Anthony Beauvillier was traded to the Washington Capitals by the Pittsburgh Penguins on Friday for a second-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft.
"Anthony was definitely a guy that we had on our list that would be a really good fit for this type of role," Capitals general manager Chris Patrick said. "I think he’s going to bring -- he’s a guy that gets around the ice really well, competes hard. He’s got a lot of utility as far as moving around the lineup, moving left wing, right wing. He’s a guy who’s had a couple good playoff runs in his history. I think he’s going to be a really good fit. He sounds like, personalitywise, he’ll be a really good fit in the room as well.”
The 27-year-old forward signed a one-year, $1.25 million contract with the Penguins on July 1, 2024, and can become an unrestricted free agent after the season. He has 20 points (13 goals, seven assists) in 63 games this season. He has 31 points (16 goals, 15 assists) in 55 Stanley Cup Playoff games.
Beauvillier practiced on a line with Brandon Duhaime and Nic Dowd on Saturday and expected to make his Washington debut against the Seattle Kraken at Capital One Arena on Sunday (3:30 p.m. ET; KHN, MNMT, KONG, SN (JIP), SN360).
He said he was not awake when the trade was completed.
“I was still sleeping, so it was definitely a crazy morning," he said, "but hearing that I was coming to Washington, I couldn’t be more pumped. These guys have put in so much work this year and, obviously, playing against these guys is never an easy game and joining a team that’s had success and looking to have success over the next couple months, it’s definitely an honor to be here and a privilege.
“Just hoping to fit in. Obviously, trying to bring some speed and energy and just kind of try to do that. I’m super excited to be here. I’m just going to try to focus on what I can and try to bring speed and energy and hopefully a couple of goals.”
Selected by the New York Islanders with the No. 28 pick in the 2015 NHL Draft, Beauvillier has 266 points (129 goals, 137 assists) in 613 games through nine seasons with the Islanders, Vancouver Canucks, Chicago Blackhawks, Nashville Predators and Penguins.
He played with three different teams last season; 22 games with the Canucks, 23 with the Blackhawks and 15 with the Predators.
“He got bounced around a little bit around the League, and it's hard when your role is changing," Patrick said. "Maybe you're on teams that are going through a different part of the rebuild cycle. So, I look back more at, you watch his games, you watch how he plays, and to me, when he's going, he's got a high compete level. He pressures pucks, and he's kind of got that playoff mentality where he's going hard and doesn't really seem to get fazed by much."
Washington (40-14-8) is first in the Eastern Conference and is 10 points ahead of the Carolina Hurricanes in the Metropolitan Division.
Pittsburgh (24-31-6) is ninth in the East, nine points behind the Ottawa Senators for the second wild card.
NHL.com senior writer Tom Gulitti contributed to this report
