November 4, 2025 | 6:40pm ET
TheFourthPeriod.com

CAPITALS WON’T RUSH TO REPLACE DUBOIS

Pierre-Luc Dubois, centre

The Washington Capitals were dealt a tough blow this week after it was revealed that Pierre-Luc Dubois would miss an “extended period” of time, though is not expected to miss the entire 2025-26 season.

Capitals head coach Spencer Carbery told reporters Monday that Dubois is expected to miss a significant amount of time with his injury, and Dubois is now seeking a second opinion.

In Tuesday’s edition of “Insider Trading” on TSN, Darren Dreger reported that the Capitals don’t plan to trade for a replacement just yet and plan on giving Connor McMichael an opportunity to play at the centre position for the time being.

“The Capitals, of course, would explore the trade market, but they need to be careful of moving out current or future assets being mindful whatever the post Alex Ovechkin era is,” Dreger said. “In the meantime, they’ll try to fill the hole internally.”

The Capitals have just over $3.144 million in current salary cap space, according to PuckPedia, which will continue to accrue and that gives General Manager Chris Patrick some flexibility if he wants to add to his roster later this season.