Capitals preparing at least one more big move

Being a Capitals fan is no picnic these days.

Alex Ovehckin had a (very) difficult first half of the season, but he bounced back to help the Caps make the playoffs. However, the club was knocked out in four short games against the Rangers.

A few weeks later, the organization buys the CapFriendly site… in order to privatize it.

Then, Brian MacLellan accepts Pierre-Luc Dubois (and his contract) in return for Darcy Kuemper, refusing to rebuild and instead trying to help Alex Ovechkin break Wayne Gretzky’s scoring record.

Need a side by side of this with Sid to really highlight how amazing it is pic.twitter.com/AQ4l1BNZbw

– Empty Netters (@EmptyNettersPod) June 22, 2024

Don’t ask yourself what you can do for your country team, ask yourself what it can do for you, like…

With Evgeny Kuznetsov gone and Nicklas Backstrom on the LTIR, next season doesn’t look rosy in Washington. Especially since the organization’s #1 goalie is currently Charlie Lindgren… and he’s reportedly on the verge of signing a contract extension confirming his status as the top goalie on the depth chart.

What’s more, only one of the team’s top four defensemen is under 33… and he’ll have them in September, before the start of next season. #NickJensen

At least the Hershey Bears are now just one win away from winning the Calder Cup. I imagine there are some guys out there who’ll be good enough to help the Capitals in October…

Hendrix Lapierre in particular?

Still, Caps management will have to perform small miracles over the next few days if they really want to avoid rebuilding AND achieve short-term success.

Will the Caps move again? According to Elliotte Friedman, yes.

Someone told me Washington wasn’t done. I think Washington is going to be very busy… I’ve heard there’s more stuff coming. –Elliotte Friedman

Friedman on 32TP: Someone told me too that Washington is not done, I think Washington is going to be very busy…I heard there is more coming there

– NHL Watcher (@NHL_Watcher) June 22, 2024

The full episode of the podcast in which Elliotte Friedman made this prediction is available HERE.

With a top-six of Strome, Ovechkin, Wilson, Dubois, McMichael and Oshie, there’s clearly room for improvement for the Caps. Especially since, last April, we learned that Oshie had severe back problems and that his career might be over…

With Miroshnichenko, Lapierre, Milano and Protas up front , the Capitals are going to need some help up front.

I can’t wait to see if Elliotte Friedman is right, and if so, what MacLellan will do next. A goalie to back up Lindgren? A talented forward? A young defenseman to prepare the team’s future defensive brigade?

It’s worth noting that the Caps have around $3.5 million in loot under the salary cap, but will most likely be able to place Backstrom’s salary ($9.2 million) on the LTIR in 2024-25. In short, they have money to move.

If the Capitals are looking to rejuvenate their blue-line squad, there’s a Montreal club with a bit of surplus at just that position. Jordan Harris vs Hendrix Lapierre Ivan Miroshnichenko, would you say yes?

Unless the Caps have faith in Josh Anderson or Brendan Gallagher like they did in Pierre-Luc Dubois? If I were Josh and I didn’t want to stay in Montreal, I don ‘t think I’d be taking a shower for a few days…

It’ll be interesting to follow the Caps over the next 10 days… especially as non-partisans. Unfortunately, their prospect bank isn’t overflowing, and that could put a damper on some potential trades…