Head coach said Grubauer could see an increased role and get as much as 25 percent of the starts in Washington's last 35 games, Isabelle Khurshudyan of The Washington Post reports.

Head coach said Grubauer could see an increased role and get as much as 25 percent of the starts in Washington's last 35 games, Isabelle Khurshudyan of The Washington Post reports.

Analysis:

The Capitals have more games to play than anyone else before the season ends in April and have some margin of error in terms of playoff position given their place in the standings, so it's reasonable that Trotz would want to keep Braden Holtby fresh for the postseason. That said, Holtby is having a Vezina-worthy season, so it's hard to see Grubauer poaching enough starts to make him a hot commodity in standard leagues, especially given Holtby's preference for a heavy workload. It will be an interesting balancing act as the season moves forward, but Holtby owners might find it worthwhile to pick up the German netminder as a handcuff.