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Washington Capitals mock offseason: Scorched earth rebuild

By Dave Stevenson

May 10, 2017; Washington, DC, USA; A Washington Capitals fan watches from the stands in the final minute of the third period during the Capitals' game against the Pittsburgh Penguins in game seven of the second round of the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Verizon Center. The Penguins won 2-0. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
May 10, 2017; Washington, DC, USA; A Washington Capitals fan watches from the stands in the final minute of the third period during the Capitals' game against the Pittsburgh Penguins in game seven of the second round of the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Verizon Center. The Penguins won 2-0. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports /
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Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports /

Trading Backstrom

This one is extremely painful. However, if you’re trading Ovechkin, why not trade Backstrom too? If 19 wants to stick around for a rebuild, you happily keep him. Backstrom is a franchise player who you can build a team around. If the Capitals are confident they can do a turnaround within three years, he’s a heck of a cornerstone to build a team on.

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    • But if Backstrom doesn’t want to stay, much like Ovi, he’s earned his right to go to a different team. Another reason why trading 19 makes sense is he likely gets you an even better package than Ovechkin. A franchise center under contract for the next three years with a very reasonable cap hit ($6.7 million) is quite valuable.

    Which contender makes sense for him? Perhaps no playoff team needs a contender more than the Ottawa Senators. However, we can rule out them out because he’s due $23 million in salary over the next three seasons. The Sens are a budget team, so they’re not doing it unless they clear a ton of money. Calgary would be a good fit, but they’re already committing a ton of money to Johnny Gaudreau, Mark Giordano, Dougie Hamilton and Sean Monahan.

    How about the Nashville Predators? Yes, they have a terrible trade history. But this time around, the Capitals aren’t trading Filip Forsberg for Martin Erat. They’re actually getting talent this time around!

    Nashville has to give up a defenseman in this trade. It’s where they have a lot of value. At this point, the Predators likely view Roman Josi, P.K. Subban and Ryan Ellis untouchable (and rightfully so). Ekholm would give the Capitals a very nice piece for their blue line, which is losing at least one member (and potentially two).

    That’s a hefty price for Backstrom, but he’s worth it. The Johansen swap is logical because 19 is better than him and signed long-term. But Ry-Jo isn’t too far behind Backstrom as far as production. The Washington Capitals would have a strong 1-2 punch of Evgeny Kuznetsov and Johansen for the foreseeable future. That’s a pretty nice foundation.

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