Capitals’ perfect trade target amid 2026 NHL Free Agency

Kirill Marchenko just finished his fourth season with the Columbus Blue Jackets. Still, it seems he is going to be on the trade block, according to Daria Tuboltseva of RG.

“Kirill Marchenko is expected to be traded by the Columbus Blue Jackets in the near future, according to a source close to the Russian forward, even as talks appear to be picking back up after a summer of mixed signals,” Tuboltseva wrote.  “Kirill is essentially between two teams right now. The parties are now negotiating the terms of the trade.”

While one of the teams being mentioned is the Montreal Canadiens, the other team has not been identified. There is a keyword that Tuboltseva used to describe Marchenko, and that is “Russian.” As a former Capital and teammate of both Ovechkin and the Russian great Sergei Fedorov noted, Ovi is a childhood hero for many Russian-born players, per Rob Rossi of The Athletic.

“I know in United States and Canada it’s always Alex and Crosby,” Kozlov said. “But in Russia, we believed the two best players were ours, and it was Alex and Geno. And, of course, Sergei is one of Russia’s greatest players. Who better than Sergei would recognize greatness? He already knew what would happen — that Alex and Geno would set a new level for players from our country.”

As noted by Kozlov, Ovi is one of the best, if not the best, Russian-born player of all-time. By the time Marchenko made it to the NHL, he had already seen Ovechkin become one of the best in the NHL. The opprotunity for a Russian player to play with Ovechkin is highly attractive, and to help him win another Cup is even better.

Marchenko is a perfect fit for the Capitals. In the last two years, Marchenko has been a stalwart for the Blue Jackets. In 2024-25, he found the back of the net 31 times while adding 43 assists. Then in 2025-26, he scored 27 goals while adding 40 helpers. For the Blue Jackets, he is a top-line forward. If he joins the Capitals, he could be a fourth-line forward.

The Capitals will need to shed some salary to make this deal happen. Marchenko is in the final year of his deal worth just $3.85 million. He will be a restricted free agent at the end of the year, but with so many moving parts for the Caps, they could make a re-signing work. This means the Capitals ned just over $2.5 million in cap space to bring in Marchenko.

Anthony Beauvillier will become superfluous if the Caps add Marchenko. He could go to the Blue Jackets, with a package of draft picks and/or prospects to make the deal happen. With his $2.75 million coming off the books, plus him being an unrestricted free agent at the end of the year, the Caps could easily bring in Marchenko.

This would give the Capitals the most potent offense in the NHL. The top line could be Ovi, Strome, and Kyrou, which would be a combined 168 points from last season on the top line. The second line then would have Tuch, Dubois, and Wilson. That trio scored 147 points, but Dubois played just 29 games due to an injury. The third line would then feature Aliaksei Protas, Jenner, and Leonard, who scored 135 points last year. The fourth line would then hold Marchenko, Sourdif, and Ilya Protas, or another 106 points last year, although Protas played just four games with the Caps last year.

This would become the most potent lineup in the NHL instantly, and could put the Capitals in contention to win a Stanley Cup.

The Capitals open their season on the road against the defending champions, the Carolina Hurricanes, on October 2. They will then play the Tampa Bay Lightning on October 3 before opening up their home schedule on October 7 against Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins.