The Washington Capitals have announced updates to the injury situations of two of their wingers. Per the team, Carl Hagelin had surgery on his left eye, and will be out “indefinitely.” Additionally, rookie Joe Snively underwent a procedure to address an issue in his left wrist and, according to the team, will be out “four to six weeks.”
This news comes as the Capitals jockey for position in the Eastern Conference’s playoff picture. The team has a middling 5-5-0 record in their last ten games and with 69 points is set as the clear second wild-card team at the moment, meaning they are pencilled in for a potential playoff matchup against juggernaut teams like the Florida Panthers, Tampa Bay Lightning, or Carolina Hurricanes.
With the losses of Hagelin and Snively, the Capitals lose two wingers with clear roles on their NHL roster. Hagelin, 33, has been an important veteran bottom-sixer for the team since the 2018-19 season and has three goals and 14 points in 53 games so far this year. Hagelin is a veteran of 713 NHL games and coach Peter Laviolette is sure to miss his mature two-way play as the team battles for a higher seed down the stretch.
Joe Snively, on the other hand, has only 12 NHL games to his name, but is potentially a more disappointing loss for the Capitals. The former Yale Bulldog is a 26-year-old undrafted rookie who has had an impressive seven points in those 12 games at the NHL level, building off of his productive 35 game run this season with the AHL’s Hershey Bears, where he has 15 goals and 38 points.
The Capitals have a deep team and have won their past two games in impressive fashion without either Snively or Hagelin. But despite that recent success, this is clearly a team that would prefer to have those two in the fold, and this update to their injury situations will come as a disappointment to the Capitals faithful.