Washington Capitals rookie camp, training camp, preseason, and the regular season is almost here and it's time to get fired up. With the Brian MacLellan era over and the Chris Patrick era underway let's breakdown the 3 times GMBM fleeced someone else in a trade.
The Caps are gearing up for 50 years of Capitals hockey and it's going to be a special time of year with fall pretty much here and labor day over.
#3 Jakub Vrana for Anthony Mantha
Let's put this to bed once and for all with V back on a PTO looking to make the team out of training camp. The Caps won this trade with the Detroit Red Wings from two years ago and the numbers and the speed from Jakub Vrana back it up.
But the beauty of the Anthony Mantha trade is that both sides benefitted, that is the Caps and Vegas Golden Knights, two former GM's handshaking. Spencer Carbery tapped into Mantha's potential which in turn upped his trade value. The Caps would get Logan Thompson over draft weekend and the rest as they say is history. Now it's up to Vrana to get back on the Caps roster and true fans know V has what it takes.
#2 Lars Eller in 2016
This was a masterclass of a draft night trade by Brian MacLellan in the summer of 2016 and it was a major reason why they captured the Stanley Cup two years later. Lars Eller was traded from Montreal for two second round picks, one from the 2017 NHL Draft and the other from the 2018 Draft.
He was effective in the bottom six and was a supporting forward anytime someone got hurt. He also gave the Caps depth scoring which was what they needed in that 2018 Stanley Cup run. It also deepened the center core for the foreseeable future at the time.
Eller scored of course the two most important goals in that Stanley Cup run. The first was a Game 3 goal at Columbus and the second was a tiebreaking goal in Game 5 that gave the Caps the lead for good and they would go on to win the Cup.
Last year his time in DC came to an end but now he's qualifying for the Olympics in 2026 for his home country which is a whole lot better than playing for that other team.
#1 T.J. Oshie trade in 2015
Ah the trade that rocked the hockey world when the Caps decided to make a deal with the St. Louis Blues for T.J. Oshie. It was emotional for the forward but he was welcomed by the Caps fans with open arms and his positive attitude was contageous throughout the locker room and the community. He is perhaps the best American to ever lace up the skates.
We don't need to say why. You've seen him perform in the Olympic shootouts. He was also clutch in the postseason. During the 2018 Cup run, Oshie ranked fourth on the Caps in points as well as eight goals and 13 assists for 21 points in 24 games.
Oshie as we know has one more season left on his contract and there's no telling what his status is but we all know he's dealt with back issues and time will tell on if whether or not he can make the opening night lineup.
Whatever Oshie decides to do we are all for him and he was a big reason the Caps even qualifyed for the Stanley Cup playoffs last season.
