The Washington Capitals introduced new head coach Peter Laviolette on Tuesday afternoon. General manager Brian MacLellan, who was also on the call, took the final question of the press conference and was asked about Braden Holtby’s future with the team.
Holtby, the greatest goaltender in Capitals’ history, is an unrestricted free agent and it appears more and more unlikely he will return.
Braden Holtby deserves his place among the very best Capitals of all time — and the most beloved.
By Peter Hassett 2 weeks ago
Nathan MacKinnon won his second major award of his NHL career on Friday. The Colorado Avalanche superstar, who posted 93 points and 12 PIMs in 69 nice games, was named the winner of the Lady Byng Trophy as the “the player adjudged to have exhibited the best type of sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct combined with a high standard of playing ability.”
For Capitals fans, the most interesting newe came a little further down the list where Nicklas Backstrom and Braden Holtby both garnered first-place votes.
With Braden Holtby’s future in Washington uncertain, we’re sharing some behind the scenes stories about the greatest goaltender in Capitals history. Have something you want to share? Email us.
The Washington Capitals’ Stanley Cup run in 2018 was the greatest moment in franchise history. Riding Evgeny Kuznetsov’s 32 points, Alex Ovechkin’s 15 goals, and Braden Holtby’s The Save, the Capitals closed out the Vegas Golden Knights in five games to win a championship for the first time in its 43-year history.
But it did have one unfortunate side effect. Braden Holtby, who had marched in the Capital Pride Parade since 2016, would be unable to attend due to a full day of partying with the Stanley Cup, including a team celebration at Nationals Park.
Washington Capitals general manager Brian MacLellan cracked the door a little on a possible return of Braden Holtby but acknowledged the chances of him re-signing are remote.
“Still to be decided,” MacLellan said during a press conference on Sunday. “It’s going to be difficult. Sometimes opportunities come up that you don’t expect. I think we’d like to play it out and see what happens here.”
A sullen Braden Holtby spoke to reporters via a Zoom video conference after Washington’s 4-0 Game Five loss to the New York Islanders, Thursday. The loss marked the second-straight year the Capitals were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs.
Holtby, who is an unrestricted free agent at season’s end, was asked if he had played his last game with the Washington Capitals.
By Ian Oland 1 month ago
Braden Holtby was selected by the Washington Capitals 93rd overall in the 2008 draft. The gawky, glasses-wearing nerd out of Lloydminster, Saskatchewan, had only a 12 percent chance of making the NHL as a fourth-round pick.
Holtby was never supposed to make the NHL. Instead, 12 years later, he is inarguably the greatest goaltender in Washington Capitals history – no matter what team he finishes his career with. Holtby’s likeness now appears on a mural on the side of a bridge just outside his hometown.
By Ian Oland 1 month ago
The Washington Capitals’ playoff intro is out and it’s straight out of the Marvel playbook.
Presenting the team’s stars as superheroes, the Capitals use a booming, dramatic soundtrack, a lot of red, and highly-contrasted lighting effects to present the players as our hockey saviors.
I love it.
Braden Holtby was the Capitals’ best and most consistent player during round-robin play, stopping 74 of 80 shots in three games. But, Wednesday, during Game One of the Caps’ first-round series against the New York Islanders, the goaltender was at times a liability. Holtby was at fault for two iffy goals in the second half of the game, including Josh Bailey’s game-winning shorty.
The Capitals initially took a 2-0 lead due to two TJ Oshie second-period, power-play goals. Holtby then surrendered a gaal with 1:07 remaining in the period after Jordan Eberle beat him in the high slot. Holtby tracked the puck and saw it the entire way, but missed stabbing the biscuit out of the air with his glove.
“First goal obviously can’t go in,” a disappointed Holtby said after the game.
The 24-team playoff featured six elimination games on Friday that kept hockey fans glued to their seats from noon to 1:30 AM. Elimination Friday saw five teams knocked out of the tournament, including the Pittsburgh Penguins and Edmonton Oilers who feature two of the biggest superstars in the league, Sidney Crosby and Connor McDavid. Both 12 seeds in the Eastern and Western Conference advanced adding to the unpredictability and excitement.
With all that good hockey, hockey fans and analysts have become more open to this playoff format replacing what the NHL had before, expanding the number of playoff teams, and permanently introducing a play-in round.
One player who is 100 percent not on board with this is Braden Holtby
By Ian Oland 2 months ago
