The Washington Capitals made several headlines at the 2026 NHL Trade Deadline, but they reportedly were looking to make another splash.<\/p>\n
According to The Fourth Period\u2019s David Pagnotta<\/a>, there is some belief \u201caround the club\u201d that the Capitals were working on a big deal that could have included Connor McMichael. The Caps have made it well known they\u2019re in the market for an upgrade at forward, and McMichael does not yet have a contract past this season.<\/p>\n Pagnotta writes:<\/a><\/p>\n When trade talks surrounding the Washington Capitals picked up after they moved Nic Dowd to Vegas, some around the club wondered if they were in on something big that could\u2019ve involved forward Connor McMichael.<\/p>\n McMichael had one of his strongest games of the season on Monday night against the Calgary Flames, notching his first multi-goal performance in the 2025-26 campaign. The two goals give him 10 total this year, but he remains well off the pace of his career-best 27 markers recorded last season.<\/p>\n Pagnotta\u2019s musings are not the first time McMichael\u2019s name has surfaced in trade rumors, as he was reportedly among the pieces discussed by the Capitals and Vancouver Canucks when Quinn Hughes was the hottest commodity on the market<\/a>. Hughes eventually went to the Minnesota Wild, and while Caps general manager Chris Patrick confirmed the team had some interest in the star defender<\/a>, ultimately, the price Vancouver requested was too rich for his tastes.<\/p>\n McMichael is currently playing the final season of the two-year, $4.2 million bridge contract he signed with the Capitals as a restricted free agent in 2024. He is due for a sizable raise on that deal, with AFP Analytics projecting his next contract to be for around four years at a $6.4 million cap hit<\/a>.<\/p>\n