On Friday, the Washington Capitals had their exit interviews with the media.  This included the players, Head Coach Todd Reirden, and Brian MacLellan.

It was a sad day for all involved.  One year after taking home the Stanley Cup, the Washington Capitals suffered a first-round defeat to the newcomer Carolina Hurricanes in seven games.

While the series was competitive and went the distance, the Capitals coaches, players, and general manager all believe that they could have easily won the series.

Todd Reirden and Brian MacLellan both spoke to the media on Friday.  Here are some snipits from their pressers:

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Caps rookie coach Todd Reirden on his first playoffs: “I’m having to learn some lessons the hard way.” pic.twitter.com/wf4DUFiDdQ

— Stephen Whyno (@SWhyno) April 26, 2019

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Reirden said he doesn’t expect any changes to his coaching staff.

— Isabelle Khurshudyan (@ikhurshudyan) April 26, 2019

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Asked by @BenRaby31 if this season/playoffs is the best he’s seen of Alex Ovechkin, Todd Reirden said: “The best I saw from him was when he raised the Stanley Cup over his head because that meant our team won. And we didn’t win this year, so that’s disappointing.”

— Stephen Whyno (@SWhyno) April 26, 2019

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Asked MacLellan about Barry Trotz still coaching while Reirden isn’t and if who was behind the bench impacted the outcome.

“Are we saying that we underperformed because we had a rookie coach? I don’t think so.”

— Isabelle Khurshudyan (@ikhurshudyan) April 26, 2019

OTHER NOTES FROM THE PRESS CONFERENCES

-Brian MacLellan suggested that freeing up cap space might be a move the team needs to make for the future.

-MacLellan and Todd Reirden both said that there was not a total team effort.  The Capitals hunger level in the playoffs was not there like it was a season ago.

-MacLellan and Reirden both praised the play of Alex Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom.  Both players were praised for playing at the top levels of their game.

-MacLellan and Reirden both pointed out the lack of depth scoring in the postseason.

-Todd Reirden said that the Capitals had some inconsistencies in their game this year.  He pointed at the powerplay as a consistent struggle this season.

By: George Foussekis