As Opening Night gets nearer and nearer the Capitals continue to trim their Training Camp roster. More cuts were announced Saturday afternoon.
Eleven players have been sent to the Capitals AHL affiliate Hershey Bears. The transactions leave a total of 37 players on the current roster — 33 skaters and four goaltenders.
By Chris Cerullo 3 weeks ago
Defenseman Michal Kempny played in his first Washington Capitals game since August 14, 2020, on Wednesday. It did not go well.
Kempny was noticeable, but not in a good way. He struggled to make defensive reads and he was on the ice for the Devils’ first two goals of the night.
By Chris Cerullo 3 weeks ago
Evgeny Kuznetsov is gifted offensively, but throughout his career, he’s been a liability defensively. That’s why it was news on Wednesday when Kuznetsov got several minutes on the penalty kill against the New Jersey Devils in the Capitals’ second preseason game of the year.
It turns out Kuzy’s shorthanded deployment wasn’t just preseason weirdness, but an informed Peter Laviolette decision. The Capitals head coach made clear in his postgame presser that it’s something the Capitals want to evaluate.
By Chris Cerullo 3 weeks ago
The Detroit Red Wings just announced some pretty brutal news.
Jakub Vrana needs major shoulder surgery and will miss the next four months… at least.
The Red Wings acquired Vrana and picks from the Capitals for Anthony Mantha at the 2021 trade deadline.
By Chris Cerullo 3 weeks ago
Capitals’ 2020 first-round pick, Hendrix Lapierre, only played in 30 games in junior last season due to the coronavirus pandemic wreaking havoc on the QJMHL season.
That lack of playing time does not seem to have paused Lap’s progress. Instead, Lapierre has been one of the most noticeable and impressive players on the Capitals two games into the preseason.
Lapierre, who made his NHL preseason debut on Sunday, has assisted on four of the Capitals’ first six goals. He is making a push to be the guy that gets Nicklas Backstrom’s roster spot if the Swedish center is unable to start the season due to a hip injury.
By Ian Oland and Chris Cerullo 3 weeks ago
The Washington Capitals traded Jonas Siegenthaler to the New Jersey Devils for a third-round pick at last season’s trade deadline. Siegenthaler had asked the Caps to try and find a new home for him after Zdeno Chara’s arrival in DC saw the young Swiss defender sitting in the press box for a majority of games. In one of the games Siegenthaler played in, Capitals head coach Peter Laviolette utilized him as a seventh defenseman and put him through the indignity of playing only one shift.
Now, Siegenthaler will be making his first return to the District since the move. The Devils are playing the Capitals in their preseason debut Wednesday night at Capital One Arena.
By Chris Cerullo 3 weeks ago
Washington Capitals head coach Peter Laviolette spoke about narrowing the roster earlier in the day. Those decisions were announced Tuesday afternoon.
Five players have been sent back to their respective teams. The transactions leave the current roster at a total of 49 — 44 skaters and five goaltenders.
By Chris Cerullo 3 weeks ago
We knew that Nicklas Backstrom was going to miss a good portion of Capitals Training Camp after it was announced he’d be week-to-week to rehab a hip injury.
Now, it looks like that issue might keep him out past camp and into the regular season. Capitals center Lars Eller spoke about that possibility while discussing his own injury concerns from Monday’s practice.
By Chris Cerullo 3 weeks ago
Washington Capitals head coach Peter Laviolette has put together a brand new first line at this year’s Training Camp as the battle-tested duo of Alex Ovechkin and Evgeny Kuznetsov is now joined by Anthony Mantha on the right wing.
The three forwards did not skate together at all as a unit last season at five-on-five.
By Chris Cerullo 3 weeks ago
The Washington Capitals signed Trevor van Riemsdyk to a one-year deal in October 2020. TVR played in only a third of the games last season, filling in mostly when another member of the defense corps was out with injury. Those 20 games, however, were enough for the Capitals to aggressively offer him a two-year extension in March.
Now, with the departure of Zdeno Chara and Brenden Dillon over the offseason, the Capitals have two full-time spots open on the left side of their defense. The right-handed van Riemsdyk appears to be the frontrunner for one of those slots.
By Chris Cerullo 3 weeks ago
