The Daily Faceoff Show: Capitals GM MacLellan says they won’t be aggressive at trade deadline
Amidst a slump that includes six losses in 10 games, Washington Capitals general manager Brian MacLellan spoke yesterday to discuss their plans going into the trade deadline. It appears MacLellan doesn’t plan to make aggressive moves.
Frank Seravalli and Mike McKenna discussed it on today’s Daily Faceoff Show and whether it’s the right plan for the Capitals.
Frank Seravalli: “We got some insight from another team that’s been in a bit of a funk for a much longer stretch than the Toronto Maple Leafs, and that would be the Washington Capitals, who have slid not only to the fourth spot in the Metro, but they’re in a spot where they’re inching closer and closer down to the level of the Columbus Blue Jackets. They are 14-14-5 since U.S. Thanksgiving, since Nov. 30.
Their GM Brian MacLellan spoke to the media on Wednesday afternoon, and he revealed some thoughts on their trade deadline plans, saying that he doesn’t expect this team to be as aggressive as they might have been in years past. He does not envision dealing prospects. He did speak about the idea of talking and perusing the veteran goaltender market, and in addition to that saying that he thinks he could be in the market for a middle-six forward. He doesn’t need any help on the blueline, they have the depth there.
This is Caps’ GM Brian MacLellan: ‘At the beginning of the year, I would say we’re a legit contender. There’s probably three, four teams that are at the next level but we’re not next level, we’re at the high end of that next level of teams. And we need to improve. We need to get back to where we were.’
Their coach in Peter Laviolette has also had some pretty pointed remarks for his team over the last few days. When you look at this team, where are they heading? How do they snap out of the run they’ve been on of lately.”
Mike McKenna: “I think MacLellan really put the onus not just on the locker room, but on head coach Peter Laviolette, more or less saying ‘This is who you have, you have to make this work’. And I think that, big picture here, the Capitals are going to be happy to have Mantha back in the lineup, that’s something of a self add heading towards the trade deadline, but you don’t know where he’ll be coming off an injury.
And it’s encouraging that Vitek Vanecek is back in the crease for the Capitals. He’s been the better of the two goaltenders. Yeah, they sniffed around on the market, but MacLellan said, ‘Hey, there’s only really one or two difference makers out there,’ and I don’t think they were willing to make the play on that. They’re basically stuck with Vanecek and Samsonov unless something else happens.
That’s my take on it, I think that this really puts the pressure on Laviolette to come up with solutions. Maybe they add a player, but they’ve got to find an identity for their third line, they’ve got to play harder there. The Caps just aren’t willing to overpay, that’s what it comes down to. They don’t have the capital to do it. But I just don’t really like how this would play in the room when your general manager says, ‘Hey, we’re just not good enough, so we’re not going for it.’
Like, when you filter things, that’s what it kind of sounds like in the locker room, because players don’t like to listen to minutia, they like the soundbite, and that’s what it comes off as to me.”
Frank Seravalli: “But it’s fair and honest, is it not? It’s been a really mediocre team. Why should he – they haven’t given him any reason to be aggressive at the deadline.”
Mike McKenna: “I don’t disagree with you one bit, but that’s how those play sometimes. It’s like ‘Wow, okay, I guess we do have to be better because we’re not getting any help here.’
It’s a shock to your system to hear it, you don’t like hearing it, but it is what could kick yourself into gear sometimes to realize we don’t have any help coming, it’s just what we have here, we’ve gotta make it work.”
Frank Seravalli: “It shouldn’t be a shock to the system because anyone that’s been around that team for the last few months should know that they’ve been entirely mediocre.
They’re also not going to be getting any help from Carl Hagelin, he’s on the shelf indefinitely after suffering an eye injury in practice. All the best to Carl Hagelin on his eventual return to the Washington Capitals lineup.
You can watch the full episode here…