Brian MacLellan’s Impact on Capitals’ Stanley Cup Team

The Washington Capitals have had some very good general managers. Before building the Nashville Predators from their inception and being inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2024, David Poile was the Capitals’ GM for 15 seasons. He brought in some of the best to ever play for the organization, like Rod Langway and Peter Bondra. Following Poile was George McPhee, who drafted Alex Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom, John Carlson, and Braden Holtby, among others, who were huge components in the franchise winning their first Stanley Cup championship in 2018.

Then, there is Brian MacLellan, who took over for McPhee in 2014. Despite the team’s success under McPhee, the Capitals still had trouble getting over the hump in the playoffs. The organization needed a new face to provide his stamp on a roster that already had a lot of talent. MacLellan, along with Barry Trotz, who was hired as head coach, fit what they were looking for.

MacLellan is now leaving the GM role but remaining as team president. Here’s a look back at some of the decisions he made to help Washington win their first championship.

MacLellan’s Crucial Free Agent Additions

A good portion of the 2018 Cup-winning team included free agents signed by MacLellan. He signed veteran blueliners Brooks Orpik and Matt Niskanen, who both had played for the Pittsburgh Penguins before coming to D.C. Orpik had gone to two straight Cup Finals in 2008 and 2009 and won the Cup in his second appearance. He was brought in to be a guide for his Washington teammates. Niskanen, meanwhile, could provide complementary scoring from the backend. During Niskanen’s tenure with the Penguins, he posted the following numbers:

Niskanen provided the perfect amount of help for the Capitals. He was in D.C. for parts of five campaigns and produced the following numbers:

In the 2018 postseason, Niskanen tallied one goal and nine points, holding down the fort on the blue line and making a vital impact.

MacLellan also brought in fan favorite Devante Smith-Pelly during the 2017 free agency period. He signed a one-year contract with the Capitals after spending the previous season with the New Jersey Devils. In 2017-18, Smith-Pelly put up seven goals and nine assists in 79 games, but he shined in the 2018 Playoffs. In 24 contests, he posted eight points (seven goals and one assist). He stepped up and produced some crucial offense when the team needed it. Smith-Pelly played for the Capitals for one more season, in 2018-19, before officially ending his NHL career as a player.

MacLellan’s Important Trades

Free agent signings were not the only way MacLellan molded the Capitals into a Cup contender. One of the most important players Washington received during the MacLellan era was TJ Oshie, one of the Blues’ best forwards for years, who was acquired from the St. Louis Blues via trade for Troy Brouwer, Pheonix Copley, and a 2016 third-round pick. He also gained fame throughout the United States for his shootout performance in the 2014 Winter Olympics. Oshie fit in with the rest of his new teammates in D.C. He quickly became one of the most offensively reliable players. Since coming to Washington, Oshie has amassed the following:

Ovechkin and Backstrom were the heart and soul of the Capitals, but Oshie added another weapon to take the scoring pressure off those two.