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Injury Notes: Coyotes, Blues, Capitals, Sabres

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Although the injuries have not been reported as anything major, fans of the Arizona Coyotes can’t help but feel nervous that two players expected to be major additions to the team’s forward corps this season – trade acquisition Alex Galchenyuk and top prospect Dylan Strome – are currently sidelined with injuries. The Athletic’s Craig Morgan reports that Galchenyuk is currently out with a lower-body injury and has yet to be evaluated and cleared by the medical staff, per head coach Rick Tocchet. Tocchet did not relay when and how the injury occurred and the Coyotes will have to wait for him to be examined to determine the severity and recovery time. Galchenyuk has been a very durable player to this point in his six-year career, but did struggle to return from a knee injury in 2016-17, which ended up costing him 21 games over two stints on the injured reserve. An extended absence to begin his tenure in Arizona would be an unfortunate start for Galchenyuk, who seemed primed to embrace his change of scenery. As for Strome, Morgan writes that he is considered day-to-day with an upper-body injury. One of the knocks on Strome, the third overall pick in 2015, is that he has struggled to fill out his 6’3″ frame. The lanky forward can be pushed around – and thus susceptible to injury – far too often for a player of his stature. Arizona needs Strome to get healthy and toughen up if he wants to be an impact player this season.

  • The quantity, not quality, of injuries for the St. Louis Blues is starting to become a concern. With starting goaltender Jake Allen still not ready for game action due to back spasms and Nikita Soshnikov out indefinitely with a concussion, the team also has three key forwards on the sidelines with minor injuries. The Athletic’s Jeremy Rutherford updated the statuses of David Perron, Tyler Bozak, and Robby Fabbri today. Fabbri’s injury history is well-documented; the undersized winger has had back luck with his knees, missing the final 30 regular season games and all 11 postseason games of the 2016-17 season, only to tear his ACL last preseason and miss the entire 2017-18 season. While Fabbri’s knees seem to be back at full strength, his current injuries could be related to getting back to a game level of skating. Rutherford states that Fabbri did not practice today due to a sore back and hip flexor. Fortunately, these are conditions that the young forward should be able to bounce back from very soon. Meanwhile, veteran free agent additions Perron and Bozak also missed practice today and were pulled from tonight’s preseason roster with matching groin injuries. The experienced forwards, who added significant depth for St. Louis with their signings this summer, have no previous lower-body injury history and should hopefully be back on the ice soon.
  • The Capitals have just three players who have yet to suit up for a preseason game so far: defenseman John Carlson, center Lars Eller, and winger Devante Smith-Pelly. While Carlson and Eller had documented lower-body injuries and are simply being eased back into game action, NBC Sports Washington’s J.J. Regan points out that Smith-Pelly’s absence has been more curious. In speaking with new head coach Todd Reirden, Regan discovered that Smith-Pelly’s conditioning has been an issue and he has been working toward getting back in game shape. Reirden states that the physical forward is not dealing with any injuries, but simply not yet at a level where he would benefit from playing. A short and celebratory summer likely has Smith-Pelly slightly out of shape and fatigued, but it is not an issue that seems likely to impact the regular season and certainly not a Jake Dotchin-type scenario.
  • Injury-prone Buffalo Sabres defenseman Zach Bogosian is taking it easy this preseason. Beat writer Bill Hoppe says that the veteran blue liner is being eased into camp to ensure that he is fully healthy for the start of the regular season. Bogosian has yet to skate in a preseason game and may not see much exhibition action at all. While Bogosian has a lengthy injury history that features IR stints for knees, ribs, groins, wrists, and more, it was his hip that cost Bogosian all but 18 games last year. He missed the final 39 contests after undergoing hip surgery in January. With the Sabres already fighting the injury bug, it is important that Bogosian be given the time he needs to start the season off on the right foot. Hoppe adds that while Conor Sheary appears ready to re-join the team next week, his former Pittsburgh Penguins teammate, defenseman Matt Hunwick will not. Hunwick will not be ready for the start of the regular season due to a neck injury, making Bogosian’s availability all that more important.

Salary Cap Deep Dive: Washington Capitals

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Navigating the Salary Cap is probably one of the more important tasks for any general manager to have. Teams that can avert total cap chaos by walking the tightrope of inking players to deals that match their value (or compensate for future value without breaking the bank) remain successful. Those that don’t see struggles and front office changes.

PHR will look at every NHL team and give a thorough look at their cap situation heading into the 2018-19 season. This will focus more on those players who are integral parts of the roster versus those who may find themselves shuttling between the AHL and NHL. All cap figures are courtesy of CapFriendly.

Washington Capitals

Current Cap Hit: $78,400,961 (under the $79.5MM Upper Limit)

Entry-Level Contracts

F Jakub Vrana (One year remaining, $863K)

With the team trying to make a Stanley Cup run over the past few years and finally capturing one, youth is in rare supply in Washington as the team has made it clear that it prefers to play its veterans rather than risk mistakes from youngsters. The only player who is still on an entry-level deal is Vrana, who has had a turbulent career so far with the Capitals. After spending a couple of years in the AHL, he finally got a full season with Washington this year, but the former first-round pick was never able to secure a full-time role in the team’s top six as he bounced around on different lines all season. He finished the year with 13 goals and 27 points, but put up another three goals and eight points in the playoffs. He has a chance to take on a full-time role on the team’s second line this season and hopes for a breakout season.

Potential Bonuses

Vrana: $600K

Total: $600K

One Year Remaining, Non Entry-Level

F Andre Burakovsky ($3MM, RFA)
F Brett Connolly ($1.5MM, UFA)
D Brooks Orpik ($1MM, UFA)
F Devante Smith-Pelly ($1MM, UFA)
D Christian Djoos ($650K, RFA)
F Nic Dowd ($650K, UFA)
F Chandler Stephenson ($650K, RFA)
F Nathan Walker ($650K, RFA)
G Pheonix Copley ($650K, UFA)

The Capitals have only a few significant free agents for next season as many of their deals are league-minimum contracts, which is necessary considering the amount of money the team has expended in keeping their roster together. Perhaps the biggest name on their free agent list will be Burakovsky, who many thought might have a breakout season with a bigger role last year. However, Burakovsky’s numbers decreased as his season was plagued with injuries. His 12 goals and 25 points in 56 games was the worst since his rookie season. However, he did post six points in 13 playoff games. If he can stay healthy, the 23-year-old could provide the team with more offense.

Due to the Stanley Cup win, the team was able to find a way to bring back several key role players on cheaper deals. The team assumed they would lose Smith-Pelly to free agency, but the 26-year-old opted to return for another playoff run, while long-time Capital Orpik was traded away, waived and opted to return for another year.

Two Years Remaining

F Nicklas Backstrom ($6.7MM, UFA)
G Braden Holtby ($6.1MM, UFA)
D Madison Bowey ($1MM, RFA)
F Travis Boyd ($800K, RFA)

The team does have to worry about Backstrom in two years. The team’s No. 2 center is still posting excellent numbers as he tallied 21 goals and 70 points last season, the fifth straight season he’s reached at least 70 points. However, the team will have a tough decision to eventually make as the veteran will be 32 when he gets awarded a new contract, which can get into a dangerous area when players hit their early 30’s.

Holtby will be another interesting case. After temporarily losing his starting job to Philipp Grubauer for a few weeks near the end of the season due to poor play (2.99 GAA, .907 save percentage), Holtby snapped out of it and posted dominant numbers throughout the playoffs (2.16 GAA, .922 save percentage) showing he still has what it takes to be a top-of-the-line goaltender. While the 28-year-old should still be in his prime in two years, the team also has top goaltending prospect Ilya Samsonov arriving in North America this season. He’ll likely start the season in the AHL, but he will likely be ready to take the reigns once Holtby’s deal expires.

Three Or More Years

F Alex Ovechkin ($9.54MM through 2020-21)
D John Carlson ($8MM through 2025-26)
F Evgeny Kuznetsov ($7.8MM through 2024-25)
F T.J. Oshie ($5.75MM through 2024-25)
D Matt Niskanen ($5.75MM through 2020-21)
F Tom Wilson ($5.17MM through 2023-24)
D Dmitry Orlov ($5.1MM through 2022-23)
F Lars Eller ($3.5MM through 2022-23)
D Michal Kempny ($2.5MM through 2021-22)

The team decided more than a year ago that they were going for it, which worked out perfectly last season. The team has done a fantastic job locking up its core, although many of the pricetags are quite generous, which could come to hurt them. However, now that the team has won the Stanley Cup, the team is going all out to win another as the team has locked up all of their critical free agents this year, signing Carlson as a long-term answer as their top defender as well as locking in Wilson. That gives them a solid core for the next many years. That should give them two or three years to attempt to capture another title. However, eventually this team will be weighed down by these contracts, much like the Chicago Blackhawks, but Washington is focused on the future.

The team may be forced into handing out another long-term extension to Ovechkin in three years, depending on how the 32-year-old fares in three years, but the deal would unlikely be more than he is already being paid.

Buyouts

None

Still To Sign

None

Best Value: Holtby
Worst Value: Wilson

Looking Ahead

The Capitals are quite used to dealing with little to no cap space and will have to do that again for a number of years to come. However, the team has managed to keep not just the core of their team together, but have also managed to bring back multiple role players at bargain prices to keep this team at a Stanley Cup level. With new deals to players like Carlson and Wilson, should challenge for a few more years, but age and those long-term deals will eventually hold the franchise after that. However, the team has already proven that their tactics are worth it after winning it all last season.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Metropolitan Notes: Capitals, Nelson, Zibanejad, Myers

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If it ain’t broke. Don’t fix it. At least that seems to be what the Washington Capitals believe. After capturing the Stanley Cup last season, the team completed one of its final moves when it locked up forward Tom Wilson to a six-year, $31-year deal. And suddenly, the team miraculously has managed to bring back almost its entire roster for next season, according to J.J. Regan of Yahoo Sports.

While all teams are forced to shake up their roster and allow for the losses of free agents after each season, the Capitals are an unusual situation, considering the number of potential free agents as well as how tight their salary cap has been over the past two years. It wasn’t going to get any better, yet still, the team still was able to re-sign stud defenseman John Carlson (eight years, $64MM) as well as find a creative way to trade defenseman Brooks Orpik to Colorado and then bring him back after the Avalanche waived him. They also managed to hold onto trade deadline acquisition Michal Kempny (four years, $10MM).

Sure, the team did suffer a couple of losses, including the loss of fourth-line center Jay Beagle and backup goaltender Philipp Grubauer. However, the team has people ready to step into those positions, including prospect Travis Boyd, free agent acquisition Nic Dowd as well as place long-time minor leaguer Pheonix Copley to fill in for a year, while the team waits for superstar prospect Ilya Samsonov to develop in the AHL for a year.

  • Andrew Gross of Newsday wonders whether the New York Islanders would consider moving center Brock Nelson for a defenseman, now that the 26-year-old has agreed to a one-year, $4.25MM deal with the team. With quite a bit of youth in the wings and the team in desperate need for blueline help and the fact that Nelson could walk away from the team as an unrestricted free agent next season, a trade might make a lot of sense. Nelson has been quite productive for New York, posting at least 19 goals in his last four seasons.
  • The Athletic’s Rick Carpinello (subscription required) analyzes and grades the season of New York Rangers center Mika Zibanejad, who took over the team’s No. 1 center position last season after the team traded away Derek Stepan. Many of the same questions about Stepan not being a No. 1 center now have fallen to Zibanejad. Yet, the 25-year-old definitely took his game up a notch, posting a career-high 27 goals in 72 games, but once again suffered an injury that interrupted his season. It marks the second straight year that Zibanejad has struggled with injuries, which is a concern and the center still must work on his consistency, including the fact that he posted no goals and one assist in the final seven games.
  • Dave Isaac of the Cherry Hill Courier Post writes that if the Philadelphia Flyers are impressed by the play of 6-foot-5 prospect Philippe Myers in training camp this year, that could impact the role of defenseman Radko Gudas, who could then be on his way out as Myers physicality could replace Gudas role as well as the fact that Myers and Travis Sanheim were a great pair when they were together with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms of the AHL.

Poll: What Kind Of Extension Is Predators’ Ryan Ellis Worth?

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With top defensemen getting locked up to big, long-term deals everywhere, one only has to look around the league to see who is next. The most obvious target would be Nashville’s Ryan Ellis, who will be wrapping up the final year of his five-year, $12.5MM deal. Ellis, who is one of the core of Nashville’s talented back end, is one of the most underpaid blueliners in the league at $2.5MM AAV, should be in line for a great extension. After all, many of his defensive teammates are already well-paid, including P.K. Subban ($9MM for four more years), Roman Josi ($4MM for two more years), and Mattias Ekholm ($3.75MM for four more years).

Nashville claims that locking up the 27 year old is the team’s top priority this offseason. Yet little has happened. However, how much is he worth, asks Adam Vingan of the Tennessean? While two of the most significant extensions went to Los Angeles’ Kings Drew Doughty (eight years, $11MM AAV) and Arizona Coyotes’ Oliver Ekman-Larsson (eight years, $8.25MM AAV), Ellis likely doesn’t fit into that category. Therefore, Vingan writes that Nashville must compare Ellis’ play with several other tiers of defenseman that have recently signed new deals. The most likely comparables for Ellis will come down to the recent contracts signed by Washington Capitals’ John Carlson (eight years, $8MM AAV) and Tampa Bay Lightning’s Ryan McDonagh (eight years, $6.75MM AAV). However is he as good as those two?

The next tier would be contracts handed out a few years ago that could compare, such as Pittsburgh Penguins’ Kris Letang (eight years, $7.25MM AAV), Erik Johnson (seven years, $6MM AAV) and Anaheim Ducks’ Cam Fowler (eight years, $6.5MM AAV). Ellis’ stats are challenging to look when attempting to compare to any of those defensemen. Offensively, he’s never put up 40 points in a season yet, coming close once with 38 points (16 of those were goals). However, after missing the first half of this past season after undergoing knee surgery in the offseason, Ellis’ stats took a jump when he put up 32 points in 44 games, suggesting that his offense is starting to emerge. With his defense never under question, the Predators must come up with a number soon.

So what range should Ellis fall into?

How much should Nashville defenseman get on his next contract?
$6-8MM per year 54.71% (598 votes)
Less than $6MM per year 39.71% (434 votes)
More than $8MM per year 5.58% (61 votes)
Total Votes: 1,093

Trade Rumors app users, click here.

Ottawa Offers Erik Karlsson Contract Extension

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The Ottawa Senators kept to their word Sunday as the team offered superstar defenseman Erik Karlsson a contract extension, according to NHL.com’s David Satriano. Terms of the extension offer were not disclosed. Despite the rumors of unhappiness with the ownership and his not willing to accept a “hometown” discount that has led to quite a bit of trade speculation over the past six months, general manager Pierre Dorion said the team had to make one final effort to keep Karlsson in the fold.

“We don’t really want to talk about roster players, contract negotiations, trades, all these things, but I think we owe it to our fans and we made a promise at the town hall that we would make a contract offer to Erik Karlsson and we’ve done so,” Dorion said Sunday.

Karlsson is in the last year of a seven-year, $45.5MM deal that he signed in 2012, which looks like a bargain as his AAV sits at just $6.5MM. However, with the sudden increase in salaries for star defenseman having increased, it’s likely that a new Karlsson deal will break the bank. Several defenseman have cashed in over the past few days, including Drew Doughty (eight years, $88MM, $11MM AAV), Oliver Ekman-Larsson (eight years, $66MM, $8.25MM AAV) and John Carlson (eight years, $64MM, $8MM AAV).

With increased trade rumors over the past week, there still hasn’t been a trade yet. The team has made it clear to teams that they are asking for a big return for their superstar center and have made it even more challenging for teams as they want the team also to take on the contract of Bobby Ryan, which still has four year left at $7.25MM. The Vegas Golden Knights have been the most talked about team since the trade deadline to get a deal done and they still could, but nothing has materialized yet. The Senators still have hope that Karlsson will sign an extension.

“I think Erik wants to be a Senator for life,” Dorion said then. “I don’t want to speak for him, I’ll let him speak for himself. We’ll see what the next few months bring, but if Erik Karlsson is here on July 1, we will be making him a contract offer.”

Michal Kempny Re-Signs With Washington

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Friday: The Capitals have officially announced the deal.  It’s a four-year extension worth $10MM in total for a salary cap hit of $2.5MM.  TSN’s Darren Dreger reports (Twitter link) that the breakdown of the deal is as follows:

2018-19: $3.2MM
2019-20: $2.7MM
2020-21: $1.8MM
2021-22: $2.2MM

Dreger also notes that just over half of the money comes in the form of signing bonuses.

Thursday: The Stanley Cup champion Washington Capitals had two names at the top of their free agency wish list: defensemen John Carlson and Michal Kempny. According to TSN’s Darren Dreger, those boxes will both be checked off before July 1st. After inking Carlson to a massive extension earlier this week, Dreger reports that the Capitals have now agreed to terms on a multi-year extension with Kempny. Term and salary details have not yet been disclosed and the contract is expected to be formally announced tomorrow.

Kempny was little more than a luxury depth addition when the Capitals acquired him from the Chicago Blackhawks ahead of the Trade Deadline. Kempny was midway through his second NHL season and had just 81 games and 12 points to show for himself. Yet, Washington GM Brian MacLellan saw something in the 27-year-old Czech import. Not only did MacLellan give up a conditional third round pick to land Kempny – at the time seen as a steep price – but he also handed him more ice time than he had ever seen in Chicago. Kempny rewarded him with flawless defensive play down the stretch. Kempny is neither an offensive force nor a real physical threat, but he plays a strong man-to-man defensive game and make few mistakes. He took his game up another notch in the postseason, scoring five points in 24 games, blocking shots seemingly all of the time, and serving as a match-up nightmare for the opposition.

Kempny exceeded all expectations in Washington and was a key piece to their Cup run. Now the Capitals plan to repay him by exceeding his very modest $900K cap hit with a new multi-year contract. The Caps’ blue line felt like it was missing a piece for most of last year before Kempny arrived and the team hopes that this extension will maintain the strong play that the unit showed in the postseason. Armed with a top four of Carlson, Kempny, Matt Niskanen, and Dmitry Orlov, the Capitals will be ready to defend their title next season.

Snapshots: Karlsson, Thornton, Talbot, Brodziak

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While the free agent market is slimming more and more after John Carlson opted to re-sign with the Washington Capitals, the trade market has barely gotten active as teams wait to see how the free agent market shakes out. Regardless that could change in the next few days. While there were a few trades this weekend during the draft, one name that stayed put is Ottawa Senators’ defenseman Erik Karlsson.

According to Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun, general manager Pierre Dorion was fielding phone calls all the way up to the Senators picked at No. 4, but still hasn’t found the right deal as he’s looking for a big haul of players and picks considering that Karlsson is a franchise player.

As expected, Garrioch writes that the Vegas Golden Knights were at the forefront in trying to make a deal and Vegas was prepared to take the contract of Bobby Ryan, who still has four years at $7.25MM AAV remaining on his contract, but other teams are also trying to get into the Karlsson sweepstakes, including the Carolina Hurricanes, Tampa Bay Lightning, San Jose Sharks and the Washington Capitals. No word on whether the other teams are willing to take on Ryan’s contract. While the Capitals are likely out of the running now that they’ve signed Carlson, the Carlson signing may force other teams to press harder to acquire Karlsson.

  • David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period reports that there is mutual interest between Joe Thornton and the San Jose Sharks to return to the team, regardless of whether the team signs John Tavares or not. Thornton, who suffered a season-ending torn MCL in January, would have to come back at a lower salary than the $8MM he made last year, but at 38 years old, he can still be a productive player even if he is forced to play on a lower line. Thornton put up 13 goals and 23 assists in 47 games, but “Jumbo Joe” is well past the days of putting up 82 points in 2015-16.
  • Pagnotta also commented on Edmonton Oilers goaltender Cam Talbot as he says both the Oilers and Talbot have agreed to hold off on extension talks until the start of the new season. The 30-year-old Talbot had been a major piece to the team’s success up until this past year. After posting 2.39 GAA and a .919 save percentage two years ago, he struggled this season, posting a 3.02 GAA and a .908 save percentage. The team likely wants to ensure that Talbot bounces back to form before offering him an extension.
  • Jeremy Rutherford of The Athletic writes that the St. Louis Blues and center Kyle Brodziak both have interest in an extension. The 34-year-old center put up his best season since 2011-12 as a fourth-line center. He tallied 10 goals and 33 points last season. While the Blues have bigger concerns at the moment, Rutherford points out that neither party is in a big rush.

Washington Re-Signs John Carlson To Eight-Year Deal

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One of the top free agents of the 2018 free agent class came off the board as the Washington Capitals have announced the re-signing of defenseman John Carlson to an eight-year $64MM deal, with an AAV of $8MM. The deal gives Carlson the second-highest AAV among NHL defenseman behind Nashville’s P.K. Subban ($9MM), at least until the extension that the Arizona Coyotes gave Oliver Ekman-Larsson ($8.25MM) kicks in next season. San Jose’s Brent Burns also has an $8MM AAV.

Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic reports the breakdown of the contract is as follows:

2018-19: $6.5MM signing bonus, $5.5MM salary
2019-20: $6.5MM signing bonus, $5.5MM salary
2020-21: $2MM signing bonus, $6MM salary
2021-22: $5MM signing bonus, $3MM salary
2022-23: $2MM signing bonus, $4MM salary
2023-24: $2MM signing bonus, $4MM salary
2024-25: $2MM signing bonus, $4MM salary
2025-26: $2MM signing bonus, $4MM salary

While there had been talk that Carlson and the Stanley Cup winning Capitals were close to an agreement on Friday, there was some concern this morning when the two parties still hadn’t come to an agreement with rumors that Carlson would listen to offers from other teams, suggesting they hit an impasse in negotiations.

Carlson, who has been with the Capitals for all nine of his years, had a breakout year just in time, putting up 15 goals and 68 points, while playing a major role quarterbacking the Capitals power play through the playoffs and winning the Stanley Cup. His 20 points in 24 playoff games was critical of the team. Due to the team’s budget constraints, there were many questions whether Washington had the money to make a new deal with Carlson work. With almost no cap room, the Capitals solved many of those problems when they traded backup goaltender Philipp Grubauer and veteran defenseman Brooks Orpik to Colorado in exchange for a second-round pick Friday at the NHL Entry Draft, freeing up enough cap room to make the move possible.

While the 28-year-old may not be the third of fourth best defenseman in the league, Carlson was in an enviable bargaining position and after Carlson and his negotiating team also had the most recent extension of Ekman-Larsson to work with in contract discussions.

TSN’s Bob McKenzie was the first to report that a deal was near completion.

Still No Deal Between John Carlson, Washington Capitals

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Over the weekend there was plenty of optimism from the Washington Capitals that they would be able to finalize a long-term extension with unrestricted free agent John Carlson, especially after moving out Brooks Orpik’s $5.5MM cap hit in a trade with the Colorado Avalanche. Carlson is expected to receive a massive contract as the best defensemen scheduled to hit the market, and at one point Capitals GM Brian MacLellan even used the word “close” to describe the negotiations. Today, as the interview period starts for free agents, a deal has still not been announced between the two sides. Bob McKenzie of TSN checked in with Carlson’s agent Rick Curran, who commented on the situation:

As of the moment we do not have a deal in place with Washington and as permitted, I am getting/taking calls from other interested teams. 

Isabelle Khurshudyan of the Washington Post also tweets that the Capitals have offered a multi-year contract to free agent defenseman Michal Kempny, another key player the team wants to get under contract before they actually hit the open market next Sunday. Carlson is the real target though, and his decision will likely have huge ramifications on the Capitals and the free agent market in general.

If there is any real chance that the 28-year old defenseman is heading to free agency, teams will have to hold onto their cap space in hopes of landing one of the biggest prizes. Carlson could demand in excess of $8MM per season, and for good reason—he’s coming off a career-high 68 points, which led all defenders in the NHL this year. He’s also been given more than 20 minutes of ice time in every season since he was a 20-year old rookie, and almost averaged 26 minutes a night in the team’s recent Stanley Cup run. Though he didn’t get a lot of support as a Conn Smythe winner, his performance in the playoffs could have been worth it. Carlson had 20 points in 24 games, while generating a whopping 80 shots on net.

Every team could use a player like Carlson on their blue line, but fitting him into their salary structure may be difficult. The next few days will be crucial for Washington as they try to convince him to stick around while others are offering him a chance elsewhere. If they can’t retain him, one has to wonder where else the Capitals look to use that cap space and if they’ll suddenly become a player for some of the other top names this summer.

Washington Capitals Close To Signing John Carlson

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The Washington Capitals cleared extra cap space earlier today when they tagged Brooks Orpik onto a trade with the Colorado Avalanche. That space might not be available very long, as Dan Rosen of NHL.com reports that Capitals GM Brian MacLellan believes they are “close” to a new contract with defenseman John Carlson. MacLellan wants to get the deal done before Carlson can start talking to other teams on Sunday during the free agent interview period.

If Carlson does sign before Sunday, the free agent market would be changed considerably. The 28-year old currently sits as the top defenseman on the market and it’s not even really close. After scoring a career-high 68 points this season and being a key factor in the first Stanley Cup in Capitals history, he could demand as much as $8MM per season on a long-term deal. If teams were holding open that kind of cap space for a chance at Carlson on the open market, only to see him sign just before the interview period opens, you can bet some phone calls will be ringing on the draft floor inquiring about other defensemen around the league.

Carlson is an excellent player, capable of putting up big offensive numbers while not hurting his team in his own end. He’d be welcome on nearly any team in the league, but is more important to the Capitals than nearly anyone else. After losing Nate Schmidt in the expansion draft, Kevin Shattenkirk to free agency and seeing Orpik’s recent decline, the Capitals’ blue line has been substantially weakened in the last 12 months. Losing Carlson on the open market would put an immense amount of pressure on Matt Niskanen and Dmitry Orlov, who already carry a huge load for the team.

Michal Kempny, a revelation for the team down the stretch and into the playoffs is also an unrestricted free agent. Isabelle Khurshudyan of the Washington Post confirms MacLellan’s intention to try and bring Kempny back as well, though doesn’t specify how close negotiations are. After a trade deadline deal that brought Kempny to Washington from the Chicago Blackhawks, he found his game and developed into a legitimate top-four option for the team. Bringing him back for a reasonable price would allow the Capitals to really contend for the Stanley Cup once again with the same group, something that may not have seemed possible at the end of the year.

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