PITTSBURGH — The Washington Capitals have welcomed back veteran center Lars Eller in a recent trade with the Pittsburgh Penguins.
The Capitals traded a fifth-round pick in 2025 and a third-round pick in 2027 to acquire Eller, who previously spent seven seasons with Washington and played a pivotal role in their first Stanley Cup victory in 2018.
At 35, Eller has recorded four goals and three assists over 17 games with Pittsburgh and was in the second year of a two-year contract he signed with the team during the summer of 2023.
Throughout his career, Eller has accumulated a total of 182 goals and 227 assists in 1,053 games played with teams such as Montreal, Washington, Colorado, and Pittsburgh.
Renowned for his two-way playing style and adept penalty-killing abilities, he is rejoining a Capitals team that has gotten off to an impressive start in a highly competitive Metropolitan Division.
As of Wednesday, the Capitals boasted a record of 10-4-0, ranking them third in the division, trailing only Carolina and New Jersey.
This maneuver might be the first of several changes for the Penguins, who entered Wednesday just two points above the last place in the Eastern Conference.
Pittsburgh suffered a heavy defeat against Dallas on Monday, losing 7-1, during which the Stars managed to score six times in the first period.
Following the outcome, Evgeni Malkin expressed apologies to the fans.
“I want to say sorry to the fans,” Malkin stated. “They (watched) a really bad game. I hope we, together, find a good way, win tomorrow and start building the team better.”
The general manager of the Penguins, Kyle Dubas, is working to maintain the team’s competitive edge as the franchise stars, Sidney Crosby, Malkin, and Kris Letang, approach the end of their playing careers.
The team’s rocky start, marked by struggling goaltender Tristan Jarry and a leaky defense that rates the Penguins alongside Montreal for the worst goal differential in the league at minus-21, suggests that further changes could be imminent.
Dubas has shown a focus on enhancing the team’s prospect pool, and by trading Eller for future picks, he is taking steps toward that goal.