First came Nicklas Backstrom, then Sami Lepisto and now Josef Boumedienne. According to Finnish paper Kaleva, the Caps have signed Swedish blueliner Boumedienne to a deal, the terms of which, I'm guessing, were not disclosed per team policy. EuroHockey.net is reporting the signing as well (thanks, OFB).You may recall Boumer from the wonderful 2003-04 edition of the Caps, a season in which he scored a pair of goals and added a dozen assists in 37 games.
As always, we'll await confirmation from the team, but as the Caps continue to stock up on blueliners, something has got to be in the works - I doubt a 29-year-old Swede who has been bouncing around Scandinavian leagues for the past few years suddenly decided he's dying to play in the AHL. Could it be a sign and trade? Official translator for Noobs Backstrom?
Regardless of the reason for the signing, here's a great clip of Boumer (who, incidentally, was featured in the first post ever at The Rink) going ass over tea kettle in an SEL game:
H/t to Ferris on the Kaleva link
3 comments:
A puzzler indeed. I mean, I guess for now you gotta pencil him in as a healthy scratch, the seventh sweDe, right?
My guess is that he's got an out in his contract so if he doesn't make the team, he can go back to Sweden (sorta like Zalesak had whenever that miserable stiff was here).
That would make it a low-risk move - the Caps get to see what the guy's got, Boumer gets to see if he can hack it, and if not, no real loss for either party.
I think this is a move that has little downside. Of the 57 players on the Caps paid roster (RFA's and UFA's included) 38 are 25 years old or under. Adding some experienced players even if its just for training camp should help the younger Caps. Competition is always good, especially for the defense. Besides they were going to lose his rights anyway, and if he doesn't fit they can always package him in a trade or let him go back to Sweden.
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