The Washington Capitals championship turnover took longer than typical for most teams, this offseason they needed to find a replacement for fan favorite sniper Brett Connolly. With limited salary cap space they elected a two-way forward instead of another offensive only weapon, Richard Panik.
In comes Richard Panik, from the Arizona Coyotes, who fit the bill for what the new vision the Capitals had for their team dynamic. As mentioned with the limited resources, the Capitals had to take a more open view of areas for growth potential. This led to them making an attempt to better the team defense as opposed to replacing the departed secondary scoring threats.