Capitals' Poti gets back on the ice

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By Corey Masisak

Washington Capitals coach Bruce Boudreau would like to limit Mike Green's time on the ice - at least a little bit - but that probably isn't possible until Tom Poti returns.

That's just part of why it was important for the Caps to see Poti join them for practice Thursday at Kettler Capitals Iceplex for the first time since he injured his groin Oct. 16 at Pittsburgh.

"[Poti] is such a good defensive defenseman," Boudreau said. "And he's such a good fit - the second unit on the power play, first unit on the penalty killing and he's a 25-minute-a-night guy."

Poti had skated on his own, but this was his first full practice with teammates. He has missed five games with the injury and said two weeks is the longest he has been sidelined in his 10-year career.

The Caps have another day to work out in Arlington before traveling to Buffalo to play the Sabres on Saturday night. Poti will have a better idea Friday if he will be joining his teammates on the trip.

"It went OK, not great," he said. "It felt like I haven't skated in two weeks pretty much. Everything was off just a little bit, but the groin held up decent and I guess [trainer Greg Smith] said the big test [is] to see how it will feel tomorrow after I touch base with him and test it. I guess we'll see tomorrow and go from there.

"If it was up to me, I would be playing, but we'll see."

Poti had two goals and 29 points for the Caps last year - totals that were down from his previous season with the New York Islanders. But he has improved in other areas and, with Green's offensive emergence, the 31-year-old's evolution into a shutdown defender proved quite valuable.

He logged 23:29 of ice time as well, nine seconds per contest less than Green for most on the team. In Poti's absence, a few defenders have seen their workload increase, but none more than Green.

In the first four games, Green's most time on ice was 26:23 - in the game when Poti logged less than five minutes because of the injury. In four of the five contests since, Green has played at least 29 minutes, including a regular-season career-high 34:05. (He skated more than 35 minutes in Game 4 against Philadelphia last year.)

"[We've missed him] a lot," Green said of Poti. "He's a great defensive player. He can log a lot of minutes and it has made the rest of us have to play a bit more, but it will be nice to have him back."

Added Boudreau: "It will be easier - a lot easier [to limit Green] - because Mike is getting so much of the penalty-killing [time] now and all of the power play. It would be a lot easier when Tom comes in because he will eat up a few of those minutes."

Ovechkin update

General manager George McPhee said he talked to Alex Ovechkin on the phone but had no update on when the superstar will return to the team. Ovechkin is at home in Russia with his grandfather, who has been hospitalized.

The league's reigning MVP missed only the second game of his four-year career Tuesday, but he could be absent again Saturday. At least that's what Boudreau is planning for.

"In my mind, yeah - that is the way it looks like," he said.

'Russian holiday'

Sergei Fedorov and Viktor Kozlov did not practice Thursday, a day after the team was given the day off. Boudreau said they were both excused from the workout and that both will play against the Sabres.

He would not divulge any other details, other than to call it a "Russian holiday."