ARLINGTON, VA — With less than a week until the trade deadline, Anthony Mantha waits in limbo. Mantha escaped the trade block this summer but has received renewed attention during a bounce-back season. After coming to Washington at the 2021 trade deadline, Mantha now faces the possibility of another last-minute move.
Mantha reflected last week on the difference the three years had made to his deadline mindset. This time, a deal would impact not only himself but also his wife Caitlyn–currently pregnant with the couple’s second child–and their daughter Naomie.
“It’s a little different this year, I would say,” he told reporters on Thursday. “My first trade, I wasn’t quite expecting anything of it. I obviously didn’t have a wife or daughter also at that time. I was with Caitlyn, don’t get me wrong, but it’s just a little different with a daughter in play and the unknown.
“Obviously, you just never know, but I try to go day by day and do my best, play for this team — that’s who I’m playing for right now — and I’m focused on winning games here, being a good teammate and that’s all I can do.”
The Capitals’ playoff odds remain slim: a trade could send Mantha to a contending team with a shot at the Stanley Cup. Still, Mantha refuted the notion that he was excited for that possibility.
“No. No. Nothing’s done until you get that call, right?” he said. “I just try and focus on being here and try not to think too much ahead.”
After a lackluster 2022-23 season, Mantha was determined to return to his old form–something he admitted he had not done since arriving in DC. He had a rough start at first when returning this fall, sitting out as a healthy scratch in the second game of the campaign, but soon found his stride.
Since then, Mantha has proven one of the Capitals’ strongest players this season. Mantha potted his 20th goal of the season on Sunday against the Arizona Coyotes, hitting the 20-goal threshold for the first time since the pandemic-shortened 2019-20 season.
Those 20 goals rank second on the team, and his 28-goal pace would be the best of his career. Meanwhile his 34 total points (20g, 14a) rank fourth among the Capitals and already mark his highest-scoring season since joining the Capitals. He attributes that success to his work over the offseason.
“I’ve focused over the summer on being a better player, being more consistent and I think it is actually paying off right now,” he explained, “It is, I would say, a lot of work put in and a lot of hours of video and a lot of hours of thinking over my game and here we are.”
That work went beyond just the physical. Mantha has spoken openly about his struggles with mental health, hiring a ‘mental coach’ after he was healthy scratched last year. He noted that his mindset was “not comparable” to where he was a year ago, finding himself in a much better place.
“100% (it’s better), 100%,” he said. “Night and day.”
For now, however, Mantha’s sights remain set on the Capitals as they battle to regain lost footing in the standings. Washington will play 15 games in 31 days this month, including a grueling five-game road trip out west. The team does not have an easy job ahead, but Mantha is prepared to take it on.
“The stretch is what we work out for during the summer,” he said. “It’s what we want to play and where we want to be at this time of the year.”
