Washington Capitals sign Tom Wilson to seven-year extension

Signing a long-term deal puts Wilson in line to become one of the longest-tenured players in Washington’s history. Drafted 16th overall in 2012, the 29-year-old already has ten full seasons with Washington under his belt, a tenure that includes the franchise’s only Stanley Cup win in 2018.

It was after lifting the Stanley Cup that Wilson transformed into the player we know him as today, though. Since their victory, he’s become a fixture in the team’s top six, often playing the opposite wing on Alex Ovechkin’s line. He’s scored 98 goals in 289 games since 2018-19, the third-most of any Capital during that time behind Ovechkin and T.J. Oshie. Now routinely averaging top-six minutes at over 17 minutes a game, Wilson is giving the Capitals his best blend of goal-scoring while dialing his trademark physicality down to an acceptable level in his prime. In fact, he’s recorded under 100 penalty minutes for four straight seasons after finishing over the century mark six times to begin his career.

Last season was a tough one for Wilson, though, as it was for many of his teammates, with Washington missing the playoffs for the first time since 2014. His offensive pace was in line with what we’ve come to expect, but he played in just 33 games thanks to a knee injury that cost him the first half of the season. Still, he managed 13 goals and nine assists for 22 points after his return.

Wilson was entering the final season of a six-year, $31M contract signed after Washington’s Cup win in 2018 – one that was heavily criticized at the time. It was viewed as a risky bet on Wilson’s potential rather than what he’d displayed up until that point. Although they were fair points then, Capitals general manager Brian MacLellan was quickly proven right – Wilson’s scored at least 20 goals in every season in which he’s been fully healthy since the deal kicked in. His new long-term extension will keep him in a Capitals jersey until age 37 and could very well be the last deal he ever signs.

That being said, Wilson’s style of play does not lend itself to longevity. Expecting him to be able to perform at his cap hit by the end of this contract is illogical, to say the least. There’s a strong chance his $6.5M cap hit ends up on LTIR before the deal runs out. As CapFriendly notes, the lower salary with high signing bonuses in the final seasons of the deal also makes Wilson’s contract much harder to buy out should Washington need to go that route.

For now, CapFriendly projects Washington with $15.65M in cap space for 2024-25, assuming an Upper Limit of 2024-25. They’ll have eight roster spots to fill with that money, though, a tough ask. It’s a rather tough financial position for a team teetering on the edge of competitiveness in Ovechkin’s twilight years.