The Washington Capitals have great chemistry in their locker room and sit comfortably atop the Eastern Conference standings. The team has scored the most goals in the league (215) and given up the sixth fewest (157). They are also getting Vezina-caliber goaltending from Logan Thompson who has stopped 27.8 goals above expected — second most in the league.
Depth-wise, the Capitals likely have Ryan Leonard coming after the top prospect’s season is done at Boston College. Recent call-up Ethen Frank has been an instant fit on the third line, and the Caps are deep on defense beyond their starting six.
With the NHL Trade Deadline fast approaching on Friday, March 7, the Capitals seem to be mostly set for what could be a deep playoff run.
“We’re open to do whatever if it’s going to improve the team,” Capitals GM Chris Patrick said last week, “but we’re not going to do deals for the sake of making deals.”
Sportsnet’s Elliote Friedman did his annual Trade Deadline Day preview for every NHL team on the 32 Thoughts Podcast, Monday. While the hockey insider seems to believe the narrative surrounding the Caps’ more meager plans, he also wondered if the team could swing for the fences and surprise the rest of the NHL.
Per Sportsnet’s 32 Thoughts Podcast:
Elliotte Friedman: It was Chris Patrick who [said] ‘we probably won’t do too much here.’ And whenever a GM comes out and says that, I expect a nuclear bomb to drop on everything because (Vegas Golden Knights GM) Kelly McCrimmon did the same thing. ‘I don’t know if we’ll do too much,’ and I’m like ‘Okay, we’ll see bout this.’ But it fits.
In this particular case, everybody’s fit pretty well. Their players have all accepted their roles. I still think they’re going to add – they’ve got Ryan Leonard coming – and not every college player comes and makes an impact but there’s guys that do. Chris Kreider did in 2012 and I think Leonard has the ability to do that. But I still think they’re going to look at another forward and just say, ‘okay is there another guy we can bring in here who can play multiple positions, multiple roles, score some goals and defend.’ I think that’s going to happen here.
I know the other thing they’ve looked at is, are they happy with their seventh D. Right now it’s Dylan McIlrath who’s just a fantastic story, but do they look at that and go, ‘We need to add that?’
…
Based on what they’ve said and what I’ve heard, I’m not expecting anything big which of course they’re going to drop a massive deal on us.
The Capitals have reportedly kicked the tires on many depth forwards who would likely play in the team’s top nine and could penalty kill. One report even suggested that the Capitals could be looking for an upgrade at third-line center for Lars Eller.
The Caps have been mentioned specifically with names like Joel Armia, Scott Laughton, Nils Hoglander, Brandon Tanev, Trent Frederic, Jake Evans, Brock Nelson, and Yanni Gourde.
After retooling their roster over the last few seasons, the Capitals also have some decent future assets including their first-round pick for the next three drafts and two second-rounders in 2025. High-end players that could be available on the market include Mikko Rantanen, Brad Marchand, Ryan O’Reilly, Brock Boeser, Trevor Zegras, Erik Karlsson, JJ Peterka, Alex Tuch, Elias Pettersson, Dylan Cozens, and Brayden Schenn.
Friedman mused during the podcast that Washington could be a highly-attractive place for other players to land, stating that a star player would not veto a deal “because I don’t fit into the (Capitals’ elaborate) hallway routine.”
“You’re in second place in the league,” Friedman said. “Your captain’s about to set the goals record. What’s to hate?”
