Did Capitals Get A Good Deal Today?

The Washington Capitals are looking for an upgrade on the defense stance, while the Chicago Blackhawks are looking for a major rebuild. Yesterday, it looks like both things became accomplished.

On Monday, the Blackhawks traded defenseman Michal Kempny to the Capitals in exchange for a conditional third-round pick in this year's draft.

Kempny had been signed to a one-year contract back in May of 2016 and currently has three goals and twelve assists in 81 games so far, while piling up seven points this season, including one goal and a six assists. Assists are something that the Capitals are looking for these days, especially in a tough Metropolitan Division.

Capitals coach Barry Trotz said about Kempny, "He's a real good skater and he's a little bit more of a veteran player."

This was a no-brainer for both sides, just because the Capitals are in this dogfight in the Metropolitan Division, where they're going to need a bunch of defenseman and good, young players going forward. They're a point ahead of the Penguins for first in the Metropolitan, and the Flyers just went out and made a deal today for Petr Mrazek. It's basically an arms race there.

I have not heard of Michael Kempny until today, really, because I thought he was one of these players you usually don't hear of, but they're good players on teams they currently are. He's not good on the Blackhawks right now, not that the Blackhawks are already bad. However, I think based on his numbers over the past two seasons, he's a young player with an ability to get people the puck and that's what you want on a good team. I think him going to Washington will help that aspect of the game, but also give the team an ability to give some young defensive player an ability to play with a team that has Alex Ovechkin.

So did the Capitals win the trade today? In a way, yes. They get help on defense, they get an assist guy, and they get somebody who's tough out there. I think this move allows the Capitals to keep pace in the Metropolitan Division and perhaps put some distance between them and the rest of the Metro. We know this, though, it's a tough division. Every player they get is going to be a valuable piece and I think having Kempny on this team is just another example of how they're preparing for this race to get the top spot in the Metro.