Washington Capitals: 5 Things they Must Do this Offseason

Now that the 2019 Stanley Cup Finals is underway, it’s inevitable that the Washington Capitals will have some big decisions to make since they aren’t playing for the prize this year.

The NHL Draft is coming up shortly after the Stanley Cup and NHL Awards hoopla. That will take place on Friday June 21st and end on Saturday the 22nd in Vancouver. The Capitals hold the 25th pick. What kind of a player do the Capitals need to draft this year?

As for the unrestricted (UFA) and restricted free agents (RFA), there’s a few players listed that the Capitals need to keep. Not doing so would be a massive risk for the future of the organization.

What exactly do the Capitals need to invest in for their future? What type of player should they select at 25th for the NHL Draft? What should they do for Jakub Vrana’s contract? Bridge deal or a long term?

Some contracts are coming to an end when next season expires. Who should they try to figure plans out for to extend a contract? Finally, how should the players get ready for next season with a longer offseason?

These questions will be answered and if the Capitals follow these suggestions don’t be surprised to see them back in the Stanley Cup Final one year from now.

The Washington Capitals need to give Jakub Vrana a raise, a big one. It’s fitting that this is the first thing listed here in this “five things” list. The decision on Vrana is the first big domino to fall that determines the course of the summer.

Similar to T.J. Oshie and Evgeny Kuznetsov in 2017 and Tom Wilson in 2018, there’s no doubt the Washington Capitals will give Jakub Vrana a good payday. There’s debate on whether it’ll be a short-term bridge deal or a long term contract.

Wilson was a restricted free agent last summer (RFA), which is what Vrana will enter this summer as. Wilson’s deal was worth six years for $31 million. Expect Vrana to get something a little similar. I’d say it would be in the avenue of 5-6 years between $25-30 million.

Why all that money committed to V? Because of the season he had last year. Vrana scored a career-high 24 goals and 23 assists (47 points). His speed, work ethic, positive attitude and good vibes are vibrant in that locker room. His future is even brighter, Vrana just recently turned 23.

Locking in a young rising superstar like Vrana doesn’t just impact the Capitals this season. It’ll impact them for years to come.

The Washington Capitals need to draft a forward in the 2019 NHL Draft.

Vancouver will be the place to be from June 21-22. The Washington Capitals will hold the 25th pick. Picking in the 20’s may be high but it’s nothing new to the Capitals and history has been on their side when it comes to these late picks.

Back in 2008, the first year the team made the playoffs in the Alex Ovechkin era, the Capitals had two first round picks at the 21st and 27th. John Carlson was the 27th pick.

In the 2010 draft with the 26th pick, the Capitals selected Evgeny Kuznetsov. So there’s still diamonds in the rough with late picks.

The last time the Capitals drafted a forward with their first pick was in 2014 with Jakub Vrana. Since then the team has selected a goaltender and three defenseman. The Capitals have plenty of goaltending and defensive depth so it’s time for them to select a forward.

Now there might not be a lot of forwards available on the board with a 25th pick and if there’s any worries, they could trade up.

Some names include Egor Afanasayev, Nils Hoglander, and Phillip Tomasino. We’ll see what they do soon.

The Washington Capitals need to invest in their penalty kill.

The Washington Capitals penalty kill (PK) was the team’s biggest weakness throughout the 2018-19 regular season. During the first 61 games of the season, the Capitals allowed 44 power play goals in 206 tries.

When the Capitals traded for Carl Hagelin and Nick Jensen, one reason was to bolster their penalty kill. During a stretch from Feb. 23 to March 10 which included a win over the Winnipeg Jets on the the latter day, the Capitals killed off 22 of their 25 penalties. That also included four straight games without allowing a power play goal at the end of that stretch.

The Capitals finished the regular season ranked 24th in the NHL on the PK with a success-rate of 78.9 percent. But the Capitals finished strong by allowing 11 power play goals in 55 chances, an 80 percent success-rate. It’s an improvement from 78.6 percent before the Jensen and Hagelin trades.

The Capitals have shown they want to invest in the PK future when they extended the contracts of Nic Dowd and Jensen. Now they need to make sure they lock up Hagelin to a contract extension.

That will be easier said than done but an improved penalty kill is vital for next season.

The Washington Capitals need to come up with a plan to extend Nicklas Backstrom‘s contract.

Even though Washington Capitals center Nicklas Backstrom still has one more season left on his current contract, it’s never too early for General Manager Brian MacLellan to plan ahead or even try to give him a contract before the season.

Backstrom had a successful 2018-19 season posting 74 points (22 goals, 52 assists) in 80 games. That’s a three-point improvement from the year before. He didn’t stop after the regular season. In the playoffs, Backstrom led the team with five goals and finished with eight points (3 assists).

Backstrom has scored at least 20 goals and recorded 50 assists in four straight seasons and he’s just the 35th player in NHL history to accomplish this feat and only the second active player. Backstrom also bypassed Peter Bondra for second on the all-time Capitals points list and recorded his 600th assists.

In Backstrom’s storied Capitals career, he’s recorded 231 goals and 642 points for 873 total points. Like Alex Ovechkin, it’s imperative that Backstrom retires as a Washington Capital. It just doesn’t seem right or ethical that he doesn’t get brought back after next season. Also like Ovechkin, Backstrom has proved that age is just a number.