Capitals April Fools: Top 5 worst free agent signings ever
It’s April Fools Day and we’re here today to look back at some of the Washington Capitals follies.
This isn’t meant to rip the Washington Capitals in any manner but rather to look back on these moments and laugh at some of the foolish things they did.
They’ve made a few mistakes when it comes to signing free agents so we’ll look back on some names you probably haven’t heard about in a while.
We’ve been in a pause now for the season approaching three weeks and instead of reading the news, which can get depressing, we all need a good laugh. That’s the point of these posts right here.
With no hockey fans are looking back and binge-watching old games, old movies or even stepping back from sports and spending more time with their families. I’ve done a variety of the three but I’ve also reflected on some of the free-agent signings the Capitals made. Ones that looked good on the surface but didn’t produce the way we wanted them to.
With free agency delayed we thankfully don’t have to worry about that for a while. It’s always a stressful time of the year wondering who they’d sign. With that said let’s meet the worst of the worst.
#5 Michael Nylander
Michael Nylander was drafted by the Hartford Whalers in the third round at 59th overall in the 1991 NHL Entry Draft. The Caps knew about his skillset bringing him on board twice during the trade deadline but he really produced during his time in the Big Apple with the New York Rangers.
On a good squad with the ageless Jaromir Jagr, centering a line with him and Martin Straka, a “Czech Connection” was formed. Nylander spent two seasons in New York in 2005-06 and 2006-07, two Ranger teams that made the playoffs. His first season saw him score 23 goals and 56 assists for 79 points. The next season was even better with 26 goals and 57 assists for 83 points.
The Caps signed him in the summer of 2007 to a four-year, $19.5 million dollar contract. That’s a lot of money for a player that only had 50 assists in BOTH of his only two seasons in Washington. He ain’t no Nicklas Backstrom nor Evgeny Kuznetsov folks.
In 2007-08 Nylander scored 11 goals and added 26 assists for 37 points. The next year? Just nine goals and 24 assists for 33 points.
His Capitals tenure ended on January 28, 2010, when he was re-assigned to Finland’s Jokerit Helsinki. He has a son on the Toronto Maple Leafs named William Nylander.
#4 Roman Hamrlik
Roman Hamrlik was drafted by the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 1992 NHL Draft. He played a season and a half with the Capitals from 2011-12 to 2013’s lockout-shortened season. His best season came in the 2000-01 campaign with the New York Islanders when he scored 16 goals and had 30 assists for 46 points.
During his first season with the Caps, Hamrlik scored two goals and had 11 assists for 13 points. In the lockout-shortened year, he only suited up for four games with the Caps before being placed on waivers.
Once there he was claimed by the New York Rangers, where he finished out the season and eliminated the Caps in the playoffs in seven games in the first round.
Roman Hamrlik was signed to a two-year, $7 million dollar contract which was a waste considering it was on a veteran who later went to waivers only to be claimed by a rival team. What on earth were they thinking? Both signing the guy and putting him on waivers? Again, what a waste.
That’s just the point though of this post, to show the worst of the worst when it comes to free-agent signings. It was another defenseman to an already weak blue line. Thankfully our defense is much better now.
#3 Tomas Vokoun
Tomas Vokoun was a veteran netminder the Capitals tried to experiment with in the 2011-12 season. He went 25-17-2 with a 2.51 goals-against average and a .917 save percentage. This was a downgrade from Semyon Varlamov in my honest opinion.
The Caps signed him to a one-year, $1.5 million deal in the summer of 2011 coming off back-to-back 28 loss seasons. Not good. Why would they go that route is the question. Maybe because Jose Theodore didn’t quite work out. But you also had Michal Neuvirth and a guy who would go on to be a legend in these parts in Braden Holtby.
Vokoun was drafted in the ninth round at 226th overall by the Montreal Canadiens in the 1994 NHL Draft. He spent 15 years on five different teams. Eight of those seasons were in Nashville with the Predators while the next four were with the Florida Panthers.
As a Predator he went 161-159-46 while with the Panthers he was 101-108-30. What were the Caps thinking in acquiring a goaltender that was above average at best?
Of course, after his time in D.C. was up he finished his career as a member of the Pittsburgh Penguins. Never a good look when you sign a player for a season only for them to wind up with your rival the next.
#2 Wojtek Wolski
Wojtek Wolski signed a one year contract worth $600,000 with the Capitals over the summer of 2012 to add scoring depth to the bottom six. It quite didn’t work out and maybe the lockout shortening the season was to blame.
Wolski was drafted by the Colorado Avalanche the same year Alex Ovechkin was drafted, 2004. He also was a first round selection with the Avs taking him with the 21st overall pick.
His rookie season saw him score two goals and four assists in nine games. The next year he scored 22 goals and added 28 assists for 50 points. It looked like a star was born. He spent two more seasons with the Avalanche before being traded to the Pheonix Coyotes, now the Arizona Coyotes.
He also spent time with the New York Rangers and Florida Panthers before landing in Washington as a 26 year old. In 27 games as a member of the Caps, Wolski posted four goals and five assists for nine points. He didn’t see NHL action again after that season.
He would be signed as a free agent in May after the Caps were eliminated by Nizhny Novgorod of the KHL.
Those are four names you probably forgotten about recently. Now there’s just one more.
#1 Richard Panik
I hate to do this to a member of the current roster but Richard Panik makes the list for two reasons, the price tag and the player the Caps lost they were trying to replace him with.
Panik was brought on to fill the void of Andre Burakovsky on the third line. He has moved to the fourth line where he’s since improved but like I said the price tag can be a lot for a fourth liner.
Panik was signed last summer to a four-year, $11 million deal but he has only scored nine goals and 13 assists for 22 points in 59 games. They were looking for more out of him.
Meanwhile, Andre Burakovsky has enjoyed a resurgence in Colorado as a member of the Avalanche. He’s scored a career-high 20 goals and 25 assists for 45 points. What were the Caps thinking in trading him away and replacing him with someone from the Arizona Coyotes? Makes no sense other than salary cap money.
Related Story. Capitals get crushed by Sabres in our NHL 20 simulation. light
Hope you guys enjoyed this look back at some of the worst of the worst when it comes to free agent signings. Thankfully, we’ve signed much better players who wanted to come here and have a strong cast of draft picks and free agents assembled on the current roster.