Washington Capitals general manager Brian MacLellan said on Tuesday that the club expects goaltender Braden Holtby will enter free agency.
"The goalie market is probably a little unusually deep this year," MacLellan explained, per ESPN.
"I talked to his agent last week briefly about where he's at and the kind of opportunities he's looking for. I would assume he goes to free agency, and we'll keep in contact with him throughout the free-agency period to see if he's getting what he wants.''
If the 30-year-old departs Washington, the club will turn to 23-year-old Ilya Samsonov to start between the pipes.
Samsonov didn't travel to the NHL bubble site in Toronto after he suffered an off-ice injury before the league's restart. The Capitals believe the first-round pick from the 2015 NHL Entry Draft will be healthy and available when training camps for the 2020-21 campaign begin.
Holtby helped the Capitals defeat the Vegas Golden Knights in the 2018 Stanley Cup Final, during which he made one of the greatest saves in franchise history:
Holtby surrendered 14 goals across five games in Washington's opening round postseason loss to the New York Islanders last month.
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