Capitals: Rolling Deep

Ever since Shawn Germain quit the club in September, the Edinburgh Capitals have been a man short on D.

But the arrival of American defenceman Sean Perkins has eased the pressure on the other defencemen.

The improving Capitals are now ranked eighth in the Elite League and Tuesday’s 4-2 victory against Basingstoke pushed them five points clear of the Bison.

“Bringing in guys like Sean Perkins and Roman Nesrsta has given us a bit more depth,” Christiansen told skysports.com.

“Rolling with four defencemen is a tough way to play in this league and Sean’s a player coming in off a championship team. He knows what it takes to win and will be important for us down the stretch.”

Perkins, 22, moved to Scotland after a stint with the championship-winning Cincinnati Cyclones in the ECHL and has joined a blueline that features two-way D-men Taylor Christie and Joe Dustin.

“Sean’s a skilled player who skates very well,” Christiansen added.

“I think on the Olympic sized ice he’ll do very well for us. He can distribute the puck and join the rush. We want him to come over and excel.

“I spoke to him about the opportunity to play here and have more ice time than he was getting at home. He’s come in and started well so I’ve got nothing but good first impressions of him.”

Here one minute, gone the next

Well, at least Jeff Hutchins had time for a cup of coffee in Edinburgh.

Six games and eight points later the Hutchins era in Murrayfield is all over and now he's back on Tyneside, where Lee Ryder of the Evening Chronicle thinks he'll get a cold reception:

"And, in another twist, the return of unpopular (skater) Jeff Hutchins will also prompt a mixed response from season ticket holders."

After Hutchins' quick move to the Vipers, Capitals player-coach Doug Christiansen remained philosophical.

“I’ve absolutely no ill will towards him and I told Jeff that I wouldn’t hold him back,” admitted Christiansen, in an interview with skysports.com.

"I’ve know him for 10 years and he came up here to do a job to help turnaround our season and we won three of the games that he started. So he helped us out a lot but on the other side of the coin it’s disappointing that he’s going to a team that we’re trying to catch like Newcastle."

After elite hockey today recently reported that the Capitals had put goalie Michel Robinson on two weeks notice, Christiansen said he was considering further transactions to improve the Capitals’ roster.

“What we do now depends on financial constraints,” he said.

“We’re going to do our absolute best to put the best team on the ice and it’s my job is to rebuild the team as quickly as possible.”