Capitals GM: Team defense is 'an organizational strength'
For the Washington Capitals to shed the title of playoff chokers, the change must come from within.
General manager Brian MacLellan expects it will.
Veteran forward Devante Smith-Pelly was the lone player brought in this offseason on a one-year, $650,000 contract. Forwards Evgeny Kuznetsov and T.J. Oshie, and defenseman Dmitry Orlov were all re-signed to long-term contracts worth more than $5 million annually.
Despite the team's efforts and willingness to spend this summer, the Capitals still suffered significant losses, which could challenge their ability to compete for a third consecutive Presidents' Trophy, let alone make it out of the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 1997-98.
Forward Justin Williams left to return to the Carolina Hurricanes. Forward Marcus Johansson was traded to the New Jersey Devils for draft picks after Kuznetsov's extension put the team in a cap crunch. And defenseman Nate Schmidt was the Capitals' casualty to the Vegas Golden Knights' expansion draft.
It's this last loss which has some expecting the worst for the Capitals and leaves the team with just five defensemen signed to one-way contracts.
MacLellan isn't nearly as worried as those outside the organization.
"We like Schmidt. But it's not as huge a deal as people are making it out to be," he said, according to Barry Svrluga of The Washington Post.
MacLellan points to the Capitals' crop of young defensemen he believes are ready - or very close to ready - to making a significant impact at the NHL level, a group he calls "an organizational strength."
The Caps selected 6-foot-1, 175-pound defenseman Lucas Johansen 28th overall in the 2016 NHL Draft.
“I really like Johansen, and whether it’s now or six months from now or a year from now, I think he’s going to be a factor,” MacLellan said.
The success of the Capitals' seventh-round selection in the 2012 draft could afford the team the luxury of being patient with Johansen, who won't turn 20 years old until November.
Christian Djoos excelled in his sophomore season in the AHL, scoring 13 goals and adding 45 assists in 66 regular-season games. He ranked third on the team in points and posted eight points in 12 playoff games.
"I guess the knock on him is size (6-foot, 162 pounds), but I don’t think Schmidt (6-foot-1, 194 pounds) is a big guy,” said MacLellan.
The options don't end there. Defensemen Madison Bowey and Jonas Siegenthaler were second-round selections in 2013 and 2015, respectively. Tyler Lewington was a seventh-round pick in 2013 and spent the past two seasons in the AHL.
Up to three of these players - or a yet-to-be-found outside option - will join the returning group of Orlov, Matt Niskanen, Brooks Orpik, John Carlson, and Taylor Chorney.
While replacing Schmidt may not be "a huge deal," the winners of a NHL roster spot will also be charged with helping to change the growing rhetoric of playoff failure clinging to the team's retained core.