It's over for Braden Holtby in Washington

Braden Holtby struggled throughout the playoffs this season and he wasn't even supposed to be playing. The Washington Capitals were planning on starting youngster Ilya Samsonov until the Russian netminder got hurt off the ice in an ATV accident. Now it appears Holtby's days are numbered as the soon to be 31-year-old heads for free-agency as a UFA.

One of the main reasons the Caps are hesitant to re-sign Holtby is the Seattle expansion draft. If they sign him, they have to expose one of their goalies, which means there's a very good chance after this season, he leaves for nothing anyway. So, what's the point? To note as well, Samsonov is 8 years younger than Holtby, still on his entry level deal, and a former 1st-round-pick. The writing is on the wall.

The Caps don't have a ton of cap space and with a new 'experienced' coach coming in, there's going to be some roster changes to go with it to match the coach's style of play. The team will need the 'Holtby money' to make that happen.

Capitals GM, Brian MacLellan was asked about the chances Braden Holtby remains in Washington:

I think it's going to be difficult, but sometimes opportunities come up that you don't expect, and I think we'd like to play it out and see what happens.

GM's never shoot themselves in their foot and throw a guy overboard who helped win them a Stanley Cup. So, let us help you translate the comments. Braden Holtby will be signing with another team or dealt before free agency opens to a team looking to negotiate before anyone else.