Speculation: Caps Roster General Discussion (Coaching/FAs/Cap/Lines/etc) | 2024-25 Summer Edition

[Kazer]

They'll almost certainly trade for a vet 7D so that they won't need to play McIlrath 7 or 8 minutes of heavily sheltered ice time in case of injury. Beyond that, I wouldn't be surprised if they stand pat and just add Leonard.

I don't see them adding a 7th D when they are already carrying both AA and McIlrath. If they add something beyond Eller, it will almost certainly be a middle six winger.

 

[IafrateOvie34]

Assuming we will be “all-in” at the deadline, is only Leonard off the table?

Some potential 3Cs out there.

For me, Leonard is the deadline acquisition. No way I'm giving up any prospects right now, unless it's for Brady Tkachuk and that will cost a King's ransom. I rather the Caps be patient in building the team and not ruin any chemistry this team has right now. Things change in March, but right now don't miss with anything, imho.

 

[AlexModvechkin8]

I don't think Mangiapane needs to be upgraded. He's a really good forechecker, he's got great hockey IQ, and can chip in offensively. I'd probably start like this and go from there.

Ovi-Strome-Pro
CMM-PLD-Wilson
Mango-Eller-Leonard
Duhaime-Dowd-Raddyish

 

[Langway]

Looks like they may be approaching a realistic limit of how many prospects one can expect to make the jump to Hershey next season. Leonard should avoid it but is there room for all of Allen, Chesley, Cristall, Mateiko and Protas on a Hershey team that tends to not play an abundance of rookies? There's also Muggli as a possibility and Sikora, who at least has the IQ to be workable depth. More likely I'd guess those last two stay another year in Europe or perhaps play major junior but I wonder if they'd be prepared to consistently play five rookies next year. Allen, Mateiko and Protas all could return to junior again but it's probably time for them to move up a level. Mateiko is the least obvious of the three so perhaps it comes down to how he finishes this season. All of them seem on the verge of helping to shape the next wave in Hershey.

That's not even factoring in Hutson, who if he absolutely dominates in the second half may enter the conversation as an early departure. Suddenly pretty deep depth they've got simmering. The wings are going to be log-jammed before long. (And there's also Funk, Hofer and Suzdalev that may warrant opportunities in Hershey...)

While 2025 doesn't seem like an amazing draft I wouldn't move their extra second rounder for the sake of it. Mangiapane could definitely be upgraded but due to familiarity alone I'd tend to stick with him over a comparable alternative. It would need to be a clear and obvious upgrade IMO. Certainly the front office may be motivated to do something that further adds to the competitive vibes but that ought to be Leonard mostly. Keep the nuts and continue hoarding barring a perfect scenario.

 

[stanleycaps18]

Too many times in the '10's, the Caps GM would make deadline trades that often times didn't move the needle and other times, blew the chemistry on the team. I 100% endorse the idea of not making moves for moves sake. The team is in such a strong position in terms of current talent and prospects. When Ovi retires, after the current contract, that cap space, along with Backstrom and Oshie, will give a lot of options for re-signings/extensions and bringing in to fill gaps.

 

[Coldnwindy]

I would like to see

Protas-Dubois-Ovi
McM-Strome-Wilson

in some of the upcoming games. Strome and Ovi on a line together are kinda cheeks if they don't get Ozone possession off the faceoff. These two lines can shore up their weaknesses.

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

I could see Leonard and a D or even another forward depending on overall team health near the deadline.

I don’t think anyone wants them to make trades just for the hell of it….

 

[Blades Ov Steel]

exciting times and possibilities

 

[Calicaps]

Another factor is still Lapierre. I gather he's played well so far in Hershey (small sample size) and the org may be planning to give him another look with the big club this year if he finds his game consistently in the A. He was solid vs. NYR in round 1 last year, and if he can regain that form, he's effectively a no-cost forward addition.

 

[qc14]

With how Carbery has talked about and deployed Miro/Lappy/Vrana as well as how quickly they went and brought back Eller, I would not count on either Lappy or Leonard being an "internal addition" at the TDL for 3w.

As for a vet 7D -- you can never have too many defenseman and I wouldn't put it past Patrick but I'm not sure who's realistically out there that's an improvement on Alexeyev and McIlrath

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

It might not be an upgrade…It might just be for depth.

 

[stephenball]

I don’t see the Caps trying to make an additional splash at the deadline

 

[MW6]

I’d like to see them try
Protas-Strome-Ovi
Mangiapane-Dubois-Wilson
Mirosnichenko-McMichael-Raddysh
Duhaime-Eller-Dowd

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

I’d like to see them try
Protas-Strome-Ovi
Mangiapane-Dubois-Wilson
Mirosnichenko-McMichael-Raddysh
Duhaime-Eller-Dowd

Why downgrade at 4c?

 

[Ridley Simon]

Why downgrade at 4c?

Eller can play wing. As we’ve seen.

But you aren’t wrong. Dowd is the better C, IMO.

It’s a quandary. The whole situation is both wonderful, yet perplexing.

We are all kinda dismissing that currently this team could actually be a playoff contender. They truly aren’t far off, and a tweak or 2 could solidify a deep run.

They could finish first in the East! Or certainly first in the Metro. Home ice until ECF, at worst?

Why aren’t we going for it a little harder? Serious Q. Our 2nd Cup with Ovy (and obv overall)?

I hope they make a move to go for it. As @Langway said, we have a LOT of prospects ready to move up, and we don’t have a lot of spots for them.

GO FOR IT.

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

I’m not going to get too excited. Contender is a word that means very little in the NHL.

If there’s an upgrade out there to be had and it makes sense, I suspect they’ll go for it.

 

[RedRocking]

I really didn’t like the Eller trade (tho I understood it).

We already had 2 matchup centers in PLD and Dowd. Another defensive center was not the move IMO.

We’re a depth team that has to work hard for goals. So, I would rather have used that cap space for a more dynamic 3C, or some kind of secondary scoring threat.

 

[Caps8112]

only thing Id like to see is maybe Leonard join the team just to see where he is at. If he can step in right away and be a real contributor then I think thats better than any deadline move where we give up assests outsie of what someone mentioned above, like a Brady Tkachuk.

 

[qc14]

Looks like they may be approaching a realistic limit of how many prospects one can expect to make the jump to Hershey next season.

While 2025 doesn't seem like an amazing draft I wouldn't move their extra second rounder for the sake of it.

I think it probably won't be as much of a crunch as you think. Chesley, Cristall, and Allen are I think sure bets (as long as Chesley signs) but I think everyone else you mentioned is still not guaranteed to be in Hershey next year. Protas and Mateiko could certainly be fine with another year in the CHL and are the exact kind of guys where playing on the 4th line in Hershey is probably for the best anyways. I would be fairly surprised if any of Muggli, Sikora, or Hutson come to the AHL next year.

I think in the end you have Chesley, Cristall, Allen, and one of Protas/Mateiko in Hershey along with one of Leonard/Miro/Lapp.

I totally agree with the second part though but more so because I think the NHL team is good now with a clearly defined and fixable hole at 3W

 

[Agent37]

I really didn’t like the Eller trade (tho I understood it).

We already had 2 matchup centers in PLD and Dowd. Another defensive center was not the move IMO.

We’re a depth team that has to work hard for goals. So, I would rather have used that cap space for a more dynamic 3C, or some kind of secondary scoring threat.

Are you sure secondary scoring is the issue here? The capitals are one of the best offenses in the league right now, and carried on well even without Ovechkin (almost the entire rest of the roster can be considered secondary scoring). I might be wrong but we have 4 separate players on pace to score over 30+ goals this season and 3 outside of that pacing for 20+goals this season. And at current pace there's 2 more who would score 18-19 goals.

This might be a hot take but I personally don't mind having more center depth and defensively responsible center depth that is good at face offs at that.

Aside from that 3rd line not always clicking I don't particularly see many if any holes in this roster. This is probably the most complete roster they have fielded since they won the cup. And with their prospect depth the team looks pretty well off in the coming years (as long as this season is a career accurate projection for McMichael and Protas.

PLD is playing well but I also wouldn't mind seeing him shoot a tiny bit more, at the same time given that Wilson and McMichael are on pace for 30+ goals I don't mind him being playmaker. I just believe that PLD has the potential to score 30 goals in a season.

 

[Blades Ov Steel]

Eller was a good pick up for Center depth. He seems to find those gritty goals in the playoffs as well, hopefully he can do that again for us.

Lars Eller Hockey Stats and Profile at hockeydb.com

Statistics of Lars Eller, a hockey player from Rodovre, Denmark born May 8 1989 who was active from 2005 to 2025.

www.hockeydb.com

 

[caps4cup]

Vrana is just awful. He brings absolutely nothing to the table unless he’s being spoon fed scoring/rush chances. He kills cycle plays in the offensive zone because he can’t win a puck/board battle and is a liability defensively.

He’s at a 38% xG%, which is 9th worst out of 394 Forwards with over 200 minutes of 5v5 play and by far the worst among Caps forwards (Lapierre is at 42% and Eller is at 46%). There is zero reason he should be playing over Miro right now and it makes zero sense to put McMichael with him if you’re trying to get him going. It’s cutting into his ice time and attaching him to a complete anchor isn’t doing him any favors.

 

[hb13xchamps]

Ive been able to catch most of the past two games and I love that Protas-PLD-Wilson line. That has to be the biggest line combination in the entire league and they are annoying to play against. That’s the type of line you deploy against the leagues best players and you also get the scoring aspect out of it

 

[zappa4ever]

Caps 10gm splits after 40:
01-10: 8-2-0
11-20: 5-4-1
21-30: 8-1-1
31-40: 5-3-2

currently in worst streak of year at 5-4-2

Maybe the most encouraging thing is that even when we're in a slump/valley of play, we're still playing .500 or better, which is pretty dang-diddly-doodly (with a side of "hmmm are we getting some fortunate goals and are lucky not to have 3-4 L streaks? " )

Top of the East at 40gms with a .700 and a 2gm losing streak is the longest of the year?
ummMMMmmm, yes plz!

 

[SkinsFan09]

Despite playing very mediocre we have the best record in the division over the last 10 games lol. Of the elite teams only Toronto is on a heater in the East.

Not panicking at all, it's a midseason malaise for a team that is good but not historic. They'll rebound at some point.