The Washington Capitals have some decisions to make regarding their defensive corps, as reported by TSN’s Pierre LeBrun on Twitter. The team has been in contract talks with pending unrestricted free agent defensemen Nick Jensen and Erik Gustafsson; however, given the fact they were in negotiations with Dmitry Orlov before trading him to the Boston Bruins yesterday, it’s no guarantee that Jensen and Gustafsson remain Capitals through the trade deadline.
General manager Brian MacLellan essentially deemed his team a seller with the Orlov trade, as Washington now sits at the back of the pack regarding the Eastern Conference Wild Card race. Jensen and Gustafsson are valuable role players who could fetch decent deadline returns, but they’d also hold value for future seasons in Washington. Injuries have taken an enormous toll on the team, pushing them toward the back of the conference, and they’ve vowed to remain competitive while Alex Ovechkin chases the all-time goals record. With John Carlson being the only defenseman signed for next season, it’s feasible that the Capitals would try to hold onto one or both of Jensen and Gustafsson.