Capitals Will 'Definitely' Look To Address Third-Line Center & Bottom-6 This Offseason; GM Chris Patrick Shares More
The Capitals have a number of areas they want to address this summer, specifically, the bottom-6.
ARLINGTON, V.A. — Amid a historic and successful season, there was one question mark for the Washington Capitals: the third line.
From the start of the season, the trio couldn’t exactly find its footing. Hendrix Lapierre started the season there, but was ultimately sent down to the AHL’s Hershey Bears after failing to live up to expectations. Lars Eller was brought in to fill that void, but ultimately, wasn't able to bring the stability or production that D.C. was looking for as he struggled with limited minutes and a different role than he had in his first stint with the Capitals.
“We were aggressive in getting Lars. I think we felt like that was an area we needed to get to solidify in our lineup. I thought for the most part, he came in and did that,” general manager Chris Patrick said. “I think, as he alluded to, the role is different than what he's had in the past, and he had some difficulty adjusting to that, which is understandable for the most part. I know it didn't end the way any of us would have hoped, but I thought for the most part, he did bring some stability to that position.”
As for the wingers, Sonny Milano missed most of the year with an injury that now has his career in flux, and Andrew Mangiapane and Taylor Raddysh did what they could. Ryan Leonard joined that line at the end of the season, but ultimately, wasn’t able to finish or provide the necessary spark to get scoring out of that bottom-6.
Never miss an update from the rink. Join the lineup and become a free or paid subscriber for DC Backcheck, your home for all things Washington Capitals, all the time.
The playoffs — specifically the second round against the relentless Carolina Hurricanes — made it evident to management that the Capitals need more consistency on the bottom-6, specifically when it comes to finding a permanent solution at center.
“That's definitely an area that we need to look at to find ways to improve and I think we have both internally, some options with some younger players in our system, and we'll also see what else is out there externally,” Patrick said.
Some internal candidates include Connor McMichael, who made it clear he wants to be a center long-term, and the aforementioned Lapierre, who had a “good, hard talk” with the front office before returning to the AHL and bounced back as expected with a point-per-game season in Hershey.
Belief & Confidence Helped Connor McMichael Finally Take His Game To The Next Level For The Capitals. What's Next?
ARLINGTON, V.A. — All Connor McMichael wanted was a chance.
At wing, Andrew Cristall could try to make another run at the roster, and Ivan Miroshnichenko is also champing at the bit to return to the NHL. Washington will also meet this week to evaluate their pending free agents in Mangiapane, Raddysh and Anthony Beauvillier. Eller wants to keep playing, but doesn’t figure to be back.
Externally, there are going to be some interesting names in free agency and the trade market, and ultimately, the Capitals are open to everything as they look to improve the offense
“It would be great to add another skilled player to our lineup, for sure. It would be great to also have a third line that is a really dependable third line. The Dowd line is effectively a third line; it would be great to have two third lines, like Nic's line,” Patrick said. “So those are two areas we'd like to improve on. Can you do both at the same time? I don't know. We're going to have to see what's available and what's out there.”