Courting the Other Alexander

Washington Capitals owner Ted Leonsis wrote in his weekly "Owner's Corner" column Friday that the Caps have filed a legal complaint against the agent for Alexander Semin.

Semin, 21, has been playing for the Russian team Lada Togliatti since the lockout began, scoring five goals and three assists in 14 games. The Caps assigned Semin to play in the American Hockey League during the lockout, but the winger instead returned to Russia. His agent argues that a military obligation keeps the Russian from returning to the United States, a charge the Capitals claim is bogus.

"As you have read, we recently filed a legal complaint against Alexander Semin’s agent," Leonsis wrote. "This is not personal; it’s business. This course of action was encouraged by our law firm and the NHL. We have a contract with Alexander, and we want his agent and Russian hockey team to honor that commitment. Hopefully we can resolve the issue this season and welcome Alex back to D.C. He is a fine young man and a budding star in our league."

Semin is regarded by many as being a "Russian diva." Though consider as having incredible talent on offense, questions abound about his defensive play, motivation and attitude. While in the States, Semin admitted to not going out of his way to learn English and was reported as saying that part of his contract stated that if he felt his playing time wasn't adequate that he could return to Russia.

Caps brass see it differently.

"We have a valid contract that is not being honoured," Capitals General Manager George McPhee said in a published report. "We've done everything possible to have the player come here. And we felt we had no choice but to take this step."

It's difficult to gauge whether the Capitals' pursuit of Semin now will be worth it in the long run. Semin's attitude seems to run contrary to the type of team Leonsis hopes to build - a blue-collar, hardworking, team-first bunch of players. This kid seems to be everything off the ice that rookie sensation and fellow Russian Alexander Ovechkin is not. Make no mistake: Semin's scoring touch would be a welcome addition to a team that seems to rely on Ovechkin to do all of the scoring.