The Capitals’ biggest signing on the first day of NHL Free Agency came when they inked defenseman Matt Roy to a six-year, $34.5 million deal. Roy was considered one of the top rearguards available.
The 29-year-old blueliner is the second former Los Angeles Kings player the Capitals acquired for next season. Their first big move of the offseason was trading for center Pierre-Luc Dubois who was teammates with Roy in LA last year.
The Capitals are Dubois’s fourth team over the past five seasons. The 26-year-old, Quebec native forced his way out of both the Columbus Blue Jackets and Winnipeg Jets, leading to rumors and speculation that he’s a toxic teammate.
Roy shut down that talk on Tuesday during his first meeting with Capitals media.
“I’m really excited,” Roy said. “[Dubois] is a really great guy and he’s a really great player. I think he’s going to really help this team and just off the ice and in the locker room, he’s a great guy and a great teammate. I’m excited.”
Part of Roy’s excitement may relate to how well the two played together when they were on the ice at five-on-five last season. In 355:22 minutes, the Kings saw 55.3 percent of the shot attempts, 57.8 percent of the expected goals, 56.3 percent of the scoring chances, and 59.7 percent of the high-danger chances.
Roy recorded 20-plus points for the third-straight year, establishing himself further as a dependable, two-way defender. Dubois chipped in 40 points (16g, 24a) in what was a down year for the former third overall draft selection but his end-of-year total would have still ranked fourth on last year’s Capitals team. Both players are signed to contracts through the 2030-31 season.
While Roy has already spoken with head coach Spencer Carbery, the two haven’t had conversations about his future on-ice role. Still, the right-handed defenseman knows what he wants to accomplish in DC.
“Just going to try to bring my game to Washington,” Roy said. “Just being a steady guy, being physical when I can, try to chip in offensively when I can, and just bring a consistent game to the team.
“It’s huge [that Washington is trying to win]. Every player wants to win and you want to go to a winning team so that was part of my mindset coming into it. I thought Washington was checking all of the boxes and making some good moves to move towards that.”
Roy and Dubois are two of seven major acquisitions Capitals general manager Brian MacLellan has pulled off this summer. Washington also added Andrew Mangiapane, Logan Thompson, Jakob Chychrun, Brandon Duhaime, and Taylor Raddysh.
“I thought all the guys they brought in were great moves,” Roy said. “I think they’re going to be great additions to the team. I’m really excited for our team next year.”
The additions of Roy and Chychrun in particular will help bolster a backend that had a tough time finding consistency last year. Both players will likely be in the team’s top four which will allow Carbery to better slot players like Rasmus Sandin, Trevor van Riemsdyk, Ethan Bear, and Alex Alexeyev.
Washington leaned heavily on a hunkered-down, protect-the-net approach defensively that allowed them to sneak into last year’s playoffs. Next season’s defense group should be much more mobile and fast-paced.
“I think [the group] is great,” Roy said. “I think we have a really solid, D corps. I think everyone can make plays and everyone can defend. I think we have a little bit of everything so I’m excited to play with these guys.”
Roy did not reveal when he expects to be in DC ahead of Training Camp. Capitals players typically start gathering for informal team practices at MedStar Capitals Iceplex around mid-August, a month before Training Camp is normally scheduled to begin.
