Washington Capitals: Breaking down their Available List

The Washington Capitals Protected List for the Seattle Expansion Draft is out. In case you missed it, here we break down their protected list. Now let’s take a look at the players who were left exposed starting with the forwards

Forwards

Alex Ovechkin: I know what you’re thinking. Why, why, WHY was Ovechkin left exposed? If he was selected this would be a wasted pick by the Kraken kind of like if the Vegas Golden Knights took T.J. Oshie four years ago before the Caps re-signed him. Ovechkin wants to finish his career in Washington and it’s only a matter of time before he can sign an extension which can come as early as Thursday.

Conor Sheary: This was highly questionable in my opinion. I had him on my protected list but what do I know? Sheary had a good first season in Washington with 14 goals and eight assists for 22 points. He carries a $1.5 million cap hit.

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Nic Dowd: Dowd is one of the best fourth line centers in the game and the Kraken would love him. But please don’t take anybody from that killer fourth line! Dowd had a career high 11 goals and four assists for 15 points and carries a cap hit of $750,000. Losing him would be a blow to the fourth line and to the Caps offseason budget.

Garnet Hathaway: The other podcast bro! Hathaway became a fan favorite in his two seasons in D.C. for his charm and grit. Last season he had six goals and 12 assists for 18 points. Hathaway carries a cap hit of $1.5 million. I hope he doesn’t get selected either.

Carl Hagelin: The final piece of the fourth line. Hagelin would bring Cup winning experience to the Kraken if they were to take him. Last season he scored six goals and 10 assists for 16 points. Hagelin carries a cap hit of $2.75 million.

Shane Gersich: Shane Gersich was a black ace on the Caps Cup winning team. He carries a cap hit of $750,000. He’s only played in three NHL games, recording one assist. In 33 games with the Hershey Bears last season, Gersich recorded 14 points with six goals and eight assists.

Axel Jonsson-Fjallby: The Caps prospect with the sweetest flow in the game, or should I say Swedest. Last season he was on a loan with Vasterviks Ik where he scored four goals and 11 assists for 15 points in 26 games before finishing the year in Hershey. With the Bears he played in 31 games and had 15 points with 10 goals and five assists. He carries a cap hit of $750,000.

Garrett Pilon: Love this kid. He made his NHL debut on May 8 against the Philadelphia Flyers and was re-signed this offseason with a cap hit of $750,000. He played in 14 games with the Hershey Bears last season and scored four goals and added 12 assists for 16 points.

Brian Pinho: Pinho played in two games last season. He carries a cap hit of $725,000. He recorded 12 points in 10 games with the Hershey Bears last season with eight goals and four assists.

Michael Sgarbossa: Sgarbossa had five goals and five assists for 10 points in 14 games with the Hershey Bears last season while also spending time on the Caps taxi squad. He appeared in five Caps games and had two assists. He carries a cap hit of $750,000.

Michael Raffl: Rounding out the forwards is Michael Raffl who the Caps acquired from the Flyers at the trade deadline. He had three points with a goal and two assists in 10 games and his lone goal with the Caps was a memorable buzzer beater in an otherwise forgettable game against the Boston Bruins as it was the regular season finale with the playoff matchup already determined. Raffl is an unrestricted free agent with a previous cap hit of $792,500.

Defense

Justin Schultz: Our contributor Greg Bowman predicted that the Seattle Kraken will take him. Of course the wild pick on the protected list that everyone is talking about is protecting Trevor van Riemsdyk which is basically telling the Kraken, “hey we got three good defensemen available.” Schultz had three goals and 24 assists for 27 points and a 52 percent Corsi For percentage. He carries a cap hit of $4 million.

Brenden Dillon: Dilly Dilly is another good option for the Kraken if they were to take a defensemen. He carries a cap hit of $3.9 million and was re-signed by the Caps last offseason. He scored two goals and added 17 assists for 19 points and had a Corsi For percentage of 46.9 percent.

Nick Jensen: Jensen had an improvement of a season last year on the third pair with Zdeno Chara. He had two goals and 12 assists for 14 points. Jensen was acquired from the Detroit Red Wings in 2019 at the trade deadline and carries a cap hit of $2.5 million.

Michal Kempny: Kempny missed all of last season with an Achilles injury. He returned to the ice in February and got some reps at their practice facility in Arlington. He also appeared in some games with the Hershey Bears before suffering another injury in May, being struck by an ice shoveler. Kempny carries a cap hit of $2.5 million.

Lucas Johansen: The prospect who was selected in the first round in 2016 hasn’t seen NHL action and is currently a restricted free agent. Last season he had a cap hit of $700,000.

Cameron Schilling: Schilling is an unrestricted free agent who signed a $700,000 deal last season.

Paul LaDue: LaDue is also an unrestricted free agent that had a cap hit of $700,000 last season.

Zdeno Chara: Chara is an unrestricted free agent still pondering his NHL future. He had a cap hit last season of $795,000. He had two goals and eight assists for 10 points last season and his leadership will be missed in the locker room next season.

Goalies

Vitek Vanecek: Vanecek had a solid rookie season with a 21-10-4 record with a 2.69 goals against average and a .908 save percentage. He carries a cap hit of $716,667.

Pheonix Copley: Copley went 10-4-1 in 15 games with the Hershey Bears last season with a 2.66 goals against average and a .896 save percentage. He carries a cap hit of $1.1 million.

Zach Fucale: Fucale went 9-2-0 in 11 games with the Hershey Bears last season with a 1.80 goals against average and a .932 save percentage. He has a cap hit of $750,000.

Craig Anderson: Anderson is an unrestricted free agent who helped mentor the young goalies last season. In four games he went 2-2-1 with a 2.13 goals against average and a .915 save percentage. He had a cap hit of $700,000 last season and got Washington’s lone playoff win this spring.