In mid-January, The Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli reported that Chicago Blackhawks goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury was potentially available via trade and that the Capitals were interested in acquiring him.
Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman later threw a bit of cold water on that talk when he reported that Fleury might not be comfortable coming to Washington via trade as “He’s still very much a Penguin”.
Now, in early March, Friedman, during Wednesday night’s Caps game against the Edmonton Oilers, says the team still hasn’t quite given up on their Fleury interest.
“I don’t think it’s impossible that Washington goes after Fleury,” Friedman said during the first intermission of TNT’s national telecast. “They’ve been interested in him for a while and I think they’re still interested him. I think the biggest question there is: how does Fleury feel about playing for the Washington Capitals? He was a Penguin for a long time. He still identifies a lot as a Penguin. That’s a bit of a bridge for him to cross.
“I think the other thing is, and this is purely my opinion, that Marc-Andre Fleury, I think he still wants to play and I think that at some point in time he might want to think about ending his career as a member of the Penguins and if he goes to Washington, would that even be possible.”
Fleury is 18-20-4 with the Blackhawks this season and holds a 2.92 goals-against average and a .908 save percentage.
The Athletic’s Tarik El-Bashir elaborated on Friedman’s report during the same broadcast.
“As the guys were discussing at intermission, one thing Caps fans should keep an eye on at the trade deadline is the goalie situation,” El-Bashir said during the second period. “Since January, Vitek Vanecek has been one of the best goalies in the league, and Ilya Samsonov — he’s been outstanding tonight, but consistency has been an issue. So what does it mean? It means the Caps could be in the market for a veteran goaltender.”
In 2022, Vanecek has a 7-3-0 record with three shutouts, a 2.04 goals-against average, and a .931 save percentage. All three of those stats are top five in the league among goaltenders with at least ten appearances.
“My sources have indicated that if they make a move, it’s going to be for a player they deem a significant upgrade,” El-Bashir continued. “When I asked if Marc-Andre Fleury qualified as a significant upgrade, I was told, ‘Yes he does.'”
The NHL trade deadline is on March 21.
