Capitals waive 2018 playoffs standout Smith-Pelly

Feb 14, 2019; San Jose, CA, USA; Washington Capitals right wing Devante Smith-Pelly (25) fights for control of the puck against San Jose Sharks defenseman Tim Heed (72) during the third period at SAP Center at San Jose. Mandatory Credit: Stan Szeto-USA TODAY Sports

The Washington Capitals waived right winger Devante Smith-Pelly on Wednesday, cutting ties with one of the heroes of their run to the Stanley Cup last season.

Smith-Pelly scored seven goals in the postseason — matching his regular-season total — and tallied the game-tying goal during the Capitals’ Cup-clinching Game 5 victory over the Vegas Golden Knights.

Smith-Pelly had four goals and four assists in 54 games this season.

NHL teams have until noon ET Thursday to claim Smith-Pelly.

Coach Todd Reirden told reporters after Wednesday’s practice that the team had planned to waive forward Dmitrij Jaskin but changed its mind and decided to let go of Smith-Pelly.

The Capitals could be maneuvering for a trade, with the NHL deadline coming Monday.

“That is a little bit of what is going on behind the scenes here and that is something that we’ll keep obviously between ourselves at this point, especially with the amount of stuff that’s going on in the league right now,” Reirden said, via The Washington Post.

Smith-Pelly, 26, has played for four teams in eight NHL seasons. He has 44 goals and 57 assists in 395 career games. He was playing on a one-year, $1 million contract this season.

—Field Level Media

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source: reuters.com