Grading the Caps Trades: Newcomers Carl Hagelin and Nick Jensen

Times are a changing for the defending Stanley Cup champs. The Caps made not one but two moves over the last few days to help strengthen their roster.

First the Caps acquired Carl Hagelin from the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for a third round draft pick in 2019 as well as a conditional sixth rounder in 2020.

The Caps weren’t done following that.

The very next day they dealt defenseman Madison Bowey, a homegrown talent that came up through the Hershey system to the Detroit Red Wings.

They also traded a 2020 second-round pick.

They got defenseman Nick Jenson in the deal as well as a 2019 fifth round pick that once belonged to the Buffalo Sabres.

In this piece we will grade both of the newest Caps players on the roster. Each made their NHL debuts this weekend. Hagelin on Saturday in Buffalo. Jensen on Sunday against the NYR.

We will look at what they’ve done in the past, what they did in their first games with the Caps and I will give my grade and my reasoning behind it.

CARL HAGELIN

He was once a villain in D.C. A player the Caps faced every time they were in the playoffs since he entered the league with the New York Rangers in the 2011-12 season.

Hagelin spent four seasons each on two of the Caps biggest rivals in the Eastern Conference, the Rangers as well as the Pittsburgh Penguins.

That means his teams had eliminated the Caps’ seasons from 2012 up until last year.

Hagelin registered 130 points in the regular season (58 goals, 72 assists) for the Blueshirts.

In the Steel City, Hagelin posted 83 regular season points (27 goals, 56 assists) and helped lead the Pens to back-to-back Stanley Cups in 2016 and 2017.

The playoff numbers are also worth taking note.

With the Rangers he posted 26 points (12 goals, 14 assists) and even led the Rangers to the Stanley Cup Finals in 2014 before falling to the LA Kings.

Hagelin won the Stanley Cup twice in two of his three seasons in Pittsburgh. He posted 21 points (10 goals, 11 assists).

Now why did Caps fans not like him so much when he went against them? The numbers vs. Washington don’t lie.

With the Rangers, Hagelin posted seven points (2 goals, 5 assists). With the Penguins, Hagelin was even more deadly, particularly in the 2016 spring with the HBK Line.

HBK stood for Hagelin, (Nick) Bonino, and (Phil) Kessel. Hagelin had seven points in just that series alone with three goals and four assists.

Hagelin made his Caps debut on Saturday afternoon in Buffalo. He was paired on the fourth line with Nic Dowd and Chandler Stephenson.

Hagelin played a total of 17 shifts in 12:33. He had a hit, recorded a shot and committed a tripping penalty. He finished with a -1.

He made his home debut on Sunday afternoon against his old team, the Rangers, at Capital One Arena. The Caps would go on to win 6-5 in overtime.

https://twitter.com/NBCSCapitals/status/1099775978493087744

He was once again on the fourth line next to Dowd, only change was Travis Boyd in for Stephenson.

Hagelin played 13:22 and finished with three shots. He committed a hooking penalty in the third but had a shot in overtime that almost won it.

Grade: A+

As I noted in my first article with Stars and Sticks, it’s weird seeing Carl Hagelin in a Capitals sweater. especially after he eliminated many of their seasons in the playoffs.

However, I give General Manager Brian MacLellan an A+ for this acquisition.

Devante Smith-Pelly ultimately cleared waivers and now he has a chance to improve his game in Hershey. The Caps also didn’t lose any players on their current roster.

Only loss was just a few draft picks.

The return is pretty interesting too. Hagelin was dealt from the Penguins to the Kings in late November and the team is still paying his salary!

Now Penguins fans will have to dislike him and Caps fans have to embrace him. He sounded very upbeat after beating his first NHL team, the Rangers, on Sunday.

He gave a postgame video message:

The plus after the A is also for the wealth of playoff experience he brings. He’s been to the Stanley Cup Finals three teams.

He won it twice with the Caps’ biggest rival. Now he joins them the season after they finally beat him and are the defending Stanley Cup champions.

Hagelin could be a key to going back-to-back. We shall see.

In the foreseeable future, Hagelin brings speed to the bottom six forwards as well as a polarizing figure on a penalty kill that badly needs improvement.

NICK JENSEN

Nick Jensen was selected in the fifth round, 149th overall pick, by the Detroit Red Wings in the 2009 NHL Draft.

After a stint in college and the AHL, Jensen made his NHL debut in the 2016-17 season.

In 37 career games with the Red Wings over the last three seasons, Jensen has recorded six goals and 37 assists (43 points).

The Caps weren’t done with Jensen after trading for him. They additionally re-signed him to a four-year, $10 million contract extension before he even played a game.

Jensen made his Caps debut Sunday afternoon against the Rangers in D.C. He was on the third pairing with Brooks Orpik.

In 14:16 of action, Jensen finished with three shots, two hits, one block, one giveaway and one takeaway. Good for a +1.

Grade: B

I give GMBM a B for this one. Part of it is because I will miss having Madison Bowey on the team.

Bowey was drafted in the second round, 53rd overall by the Caps in the 2013 NHL Draft. He came up through the Caps system as a member of their AHL affiliate: the Hershey Bears.

Bowey spent time up with the Caps last season before going back to Hershey after the Michal Kempny and Jakub Jerabek acquisitions last trade deadline.

He did get brought up for the playoffs and got to experience the taste of victory that comes from winning the Stanley Cup. He will be missed in D.C.

But he will always be a part of that championship team.

What the Caps get in return here is a very decent and experienced blueliner and it’s a no brainer that he got signed  a contract extension instantly.

Kempny was their best trade deadline acquisition of all time in my opinion, and this one is another Kempny-like presence to their defense.

Jensen will help the struggling penalty kill and will be a strength in the back end. I can see them rolling out Kempny-Carlson, Orlov-Niskanen, and Jensen-Orpik.

Brooks Orpik can rotate with Christian Djoos, Djoos can rotate with Jensen and vice-versa. I would love to see a defensive pairing with Jensen and Djoos.