Washington Capitals GM Brian MacLellan told the media during his end-of-season media availability on Wednesday that “We’ll get younger [over the offseason] but we’re still going to have a veteran team. That’s our core.” The team had the oldest roster in the NHL this season with an average age of 28.95 years old.
MacLellan said that “I think [that] we have some guys coming that we could consider.” He mentioned that he liked the season 24-year-old forward Daniel Sprong had and wants to give him more ice time next season. 21-year-old defenseman Martin Fehervary “I think is ready,” according to MacLellan. He also wants to get 21-year-old defenseman Alexander Alexeyev in some games but acknowledged that he is not a full-time player “yet.”
GM Brian Maclellan says the Caps will be looking to add younger players. He thinks Martin Fehervary is ready.
Regarding Connor McMichael, Maclellan says they will not force it with him. #ALLCAPS
— NoVa Caps (@NoVa_Caps) May 26, 2021
He thought that top prospect and center Connor McMichael “finished the season well” with the AHL’s Hershey Bears. “I think it’s going to be how his offseason goes, what improvements he makes,” he said on whether the 20-year-old will be in the Capitals’ opening night lineup in October. Though, he acknowledged “We’re not going to force [him] into the lineup” but thought that McMichael finished the season “very high, improved in all areas. … We’re going to look for opportunities to play him but we’re not going to force him into a situation he can’t handle.”
With three left-handed defensemen on the NHL roster (Dmitry Orlov, Brenden Dillon, Michal Kempny) next season, MacLellan told the media that “Maybe we’ll make room [for Fehervary]. I think [he’s] ready to be a full-time player. How high he plays in the lineup will be up to him but we’re counting on him to play right away and we’ll make adjustments after that.” No decisions are coming now regarding how they will make room for him but they will decide around the 2021 NHL Expansion Draft for the Seattle Kraken on July 23.
MacLellan re: Martin Fehervary. “We are counting on him playing right away.” #ALLCAPS
— NoVa Caps (@NoVa_Caps) May 26, 2021
On the Capitals’ lack of center depth, MacLellan believes that “it has to come from a young guy like McMichael or an entry-level guy to give you a few games. … You need to slot them right to win a Cup.” He thought the Boston Bruins won the first-round Stanley Cup Playoff series because they were deep at center but Capitals were thin.
MacLellan said that 44-year-old defenseman Zdeno Chara is “uncertain” regarding his future. “I thought he played great with us, he was a solid addition, and the third pair of him and Jensen was solid,” he mentioned, adding that he will talk to Chara, who is left-handed.
After three consecutive first-round exits in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, MacLellan expressed that “I don’t think we’re at the stage where we need to rebuild,” with captain Alex Ovechkin and center Nicklas Backstrom still around. “I think it’s important to have [Ovechkin] and [Backstrom] finish their careers here. The rebuild will be a little bit premature but I do realize that it’s coming. I think right now we’re looking to incorporate a few more younger players in our lineup and we feel we have a couple coming,” he said.
“We’re right there with Boston, New York, and Pittsburgh. We think they’re pretty similar teams. … We’re in that group the way we’re constructed right now,” MacLellan explained. He thought that the Bruins pulled ahead of the group after the trade deadline.
By Harrison Brown