3 past Capitals offseason deals that led to postseason success

#2 Devante Smith Pelly

After the Caps re-signed Evgeny Kuznetsov, they parted ways with Marcus Johansson. After the New Jersey Devils bought out the contract of Devante Smith Pelly, the Caps signed him to the league minimum at the time of $650,000.

In the regular season DSP scored seven goals and nine assists for 16 points. But it was in the playoffs where he became a household name.

In the playoffs he had seven goals and one assist for eight points. That included a goal in three straight Stanley Cup Finals games. That included the game tying goal in Game 5 which helped the Caps clinch the Cup later that night.

In the ensuing offseason, DSP got a one year contract extension and a raise of one million. Unfortunately, he had a sophomore slump of just four goals and four assists. He also was placed on waivers and after clearing reported to the Hershey Bears until the playoffs.

When T.J. Oshie got hurt against the Carolina Hurricanes, DSP came back and played in three games and after that the Caps decided to move on that offseason. But even though the breakup might’ve been bad, Devante Smith Pelly will never have to worry about buying a drink when he comes to D.C.