Swengali: A Fond Farewell to Kolzig

IN THE PAST three years, the face of the Washington Capitals has changed from a grizzled goalie to a superstar Russian who’s missing a tooth.

And it was inevitable that a young team with a bright future and new identity would be forced to move forward.

Yet that doesn’t lessen the sorrow of last week’s announcement that Olaf Kolzig will be looking for employment elsewhere next season.

The 2000 Vezina Trophy winner and the only goalie to lead the Capitals to the Stanley Cup finals found himself on the bench as Washington returned to the postseason this year.

Cristobal Huet, acquired at the trade deadline, earned his place as a starter by winning the team’s final seven regular season games to reach the playoffs.

It is the smart decision to keep Huet to build around a young team anchored by Alex Ovechkin.

But watching Olie the goalie on another team will be really odd.

Kolzig was drafted way back in 1989 — when Bart was still the main character of ”The Simpsons„ — and has played in a whopping 711 games for the Caps and achieved 301 wins.

Most impressively, Kolzig survived the purge of 2004 when Washington began its rebuilding process.

He saw some of the best and worst times in the team’s history.

We wish Kolzig a fond farewell, knowing his departure is probably best for both sides.

Photo by Toni L. Sandys/The Washington Post