The Washington Capitals will have to make a decision on which goalie to keep this offseason? Will it be Ilya Samsonov or Vitek Vanecek? Whomever gets traded, the Caps will have to then bring in a mentor for their young goalies.
Tarik El-Bashir of The Athletic reports that the Capitals will likely look at trading Samsonov this offseason, then look to trade for a goalie in his 30’s to help mentor Vanecek. Samsonov is due to be a restricted free agent when the season comes to an end.
El-Bashir thinks Washington should make a trade for LA Kings goalie Jonathan Quick or New York Islanders tender Semyon Varlamov.
Washington’s playoff performance this year and how Samsonov or Vanecek play will likely decide which goalie is traded but right now it is looking like Samsonov.
Samsonov, 25, was drafted 22nd overall in the 1st round of the 2015 entry draft. Currently he has a total of 84 games played and 3 playoffs games played.
