As the offseason moves along and the 2025-26 season comes to a close, teams are preparing to try to improve their rosters as they aim for a deep playoff run next season, mainly by filling the biggest holes in their lineup. For the Washington Capitals, that could be the right side of their blue line.
In a recent episode of the Locked on Capitals podcast, host Dan Holmi suggested the Capitals could target pending unrestricted free agent defender Darren Raddysh as a way to help transform their defense with his elite offensive skill.
Raddysh, who is 30 years old, is coming off of an incredible season offensively with the Tampa Bay Lightning, where he scored 22 goals and added 48 assists for 70 points through 73 games. He shattered his previous career-best in points in a single season, which was 37 last season.
Throughout his career, he has scored 35 goals and added 108 assists for 143 points through 249 games, which comes out to a 0.57 points-per-game average.
In the episode, Holmi dismissed the idea that Raddysh's strong season was a fluke, stating, "When you dig into Raddysh's story, it becomes harder and harder to dismiss what happened as some kind of fluke. This is a player who wasn't drafted. Nobody handed him anything. Nobody fast tracked him. No one gave him keys to the NHL. This is a guy that put the work in."
There have been several occasions in the past, particularly with Darnell Nurse and the Edmonton Oilers, where teams overpay for a defender who had one strong campaign. There is speculation that Raddysh could be looking for around $9 million annually, and if the Capitals bring him in, he would be the John Carlson replacement.
There is risk involved with signing a guy like Raddysh for so much money, but if the Capitals truly want to improve their blue line, Raddysh would be a solid addition, but they should do whatever it takes to keep his annual salary as low as possible.
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