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Washington Capitals: Braden Holtby declines White House invitation

By Dave Stevenson

UNIONDALE, NY - MARCH 01: Braden Holtby #70 of the Washington Capitals skates against the New York Islanders at NYCB Live's Nassau Coliseum on March 1, 2019 in Uniondale, New York. New York Islanders defeated the New York Islanders 3-1 (Photo by Mike Stobe/NHLI via Getty Images)
UNIONDALE, NY - MARCH 01: Braden Holtby #70 of the Washington Capitals skates against the New York Islanders at NYCB Live's Nassau Coliseum on March 1, 2019 in Uniondale, New York. New York Islanders defeated the New York Islanders 3-1 (Photo by Mike Stobe/NHLI via Getty Images) /
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The reigning Stanley Cup Champion Washington Capitals will be visiting the White House to celebrate their title on Monday, March 24. Star goaltender Braden Holtby has elected to not attend. 

It’s a tradition for teams who win titles to visit the White House. Part of the reason is so they can celebrate what they’ve accomplished, but there are other reasons as well. The reigning Stanley Cup Champion Washington Capitals will be making their White House visit on Monday, March 24. Four-time All-Star goaltender Braden Holtby will be among those not attending.

He is hardly the first goaltender to refuse a White House invitation. Back when the Boston Bruins won the Stanley Cup, goalie Tim Thomas released a statement saying his absence was due to disagreeing with the government. It’s worth noting this was released after the visit.

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Holtby was a bit more specific than Thomas regarding his reasons for not attending. He will not be the only one not going to the event. Teammate Brett Connolly will not be attending. He alluded to standing by a friend. Though he didn’t say who it was, it’s likely Devante Smith-Pelly.

While it’s not known if Smith-Pelly was included in the invitation because he’s currently with the Capitals AHL affiliate Hershey Bears, he said before the Caps won the Stanley Cup he wasn’t going to go.

Because the visit is so late in the season, there will not be an official ceremony, per Isabelle Khurshudyan of The Washington Post. Also, there will be no media availability. With the Stanley Cup Playoffs coming up, this isn’t surprising.

The Capitals have a very close bond as Stanley Cup Champions. They are a diverse group full of Americans, Canadians, Russians, and other Europeans. Naturally, not everyone on the team agrees on everything. But their respect for each other is admirable.

After winning the Stanley Cup, the Capitals let head coach Barry Trotz go due to the two sides failing to agree to a long-term extension. Todd Reirden has taken over and the Caps appear to be in good shape as they look to win back-to-back Stanley Cups.

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The Capitals will be the second NHL team to visit United States President Donald Trump. Last year, the Pittsburgh Penguins were hosted by him. Back in 2016, the Pens visited the White House while Barack Obama was the President.

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