Ivan Miroshnichenko appears likely to be on his way out of DC.
According to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, the Capitals have given Miroshnichenko permission to speak to other NHL teams as he seeks a trade. Miroshnichenko has played in just three games for the Caps this season, averaging 11:03 of ice time and scoring one goal.
“There is one other name potentially to add to trade boards here, and that is Washington’s young forward Ivan Miroshnichenko,” Friedman said on Sportsnet’s Saturday Headlines. “He was the 20th overall pick in 2022; he’s a talented young guy. He’s played three games this year and scored against Montreal, but he just can’t get in the lineup.
“He’s been given permission to talk to other teams by the Capitals. Now, what the Capitals have said is that they have to get a legit return. They’re not going to put him on waivers; they know he won’t clear. They will trade him, but the return has to be legitimate. They won’t just do it for the sake of doing it.”
The news comes just over a week after Friedman also reported that multiple other teams were keeping tabs on Miroshnichenko as he continues to sit out as a healthy scratch. The Russian winger has only been able to get into Washington’s lineup this season after Pierre-Luc Dubois fell ill earlier this month and was quickly returned to the press box as the Capitals got healthy.
Miroshnichenko has played in 55 career games with the Capitals, recording 14 points (6g, 8a). Over the past three years, he’s spent most of his time in the AHL with the Hershey Bears, registering 101 points (46g, 55a) in 141 games. He won the 2024 Calder Cup with the Bears, recording 12 points (7g, 5a) in 20 games during their successful postseason run.
The club’s 2022 first-round pick signed a two-year, $1.85 million contract extension last October and made the Capitals out of training camp this fall. That achievement mattered significantly, as he is no longer waiver-exempt, meaning the Caps would have had to risk putting him through waivers to get him back to the Bears.
The Capitals are currently carrying 14 forwards, 7 defensemen, and 2 goaltenders on their active roster. Outside of Miroshnichenko, Ethen Frank has been the regular extra forward this year, playing just two games.
