ARLINGTON, Va. (AP) — John Carlson's picture was still on a banner hanging over a garage outside the Washington Capitals' practice facility.
Inside, emotions were fresh — hours after the team had traded the veteran defenseman.
“It’s obviously a sad day,” Alex Ovechkin said. “Probably the toughest day in my career, I’m talking about personal-wise.”
Friday was a jarring day for the Capitals after they traded Carlson to Anaheim in the middle of the night.
He'd been with the team for nearly 17 seasons and was a key part of the run to a Stanley Cup title in 2018. Carlson's contract was set to expire, but the deal — which netted first- and third-round draft picks for Washington — was a bold move with the Caps just four points out of a postseason spot.
“Really hard call. Very emotional, obviously,” general manager Chris Patrick said. “With where we were, where we are in the standings, and an opportunity to get some good assets for the future, it felt like the prudent thing to do. There might not ever be another player, another defenseman, for the Washington Capitals like John Carlson, and that's not lost on us.”
Back in mid-January, Patrick portrayed the Capitals as likely buyers in what could be Ovechkin's final NHL season, but even then their postseason spot wasn't a certainty, and the terrain in the Eastern Conference only looks tougher now.
Washington plays at Boston on Saturday in what feels close to a must-win game. The Capitals are four points behind the Bruins for the second wild card, with Boston having played two fewer games. Within the Metropolitan Division, Washington is six points behind Pittsburgh and the New York Islanders, who are tied for second place.
The Capitals aren't even the top team below the playoff cut line, having fallen three points behind Columbus.
“All the teams we were chasing and the teams behind us all gained ground,” Patrick said. “We were already in a tough spot before the (Olympic) break. I think we were already heading in this direction.”
Patrick said the team isn't giving up on this season, but he'd spoken with Carlson a couple weeks ago alerting him that other teams were calling. Washington also traded respected role player Nic Dowd and acquired defenseman Timothy Liljegren and forward David Kampf before Friday's trade deadline.
The two players the Capitals gave up might have been gone after this season anyway, but players were clearly shaken by the suddenness of Carlson's departure.
“It’s brutal. I’m sure there’s some guys that want to cry,” said Tom Wilson, who sounded like he might have been one of those ready to shed a few tears. “That’s the reality of it. Today you can cry, and tomorrow you got to wake up and be a big boy and go out and play hockey.”
Wilson and Ovechkin are the lone remaining players from Washington's Stanley Cup-winning team, and Ovechkin is in the final year of his contract. The 40-year-old Ovechkin's future is its own uncertain topic, but otherwise much of the Capitals' core — Wilson, Logan Thompson, Dylan Strome, Aliaksei Protas, Jakob Chychrun and Pierre-Luc Dubois — is locked up for at least the next two seasons and in some cases much longer.
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