Are the Washington Capitals forced to trade star players?

The 2024-25 season is upon us and some teams still have major issues with their rosters. The Washington Capitals are one of those teams. Aside from acquiring forward Pierre-Luc Dubois from the Los Angeles Kings and goaltender Logan Thompson from the Vegas Golden Knights, they Capitals have not done much. However, more moves need to happen before the start of the season as they are $10, 270, 001 over the salary cap. General Manager Chris Patrick may be forced to make some big moves.

Capitals in salary cap crunch

The Capitals made the playoffs last season, but it was not until the last moment. Washington has a roster that is due for a makeover, as they do not have a lot of firepower aside from Alex Ovechkin and T.J. Oshie, and need to retool for a last push for Ovechkin. The roster has a lot of middle-to-bottom six players who have yet to contribute in a big way.

Patrick has a massive task in front of him, to shed salary yet keep the team competitive. They are in a tough division and making the playoffs is no guarantee. Trading is the most logical way to handle the issue, but who would be on the move? Below are players who could be moved and will be free agents in 2025-26, listed by position and includes what their salary is in the upcoming season.

Forward free agents in 25-26

UFA NIcklas Backstrom ($9.2 million) UFA Andrew Mangiapane ($5.8) UFA T.J. Oshie ($5.75) UFA Nic Dowd ($1.3) UFA Taylor Raddish ($1) RFA Hendrix Lapierre ($863, 334)

Defense free agents in 25-26

UFA Jacob Chychrun ($4.6 million) UFA Ethan Bear ($2.062) RFA Alexander Alexeyev ($825,000)

Goaltender free agents in 25-26

UFA Charlie Lindgren ($1.1 million) UFA Logan Thompson ($766, 667)

In order for Washington to fit under the cap before the season starts, some, or most, of these players may need to find new homes. Will it disrupt the chemistry in the locker room and the leaderships? Most likely, but they cannot be $10 million over the cap. The roster for next season is not set by a long shot, and the Capitals may need rookies to fill the spots instead of veterans who make considerably more. This could be a tough season for Washington if Patrick makes some difficult moves to get this team under the salary cap. Although the players listed above will not be free agents until next off-season, they need to be under the cap this season. Oshie makes the most of the players above and could be a valuable piece heading elsewhere to a team on the verge of a playoff run. Of course, the return for any player moved may have to include prospects or players in the lower-tier of contracts. Washington is trying to get rid of salary, not acquire more of it.