With the Washington Capitals completely revamping their goaltending situation this offseason, the team traded Vitek Vanecek to the New Jersey Devils last week.
Along with Vanecek, the Capitals sent the 46th pick in the draft to the Devils, receiving the 37th and 70th picks in exchange.
Below, we take a look at how the trade breaks down for each team.
New Jersey Devils
With Vanecek, the Devils look to add a bit of stability to their goaltending situation. The netminder is 26 years old and this past season, he played 42 games with Washington, managing a .908 save percentage.
Goaltending was a major issue for New Jersey last season. The team ridiculously had seven different goalies playing in at least three games with them in 2021-22. Jonathan Bernier was signed last summer but played just 10 games before needing hip surgery. Then Mackenzie Blackwood had a brutal year, posting just an .892 save percentage across 25 games. While Nico Daws is a decent goaltending prospect, he was clearly forced into a role he wasn't ready for. The 21-year-old ended up playing 25 NHL games in his first season of North American professional hockey.
While Vanecek is a decent goalie and is fairly young, it's still questionable as to whether he'll be a long-term solution after this Capitals trade. The netminder has played just 79 career regular season NHL games, meaning he's still fairly inexperienced. Then with a .908 in each of his two seasons so far, his stats are fine but far from great.
It also remains to be seen as to what kind of role he can take on. To this point, he's only played roughly 40 games in each of his two NHL seasons. The Devils will also still have to sign him to a new contract, given that he's a restricted free agent. Also, Bernier's timeline to return is still uncertain but if he is able to suit up next season, it could create an interesting situation in net.
That said the Devils really didn't pay a ton to make this deal happen. A pick swap and a third-round pick is a pretty reasonable price to pay for a 26-year-old netminder who could play 40+ games next season. Given the small sample size and the decent numbers so far, it's possible he could take the next step with New Jersey.
Again, while the upside is there, Vanecek still isn't a sure bet to solidify the Devils' situation in net. That said, it was a low-risk move that has the potential to bring good value.
New Jersey had a visible need and took a shot at addressing it, without giving up a lot in the process.
Grade: B+
Washington Capitals
While Washington's goaltending situation wasn't as rough as New Jersey's nightmares in net, the Capitals still made major changes this offseason. In addition to moving out Vanecek, the team also parted ways with Ilya Samsonov. A 22nd overall pick in 2015, Samsonov didn't work out as expected for Washington and this past season, he posted a poor .896 save percentage through 44 games. Despite being just 25 years old, he didn't even receive a qualifying offer and became an unrestricted free agent. Vanecek had shared the workload with Samsonov over the last two years and posted the better numbers.
It could have made some sense for Washington to hang onto Vanecek, given his age. However, given the upgrade Washington made in signing Darcy Kuemper, they may not have been able to re-sign Vanecek. In moving on from both Samsonov and Vanecek, it's clear the Capitals' priority isn't waiting for younger goalies to hopefully develop. Washington is looking to compete now and while Vanecek's ceiling may be uncertain, Kuemper was obviously a better option.
Remember though, only a year ago the Capitals were willing to move a second-round pick just to get Vanecek back from the Seattle Kraken after the netminder was selected in the expansion draft. That said, in the trade with New Jersey, the Capitals got a fairly valuable pick swap, going from 46th to 37th, along with the third-round pick. Essentially, Washington got back relatively similar value to what they had given up to Seattle last year.
The trade return wasn't anything substantial but again, Washington secured cap space by not having to re-sign Vanecek. While the netminder does have upside, Washington got back decent picks and then had flexibility to sign Kuemper.
Grade: B
Final thoughts
I think this is a pretty fair trade for both sides. New Jersey needed to address their goaltending issues and Vanecek should help them do it. While he's not necessarily a high-end starter, he's young, has upside and the Devils didn't overpay to get him. For Washington, they were able to get picks pack for Vanecek, while they signed a top free agent in Kuemper. Had they kept Vanecek, they may not have had cap space to sign them both.
This is a deal that should work out well for both teams.
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