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Washington Capitals: What will it take to keep Nicklas Backstrom and Braden Holtby?

By Michael Marzzacco

WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 11: Washington Capitals center Nicklas Backstrom (19) is congratulated by goaltender Braden Holtby (70) after his second goal of the first period against the Carolina Hurricanes on April 11, 2019, at the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. (Photo by Mark Goldman/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 11: Washington Capitals center Nicklas Backstrom (19) is congratulated by goaltender Braden Holtby (70) after his second goal of the first period against the Carolina Hurricanes on April 11, 2019, at the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. (Photo by Mark Goldman/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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Nicklas Backstrom and Braden Holtby are two important players among the Washington Capitals core. Both would love to stay, sure. But that’s easier said than done.

Washington Capitals general manager Brian MacLellan’s biggest project this season will be trying to figure out the contract situations of both Nicklas Backstrom and Braden Holtby.

Both players are already back in Arlington at the team’s facility MedStar Capitals Iceplex taking part in preliminary skates.

As for the preliminary talks, those will come right at the beginning of September when MacLellan returns from his summer home in Minnesota.

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MacLellan noted he is willing to listen and hear out both sides and what each player wants in terms of money and commitment. He also said in an interview with NHL.com that he hasn’t ruled out signing either of them before opening night in St. Louis.

So what would those talks look like? How would they go? Backstrom will turn 32 this November while Holtby is closing in on turning 30 next month. Each will have a say in what they would want their raise to look like.

Backstrom was signed to a massive deal on the surface back in 2010, a 10-year deal worth $67 million. When you look closer at his deal, Backstrom’s yearly cap hit is $6.7 million. Only Evgeny Kuznetsov, John Carlson and Alex Ovehckin will make more this season.

As for Holtby, his last contract came after he took the Capitals and MacLellan to the courtroom for arbitration. Holtby’s deal was five years worth $30.5 million with a annual cap hit of $6.1 million each season. His situation is obviously the most curious case of the two.

Even though Holtby struggled in the last two seasons, he has a Vezina Trophy and a Stanley Cup on his resume. If the Capitals were to let him walk there will be several teams with goaltending issues and more cap room ready to shell out money for the Holtbeast.

It can also come with a steep asking price from both of them. Backstrom could command an AAV anywhere between eight or nine and a half million. As for Holtby, that asking price is even steeper, especially after Sergei Bobrovsky and Andrei Vasilevskiy both got raises this summer.

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Bobrovsky, unlike Vasilevskiy, is similar to Holtby. Just a year older and similar numbers, his $10 million a year for the next seven might make Holtby worth even more than that. We’ll see if Brian MacLellan can work his magic on extending Backstrom and Holtby.

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