2011 NHL Free Agents: Brooks Laich to Remain a Washington Capital

The Washington Capitals weren't going to let forward Brooks Laich test the free agent market, and Laich appeared to have no desire to test it either.

The Capitals announced today that they have re-signed Laich to a six-year deal worth $27 million altogether.

Laich has been a fan and locker room favorite during his tenure in Washington because of his work ethic and personality.

He's a great player on the ice, playing whatever position is asked of him and contributing both offensively and defensively. He also has one of the hardest work ethics on the team and probably in the league.

These attributes have attracted significant attention across the league and the Capitals probably realized this and wanted to lock Laich down before free agency begins.

They needn't have worried. Laich is a very loyal player and he doesn't seem interested playing anywhere else.

“Washington was easily my first choice,"  Laich told the Capitals website during an interview following the extension. "I gave my agent instructions that I fully intended to return to Washington and that was my only choice. I wasn’t looking to test the market. With that, then it was in my agent’s hands and he negotiated with Washington.

"It just takes a matter of time and then eventually a deal is struck...it wasn’t very stressful at all. I think it would have been more stressful if I had looked to test the market." 

The deal has apparently been all but done since before the draft last weekend, as Laich said he didn't want to risk the Caps finding a replacement for him in the draft.

He needn't have worried either.

“He’s really important to this team,” Capitals general manager George McPhee said in the same article. “This guy is committed. I think lots of other teams were going after him. This is an important guy for us.“Whenever you’re negotiating these contracts, you have to look at what is the best alternative in the event that this deal isn’t done. And we didn’t see anyone else out there that could do what Brooks does for us.

"But that wasn’t really what drove this deal. What was driving the deal was that we think he’s a really valuable player for our club. How many players in this league can do what he does? We believe he should be a Selke [Trophy] nominee because he’s really good defensively.

“He’s on our top penalty killing unit, he can take face-offs, he can play either wing, he can play center, he’s even played shifts on defense, he brings speed to the game and that really helps your transition game and helps you defensively. When a team is playing with pace, it’s hard to score on them.

"And we’re not even talking about his size or the offense, or the intangibles; the leadership, the commitment.”

High praise for the forward. Sorry for the teams that were interested in Laich. The Capitals have Laich'd (sorry, had to do it!) what they have seen, and are ready for more.