1 trade Capitals must make before NHL Olympic break

The Washington Capitals went into the 2025-26 NHL season as one of the more believable teams when it came to winning the Metropolitan Division of the Eastern Conference. They had been dominant last year, running away with the division title and also having the best record in the Eastern Conference with a 51-22-9 record for 111 points. The only team in the league with a more impressive point total was the Winnipeg Jets in the Western Conference.

The Capitals may have surprised observers with their accomplishments in the regular season, but they were not able to build off of that in the Stanley Cup playoffs. They beat the Montreal Canadiens in 5 games in the opening round, but their season came to a conclusion in the following round when they lost to the Carolina Hurricanes in another 5-game series.

The Capitals had plenty of motivation at the start of the season under head coach Spencer Carbery, but the season has not gone as planned. Washington has not been a first-place team this year and they are not even inside the Eastern Conference playoff structure.

The Capitals are 26-22-7, and their 59 points are 8 points behind the Montreal Canadiens and Boston Bruins, the two teams manning the Wild Card spots as the NHL approaches the Winter Olympics break in the schedule.

The Capitals have multiple issues, but the biggest problem is their lack of offense. They are not putting the puck in the net enough, and they could use the infusion of some scoring capital. The addition of Artemi Panarin from the New York Rangers could turn that around quickly. Panarin fits the description of “high-scoring winger” that Washington general manager Chris Patrick said was the team’s greatest need when he met the media.

Capitals don’t have a lot of time to turn things around

The Capitals have already played 55 games, so there is no time left to waste. They have 27 games remaining to the season but that figure will shrink to 23 games when the Capitals return from the Olympic break.

The team can certainly turn things around with that many games left, but they may need to play at a .750 pace or better just to make the playoffs.

A look at the Capitals scoring totals this year indicates that they are tied with the Pittsburgh Penguins at 14th with 175 goals to this point in the season. That is simply not good enough, as the Capitals have not gotten the production that Carbery has been expecting.

Tom Wilson and Alex Ovechkin are at the top of the team’s scoring list with 46 points as both men have scored 22 goals and 24 assists. Those are both decent totals, but they are not great numbers for team leaders.

Ovechkin is the leading goal scorer in NHL history and he has been celebrated throughout the sporting world, but his days as a 40-plus goal scorer are clearly in the past. Wilson has done an excellent job in transforming himself from a hard-nosed fighter into a complete player. However, he will never be a dominant scorer.

Panarin would provide an immediate impact

This is where a player like Panarin would be able to lift the Capitals almost as soon as he dons a Capitals uniform for the first time. The 34-year-old New York Ranger has scored 19 goals and 38 assists for 57 points in 52 games, and he is clearly a player who is all about creating offense.

He has never been shy about shooting the puck and excelling on the offensive end throughout his 11-year career with the Chicago Blackhawks, Columbus Blue Jackets and the Rangers. The idea of playing with Ovechkin has to be appealing to the Russian superstar.

He has scored as many as 49 goals and 120 points in in his career, and a healthy Panarin can be counted on to score 90 points or more over a full season. If the Capitals can swing a deal for Panarin, it would take significant pressure off of Wilson and Ovechkin and potentially light a fire under the rest of the team.

Capitals have the assets that would be attractive to the Rangers

If the Rangers are going to send Panarin out of New York, their first priority would be getting back young prospects and draft picks. The Capitals appear to qualify in both of those areas.

While Rangers president and general manager Chris Drury would probably feel some hesitation about making a trade within the Metropolitan Division — a Western Conference team would be preferable — New York is clearly building for the future. How far into the future has not been determined.

Drury would probably like that future to be at least two full seasons, but the team’s fans don’t have that kind of patience. If the Capitals were to give up a first-round draft pick in 2026 as well as a key prospect like Lynden Lakovic, it would not be enough. Rangers fans would want to see at least one player off of the Washington roster join the current team.

Panarin is probably the most attractive and explosive player available on the trade front. The Capitals should be the team that makes the Rangers the most compelling offer for his presence.

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