On Tuesday, newly acquired Washington Capitals forward Michael Raffl spoke to the media following today’s practice. He discussed being on the ice with a new team for the first time and expressed his excitement about signing with the Capitals.
Raffl said it was “very exciting news joining a winning club.” He reiterated how the Capitals have had “a lot of success recently and a good group of veteran players.” “It’s very exciting times for me for sure,” he said.
“I’ve been in this league long enough to know when things might happen,” Raffl said on expecting a trade, adding, “I didn’t really have an idea of what’s going down, but that’s part of the business…you’ve got to be ready for everything.”
On playing against the Capitals during his tenure with the Flyers, he said Washington was a “tough group to beat.” “They have a lot of skills, have good [defensemen], [and] good goaltending…I’m going to give it my everything.”
After being acquired at the trade deadline on April 12, Raffl did not travel with the team during the recent road trip due to an upper-body injury he had sustained while with the Flyers. He donned a blue non-contact jersey today, but said his first practice with the Capitals was “fun” and it was great to “get to the know the boys”.
Raffl had a meeting with the coaches this morning to go over the new system. He said, “Even if I’m not playing, I get to watch the games and see what they’re doing [differently] and get my mind wrapped around that.”
“If needed, yes,” Raffl said about playing center. The 32-year-old mentioned he had played center throughout his career and is “comfortable in that spot”, but “rather play on the wing.”
By Della Young
Looking forward to seeing Raffl get some games. Could be a key add if he fits.
Yep, another nice little player who can do a bit of everything. Perfect for the stretch run and playoffs.
He certainly seems excited for the opportunity. And Lavi was definitely excited by what he saw in practice today. 🤞