Per TSN.Per the team:
The Washington Capitals have signed goaltender Jose Theodore to a two-year contract, vice president and general manager George McPhee announced today. In keeping with club policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed [Note: It's two years at $4.5 million per year].
Theodore, who will turn 32 on Sept. 13, won the Hart Trophy as the NHL’s most valuable player in 2001-02. The 5’11”, 182-pound native of Laval, Quebec, is a 12-year professional who spent the last two seasons with the Colorado Avalanche. He was 28-21-3 with three shutouts, a 2.44 goals-against average and a .910 save percentage in 2007-08, including a 21-13-2 record, a 2.24 GAA and a .919 save percentage in his last 37 starts.
Theodore started 20 of the Avalanche’s last 21 games in 2007-08 en route to his fifth career 20-win season. He ranked fifth among NHL goaltenders with a 2.24 GAA after January 1. Theodore posted a 6-1 record in shootouts this season and has a 9-2 mark in shootouts in his career.
A second-round choice of the Montreal Canadiens in the 1994 NHL Draft, Theodore spent parts of 10 seasons with Montreal, including his Hart Trophy season in 2002. He also won the Vezina Trophy as the league’s top goaltender and made his first of two NHL All-Star Game appearances that year.
Theodore appeared in his 400th career game in 2007-08 and has a career mark of 183-197-40, with a 2.65 GAA and a .909 save percentage. He ranks 10th among active goaltenders in career appearances (444) and 14th in victories (183).
84 comments:
Uh, did I miss something?
Ouch. This sucks.
I don't think I like this.
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
{breaths deeply}AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
Wow there goes the high hopes for the season.
woah
Noooooooooo! What they hell happened to all that positive talk with Huet?
This with the Kolzig to Tampa talk has just officially ruined my day, despite Green signing.
Stop hyperventilating, folks. We need to know the terms of the deal. TSN says two years. If we're not paying him boku bucks, thus allowing space for Federov and some other supporting cast moves, this could be good for us.
I mean, it still sucks, emotionally. But there is a potential silver lining.
is there such a thing as a july fools day joke?
I'll comfort myself with the fact he played well for some games in Colorado last year and he won a Hart... but ... but... crap.
I'm with grunthos. Call me an optimist, but it might be too early to throw in the towel. If it lets us sign Federov and Laich both, it might not be so bad. We've got some homegrown goalies too if life starts to suck.
I kinda wanna die right now.
Didn't Cris say his wife preffered to live in Ottawa or something like that? It's more 'European'. I thought I saw that somewhere...anyone?
The important thing is to wait and reserve judgment until we see what Huet gets. If some crazy GM gives him four years at 7 per, then this is , without a doubt, the right moves for the Capitals.
Good luck with this one. I, for one, am so damn happy to be rid of the guy, but I feel for the Capitals at this point. The cap space eaten is going to be the big question. Have you got a decent third goalie in the wings?
If Jose has the sniffles, don't let him anywhere near the net.
BTW, booooooo...to Huet and his wife.
Obviously they had a falling out with 38...JT was the next best option.....MUCH better than Emery.
Jose had a solid season last year and if I'm not mistaken has WON a playoff series (unlike 38 - or 37 in last ten years).
This is ok.
I kinda wanna die right now.
Oh, come ON folks. Yeah, it sucks that Huet may not be coming back. But like someone else said earlier, if the deal is cheaper, it could leave us room for both Laich and Federov.
Have a beer and get over it. It is what it is, and heaven knows you don't get everything you want in life. I'm taking a wait-and-see on this one.
I don't think this is as bad as many are making it out to be. We all fell in love with Huet at the end of the season, but Theo is a steady solid 'tender whose deal will probably give us more flexibility cap-wise. I think this will end up looking like a very smart move.
Seriously though, we didn't have a goalie except BJ. If huet was gonna sign elsewhere, this is the best we could hope for. I still think Theo gives Huet a run for his money talentwise.
1)This is actually NOT as bad as some are making it out to be GMGM got the second best available UFA goalie, and only for 2 years.
2) This shouldn't be a shock folks. If Huet really wanted to stay in DC a deal would have been done long ago. It probably wasn't about money (he'll get his cash somewhere) it was about playing where he and his family felt most comfortable
I don't see how anyone can judge this move before seeing the dollars on this deal and on Huet's. So chillax, folks. Seriously.
I agree, maybe it isn't perfect but while I'd prefer Huet to Theodore I prefer Theodore to Kolzig, Kolzig to Johnson and Johnson to Emery.
Besides, let's not get upset until we see what Huet would have cost.
And remember - the Caps were a pretty damn good team from Thanksgiving through the end of February sans Huet.
Plus, Jose's a damn good looking man, so that's nice.
Yikes!!! [GAG!!] Surprised GMGM threw in the towel so fast with regard to Huet. Someone musta offered Chris beaucoup bucks. More than McPhee was willing to spring for. So this is our insurance move.
On the other hand, best case scenario: a Huet/Theodore tandem would be fairly interesting.
I'd MUCH rather have Huet than Feds, frankly. And even Laich. Frankly.
Ok, I'm calm. We'll see the money, and this is probably the perfect term to have Varlamov and Neuvirth waiting in the wings. I think Huet is still a better goalie, but Theodore is a close second.
The results are in: FAIL
I must imagine that Huet was looking for a 3-5 year deal and the Caps weren't comfortable with those terms and they found a guy who was until the prospects can be around in a year or two.
2 years, 9 Million.
Per TSN.
NINE FRAKKIN MILLION OVER TWO SEASONS.....
FOR A GUY THATS A BACKUP ON 20 OF 30 NHL SQUADS???????WHOSE BEST SEASON WAS SEVEN YEARS AGO!!!!!
HOW MUCH COULD HUET POSSIBLY BE GETTING???????
JP, I clicked on the Capitals Insider story about the Theodore signing from the "What We're Reading Sidebar" and let me just say....thank you for running a site for us Capitals fans who value sanity and maturity to have discussions on.
2-years, 4.5 per. you know the caps offered huet 3 at 5 and were probably willing to go to 3 at 5.5. huet's agent gambled that he could his client more and i doubt it will payoff now. terrible mistake by him, and the caps got what they could. theodore was absolutely lights out against the wild in the playoffs a few months ago, but who knows, one series doesnt mean all that much. huet was essentially a sure thing.
TSN reporting that the Avs signed Andrew Raycroft (!) in their panic after losing Theodore. I know this is disconcerting for us, but in Denver fans just went on suicide watch...
Green is staying. We have the best player in the world locked up until 2138. Fedorov and Laich are good bets to stay now. And Ray Emery is NOT coming to D.C.
I've been a Caps fan a long time. This franchise has a plan, a farm system and hope. It's about time, and today's moves will turn out OK...
...and I see that as I was typing that I was already being refuted.
is it possible this is still a mistake?
i mean caps.com doesnt have it yet does it?
@ DMG: Thanks, and I'm just happy most of those folks have never stumbled upon our little corner of the internet.
2 years/9 million. I would have thought that if we went after anyone else we would yield a cheaper contract than 4.5m a year.
I'm not happy with this.
In terms of numbers, Huet and Theodore both average about the same over their NHL careers, 2.65 GAA and .91 S%.
Another poster made a great point though, if Jose gets sick, get him the hell away from the net.
Its just too bad we shafted Kolzig like that.
Sorry Luke, it's been up on the Caps site for over a half hour now. I was hoping it was a typo of some sort on tsn.ca, myself.
I'm just happy most of those folks have never stumbled upon our little corner of the internet.
I'm with you on that one, JP.
What amazes me is that people seem to have no idea how complex the system of building a team is at the NHL level; that's something we're seeing today with people condemning the Theodore signing without any idea what kind of money Huet is going to get or without acknowledging that Theodore is second-best (feasible) option for next season.
Without getting off on too much of a digression, I'd have to say that I think a part of it is that younger people use the internet more often and are more vocal on the internet more often and that generation's perception of what it takes to building a successful team is skewed by what the can do on their xbox.
ok sorry to be the negative person...im usually not
but i swear im gonna have a heart attack....theodore is one of those guys my buddies and i laugh at cause his being in the league is a sign of how desperate teams are for warm bodies
17th in wins
tied for 15th in GAA
tied for 20th in save percentage...
this guy is not that much better than johnson...sorry hes not
I agree, the jury is out until we know what Huet was looking for. I think it's clear he could have had 3 for 15 here, but that agent of his and his 'last contract talk', makes me think he's going to end up with 5 years and 5-6 mil per. I enjoyed his time here but this guy has never won anything, either.
JP,
That's TWO man crushes for you today, what's going on?
Can't wait to see what you end up thinking of the Theodore signing, good looks aside.
@ luke:
I have pretty hard time believing that JT would be a backup on 20 teams. He's a solid, proven, #1 netminder. And with a cap hit @ least $1M less than Huet gives room to sign others.
BTW, I would prefer to have JT, Feds, and Laich, than just Huet. Never have enough centers.
I apologize in advance for being so negative (seriously, not sarcastically)
but after 25 years of season ticket holding, i finally trully believed we had a shot at something big this year...not next year or in two years...
i got news for you....ive been around enough to know that signing a player of this quality level is pretty much signaling that your goal is trying to make the playoffs, not winning in the playoffs.
Rumors are saying Huet is close to signing with Chicago for 4 years/22 million.
I'm not familiar with the metric system or any other foreign language but I'd say that is not much more than what we gave Theodore. -Will Ferrell
@dmg
The Insider is more like a Lonely Hearts Club most of the time. Unreal. Feel for Tarik.
look
ill make this easy for everybody
let's see whos interested in a gentleman's bet about whether or not theodore actually serves the entire two years of this contract as the starting goalie for the caps...cause no way he does
no way...
Here are the stats:
Huet Age-33
2007-08
32-13-6 2.36 GAA 920 Save%
Career
183 Games 2.43 GAA .918 Save %
Theodore Age-31
2007-08
28-21-3 2.44 GAA .911 Save %
Career
444 Games 2.65 GAA .911 Save %
Everyone needs to take a deep breath. I would have preferred Huet, but I don't have a problem with Theodore. Plus, we now have some cash for our other guys.
I know it was a long time ago, but THEODORE WON THE HART TROPHY AS THE LEAGUE MVP. He was good in the playoffs for the Avs against the Wild. He's not great, but I think it's tough to say who is better between him and Huet. I'd rather have Huet but this is a lot better than getting left out in the cold.
I, for one, deem this okay.
I know it was a long time ago, but THEODORE WON THE HART TROPHY AS THE LEAGUE MVP. He was good in the playoffs for the Avs against the Wild. He's not great, but I think it's tough to say who is better between him and Huet. I'd rather have Huet but this is a lot better than getting left out in the cold.
I, for one, deem this okay.
i got news for you....ive been around enough to know that signing a player of this quality level is pretty much signaling that your goal is trying to make the playoffs, not winning in the playoffs.
It's not just about the quality of a player, it's also about the quality of other available players and the allocation of monetary resources and cap space.
Theodore was, in most people's eyes, the second-best goalie available. Once Huet became unrealistic (for whatever reason), the Capitals moved to get the best available (and feasible) player. To me, that just suggests they want to win.
Given the cap and Capitals other obligations, it's possible that by signing Thedore instead of Huet the Capitals fit another player in financially. The question then is: are the Capitals better with Huet or with Theodore and [Laich, Fedorov, Morrisonn, etc].
Just read Tarik's latest update and it appears that Huet walked from the table. The Caps gave him the offer he was asking for and then he (agent) decided to test the market.
If this is in fact true, GMGM did what was the next best thing and signed a proven goalie who despite having uneven play performs well in the playoffs.
>>>I'm not familiar with the metric system or any other foreign language but I'd say that is not much more than what we gave Theodore.<<<
It'll be $5.5 million a year for four years. So, two more years and a $1 million more than Theodore.
Still not happy with the signing. Not a fan of Jose, not at all.
I'm not with those who are willing to call Theodore "solid" and "proven". He's the opposite of that, actually, a notably inconsistent goalie who is capable of great netminding but rarely sustains that form for long.
But this will probably prove to be a reasonable deal, even at $4.5 mil, because one thing Theodore won't do is block Varlamov or Neuvirth.
I would have liked to save more money. However, that would have meant a name like Raycroft or Emery. Yeccccch.
When Theodore is "on", he's great. But he's terrible when he's "off". If Tarik is right, then the Caps offered Huet what he wanted/asked for, and let him go when he balked. I dunno how I feel about it (although I'm talking myself into being OK with it).
I think the reason it might be OK is that with the style that BB plays, the goalie doesn't have to win the game for them, he just has to not lose it. I think that Theodore can play decently enough to not lose games for them.
For a comparative, I'm thinking of how Gibbs coached the Redskins the first time around, where the quarterback was to manage the game, make some decent plays, and just not screw it up for everyone else. Otherwise, how could Mark Rypien have had such a great season/Super Bowl? (And if I'm not making sense, just let me know.)
This contract expires in the same offseason when we'll have decisions to make on Semin and Backstrom. It also gives us 1 year for Varlamov/Neuvirth to play AHL, then Johnson becomes a UFA and one of them can backup or split time with Theodore. And in 2010/11, we'll have a bunch of options available to us (including Roberto Luongo as a UFA) depending on how the young goalies progress.
So even if Jose stinks it up, he still won't get in the way of signing either/both of Backis and Semin to extensions.
At $9M/2 years, would I pick Huet over Theodore? Absolutely.
But if Huet's gonna get $25/4 or something crazy, then I'll take Theodore and the chance to keep both Backis and Semin in town come 2010/11.
@b.orr4
Word.
Huet had GMGM over a barrel. Soemone will be willing to pay Huet more than what Marty Brodeur made last year.
Not GMGM - and I'm glad he didnt. Theodore was the 2nd best goalie available - and that aint bad.
4 years, $5.6 million per year. No way Huet is worth that. Good job, McPhee, despite what the lemmings might say.
we get a comprable goalie for Cheaper. Huet was sharing the #1 in Montreal with Carey Price and only played 2 full months with the Caps, and while he was good, 2 months of play does not warrant a nearly 6 million dollar a year contract. It's obvious Huet was the greedy party and McPhee did what was necessary to get a competive goalie, while saving money.
This is a bummer but on the bright side, it does free up more space and at least it's not Ray Emery!
I can appreciate the decision the Caps front office had to make here. They managed to get a guy who was the starter on a playoff team last season for less money and fewer years than it would have taken to get Huet back. They did the best they could.
Still, I just don't trust Theodore. He was TERRIBLE for the Avs and Habs the two seasons before last. I am willing to approach this with an open mind, but I am not hopeful at all. This has all the markings of a colossal botch job.
per Tarik:
Update:I just heard from a source that Huet asked the Caps for three years, $15 million and the Caps offered it to him. But Huet then said he wanted test the market today and see what might be out there. Now it's looking like he'll sign a four year deal with Chicago for $5.6 million.
Sorry Cris, you ain't worth that (term) to us.
GMGM made the right move. $5.6 is too much!
Is Olie going to be playing on the same team as Frodo? Say it aint so, Joe.
I know someone who is probably very happy today -- Brent Johnson. If what everyone is saying is true about JT, then Brent could see some more ice time than in the past.
TSN is reporting that Huet has officially signed with the Blackhawks....
My rationalization mechanisims are kicking in. I feel alot better about this now than I did when I first read about it.
I think we'll be okay. Cristalballs was stellar while he was here, but as has been pointed out, up till that point the two had very similiar stats.
and if this means Feds comes back, then I'm happy.
5.6 is too much?????
at the end of the season when we are once again booted in the first round of the playoffs (and we have to listen to canadien commentator talk about how ovechkin needs to prove himself like their golden boy did) that extra 1.1 is going to seem like a really small amount
And by the way, what the hell is Chicago doing? Aren't they already paying Khabibulin $5 million or so this year? Unless they've got a trade lined up for 'Bulin, that's a strange strange signing.
Allright.
Jose LX is not exactly Patrick Roy, which makes you feel for the guy a bit after chasing Roy's ghost throughout his career, but let's look at Huet and take a deep breath...
Huet had a brilliant stretch run, and is perhaps more consistent than Theodore, but he's not an elite goaltender and has never won a playoff series. LX has, and an MVP as well.
I agree with 'dmg' about the complexity of building a team in the cap era. So far, the Caps have done everything right and I'm willing to give McPhee the benefit of the doubt he's earned thus far.
I'd have been thrilled to keep Huet, and McPhee negotiated in good faith to do so. When Frenchy decided he could seek an insane deal elsewhere, GM wisely backed off. Wouldn't signing Huet for 4 years at $5+ mil make us all more queasy than what we got instead? Look at the mess in Toronto and the ridiculous binge going on in Tampa - we are being spared a big cap hit that would keep us from making a serious Cup run. LX may or may not get us there, but Huet isn't hoisting a Cup in Chicago. Nor would he have here.
If we get Laich and Feds to stay, this is a terrific move.
Jasper, just happened upon your little show here last week. Thank you, great site.
at the end of the season when we are once again booted in the first round of the playoffs (and we have to listen to canadien commentator talk about how ovechkin needs to prove himself like their golden boy did) that extra 1.1 is going to seem like a really small amount
That depends. It isn't about the money itself; if it were I'd agree. It about the getting the most out of the limited resources the team has available to them and if they're able to make different personnel moves with that 1.1 million, they may just be better off for it.
And Olie is now in Tampa.
Guess who will be RFA's in two seasons?
Backstrom and Semin.
So long Theodore, hello new contracts for 19, 28 and hello to Varlamov or Nievirth (try as i might i can never remember how to spell his name)
This makes me a little mad!
Tampa Bay signs UFA goaltender Olaf Kolzig to a 1 year deal worth $1.5-million (plus bonuses).
Gee, I could have sworn that Olie said he still saw himself as a starter and mentally he wasn't constituted to be a back-up and that's why he wasn't coming back to the Caps. So now, he's a backup in Tampa. Who here thinks this is a pure spite move by a guy who billed himself as Mr. Integrity? I guess stealing that nameplate really wasn't that much out of character, was it?
I seriously doubt Kolzig would commit himself to a years worth of NHL-level training and traveling with the league's worst team just to try and stick it to the Caps.
I think it's more likely that Kolzig wants to play and sees Tampa as a a chance to split time and possibly win a starting role
I really don't think the extra 1.1 mil would have been a big deal if it were only for 2 years, but 4!?!? that term just doesn't make sense for us with the young guys we have lined up
Kolzig will have a chance to be a starter in TB. Smith could fizzle. If nothing else, Kolzig should get 35 starts or so. I wish him well...just not when he's playing the Caps.
Fer Chrissake, Huet was riding the pine in Hab city just five months ago. Three months of play brings a guy 4yr/ 22mil? Sheeeeeeet! GMGM giveth, and GMGM sayeth good riddance.
The 4th year is really the dealbreaker - the Caps are going to have too much going on to commit $5.5M to a 36 year old goaltender (see how that worked out for them recently...) with all their young guys wanting new contracts.
I'm sad that I think this does diminish the chances of a Cup in the next 2 years, and I think if the Caps thought that was as wide as their window is they'd have gone for Huet, regardless of term. You pay a premium to win a title, sometimes.
Plus, if this signing opens the door for us to have 3 Hart Trophy winners on the team, I'm for it - we can have a nice marketing tie-in with Ace or Home Depot or something.
-d
If Theodore can stay around his career avg stats, we are better off. He's so close to Huet's numbers and significantly cheaper.
Kolzig may have found the perfect situation in Tampa Bay. Even if he's the number two guy, he may still get more playing time than backing up any other team's number one.
This is not a bummer, it's not a failure, it's not a playoff loss, it's just not Huet. And let's not give Huet the entire benefit of our stretch run. The whole team played better, including a big chunk of time when Huet was in Montreal. Having the best goaltender in the hockey history would be sweet, but we already have the best forward now playing. Last time I looked there were 82 games to be won or lost before anything was decided. Let's see how October and November go before we decide what kind of deal this was.
And really, just wish Ollie good luck.
And which goal tender took their team deeper in the playoffs this year???
I agree with Andi and the other optomists here. I would sooo rather have Theodore, Laich, AND Federov than just Huet.
And I agree with JP about two things-
1. I am really glad that the "oh look, I posted the first comment! YAY!" people out there have not dicovered this blog.
2. Theodore is good-looking. I hate Paris Hilton ALMOST as much as I hate Elena Larionov...(OK, I don't hate Paris that much. The only person I hate more than Elena Larionov is Daniel Briere. Hiss...)
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