After an up and down 2021-22 regular season, the Washington Capitals were able to make the playoffs for the eighth consecutive year, but were eliminated in the first round by the Florida Panthers. That said, they did put up a great fight against the Presidents’ Trophy-winning squad, but ultimately fell in six games.
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With the inconsistencies they experienced this past season, paired with the fact they were eliminated early in the playoffs for a fourth straight year, there could be some significant changes to the Capitals’ roster moving forward. While the main core is expected to stay intact, several other pieces may be changed as they look to give players like Alex Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom what could be one last shot at a Stanley Cup run. With that said, let’s take a look at four players from this year’s Capitals team that will likely have to find a new home for the 2022-23 campaign.
Ilya Samsonov
For plenty of years, Ilya Samsonov was regarded as one of the best goaltending prospects in the entire NHL, appearing to have an extremely bright future ahead of him. After being selected 22nd overall by the Capitals in 2015, he posted fantastic numbers in the following two seasons in the Kontinental Hockey League before heading over to North America for the 2018-19 campaign.
Ilya Samsonov, Washington Capitals (Amy Irvin / The Hockey Writers)
His first season in North America came with the Hershey Bears in the American Hockey League, and while there were some positives, it was filled with inconsistency. Years later, those same inconsistencies still plague the 25-year-old.
Though Samsonov remains extremely talented, the fact of the matter is that he has just a 2.82 goals-against average (GAA) along with a .903 save percentage (SV%) in 94 career games. Both he and Vitek Vanecek are restricted free agents heading into this offseason, meaning the Capitals brass will have to make a decision…
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