Farewell, Nick Jensen (Caps Outsider)
NHL Free Agency kicked off on Monday, July 1, as Capitals GM Brian MacLellan got busy just like he did this past weekend with eight picks in the NHL Draft.
One big re-signing for Washington was forward Connor McMichael, who inked a two-year, $4.2 million contract extension which carries an AAV of $2.1 million. McMichael is coming off a strong 2023-24 season with the Caps that saw him go full-time with the NHL after spending the majority of 2022-23 with the Hershey Bears.
Washington also made major updates to the blue line by signing defenseman Matt Roy to a six-year, $34.3 million contract, which carries an AAV of $5.75 million. The team also acquired defensemen Jakob Chychrun in a trade with the Ottawa Senators for defenseman Nick Jensen.
Jensen was originally acquired by the Capitals in a 2019 trade and had been with the team since then. He has two years remaining at a $4.05 million cap hit on the three-year extension he signed with Washington in February 2023.
The Capitals also fixed their fourth line by signing forwards Brandon Duhaime and Taylor Raddysh, who will replace the recently departed Beck Malenstyn and Nicolas Aube-Kubel.
Duhaime’s deal is two years and $3.7 million with an AAV of 1.85 million, while Raddysh’s contract is for one year and $1 million.
Per PuckPedia, Washington has a projected $102 million cap hit, which is $14.2 million over the cap. They can start the season up to $9.2 million over the cap with the injured Nicklas Backstrom (hip) placed on LTIR, meaning they have $5 million of space to create.
