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Caps to give Matt Hendricks a turn on first line

Washington Capitals v Florida Panthers

SUNRISE, FL - FEBRUARY 12: Matt Hendricks #26 is congratulated by Alex Ovechkin #8 of the Washington Capitals after he scored a second period goal against the Florida Panthers at the BB&T Center on February 12, 2013 in Sunrise, Florida. (Photo by Joel Auerbach/Getty Images)

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The carousel of left wingers to play on Washington’s first line continues to spin.

Washington coach Adam Oates is going to give rugged forward Matt Hendricks a shot to run and gun on the first line with Mike Ribeiro and Alex Ovechkin, as Katie Carrera of The WashingtonPost reports. Oates says the top left wing spot is a work in progress.

“You know what, just a change. Give someone else a shot there,” Oates said. “Kind of by committee right now until I feel that there’s a real guy who can be entrenched there.”

Among the other guys who have seen time on the first line are: Wojtek Wolski, Jason Chimera, and Marcus Johansson. With Brooks Laich still out with a groin problem, it’s been a bit of a mess to find someone who works out well on that line. Perhaps Hendricks can do what everyone else hasn’t been able to do and provide stability. He’ll get a chance to show what he can do against Winnipeg this afternoon.