The Washington Capitals’ tape bandit struck again.
Tuesday, shortly after Jakob Chychrun signed an eight-year contract extension worth $9 million per season, the defenseman unknowingly took the ice for the Capitals’ morning skate in Winnipeg with money taped to the back of his jersey.
Traveling beat reporters, The Washington Post’s Bailey Johnson and NHL.com’s Tom Gulitti, reported what happened on X while Gulitti posted a photo.
Someone having fun with Jakob Chychrun about his new contract fastened a little cash to the back of his jersey for the Capitals optional morning skate in Winnipeg. Caps announced he signed an eight-year, $72 million contract today. pic.twitter.com/c58TFw9Grr
— Tom Gulitti (@TomGulittiNHL) March 25, 2025
The prank comes weeks after Capitals goaltender Logan Thompson was revealed to be the culprit of putting tape with messages or faces on other players’ gear.
“I felt something whacking my head just a little as I was skating down the ice the first drill, and then I looked back and saw a $100 bill falling from the sky,” Chychrun said laughing in the locker room of Canada Life Centre. “So somebody got me good. I was wearing number 72 on the front of my helmet as well.”
The 72 represented the total amount of money Chychrun re-signed for.
“The boys are just the best,” he continued. “We have no shortage of characters in this room that make it so fun to come to the rink every day and it’s just little stuff like that. We got a lot of guys that do a good job of getting some laughs.”
While the prank was full of good vibes, Chychrun taking the optional skate was even more positive, considering a significant skate cut to his wrist kept him from participating in practice on Monday. Chychrun said he’ll suit up against the first-in-the-West Jets tonight.
“It’s a lot better today,” Chychrun said. “Yesterday, the last two days were way more sore than I thought it would be. I was kind of describing the pain as like a post-surgery sort of pain. I think it was just a lot of trauma, just a big cut. Things were damaged a little bit in there, and just have to let it heal. But today, it took a big step. So, yeah, I think we’re going to try to give it a go.”
The 26-year-old defenseman is having a career year, posting 43 points (18g, 25a) in 65 games. His 18 goals are third among all NHL defenders this season, trailing only Cale Makar (26) and Zach Werenski (20). He’s also a character who tries to find any advantage he can as an athlete, opting not to use light bulbs in his house and having one of the most creative diets in the NHL.
