Arvidsson's 8 SHG over the last two years would help the PK, but giving up Orlov to play AAyev might be hard on it. Trading Burakovsky for cap space and getting essentially nothing back is kind of rough.

Mostly I'm surprised you signed Dowd and Jaskin over Connolly and Smith-Pelly.

Eh did you not see Orlov play yesterday? He was directly responsible for 4 of those 6 Ducks goals. He was absolutely horrendous and isn't even AHL worthy with the play he put out on the ice yesterday. If the league watches that tape of him yesterday, ain't no one going to want him. So I don't think he's got a lot of stock right now, and they aren't giving up a 25 year old back-to-back 61 point winger for Orlov and a goalie prospect.

I still think the Caps need a strong solid defensive defenseman more than anything right now. Orlov is a mess at times. Niskanen is doing decent, but not quite up to his former level. Bowey's solid play this year has helped though. If he wasn't playing solid, then the Caps would have even bigger D woes.

I like signing Dowd, he's turned out to be a good 4C for the Caps. Although I definitely wouldn't be resigning him over Connolly if I can help it. The way Connolly is playing though, he's going to need more than 1.5 mill come next year.

Also, I don't think Vrana ever signs a 3x3 deal if he keeps up his current pace. He'd probably want more AAV than that for such a short contract.

And Dowd > Boyd.

Oh, well, if he's having a bad week, then, sure.... trade away the best defensive defenseman off of the Champs.

The last two years Orlov and Niskanen have played Opponents' top lines and they've finished with decent defensive stats, plus they've each finished each of the last two years in the top 31 defensemen in even strength points. I think that pair is, very quietly, what makes this team tick, at both ends of the ice.

Arvidsson is a 30 goal scorer with Nashville, where he gets 68% offensive zone starts, 18 minutes a night, and plenty of PP1 opportunities. At even strength, so far, he's maxed out at 23 goals a year, playing with some good players. Does he make the Caps' top power play unit? Or does he get stuck on the second unit that plays the last 15 seconds of a power play, with a faceoff in their own zone, and basically doesn't get any points out of it? I think Arvidsson in Washington gets 25 goals a year, so I don't think he's worth Orlov.

I made the exact same argument this summer regarding a suggestion of Orlov for Nylander.

Dowd isn't as bad offensively as I expected, or as great on faceoffs and defense as I expected. Dowd and Boyd are fairly similar. They're decent 4Cs, better with the puck than a lot of guys who play that position, and they keep all four lines offensively capable. Neither of them is Beagle. If any of the centers in Hershey takes a huge step forward this year, 4C might again be an open casting call in training camp. Or maybe Dowd or Boyd has a great playoffs this Spring and gets a three year 1M contract? Who knows.

Orlov hasn't been any good at all this year, aside from a couple of offensive bursts. He's looked pretty lost defensively most of the year. Yesterday was just the culmination of his rather bad play this year.

Most Caps fans rag on Caps defensemen. It hurts the team. Caps fans have booed Larry Murphy, Sergei Gonchar, and Jeff Schultz out of town, only to watch them with the Stanley Cup in Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, and LA. If your entire joy in cheering for a team is to say that its guys are bad at defense because the other team still scores goals, watch a sport where shutouts are actually common, like soccer.

Are you denying he has played bad?

I mean what you just said to me as a response is pretty ridiculous man. What the heck does what you said have to do with Orlov's pretty clearly bad play this year...

Someone will pay more than 1.5 for Connelly, that's why I didn't sign him over Dowd. Dowd/Boyd is a fine enough combo for the 4C spot.

Orlov's play has been wildly inconsistent but saying he's not even AHL worthy is right. The Caps are very deep with left handed defensemen so moving Orlov and his contract wouldn't hurt too much. Alexeyev has the tools to be a perennial all-star. We need to give him and/or Lucas Johansen a shot next year. Djoos belongs on the team and I like the consistency (and the contract) of Kempny. I believe Orlov has a full no trade clause so it might be hard to move him but it would be worth a shot.

Burakovsky stinks and I cannot be convinced otherwise. I'm tired of hearing about his potential and not seeing any consistency from him. I'd happily take a 3rd round pick for him.

Unless the Capitals trade Holtby or Niskanen to free up cap space, Sutter/Clark/Gersich/Shumakov will need to get significant minutes in 2019 which I am totally okay with.

^isn't

Wonder where Orlov would rather play? I could see trading anyone or everyone next summer as part of a refresh, but I hope Orlov sticks around for the playoffs because he played the toughest minutes and made a huge difference last Spring.

Burakovsky is 6th in the 2013 draft class in goals, and 11th in points. Who needs potential, when he consistently gets results?

http://www.nhl.com/stats/player?aggregate=1&reportType=season&seasonFrom=20112012&seasonTo=20182019&gameType=2&draftYear=2013&filter=gamesPlayed,gte,1&sort=points,goals,assists

Here's hoping Shumakov decides to stick around another year. If you think Connolly might get bid out of reach, I'm taking even more of a wait and see attitude on Shumakov. It could work out because he's been injured so long, and hasn't gotten to put up results, but talk about potential...

What have you done for me lately...Bura has the same amount of points as Dan Girardi. If you look at his points per game rank for the 2013 draft class, which was notoriously weak, he is 16th. I think Burakovsky has proven that he is an average NHL player. I'd rather use the time, effort, and money on developing someone with more potential. Talking about potential is acceptable when judging rookies, not as much weight with 5th year players.

He's 23. The Dan Girardi's of the world are going to have some luck. But at 34, Girardi barely has twice as many career points as Burakovsky has at 23. Any team that needs a top six wing should offer a 2nd and a decent prospect for Burakovsky, at least. The Knights, Jackets, Canucks, Canadiens, Senators, Islanders, Avalanche, Devils, and Hurricanes have cap space and expectations. Last year he finished 56th among listed left wings in points/gp. I think he's having a bad season, and they have depth, but a 3rd pick is not the right return.