Washington Capitals rumors: John Carlson to sign 8 year deal
The Washington Capitals wanted to keep defenseman John Carlson around long-term. They succeeded by signing him to an eight-year extension
The Washington Capitals are the Stanley Cup champions. However, they had a short party, as they have some issues to address. After losing head coach Barry Trotz, the Capitals turned their attention to star defenseman John Carlson.
According to Bob McKenzie, the Caps are on the verge of signing him to an eight-year deal.
AAV will be $8M
— Bob McKenzie (@TSNBobMcKenzie) June 24, 2018
UPDATE: The Capitals have confirmed the deal.
OFFICIAL: HE'S ALL OURS! @JohnCarlson74 signs an eight-year contract to stay in Washington! Average annual value of $8 million.
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) June 24, 2018
More Details: https://t.co/j0ApKQO36b#ALLCAPS pic.twitter.com/lOBGeaMPK3
General manager Brian MacLellan had this to say about his superstar defenseman.
"“John has been an exceptional and consistent player for our franchise and has blossomed into being one of the top defensemen in the NHL. Defenseman like John are a rare commodity in our League and, at 28 years of age, we feel he is just entering his prime.”"
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Carlson is one of the Caps best defensemen and their top power-play point man, so this signing was necessary for them. Especially given the less than stellar free agent market for defensemen.
Carlson is coming off an outstanding season. During the regular season, he led all defensemen in points with 68, a career high for him. His 15 goals and 53 assists were also career bests. Carlson drove the Capitals’ success in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, with 20 points in 24 games.
This is an overpayment, but signing him should allow Washington to keep their Stanley Cup window open. The team would love to win back-to-back titles and they simply weren’t going to be able to do that without Carlson.
With their top power-play point man locked up, the Caps will now turn their attention to his defensive partner Michal Kempny. The trade deadline acquisition did very well with Carlson and helped form one of the best pairings of the postseason.
This signing leaves the Capitals with about $13 million of cap space. With that, Washington will try to re-sign Kempny, as well as restricted free agents Tom Wilson and Devante Smith-Pelly. There could be some money left over for soon to be free agent center Jay Beagle as well.
Next: 2018 NHL Free Agent Tracker
Carlson is a huge part of the Capitals’ success because he’s able to consistently produce at an impressive level. He’s a vital cog of the Caps power-play and has developed into one of the best offensive defensemen in the NHL. This contract will be an issue down the road, but the Capitals care about winning right now. That wasn’t happening without Carlson.