ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — John Carlson says he found out his 17 seasons with the Washington Capitals had ended not from the team or his agent, but from his farmer cousin back in Massachusetts, who woke him up late Thursday after seeing the news online.
Once he confirmed the trade with people who hadn't spent all day plowing, Carlson still couldn't quite believe it — yet he quickly recognized the excitement in a new opportunity and a potential playoff run with the Anaheim Ducks.
“In the middle of the night is not the best way to find out some very altering news like that,” Carlson said with a smile Friday before he flew across the country to join what's basically his first new team since 2009.
“It's been a crazy day with my family," Carlson added. "Packing, getting ready, saying goodbyes. It's an exciting time, certainly ... but there was a lot that went into the day as well that I'd never had to deal with. That’s part of life. That’s part of this league. I’ve been lucky not to have to do too many of these things.”
Indeed, few professional athletes get the luxury of one uniform for 17 years, and Carlson knows it. He is the top-scoring defenseman in Caps history — and 24th in NHL history — with 771 points, and only Alex Ovechkin has played more games for Washington.
Carlson has a wife and four young children in Washington, and he got fairly close to being the rare NHL player to have an entire long career in one city.
"If you asked me a couple of days ago, I would say that was always a goal of mine,” Carlson acknowledged.
Yet the 36-year-old Carlson was aware this season that his time in Washington might be ending before his NHL career did. He will be a free agent this summer, and his representation had been speaking with the Caps about a contract extension virtually right up until the trade was made.
“Obviously in the days leading up, I became more aware of the potential for something like this to happen,” Carlson said. “It wasn’t a total blindside or anything like that. Maybe the timing of the whole situation was a little wacky, but I guess that’s just part of it.”
The Capitals are on the fringe of the postseason race in the East, likely needing a late surge and some help to get back into the Stanley Cup playoffs. Meanwhile, the Ducks are in the thick of the race in the West, sitting atop the Pacific Division in March for the first time since 2017 as they attempt to end their franchise's seven-year postseason drought.
Anaheim is also in need of a defenseman with a right-handed shot who has experience quarterbacking a power play — a description Carlson fits perfectly.
With a wealth of young defense prospects in the pipeline, but not quite ready for the big show, Ducks general manager Pat Verbeek was willing to part with a first-round pick that's very likely to be in the back half of the round for a chance to install a proven, offense-minded defenseman to his current roster. Verbeek also said he hopes to re-sign Carlson in the summer, but wants everyone to concentrate on the current season.
“The things I've always liked a lot about him is that he's a very intelligent player, a good puck-mover,” Verbeek said. “I like how he joins the rush and plays in a real cerebral way. ... I looked at it like this: It's worth (a low first-round pick). It’s worth it to give this group experience, give them a chance to make the playoffs and to do well in the playoffs.”
Carlson participated in practice with his new team Saturday in Irvine, but he isn't expected to make his Ducks debut Sunday when they host St. Louis to conclude a nine-game homestand. He still isn't fully recovered from the upper-body injury that sidelined him prior to the Olympic break, but he's expecting to suit up soon.
“I think I’ve got a lot left in the tank,” Carlson said. "I think mentally I’m better than ever. Obviously I’ve been out a few games here, and that kind of stinks, but this season, I felt like I played some of my best hockey. My body has felt some of the best it’s felt in four or five years. ... I'm not near done."
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