The Caps have sent center Keith Aucoin back to Hershey. He went scoreless in two games while filling in for an injured Boyd Gordon. What does this mean for the Caps, who don't play again until Thursday night? Well ...

a) Gordon is ready to play by Thursday and he goes back on the 4th line with David Steckel going back "up" to the third. I say "up" because the 4th line has been getting 3rd line minutes lately.

b) Gordon isn't ready to play by Thursday, so the Caps just recall Aucoin and take him to Atlanta/Long Island. Would save the team a few bucks under the salary cap to not have him on the roster for two days (there could also be a way that Tomas Fleischamann's LTIR status comes into play, but let's just leave that alone for now).

c) Gordon isn't ready to play and the Caps decide to play Michael Nylander on the third line instead. Look, the Caps haven't given any indication that this is even being considered as an option, but as long as he's on the roster and at practice it is.

Alexander Semin's illness could further complicate matters, but Bruce Boudreau didn't sound too concerned with his enigmatic forward's absence.

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