Well, by all indications, it’s over. Peter Bondra is reported to have signed a one-year deal with Atlanta. Given that the Caps have a number of forwards they want to get quality ice time – Alexander Ovechkin, Alexander Semin, Petr Sykora, Brian Sutherby, Dainius Zubrus, Jeff Halpern, and Boyd Gordon, with perhaps Jakub Klepis, Jared Aulin, Eric Fehr and Chris Bourque fighting for roster spots – it was hard to figure just where Bondra was going to fit in. If anything, he was going to have to fit in on an economic basis, which is where the $1.5 million contract came into play. But, when the Caps secured Sykora and then found themselves several million in payroll where they wanted to be, the idea of bringing back Bondra probably lost much of its luster. Add to that the greater need yet to bring in a veteran defenseman (which is itself an iffy proposition, given the current state of payroll), bringing back Bondra almost become a bad idea.
But, all that hypothesizing aside, it’s over. And it’s time to get on with the rebuilding. That process began in earnest today with the opening of training camp. Hopefully, there will be one or more of the kids who break out and justify the idea that youth must be served.
-- The Peerless
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