In October, the Washington Capitals signed 2019 AHL MVP Daniel Carr to a one-year, two-way contract. With a roster full of established wingers at the NHL level, the Capitals had no room for Carr, meaning it seemed likely the depth forward would have a huge presence in Hershey.
Instead, Carr spent the entire 2020-21 season either on the Capitals’ NHL roster or taxi squad. Carr played six NHL games over a period of five months during the 2020-21 regular season and even got a jersey once during the team’s first-round flameout against the Boston Bruins, replacing Daniel Sprong in the lineup.
“It’s been about two months since I played last,” Carr said on April 8 while playing the Bruins. “I was excited to get in today when they let me know yesterday. But at the same time, we’ve been doing a lot with the taxi squad in terms of playing games among ourselves. The games have been really competitive so it lets you stay sharp.”
Instead of being a bubble player in the NHL for another season, Carr, 29, has decided to take his talents overseas. Over the holiday weekend, Carr signed a one-year contract with HC Lugano of the Swiss National League.
“We are very happy to find Daniel in Lugano,” GM Hnat Domenichelli said according to Google Translate. “We can’t wait to have him with us for an entire season played in front of our home fans where Daniel can become a darling.”
Carr played in eight games for HC Lugano last season — he was a point per game player — before Capitals’ GM Brian MacLellan enticed him to return back to North America on the one-year pact ($700,000 NHL/$415,000 AHL).
Via HC Lugano’s press release:
Daniel Carr’s energy, exuberance, work ethic, and flair for goals will return to fire up fans of the Hockey Club Lugano.
The Juventus club is in fact pleased to announce the engagement – with a contract valid for the 2021/22 season – of the 29-year-old Canadian striker Daniel Carr who in the Regular Season 2020/21 had worn the HCL colors in eight games (4 goals, 4 assists) before accepting the NHL challenge again in Washington.
Carr will join HC Lugano in early August. His name is among a long list of players who have signed with European teams recently.
Some notable overseas signings over the past few weeks.
Steven Kampfer (KHL)
Daniel Carr (NL)
Oscar Dansk (KHL)
Mikhail Grigorenko (KHL)
Marcus Hogberg (SHL)
Carl Soderberg (SHL)
Lucas Wallmark (KHL)
Joakim Ryan (SHL)
Gaetan Haas (NL)
Yannick Weber (NL)— CapFriendly Depth Charts (@CF_DepthCharts) July 5, 2021
