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Report: Vokoun won’t be back with Caps, wants to stay in NHL

Washington Capitals v San Jose Sharks

SAN JOSE, CA - JANUARY 07: Tomas Vokoun #29 of the Washington Capitals heads out for warmups as SJ Sharkie the mascot of the San Jose Sharks looks on at the HP Pavilion at San Jose on January 7, 2012 in San Jose, California. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

Bruce Bennett

Alexander Semin isn’t the only talented-but-disappointing free agent whose days with the Washington Capitals are essentially over. CSNWashington.com’s Chuck Gormley reports that you can add Tomas Vokoun to the “departing” list.

“Tomas Vokoun said today he never intended on playing more than one season in DC”

Vokoun took a huge pay cut from his 2010-11 salary to the $1.5 million he made this season in attempt to chase a Stanley Cup. That obviously didn’t work out for him or the Capitals, but with most of the best potentially available goalies carrying caveats (such as being restricted free agents), Vokoun theoretically is still a desirable target.

Rumors are floating around from Russian Machine Never Breaks through Czech site iSport.cz that Vokoun is in talks with what will be a reconstructed Lokomotiv Yaroslavl team. Nick Kypreos reports Vokoun hasn’t agreed to a deal with Lokomotiv just yet and that “his first choice is to stay in the NHL.”

With the KHL’s provision that each team has the option of adding one returning NHL player who won’t count against the salary cap, it’s quite possible that a KHL team such as Lokomotiv might give Vokoun a more lucrative contract. Vokoun might also want to honor fellow Czech countrymen Josef Vasicek (a good friend of Vokoun’s), Jan Marek and Karel Rachunek who were on that team.

At the same time, he might feel like there’s still some unfinished business after a disappointing 2011-12 season and he should have a nice chunk of NHL suitors. He’d make a lot of sense for the Tampa Bay Lightning, Columbus Blue Jackets and any number of teams who would rather not give up assets to acquire a less-proven young backup such as Jonathan Bernier.

Either way, Vokoun will join Semin and possibly quite a few others who are exiting DC.