Capital moves

By adding Sergei Fedorov, Cristobal Huet and, to a lesser extent, pesky Matt Cooke, the Washington Capitals improved their lot the most on the NHL's trade deadline day, according to Hound Central 3.0 readers.

Of the 26 votes cast, the Capitals, who have surged into competitiveness since putting Bruce Boudreau behind the bench, garnered 16 out of the 26 votes cast by readers.

Given the additions to a lineup that already boasts Alex Ovechkin, Alexander Semin, Nicklas Backstrom, Mike Green and Olaf Kolzig, it's apparent the Capitals were serious about winning the Southeast, perhaps the only way they could make a run during the playoffs.

Pittsburgh's acquisition of Marian Hossa, perhaps the biggest name player dealt (Dallas' Brad Richards, in my opinion, is a close second), Pascal Dupuis and Hall Gill captured some attention, but not nearly enough to make it interesting. It's too bad, though, Hossa hurt a knee in his Penguins debut.

Something tells me, however, that Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Ryan Whitney and Marc-Andre Fleury can somehow keep the team afloat until everyone is healthy again. Just look back at how well Pittsburgh did in extended absences by Crosby and Fleury.

Question: Who improved the most on trade deadline day?

Washington Capitals: 16 out of 26 votes cast (61.5 percent)
Pittsburgh Penguins: 8 out of 26 (30.7 percent)
Atlanta Thrashers: 1 out of 26 (3.8 percent)
Tampa Bay Lightning: 1 out of 26 (3.8 percent)