Capitals April Fools: Top 3 foolish mistakes they made in 2020

LAS VEGAS, NV - JUNE 07: Andre Burakovsky #65 of the Washington Capitals hoists the Stanley Cup after his team defeated the Vegas Golden Knights 4-3 in Game Five of the 2018 NHL Stanley Cup Final at T-Mobile Arena on June 7, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /

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CALGARY, AB – MARCH 8: Chandler Stephenson #20 of the Vegas Golden Knights in action against the Calgary Flames during an NHL game at Scotiabank Saddledome on March 8, 2020 in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. (Photo by Derek Leung/Getty Images) /

#2 Shipping Chandler Stephenson

It was a tough move in December with the Capitals battling salary cap trouble all season long and a move they had to make to save up cap space. But it doesn’t make the loss any less hurting. The Caps had to decide between retaining Travis Boyd or Chandler Stephenson. Boyd was coming off a stretch of great play so the team chose option A.

Who did they trade Stephenson to? The Vegas Golden Knights for a fifth round pick in 2021’s NHL Draft.

Picture that for a second. Stephenson, one of our very own that came up through the system and helped win the Caps a Stanley Cup donning the uniform of their opponents from that season. It’s a weird look.

Stephenson was a third round pick at 77th overall back in 2012. Prior to leaving Washington, he had just three goals and one assist. Since joining the Golden Knights, he’s scored eight goals and added 14 assists for 22 points. It looks like the change in scenery helped him.

As a member of the Capitals, Stephenson had 14 goals and 19 assists in total. Now he’s getting career-high numbers out west in Sin City.

Say it with me fans, what were they thinking?

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