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Capitals sign Dylan Strome to five-year extension worth $5 million per season

By Ian Oland

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February 3, 2023 11:06 am

Dylan Strome will spend his prime in Washington.

The Capitals announced on Friday that Strome signed a five-year, $25 million extension that will keep the center in Washington through his age-30 season.

“Dylan is an intelligent and skilled center and has been a great addition to our organization,” Brian MacLellan said in a press release. “We are pleased to sign him to a long-term contract. We feel his skill set is a great fit for our team as he enters the prime years of his career at an important position.”

Strome, 25, has scored 11 goals and 25 assists this season. He has spent much of the season centering Alex Ovechkin and Conor Sheary on the first line.

The Capitals initially signed Strome as a restricted free agent over the offseason to a one-year, $3.5 million contract. Adding the center, who could also play wing, gave the Capitals insurance and flexibility with Nicklas Backstrom trying to return from major hip resurfacing surgery.

HockeyViz rates Strome a solid driver of play, adding three percentage points to even-strength offense and one percentage point to even-strength defense. Dom Luszczyszyn’s model finds his current $3.5-million contract to be worth $5.2 million in market value.

With Backstrom back and playing in a third-line role, the Strome extension could speak to the Capitals’ belief that they needed to be aggressive to shore up the center spot in their top six moving into the future. Center Lars Eller is one of six Capitals forwards that are free agents over the summer and recently the Dane’s name came up in trade rumors.

Up the middle, the Capitals have Evgeny Kuznetsov ($7.8M AAV), Nicklas Backstrom ($9.2M), and Nic Dowd ($1.3M) all signed through the 2024-25 season while Strome will stick with the club through the 2027-28 campaign ($5M).

In the minors, the Capitals have Aliaksei Protas, Connor McMichael, and Hendrix Lapierre all waiting in the wings at the center position.

Stome is one-year removed from his biggest season as a pro when he centered Patrick Kane and Alex DeBrincat with the Chicago Blackhawks. Strome scored a career-high 22 goals and tallied 48 points. Over the offseason, the Blackhawks non-tendered Strome a contract, making him a free agent.

Strome would have once again been a pending restricted free agent this summer without the extension.

Here’s the press release from the Capitals:

Capitals Re-sign Dylan Strome

The Washington Capitals have re-signed center Dylan Strome to a five-year contract extension, senior vice president and general manager Brian MacLellan announced today. Strome’s contract will carry an average annual value of $5.0 million.

“Dylan is an intelligent and skilled center and has been a great addition to our organization,” said MacLellan. “We are pleased to sign him to a long-term contract. We feel his skill set is a great fit for our team as he enters the prime years of his career at an important position.”

Strome, 25, has recorded 36 points (11g, 25a) in 52 games with Washington this season. The 6’3″, 200-pound forward ranks second on the Capitals in assists, third in points and power-play points (14) and fourth in goals. Strome, who also ranks fourth among Capitals forwards in time on ice per game (16:42), is on pace to record 56 points this season.

The Mississauga, Ontario native recorded 48 points (22g, 26a) in 69 games with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2021-22. Strome established single-season career highs in goals and games played and averaged a career-high 17:26 of ice time per game last season. Strome ranked third on the team in goals and fourth in assists and points.

Originally drafted by the Arizona Coyotes with the third overall pick in the 2015 NHL Draft, Strome recorded a career-high 57 points (20g, 37a) in 78 games with Arizona and Chicago in 2018-19. Strome averaged 0.68 points per game in parts of four seasons with Chicago from 2018-19 to 2021-22, which ranked fifth on the team in that span.

In 325 career NHL games with Washington, Arizona and Chicago, Strome has recorded 206 points (78g, 128a).

Headline photo: Alan Dobbins/RMNB

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