Once again the Washington Capitals are putting a lot of faith behind one of the young guns. Alex Ovechkin of course signed to a 13 year, $124 million contract in winter 2008 and now owner Ted Leonsis and GM George McPhee has assured that his linemate, C Nicklas Backstrom is going to be there for the that period too. Backstrom has signed a 10 year, $67 million deal (Capitals Insider). Obviously, it is a risk signing players to deals that long, but at the backend, these players should be bargains for the team.

Marcus Johansson, the 2009 #1 draft pick by the Caps, also signed. He’s also a Swede. He’ll wear #90, even though the -0’s tend to be used for goalies. The gave him a white sweater to wear.

In essence, the Caps are saying “this is who we are and are going to be for the next decade.” Given that they are both 100 point scorers, I’m pretty happy with the move.

May fortune favor the bold.