Who should the Caps avoid like the plague?

Jaromir Jagr: NOPE.

Martin Brodeur:  Brodeur is a legend, and one of the best who ever played. He can go be a legend somewhere else, we prefer hot-blooded up-and-coming goalies to elder statesmen.

Andrei Kostitsyn: Unless we plan on trading a problem for a problem, avoid like the plague. Kostitsyn is a poor man’s Alex Semin with bonus coaching issues and mob connections. Nope.

Wishful thinking

Zach Parise: Regular 30-goal scorer Parise is a prize in a shallow field, and we estimate he will sign a 20-year deal for 500 gold bricks a year. It’s unlikely that the Caps will make a play for Parise — in fact, the most likely suitors seems to be the Minnesota Wild and the Pittsburgh Penguins, so we should probably be preparing ourselves to hate his guts instead.

Don’t do it, Zach. Make good choices.

Bobby Ryan:  Now this one is a little more likely. Once Parise finds a home, Ryan will be the next biggest prize on the market, and one that the Caps are a little more likely to take a shot at. He’s one of the best deals in the league when it comes to salary versus production, having scored at least 30 goals for the last four season at a cap hit of $5.1 million. We’ve love to see him in a Capitals uniform, but the asking price is still steep. Put in a good word for us, Bruce?

Ryan Suter: What Zach Parise is to the forward market, Suter is to the defenseman market. In the Caps’ case, that means he’s an elaborate distraction meant to draw all eyes and offers so we can quietly slip in and talk to the others. We’ve got little to no chance at landing him. We will probably survive.

Shane Doan:  Doan bleeds Coyotes red and it would be tough to pry him out of Phoenix, but July 1st has rolled around and he is still unsigned. This guy plays like a prototype for a Canadian supersoldier, tough, gritty, productive, and would be a dream in the Caps’ lineup. Has he had enough of the constant ownership issues? Is he looking to go to a contender? Do we ask the same leading questions about Shane Doan every year?

Don’t expect too much of a splash tomorrow. George McPhee has never been inclined to throw money around in free agency, because he’s not stupid because he prefers to build through the draft and through trade instead. But a serious rebuild of the core has been threatening for some time now, and perhaps this is the year that core finally splits up.

At least one of the former Young Guns seems set to leave town tomorrow. Will it be more than one? Will we be shocked and angry, or underwhelmed? Will our favorite players still be in Caps red at the end of the day? We’ll have to wait and see.

Photo credit: Kyle Mace

Andrew Gordon won two Calder Cups with the American Hockey League’s Hershey Bears in four seasons.  He played nine games with Washington last season, scoring his first career NHL goal on future hall of famer Martin Brodeur, a feat he celebrated by kissing assister Marcus Johansson on the bench. But Andrew left the organization over the summer to hazard the free market. After a promising performance at Anaheim’s training camp, Gordon was added to the team’s roster (and then cheated on us in Finland with another blog).

I caught up with the notoriously well-spoken Andrew Gordon after the Ducks’ painful 5-4 overtime loss to the Capitals on Tuesday. We talked about California weather, competing against his former teammates, and the enduring adoration of Washington’s fans.

Ian Oland: So Andrew, what’s the move been like from Hershey and Washington to Anaheim?

Andrew Gordon: It was different going in. California’s a lot different from the East Coast cities I’ve played in and grown to love. It’s good. Everywhere you go in hockey, it’s the same sort of thing. A lot of good hockey players. A lot of good guys who came up through the same system and had the same coaches and everything. The guys [at Anaheim] are great, and they’re easy to get along with. Plus, you leave the rink, and it’s 85 degrees everyday. Nothing to complain about there. It’s a much different lifestyle up there though. It took a little bit of an adjustment.

Gordo during warm-ups. (Photo credit: Kyle Mace)

Ian Oland: What was it like playing your old teammates tonight? In the first period, you almost checked John Carlson through the boards.

Andrew Gordon: No, I know. I just tried to make sure that I wasn’t thinking about it. That was the main thing. You know, in practice, you go out there and you don’t really finish your checks as hard as you would. These are guys I practiced with and against for years and years and years. I really tried to make sure that I didn’t treat it like that. I tried to make sure that I treated it like a game situation and ‘do what I do.’ There was a lot of good players out there that I know a lot of their tendencies and stuff. At the same time, it’s a quick game out there. It’s a fast game. Guys with that much skill can beat you. You gotta remember when you’re out there who’s on the ice with you. [The Capitals] have so much skill — no matter if you’re friends with the guys or not — they’re going to try and go out there and beat you. It was fun leading up to the game, but it wasn’t the result I wanted. I’m not too keen on how tonight ended.

Ian Oland: During your years in Hershey, you were a jack of all trades. You started your career there as a bottom-six forward. Later on, you played on the first line and was always out there on the power play. So far in Anaheim, you’ve mostly played on the third line and when the team’s shorthanded. What has the transition been like to concentrate so much on offense to now being a bottom six guy again?

Andrew Gordon: Well, you have to find a role out there. You know, guys like Perry. Guys like Getzlaf. Guys like Bobby Ryan, Selanne, Koivu. These are the guys that have been putting up numbers for years and years and years. We have guys that can score goals. We have guys that are going to play those offensive minutes, those powerplay minutes. So they’re starting me off on the PK. It was something I used to do back in Hershey a few years ago. It was something I used to do back in college quite a bit. So I’ve been taking that really seriously and have really been trying to contribute on that end of the ice. A team is made up of 20-25 guys and not everyone is going to score every night. When you’re not scoring — as I’ve been struggling with lately — you have to make sure you’re contributing in other ways every night. Our PK was pretty good, but [the bottom six guys] have to find a way to chip in. Like I said earlier, change is inevitable when a team starts struggling like this. Managers and coaches aren’t going to put up with losing. So everybody’s gotta find a way to dig ourselves out of this. Everybody’s got to find a way to do their jobs a little bit better. For me, that’s keeping up with this PK and not giving up anything while I’m on the ice. And also finding a way to contribute offensively.

Photo credit: Kyle Mace

Another fan's sign dedicated to Andrew. (Photo credit: Kyle Mace)

Ian Oland: What did you think of the warm reception you got from Caps fans during warm-ups? There certainly were a lot of signs…

Andrew Gordon: It was really nice. It was wonderful. Yeah, it was good to see a lot of people from Hershey, some familiar faces. It’s a community that’s embraced me and I really grew to love during my time here. To see that I haven’t been forgotten quickly, that really means a lot to me. It’s really a unique situation here in Washington and Hershey. The fans and the media, they don’t mind that short two-hour drive ‘down the street.’ It’s sorta like one big community whereas with a newer organization — the teams are split up by cost and country — and you don’t really hear what’s going on in the minor leagues. Even though I played about 95% of my career in Hershey, it was like I was a member of this Washington Capitals family for a long time. It was great to see how some of the staff and some of the fans welcomed me back. It was much appreciated.

Ian Oland: Some of my friends have been nagging me, so of course I have to ask: when’s the Twitter hiatus going to end?

Andrew Gordon: ::laughs::

Ian Oland: Is it because you’re superstitious or maybe waiting for a certain something to happen this year?

Andrew Gordon: I just wanted to make sure I was focusing on the right things. There was no single event that triggered it. I just wanted to make sure I was thinking about the right things out there. Focus a little bit harder. But you know, I should definitely switch back soon. I haven’t scored a goal since I quit! I think with Movember coming up, I’m going to do some promotion and generate some money for that organization. I’m sure you’ll see me back on there pretty soon.

Image of Hiller’s mask via The Goalie Guild.

Ian Oland: What did you think of Hiller’s mask by the way with you on there? What did you think of your portrait?

Andrew Gordon: ::laughs:: Oh man, I don’t know. That’s more stache’ growth than I’ll probably have for my whole life! It was pretty cool. He first brought the mask in when we were in Minnesota. Everyone got a good laugh out of it. It was pretty creative. He did a great job on it that’s for sure!

Ian Oland: So big question. What were your feelings when you made Anaheim out of camp? Last year with the Caps, you were one of the final cuts, one of the final three not to make the team.

Andrew Gordon: I mentioned this to someone earlier in the day. It wasn’t like one day the coaches called me into the office and said ‘congratulations.’ Just no one told me I wasn’t on the team. It was a no news is good news kind of thing. So as long as they haven’t talked to you, then they can’t really be too upset by the way you’ve been playing. That’s been the case for me so far. I don’t know — whenever you’re a rookie or a guy that’s constantly on the bubble — nothing’s guaranteed. You have to earn every practice. You have to earn every game. You have to earn every minute you get out there. So for me, it’s not like I made the team yet. It’s a 365 day tryout I’m on now. I gotta make sure I bring my ‘A’ game every day, and unfortunately I don’t know if today was it.

Gordo gives a hug to a fan in a Hershey Bears jersey before warm-ups. (Photo credit: Kyle Mace)

Ian Oland: We talked about this earlier, so you know what should be coming. Tell me something great about Teemu Selanne.

Andrew Gordon: What’s NOT great about Teemu Selanne would be the better question. Growing up he was my favorite player. In fact, there’s still some of my old posters of him up at my parents’ house that I see when I come home for the summers. My dad’s from Winnipeg, so I used to watch [the Jets] religiously all the time. He turns out to be one of the best guys in the game. You find that nobody in the world has a bad thing to say about Teemu Selanne. I think his character and personality is what brings him above all the other superstars. You know, if you look, and there’s an article written about him, you’ll look and see the comments below and they’ll say, ‘I hate the Ducks, but I love Teemu Selanne.’ Nobody has anything bad to say about the guy. He’s a guy that gives back to the community. He welcomes young guys. He’s really the face of this franchise. He’d probably be the face of the NHL if he was a little bit younger. The personality behind this great player and this great skill set is something that stands out to me and makes him above the rest. He’s an unbelievable guy and I’m really fortunate to play with him.

Ian Oland: Awesome. Well good luck with the facial hair. It was obviously very nice catching up with you.

Photo credit: Ethan Miller

Wednesday was a night of hardware in the NHL as the league’s annual awards show took place in Las Vegas. The night’s biggest winners? Corey Perry of the Ducks picked up the Hart, Ryan Kesler of the Canucks hoisted the Selke, baby-faced Jeff Skinner of the ‘Canes took home the Calder, Stanley Cup champion Bruin Tim Thomas won the Vezina and Washington fan favorite Disco Dan Bylsma of the Pens presented with the Jack Adams Award.

So how did the Capitals fare?

Alex Ovechkin was named to the NHL’s second all-star team while John Carlson was honored with a spot on the all-rookie squad. Via Nate Ewell, this is the first time in five years Ovechkin has not held a spot on the first-team, ending his record streak to start a career.

As for the trophies, Brooks Laich finished 11th in Selke voting as best defensive forward (0 first-place votes, 1 second, 2 third, 4 fourth, 7 fifth); Bruce Boudreau placed sixth for the Jack Adams as top coach (2-3-7); Carlson (3-3-16-12-21) and Michal Neuvirth (0-0-0-1-1) were fifth and 14th respectively for the Calder as best rookie; George McPhee finished sixth for GM of the Year (2-4-3); Mike Green was edged out by the Kings’ Dustin Brown for the NHL Foundation Player Award for charitable work; finally, Ovechkin came in 15th for the Hart as MVP (0-0-0-4-7).

Sadly, none of the Capitals were in Vegas leaving us unable to critique their red carpet photos. Yes, none of this this year. No awkward tension between Sid the Kid and the Great Eight either, though Bobby Ryan and Ryan Getzlaf filled the void. Since everybody loves “comedian” Jay Mohr, we leave you with one of his few funny moments of the night.