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Of the six players on the Caps roster that are set to become unrestricted free agents, none has garnered as much attention so far as Alex Semin.  Recently on Twitter, we asked what people thought the Caps should offer Semin or how they should replace him if he signs elsewhere.  Here are some of the responses:

@brookslaichyear I think three years at 15 million is a fair deal. Yes he can score but he hasn't done it enough over the last couple years.

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Michael Kelly (@mikekellynecn) May 16, 2012

@brookslaichyear GOTTA be a 1-year deal, but would he take it (~$5M?).

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Brian McKain (@bmmckain) May 16, 2012

@brookslaichyear Alex Semin, let him go, fill w vet UFA hustler. Now @alexsemin, keep him at any damn price. I'll chip in a steak dinner

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Allan Petersen (@ampetersen99) May 16, 2012

@brookslaichyear would be tough to replace. I would offer 2 or 3 years at 5\6 million. Semin is a great player.

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Alberto (@roncajolo37) May 16, 2012

@brookslaichyear 3yrs/$4.5m per.

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Danny A Jasso (@dannyajasso) May 16, 2012

Semin’s agent has already said that his client won’t accept a one year contract this time around.  He has also said a lot of other things that I chalk up to posturing, that his client didn’t exactly support when asked about the comments.

Russia forward Alexander Semin lines up for a faceoff against Slovakia during the 2010 Winter Olympics (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Neil Greenberg wrote a great piece on Semin’s value, in which he advocated bringing  Semin back on a 1 or 2 year deal for about $6 million per season.  There was also a great FanPost on Japers Rink that took a look at Semin’s value using some fancy charts.

Perhaps I’m getting ahead of myself when talking about Semin’s value when so many Caps fans seem opposed to even bringing him back.  I don’t want to rehash what we’ve already spent plenty of time on in previous posts, but perhaps you should reevaluate your opinion of Semin if you think he’s lazy and should not be brought back under any circumstance.  I also think anyone who opposes bringing back Semin needs to propose how we replace him.  This team needs more top-6 forwards, not less, and if Semin walks then the holes in the top-6 become even more glaring.

If the Caps don’t re-sign Semin, the decision better be part of a larger overhaul set to take place this summer.  Letting Semin walk and taking a business-as-usual approach to the rest of the off-season will result in a team with even deeper flaws than the one we watched over the past season.

Given that I’m not George McPhee, I don’t have the benefit of knowing what options are available to the Caps if they decide to go with a larger overhaul this off-season.  That being said, I don’t see a better option out there than bringing Semin back if the contract makes sense.  I’d absolutely not go any longer than a four year term, and I’d be much more comfortable with a two or three year deal.  In terms of dollars, I wouldn’t go over $6 million per year under any circumstance, and would be much more comfortable with a cap hit in the $5-$5.5 million range.  Unless a major overhaul takes place, specifically to the Caps top-6 forwards, I don’t see how this team gets more competitive by letting Semin walk away.

Related articles

• Alex Semin Hasn’t Made Decision On NHL Free Agency, According To Report (sbnation.com)
• BrooksLaichyear’s Pat Holden talks Alex Semin on The Mike Wise Show (brookslaichyear.com)
• Is Alex Semin being held to a higher standard than other Caps players? (brookslaichyear.com)
• Pierre McGuire needs to rethink his Alex Semin narrative (brookslaichyear.com)