Taking Shape - Low Risk Moves Left

Curious to see whether Copley and Samsonov together are good for as many games as Grubauer. Having one of the best backups in the league brought Holtby into the playoffs fresh and ready to win. In past years he's been so busy trying to prove he's the starting goalie throughout the regular season that by the time the playoffs rolled around, he was in pain and ineffective. Same thing forced Fleury out of Pittsburgh. Losing a center who can win 60% of his faceoffs, take 75% of them behind the red line, and still have an average-range plus/minus is pretty significant. Losing a backup who plays 35 games is pretty significant. The other teams will be thinking about how to improve. Washington should be, too. Giving Kempny 10M for one assist is a nail in their chances for 2019.

Would it be fair to think the Caps see Kempny on the rise based on how he played after coming over and getting a full offseason+regular season with Reirdon? He's said he credits TR to him turning his game around. I agree on the backup G aspect, would like to see someone like Khudobin(?) who did well in BOS last year come in and give Samsonov time to develop. I don't believe Copley can fill Gruby's role

In that case, I, too, credit Todd Reirden with turning my game around!!!

Definitely agree on the Copley & Samsonov angle. Kolzig said Samsonov will likely be starting out in Hershey, so I didn't put him on this roster (plus small help with the cap hit), but I foresee him coming up to start maybe 7-10 games this year depending on his performance in the AHL and injuries. Copley will get the rest of the games. Keep in mind, too, that while Holtby definitely showed some wear and tear over this year, he generally plays better with a higher volume of games. As much as it will suck, I think GMBM's philosophy will be that he would rather use the combination of Copley & Samsonov rather than sign a veteran backup and chew up the cap space. Maybe that changes if they don't sign Orpik.

I was surprised by the Kempny contract. Not so much the AAV as the term...I was hoping for a 2 year deal, with the thought that if it turns out he was only what we needed in 17-18, we could send him down through waivers or put him on the block and whatever happens, happens. But, given GMBM's recent track record...I'm inclined to give him a pass.

I wouldn't bring back Chiasson, but solid roster otherwise.



I could see a new backup being brought in, but might be worth giving Copley a shot first.

As for Kempny, I strongly disagree. His value isn't in his offense- it's in how he can support Carlson, freeing him up to use his offense. 4 years is longer than I expected, but it's not a terrible deal.

Losing Beagle would be the biggest blow. His faceoff and defensive/PK abilities will be hard to replace.