Washington Capitals: Christian Djoos extension creates problems

The Washington Capitals are suddenly in a cap crunch after Christian Djoos got $1.25 million in arbitration, more than the team was hoping for. Where do they go from here?

The Washington Capitals got some less than optimal news on Wednesday. Defenseman Christian Djoos got a well-deserved $1.25 million deal in arbitration. However, this was more than the Capitals were anticipating. They asked for a $800,000 salary while Djoos wanted $1.9 million.

Currently, the Capitals are above the salary cap ceiling. With 13 forwards, seven defensemen, and two goaltenders on their NHL roster, they are $314,294 over the $81.5 million limit. Chandler Stephenson will have an arbitration case later this summer as well.

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The Capitals won’t have a hard time getting below the salary cap. They’ll have to make a tough decision or two, but it likely won’t involve anyone leaving the organization. Stephenson is probably getting put on waivers regardless.

After him, it’s likely that someone like forward Travis Boyd, forward Brendan Leipsic, or defenseman Jonas Siegenthaler will be sent down to the minors. The Capitals likely can’t afford to have an extra forward and an extra defenseman. Stephenson, Boyd, and Leipsic would each need to go through waivers.

If the Capitals put backup goalie Pheonix Copley on waivers and replaced him with AHL goaltenders Vitek Vanecek or Ilya Samsonov, that would save them some money. Of course, the Caps would risk losing their backup goalie for nothing and be left with two players with zero games of NHL experience. So don’t expect that to happen.

Siegenthaler certainly deserves a spot on the roster, but he could be the odd man out for several reasons. The biggest reason is he’s the only Capitals player who is exempt from waivers. If they sent down any other player, they would have to expose the player on waivers and risk losing them for nothing.

Djoos is hoping to bounce back after compartment syndrome in his left thigh forced him to miss a good portion of his second NHL season. In 45 games, he had 10 points. Djoos had a successful rookie season in 2017-18, playing in 65 games while putting up 14 points in the regular season.

He also played a role in the Capitals Stanley Cup run, appearing in 22 of their 24 postseason games. Djoos played in three 2019 Stanley Cup Playoff games before Siegenthaler took his spot in the lineup.

The Capitals are likely going to give Djoos a chance to re-prove himself. He wasn’t himself after the left thigh injury. Djoos is a small, mobile defenseman who is effective in transition. On paper, he might be a good fit next to new third-pairing defenseman Radko Gudas. Gudas is a physical, crease clearing defenseman who, despite his warts, has proven to be effective when paired with a more mobile defenseman.

Siegenthaler’s transition game isn’t his strong suit. Djoos is better in that area and he probably deserves a chance to prove he’s healthy. The Capitals might be able to survive without having Siegenthaler up full-time because Hershey is close to Washington. If they need him, he won’t be far away.

There’s still plenty of time left in the offseason and training camp could change things. But Djoos’ new contract likely means Siegenthaler is heading down to Hershey. Is it fair? Maybe not. But every other option includes