Washington Capitals looking to trade veteran forward
It looks like the 3rd line center job in Washington may be up for grabs, as the Capitals are trying to move veteran Center, Lars Eller. With Connor McMichael being promoted, Eller may be on the way out of the organization.
Eller's current cap hit is $3.5 Million, for this year while McMichael's upside is yet to be found, and has a cheaper cap hit at $863K a year.
This is unfortunate for Eller, whose been a part of the Stanley Cup-winning team as well. The Capitals currently have an abundance of Centers, after adding Dylan Strome and Henrik Borgstrom.
With Nicklas Backstrom and Carl Hagelin out, you would think this would complicate things more, however, this isn't the case as McMichael may be better than Eller based on some statistics:
Looking at the two head-to-head, McMichael had the stronger advanced statistics at 5-on-5. His expected goals-for percentage of 56.45 led all skaters with at least 40 games played, while Eller ranked fourth-to-last among forwards (48.49). McMichael also had a better shots-for percentage (53.90) and scoring chances-for percentage (54.12) than Eller at 5-on-5 (50.70, 48.65). At all strengths, McMichael also has the upper hand over Eller, also possessing a better Corsi-for percentage and goals-for percentage.
But McMichael still has to grow his two-way game, compared to Eller, and holds multiple roles in the organization currently.
Losing Eller would mean, losing a Penalty-Kill specialist, a solid back-checker, who isn't afraid to throw the body, accumulating 95 hits last season.
It is still Brian MacLellan's decision to make, but he shouldn't be so hasty.
POLL |
AOUT 17 | 105 ANSWERS Washington Capitals looking to trade veteran forward Will the Capitals make the playoffs this year? |
Yes, as a wild card | 49 | 46.7 % |
No, they'll miss the playoffs | 33 | 31.4 % |
Yes, in the top 3 in the Metropolitan Division | 23 | 21.9 % |
List of polls |
|
2 hours ago | By Tom Banks Pittsburgh Penguins Trade 28 Year Old Defensemen to the Western Conference |
|
3 hours ago | By Tom Banks Brock Boeser Breaks Silence Ahead Of What Could Be His Last Game As A Vancouver Canuck |
|
4 hours ago | By Failed Blockbuster Trade Between the Bruins and Avalanche Leaks Publicly |
|
5 hours ago | By The Worst is Confirmed for Jack Hughes and the New Jersey Devils Following Latest Update |
|
7 hours ago | By Tom Banks NHL Insider Rules Out Several Teams In the Mikko Rantanen Sweepstakes |
|
8 hours ago | By Daniel Lucente Four Players Placed on Waivers Including Former Top 5 Pick: Per Elliotte Friedman |
|
9 hours ago | By Tom Banks Chicago Blackhawks Aggressively Shopping Veteran After Spencer Knight Acquisition |
|
10 hours ago | By Julien Trekker Florida Panthers and San Jose Sharks Officially Make a Trade Ahead of Deadline |
Previously on Bladeofsteel