On June 30, 2017, the Washington Capitals re-signed 26 year-old defenseman Dmitry Orlov to a new six-year contract worth $30.6 million.
There was much rejoicing in and around the greater Washington area. Orlov, almost indisputably the Capitals’ most improved player over the previous season, has become a reliable fixture on Washington’s top pairing along with Matt Niskanen, and the move helped shore up a Capitals blue line that had been decimated by the twin devils of Free Agency and the Expansion Draft. With Iron Man Karl Alzner departing to fields plus verts in Montreal and Nate Schmidt sucked into the gaping maw of GM George McPhee and Vegas, Washington turned to Orlov.