The Washington Capitals recently gave Ivan Miroshnichenko‘s agent, Dan Milstein, permission to explore trade opportunities, and Milstein’s search for a new home for his client is underway.
Speaking Wednesday on DFO Insider with Jeff Marek and David Pagnotta, Milstein emphasized that Washington’s crowded forward group has made it difficult for Miroshnichenko to get consistent NHL playing time, leading him to look for a new team.
“Well, he’s a very good young player, very promising with superstar potential,” Milstein said. “Unfortunately, or fortunately for Washington, they have way too many guys, way too many bodies. And this season, he cannot be playing every single night.
“So as a result, we are looking for a home, working closely with the Washington Capitals, and hopeful that in the near future, he would be joining another team where he would have an opportunity to play in a top-six role.”
Miroshnichenko has played in just three games for the Capitals this season, averaging 11:03 of ice time and scoring one goal. He hasn’t played since October 20 and has sat out as a healthy scratch for five straight games.
Since being drafted in the first round by Washington in 2022, Miroshnichenko has played in 55 career NHL games, 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.
“It has to be the right opportunity,” Milstein continued. “I mean, he’s part of the team. He’s going to play and stuff like that too. We’re looking for a little bit different opportunity than the one available for this season with Washington Capitals. But there is no timeline. It has to be the right opportunity. But in the end, look, sometimes an agent or player wishes to go to a certain club, but the highest bidder gets the deal done.”
Milstein also shared insight into what the process of finding a trade for a client looks like from an agent’s perspective. Rather than simply calling every team in the NHL, he first identifies organizations where his client could realistically fit and receive the opportunity he’s looking for.
“First of all, you identify the clubs where a client would have a potentially good opportunity, right? Because not every hockey player can play on any of the 32 clubs. We have a list of teams and/or where a client could play and could have a very good opportunity. And you just start calling the general managers and start having conversations.
“And sometimes the general manager, in this case, Chris Patrick, would send an email or would pick up the phone and call on some teams. We usually keep it all quiet under wraps, and people don’t know. When there’s an email or a phone call that goes out to 31 other general managers, unfortunately, some of those guys like to leak a lot of information out.”
According to Pagnotta, the Chicago Blackhawks, Vancouver Canucks, Philadelphia Flyers, Seattle Kraken, Calgary Flames, and Los Angeles Kings have all shown interest in acquiring Miroshnichenko.
Marek’s most recent reporting said the Capitals would prefer to move Miroshnichenko out of the Eastern Conference, particularly outside their division. He also said that Washington’s asking price for Miroshnichenko is “at least a first-round pick,” which matches Elliotte Friedman’s initial report that the Caps will only make a move for a “legit return.”
Miroshnichenko signed a two-year, $1.85 million contract extension last October. He will again become a restricted free agent when that contract expires after the 2027-28 season.
