Skip navigation
Favorites
Sign up to follow your favorites on all your devices.
Sign up

Washington Capitals won’t bring back Joe Corvo, Scott Walker

Scott Walker, Brooks Laich, Nicklas Backstrom

Washington Capitals’ Scott Walker (24) celebrates with teammate Brooks Laich, left, as Nicklas Backstrom ,of Sweden, looks on following their 5-4 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning in an NHL hockey game, Thursday, March 4, 2010, in Washington. The Capitals won 5-4. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari)

AP

The Washington Capitals elected to make a slew of minor moves during the NHL trade deadline. If you look at it strictly from the perspective of playoff success - rather than the fact that they ran away with the Presidents’ Trophy and put up incredible regular season numbers - then it’s hard to say that those transactions made much of a difference.

It seems that Caps GM George McPhee agrees with this sentiment, at least in part. He told Tarik El-Bashir of the Washington Post that the team won’t look to re-sign trade deadline acquisitions Scott Walker and Joe Corvo.

“They were great, but we can only carry 23 when the season starts,” McPhee said.

Corvo finished the playoffs with a goal and an assist and a plus/minus of minus-2. The veteran had two goals and four assists and a minus-4 rating in 18 regular season games.

Walker, meantime, suited up for just one game in the playoffs and did not record a point. He played in nine games during the regular season because of injury and finished with two goals and an assist.

When asked about the status of center Eric Belanger - the other pending UFA acquired at the deadline - McPhee said, “There’s some discussion there.”

What’s the difference between Corvo/Walker and Belanger? Well, besides the whole “versatility and talent” thing? Well, you see, Belanger just seems like has that extra level of commitment. He shows that go-getter attitude you where he’d run through a wall for you. Or, you know, do this:

(Any time I have an excuse to post that horrifying video, I will. Did you see that coming?)

So, as I’ve written before, the Capitals should have plenty of cap space this summer. Why waste it on a tough but replaceable player like Walker or a flawed defenseman such as Corvo? It’ll be interesting to see how much changes in DC in the off-season. Stay tuned.