Washington Capitals Fan Forum
Talk about Capitals hockey & more! => Washington Capitals & Other Hockey Discussion => Topic started by: BlackIce on Saturday January 25, 2025, 11:00:42 AM Eastern
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So here we are in President's Trophy position. But the playoffs are another matter.
We made a move for Eller to try to solve the 3rd line problem. It seems to have worked out Meh so far.
Now other clubs are starting to make moves - Carolina of course just made a huge trade.
Do we do more, or do we stand pat? Astoundingly, our defense is now occupying the league's top spot - I'd be surprised if anything is done there. The goaltending has shown itself this year to be among the league's best. I don't think anything could be done there without upsetting team chemistry, even if one wanted to do something. That leaves the forwards, who have been somewhat erratic OFFENSIVELY, but not necessarily defensively. The thing is, we have an abundance of players per se, but do we need upgrades, and if so, where? Because we have plenty of players, it probably means we'd look to, and maybe almost have to, trade away roster players to get somebody. When at least the teams out of contention are really looking to stock up on prospects and draft picks.
We face the annual conundrum: Does standing pat show confidence in the team, or does it show that management doesn't care about giving the team the best chance to win? The higher you are in the standings, the worse the conundrum gets, because you can get the blowback that you are messing with team chemistry. Plus, the way the Caps are structured/playing, there aren't any glaring weaknesses, which is what deadline acquisitions are best designed to address (as opposed to marginal upgrades). Heck, it might be argued that our #1 offensive issue right now is L1, with Ovie maybe dragging it down -- and we know nothing is going to be done there.
Now there could always be a significant injury somewhere, which would dictate a move. But what do we do if things continue basically as they are, and we remain around the top of the standings?
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The only person I'm concrned about is McMike. He started off really well, then totally disappeared after the break, in spite of Carbs moving him around to try to get him going again. I think there are enough people currently riding the pine that could replace him.
Maybe hes just going through a slump. It happens.
maybe trade him and Vrana for picks?
Apart from that, I cant see who we might get as an upgrade to what we already have.
I definitely want to see more of Frank.
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As things stand now, I wouldn’t change anything. The only thing that I see needing improvement is the faceoffs, which has slowly improved. The problem is this team can’t afford to do much without moving too many pieces.
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Im always in the "stand pat" camp, when the team looks this good. Yet they never do.
Im still only worried about Ovi and the record. That's the 1st order of business. But they'll need a #1 LW and RW eventually. Strome has also cooled off as 1C, but all that could be due to Ovi, who knows.
I'd figure out how to sign LT and Chicky. That'd be plenty before the deadline, imo. We have plenty of depth guys in Hershey and riding pine, imo.
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https://twitter.com/Capitals/status/1883983464682447314
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The salary cap is supposed to get a good bump this off season, but the Caps are still going to have to dump some, somewhere.
https://capwages.com/teams/washington_capitals (https://capwages.com/teams/washington_capitals)
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Mange 5.8m, Roy 5.75m, Bear 2m. (if he's still on the books) Raddysh 1m.
I didn't realize we already pay Chicky 4.6m, so finding another million or three shouldn't be that hard?
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https://twitter.com/Capitals/status/1883983464682447314 (https://twitter.com/Capitals/status/1883983464682447314)
:clap: :)
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I think this is good move for the Caps. Thompson's only 27 so this plays him to age 33 which is still decent prime for a goalie
Good for Thompson. He's shown he's worth it. Dude just went from $766k a year to 5.85mil next year. Not a bad bump in pay.
That's pretty big spend for a goalie. Does this mean No more Lindy? He's proven to be a reliable GT, although IMO not a top tier guy. He's certainly do a pay raise. Can the caps afford another $3m in GT salary?
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Mange 5.8m, Roy 5.75m, Bear 2m. (if he's still on the books) Raddysh 1m.
I didn't realize we already pay Chicky 4.6m, so finding another million or three shouldn't be that hard?
I'd love to find a way to hang on to Chicklets - he really helps drive this team. He is basically a (better) replacement for JC when he is done.
The top 20 NHL defensemen salaries in the league go from 11.5m down to 8.0m (our own Johnny C.) this season. Chicklets certainly has argument to be in that group - at least in the bottom end of it. I think he's gonna need 8m to stay. That's tough pill to swallow with Ovi, PLD, JC taking up 30% of the cap hit with just the three of them.
Dowd, Eller, Raddysh are all FA next year, but they are budget guys. You can have all three for <$5m a season. I think they all have that value in this group, plus they are know entities
Vranna, Mangi, Bear you let go, Dowd I'm sure they will re-sign. I'm okay with Eller for 1 more year, and Raddysh at 1m is a bargain.
F'n internet been down at work for 3 hours. Makes it hard to get anything done with no email, no phones, no work files to access, no quickbooks.
FU Comcast!
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I haven’t looked myself, but I’m curious if Starlink is cheaper than comcast, or at least competitive with what they offer.
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On one hand, I like the LT signing, but long term goalie contracts make me nervous. He has certainly played great for us and hopefully he will be solid for years to come. I think Chucky will not want to extend as a backup and will want to go to a team with a shot to start.
Regarding extending Chyckrun - we are unfortunately hamstrung for one more year with Carlsons and Ovis contracts. Not sure how they get around that even with the cap going up. I think the assumption that you could get Chyckrun done at $8M is low. He is gonna end the season with 20 goals and somebody is going to break the bank for him - say 6 years a $9M or more. I think the only way we keep him is if he really likes the environment with the Caps and sees them as a Cup contender.
Regarding the trades, we usually pick up a veteran defenseman at the deadline and throw away a 2nd or 3rd round pick, but this time they should be comfortable with what they have with Alexyev and McIlrath on the bench. The only guy I would like them to trade is Mangiopani. I really liked him in the beginning, but he has faded and he is very small and not well suited for the physicality of the playoffs. His contract though will make him hard to move.
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McMike 2.1m Wonder what we could get for him? Was hoping it was a slump, but think it's time to admit his early season was the fluke. :-(
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One other factor to consider is that they will definitely sign Leonard at the end of his season and he could be eligible for the playoffs. Maybe he won't be ready for that yet, but maybe he will. I'd be surprised if they counted on that so it may not impact their trade plans.
On another note, that highlight they showed of little Protas was awesome! That kid could be on the fast track.
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One other factor to consider is that they will definitely sign Leonard at the end of his season and he could be eligible for the playoffs. Maybe he won't be ready for that yet, but maybe he will. I'd be surprised if they counted on that so it may not impact their trade plans.
On another note, that highlight they showed of little Protas was awesome! That kid could be on the fast track.
Interestingly, Leonard is not being quite as productive this year as he was last year. He is goals-wise, but not assists-wise. Of course, that could be because of the players surrounding him; we don't know about that. But you are right, all indications are that they are going to sign him and bring him on board in DC rather than Hershey after his college season is over. The organization is talking as if they see him as a bonafide addition to the roster, but how well could he blend in, coming in at the very end of the season?
I've been keeping an eye on the stats for "little" Protas all season. He is having a fabulous age 18 season at Windsor. I fully expect that he will return to juniors for his age 19 season, though one never knows. He is as tall as his brother, but doesn't weigh as much - probably just a matter of a few years of maturity. I think the consensus is that he has more skill than his older brother had at the same age, which, given his brother's progression, is a scary thought. THANK GOODNESS the Caps got the chance to draft him before his emergence, AND his brother's emergence in the NHL this season. Given all that, he'd probably go near the beginning of the first round were he to be in the draft this summer. We'd have never had a prayer of getting him. We can dream on the "twin towers" in the lineup in a few years.
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I think if Leonard were an elite skater he would have a chance to play in the post-season, but his skating is just average. They will probably just sign him and have him practice with the team and be a scratch through the playoffs, but you never know.
I think they are very pleased with Ethan Frank and I bet he stays up for the balance of the season, meaning Miro stays in Hershey and Vrana rides the pine. I bet they sign Frank to a deal as well. It would suck if they waited this long on him, then he proves he should have been up sooner, then they lose him in free agency.
The guy I am still thinking could be vulnerable is Mangiopani. He tries hard and gets some chances, like he did last night, but he seems to have a hard time converting on his chances. His contract though will make it hard for them to sit him or trade him.
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I haven’t looked myself, but I’m curious if Starlink is cheaper than comcast, or at least competitive with what they offer.
I have Starlink at home. It is the bomb if you live in the boonies like me - where nothing high speed is available.
I have had it for 2 years at home and maybe...MAYBE had outage for a short period only twice during HEAVY snowstorm. Waited a few months on waiting list, starlink dish arrived. less than hour install and setup (which is basically mount on the roof, plug in the router, let it point, run the app on phone and BOOM, you up and running.
$120/month, no data limit, we streaming netflix, downloading, running 13 devices, 8 phones, 6 laptops, 4 tv's, playstation, etc, etc.
It's not limitless but it has been 100% awesome for me. We have never had a lag despite several peeps in the house all using simultaneously
No cable or high speed internet available for us, and we have a DirecTV because my in-laws live with us, and when you can't access dish because of snow or rain, we bump DirecTV over to starlink internet and watch DirecTV thru that.
I would 100% cancel DirecTV if not for in-laws (and they pay for it). I could get all the TV i want thru streaming services and you can get monumental APP to watch all the Caps games
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:cross:
https://twitter.com/sammisilber/status/1885402264367399264
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:cross:
https://twitter.com/sammisilber/status/1885402264367399264 (https://twitter.com/sammisilber/status/1885402264367399264)
:cross: :cross: :cross:
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Problem is, what is good news regarding the salary cap for the Caps is equally good news for the other 31 teams in the league. IF Chychrun gets to UFA status, everyone has extra freed-up money to pursue potential assets - and he is going to be a very desirable asset for a lot of teams. Probably the Caps' best chance of signing him will be between now and the start of the UFA period. He is the type of player who typically is signed on his first day of eligibility.
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Get ready for $9M plus on a 6 to 8 year deal for him. He is the kind of player that some GMs will fall in love with and become convinced that he will be a great offensive defenseman for a long time. Heck - it might be over $10M. Look at the contract that San Jose signed Erik Karlsson to back in 2019 - it was $11.5M/year for 8 years. Turned out to be a terrible contract but it shows you what some teams will do when they are chasing the shiny new toy.
The Caps are actually pretty well positioned to do a long-term deal with Chychrun as they have a bunch of money freeing up after next year with both Carlson and Ovi's contracts finishing up. I love the guy, but I'm not sure how high I would want to go if it gets stupid.
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Problem is, what is good news regarding the salary cap for the Caps is equally good news for the other 31 teams in the league.
Yea, if he makes it to UFA day, he's gone.
Get ready for $9M plus on a 6 to 8 year deal for him.
If I was GM, 9+x6 would be hard to swallow. I wouldn't want to extend past 6 years though. I'd shoot for 8 or 8.5x6 and hope he really likes it here.
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I think re-signing Chychrun who has spent his career on bad teams should be the top priority. He hasn't been on a Playoff team in 5 years. He'll only be 27 at the start of next season so even an 8 year deal would only take him to age 34. He's tied in Points with Carlson who may be gone in the next couple years. Chychrun has 17 Goals, the rest of the defense has combined for only 12.
The Backstrom and Oshie contracts are off the books completely after this season. Mangiapane, Eller, Raddysh, Vrana, Dowd and Lindgren are all UFA. Dowd and Lindgren are the only 2 of that bunch I'd look to bring back as the rest could be replaced with cheaper in-house options like Leonard, Miroschnichenko, Lapierre and Trineyev.
If they make deadline moves, I don't expect anything big. The chemistry of the team is the ultimate strength. Even on a 3 game losing streak (for the 1st time all season) I think they should stand pat unless they can upgrade 3C without giving up too much.
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The Oshie and Backstrom contracts may be off the books after this season, but the cap space provided by them being on LTIR has been used up. Next season won’t matter as far as that goes.
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Their cap relief will come after next season (25/26) when Carlson ($8M) and Ovi ($9.5M) drop off. They can probably bet the farm on Chychrun and give him what he wants on an 8 year deal, but obviously it will restrict them in other areas. i'm becoming more convinced that the price is going to be at least $10M/year. Every goal he scores just raises the price.
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Looks like they resigned Chucky Lindgren to a 3 year deal at $3M per year. Seems a little steep but not too bad. Combined with Thomas, I guess we are at the same level that other teams are that have top goaltending.
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The goaltending seems good. I think they could use a boost on D. If not this season, definitely next.
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I'd love to get Chicklets signed. Not sure we can swing it. I think a big factor is just how well does he like it here. The Caps seem like a really good group adn the Coach seems legit. He's been on bad (well non playoff teams) basically his whole career. This team is certainly a regular contender for at least making the playoffs. But you could say the same of Florida or Tampa and he's a FLA native (you can tell by the redneck mullet and missing tooth like all them other redneck Floridians) :raspberry:
I mean the dude is gonna get paid, but IF he likes it hear, does he take 8.5 per to stay in a good spot he likes, or go for the 10+ mil in FA and risk going to an unknown. These are things we just don't know about him. With FA deal he certainly get to approve where he's going, but lets hope he WANTS to stay with this team.
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Even with the cap going up, its going to be hard for top contending teams to take on a $9M+ contract. I think the Caps can do that with Carlson and Ovi coming off after next year. Ovi will likely retire, but Carlson may want another couple of years and my fear is that the Caps will want to stay flexible to keep their guy.
Your point about Florida is good though and TB always seems to find a way to work around the cap. They have Hedman for 4 more years at $8M and Kucherov for 2 more at $9.5M - but it never seems to matter to them how tight they are against the cap.
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So to answer the question which is the title of this thread...
play better
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I want to put in my tuppence regarding Eller.
Yes, he had a stinker last night, but this is rare So did all the D. The amount of blocked shots were ridiculous..
Eller is usually steady and reliable, something we need at 3C, on the line where many of the newbies will start. His experience is a great asset to this team. In fact I like all our C's. Our problems are absolutely NOT there.
If we need to focus anywhere it should be at our D corps. The inability to get the puck out of our own zone is our greatest weakness at the moment.
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I'd love to get Chicklets signed. Not sure we can swing it. I think a big factor is just how well does he like it here. The Caps seem like a really good group adn the Coach seems legit. He's been on bad (well non playoff teams) basically his whole career. This team is certainly a regular contender for at least making the playoffs. But you could say the same of Florida or Tampa and he's a FLA native (you can tell by the redneck mullet and missing tooth like all them other redneck Floridians) :raspberry:
I mean the dude is gonna get paid, but IF he likes it hear, does he take 8.5 per to stay in a good spot he likes, or go for the 10+ mil in FA and risk going to an unknown. These are things we just don't know about him. With FA deal he certainly get to approve where he's going, but lets hope he WANTS to stay with this team.
If they let Chychrun walk then they aren't serious about contending. The guy has been tremendous. Speaking of the defense, I think a guy like Ristolainen would look good on our blueline. What we have now isn't cutting it. We know Carlson will never go, though he'd be #1 as far as I'm concerned. However, I'd move TVR or Sandin if it meant toughening up the backline. Sandin has had a very good season but he does get pushed around on the boards quite often.
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If they let Chychrun walk then they aren't serious about contending. The guy has been tremendous. Speaking of the defense, I think a guy like Ristolainen would look good on our blueline. What we have now isn't cutting it. We know Carlson will never go, though he'd be #1 as far as I'm concerned. However, I'd move TVR or Sandin if it meant toughening up the backline. Sandin has had a very good season but he does get pushed around on the boards quite often.
Yes, i would like very much to toughen up our Blueline. It seems with the scoring drought we had last season, the whole effort was to create more scoring (which they have done tremendously well), but we moved toward puck moving d men and not guys who can clear the crease. It's pretty to watch and fun when we are clicking and the passes are crisp and our puck moving d men just glide up the ice. HOWEVER, when the bounces don't go your way, or you get hemmed in by a good forechecking team, we simply do not have the muscle to move guys out, take the puck away from them and GTFO of the zone when needed.
We have Alexeyev wasting away and MacIlrath just riding the pine. We desperately NEED to have gotten these guys into games to evaluate IF they are NHL worthy because Mac is exactly the type of guy you need in the playoffs and I believe last year that's where he earned his place on this team...playing well in the playoffs. Can't expect him to do the same this year when he never plays. Same goes for Alexeyev. Hell i would have moved TVR and given ALexeyev the year to prove the spot and if he didn't cut it then slide Mac in there.
I'd still move TVR now - he has one more year at 3mil then FA ....and he's barely hanging on IMO. Honestly I think he is done - he will be trash next year
Sandin is undersized, but I agree he has played well most of this season. They just extended him with a contract so he might be harder to move, but hell there are teams who likely need some puck moving O-minded D.
Caps actually have 3.8m in cap space right now. THey could move TVR and bring in a 6m guy with TVR money and cap space. Problem is, if he's got a contract into next year - then you've tied up money you want to sign Chicklets with.
Caps need to sign Chicklets NOW. Sign him for 6 years at 9mil. Do it and be done with it. Guy is 27 - he has 6 good years left in him easy.
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Sandin, if he wants to be a OD, needs to be more aggressive with his O. He almost always passes or shoots wide looking for, something.. Shoot the fucking puck toward the net bro! Half of Chicky's goals are just because he took the shot. No idea why coach let AA (and Mac) rot away on the bench all season. It's not like our D has been anything to speak of. Goalies constantly bailing them out.
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I fear that they will trade away Alexyev. This conditioning stint could just be to showcase him. For some reason they are committed to TVR so I doubt they trade him. He is clearly our weakest link, although Carlson is actually our worst defensemen in our zone.
I agree we need more physicality on D. Fever is the only guy that will hit anybody. I thought Roy was supposed to be pretty physical, but I haven't seen it. He is very solid defensively so I don't mind him, but he is not physical.
Sandin has a really good first 20 games, but I think he has declined since then.
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Welp, looks like the 2nd helping of The Snake is over.. Too bad he couldn't catch fire and stay in the lineup.
https://twitter.com/sammisilber/status/1897362254796095656 (https://twitter.com/sammisilber/status/1897362254796095656)
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That’s too bad, but not at all surprising. He should be able to contribute on a team with a little less offensive depth.
This also tells me Milano is ready to come back into the lineup. Whether that’s playing or riding the pine is the question.
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Dylan aside, the only Dmen I would keep are Fever and Chych.
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Seven hours until the trade deadline.
An eerie silence emanating from DC ......
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I don't recall ever going through a trade deadline w/o making a move?
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This is kinda surprising, I would’ve thought they would pick up a D man if anything. 27yo, left wing, $1.25M, UFA after this season, Pens get a 2nd round pick this year ..
https://russianmachineneverbreaks.com/2025/03/07/capitals-anthony-beauvillier-penguins-trade-second-round-pick/ (https://russianmachineneverbreaks.com/2025/03/07/capitals-anthony-beauvillier-penguins-trade-second-round-pick/)
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Bizzarre. :huh:
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I guess Frank is headed to Hershey.
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I guess Frank is headed to Hershey.
With Vrana gone, one slot in D.C. is open. Milano is still not ready, no one is going anywhere yet. But Frank would not be my first choice.
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Odd acquisition.. Another smallish winger we dont need, imo.. 5'11" 180lbs. Been in the league 9 years, we'll be his 7th team in the last 3 years. :huh: Scored 21 goals his 2nd year in the league. Hovered around a point every 2 games for some years, then settled around a point every 3 games.
career: 613 games played, 129g 137a 266pts -21
Not sure why or what he was brought in for..
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Odd acquisition.. Another smallish winger we dont need, imo.. 5'11" 180lbs. Been in the league 9 years, we'll be his 7th team in the last 3 years. :huh: Scored 21 goals his 2nd year in the league. Hovered around a point every 2 games for some years, then settled around a point every 3 games.
career: 613 games played, 129g 137a 266pts -21
Not sure why or what he was brought in for..
It would be easy to say that he is just a depth piece. But I'm not so sure, and although I don't know anything about him, I'll speculate on why he might have been brought in.
He's played the entire schedule for the Pens this year, and I understand he's taken a lot of shifts on the 2nd line - Malkin's line. The Pens have been terrible this year, and all of their players who have played significant minutes for the full schedule have +/- numbers in the -teens or -20's except for Beauvillier, who sits at -1. He doesn't take many penalties, and he happens to have been second on the team in number of hits along with his 13 goals, which was 5th on the team. Maybe what the Caps THINK they see is a disciplined, defensively responsible player who isn't afraid to mix it up and can still score upwards of 20 goals a season. IF they are right and can get something like that out of him, that sounds like a 3rd line wing in the playoffs to me, much more than a finesse player like Vrana or Frank, say. And even if the Caps use him as a depth piece this year, his cap hit now is $1.25 million, and given his vagabond status, they might be able to resign him for, say, AAV of $2 million to $2.5 million, which would be a couple million savings over Mangiapane. Finally, think about the motivation for Beauvillier. He's at a crossroads of his career, having bounced around like a ping-pong ball for the past few years, and all of a sudden he lands on a team that looks like it should have Stanley Cup dreams, at least, as he heads into UFA status this summer. If there were EVER a situation that would motivate a player to show his stuff and an environment that might display him in his best light as he looks for what will probably be his biggest payday, it would seem to be this.
All of this is speculation on my part. As I said, I really know nothing about the guy. But if I were going to look at who he is and dream up an explanation why the Caps may have made this seemingly marginal trade, and given up a 2nd round pick to do it, it would probably be along the lines of what I wrote in the preceding paragraph.
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Possibly, he's been brought in for the playoffs?
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Possibly, he's been brought in for the playoffs?
I guess. But he's just another Raddysh or Mange from what I can see on the stat sheet. I suppose "experienced" depth is what he's here for?
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I think probably more for his physicality, which let's face it, we could do with.
Apart from the odd team, the lack of back checking, or fore checking, or, well, any sort of checking has been quite nioticable this season. As soon as someone gives us more than a hard stare, we have off loaded the puck, often just to get rid of it, it seems.
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With Vrana gone, one slot in D.C. is open. Milano is still not ready, no one is going anywhere yet. But Frank would not be my first choice.
Frank will be odd man out. It's an easy decision because he's the rookie and he hasn't done much since his hot start. I also wouldn't count on Milano. When you've been out that long it can take weeks of play just to get back in game shape. Plus, who are you going to sit? The guys who have played and scrapped all season shouldn't suddenly be sat down because Milano is ready. It's not like we're talking about some superstar here. He's basically another Mangiapane.
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Odd acquisition.. Another smallish winger we dont need, imo.. 5'11" 180lbs. Been in the league 9 years, we'll be his 7th team in the last 3 years. :huh: Scored 21 goals his 2nd year in the league. Hovered around a point every 2 games for some years, then settled around a point every 3 games.
career: 613 games played, 129g 137a 266pts -21
Not sure why or what he was brought in for..
He was brought in for the playoffs and will slot in on the 3rd line with Eller and Mangi I'd imagine. I don't have a problem with it. He's a decent two way player and a veteran. Also, being -1 on a rotten team is a very good indication that he's a disciplined player. Now, what they really needed to do was get a physical D-man since they refuse to play Alexeyev or McIlrath. That is the thing which could sink them in the playoffs.
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Frank will be odd man out. It's an easy decision because he's the rookie and he hasn't done much since his hot start. I also wouldn't count on Milano. When you've been out that long it can take weeks of play just to get back in game shape. Plus, who are you going to sit? The guys who have played and scrapped all season shouldn't suddenly be sat down because Milano is ready. It's not like we're talking about some superstar here. He's basically another Mangiapane.
Sitting out a game, or several, is different than being sent to Hershey. Again, Frank would not be my first choice for being sent to Hershey. And with news today that he missed the cutoff to be eligible for the AHL playoffs, would validate my opinion(in my mind). As you say, Milano will need game time to get to game speed, likely as a conditioning stint in Hershey. How he responds physically to that would decide his future here. IMO.
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Sitting out a game, or several, is different than being sent to Hershey. Again, Frank would not be my first choice for being sent to Hershey. And with news today that he missed the cutoff to be eligible for the AHL playoffs, would validate my opinion(in my mind). As you say, Milano will need game time to get to game speed, likely as a conditioning stint in Hershey. How he responds physically to that would decide his future here. IMO.
Carbery said in an interview yesterday that Milano has apparently suffered some sort of setback in his recovery, and the timeline for him being back is now open-ended. I don't really expect to see him this season, even in the playoffs.
Which brings us to Leonard. Apparently the Caps are going to go all out to get him to sign and come to DC. But at best, he would have only a couple of regular-season games to get ready for the playoffs. Would the Caps really go with him in the playoffs with no more exposure to the franchise than that? I realize he's thought of as a top-notch prospect, but that's putting a lot on his shoulders immediately.
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Good analysis BlackIce.
I wonder if Beauvillier would replace Mangiopani? Both are about the same size and maybe they think Beauviller will be better in the playoffs - he apparently has good stats in the playoffs.
Overall, I'm glad they didn't do much and are going to ride with the guys that have worked hard all year. I'm betting Leonard will be added to the playoff roster but will just be along for the ride and to get introduced to playoff hockey. I hope I'm wrong and he comes in and plays great right off the bat!