Brian MacLellan should be general manager of the year at some point.

MacLellan, the Washington Capitals' GM since 2014, has helped build a perennial Stanley Cup contender while expertly navigating the salary cap. He took another step toward keeping the Capitals' ultra-talented core together on Tuesday, inking elite playmaking pivot and franchise icon Nicklas Backstrom to a five-year extension worth $9.2 million a season.

Most teams of Washington's ilk are in annual salary-cap trouble, but the Capitals find themselves in rarified territory moving forward.

A window to win

If it wasn't for Washington's Stanley Cup win in 2018, the feeling around this team would be a lot different, and Backstrom's contract, which will keep him on the books through his age-37 season, might be viewed by critics as a desperation move.

Instead, by taking one of the top pending unrestricted free agents in Backstrom off the board, MacLellan has kept the Caps' Cup window open for at least another few years, increasing their chances of a second championship.

Washington is tied for first in the NHL with 67 points entering Tuesday's action, making it a Stanley Cup favorite once again. Cap space is tight this season, so a significant addition before the trade deadline seems unlikely - and frankly, unnecessary given the team's strong play and complete roster.

MacLellan could have some flexibility this summer, though, with goaltender Braden Holtby and his $6.1-million cap hit scheduled to come off the books on July 1. Holtby has struggled this season to the tune of an .899 save percentage and 3.02 goals-against average, while 22-year-old Ilya Samsonov (13-2-1, .925 SV%, 2.11 GAA) appears ready to assume the No. 1 role moving forward.

Aside from Holtby, Washington's only other remotely key pending free agent is defenseman Radko Gudas.

CapFriendly projects Washington to have over $10 million in cap space this offseason. Gudas is a nice piece, but the Capitals could easily roll with a top four featuring John Carlson ($8M), Dmitry Orlov ($5.1M), Michal Kempny ($2.5M), and Nick Jensen ($2.5M) on the back end without skipping a beat. All four blue-liners are under contract with relatively team-friendly cap hits until at least 2022.

Up front, it's much of the same. In addition to Backstrom, Evgeny Kuznetsov ($7.8M), T.J. Oshie ($5.75M), Tom Wilson ($5.16M), Lars Eller ($3.5M), Carl Hagelin ($2.75M), Richard Panik ($2.75M), and Garnet Hathaway ($1.5M) provide cost certainty at team-friendly rates until 2023 at the earliest.

This means MacLellan could be aggressive in adding players on one-year deals this summer before turning to his next task: re-signing Alex Ovechkin (UFA), Jakub Vrana (RFA), and Samsonov (RFA) before their contracts expire after next season.

Ovechkin seems a lock to be a Capital for life, and he could take an average annual value similar to his current $9.538-million rate for the good of the team as he approaches his twilight years. Using some of the cap space at his disposal, MacLellan could give Vrana - currently on pace for 35 goals - a substantial long-term extension. For Samsonov, a bridge deal seems the likely route.

In short, aside from losing one piece during the Seattle expansion draft in 2021, it seems one of the NHL's best teams is going to stay together for at least three more years beyond the 2019-20 campaign, taking multiple swings at another Stanley Cup along the way.

None of this happens without MacLellan's astute contract negotiations, nor without the organization's ability to effectively draft and develop players despite a dearth of high picks. But nothing lasts forever.

A steep fall well worth it

The glory days are in full flight for a few more years, but the Capitals will fall eventually, and it could be painful.

Some of the contracts handed out by MacLellan help pry open the window now, but they could become burdens one day. At some point, the Capitals will have Backstrom, Oshie, Carlson, and, presumably, Ovechkin, taking up a large chunk of the cap in their late 30s.

MacLellan appears willing to accept long-term pain in exchange for short-term gain - and so he should. This team is special, and breaking it up would be a tragedy.

The Capitals are one of the best teams of the era, whether or not they win another Cup. But claiming one or even two more titles would cement Washington's status as a dynasty, and MacLellan has his club positioned well to do so.

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Zack Kassian isn't going to apologize anytime soon for his actions toward Matthew Tkachuk that warranted a two-game suspension.

"I'd do it again all over again," Kassian said to reporters when asked if he'd do anything differently. "Since I've been in minor midget I've stood up for myself and my teammates. People don't do that to me or my teammates when I'm out there. To me, those are two dangerous hits."

The Edmonton Oilers forward got into an altercation with the Calgary Flames winger on Saturday. After two questionable hits from Tkachuk, Kassian engaged in a one-sided fight with him. He earned a double-minor for roughing and a 10-minute misconduct while Tkachuk got nothing.

"I'm a big boy. I love big-boy hockey. But if you're gonna play big-boy hockey, you gotta answer the bell every once in a while," Kassian added. "I'm not crying about the hits, it's hockey, it's the game of hockey - it's rough.

"I thought they were a little bit on the blind side, but at the end of the day I've laid big hits like that, I've been hit like that - but two times is more than enough. You play with fire, eventually, you're gonna get burned, and he messed with the wrong guy and I don't think he realizes that we're in the same division and I have a great memory."

Kassian will be eligible to return from his suspension for the Oilers' game against the Flames on Jan. 29.

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The Pittsburgh Penguins are inching toward full health and will get one of the best players in the league back Tuesday.

Sidney Crosby will return to the Penguins' lineup against the Minnesota Wild, the team announced. Crosby has been out of action for two months after undergoing core muscle surgery Nov. 14.

Despite being without Crosby for nearly half the season, the Penguins have been one of the NHL's top teams. Since his last game on Nov. 9, Pittsburgh has gone 18-6-4 - the best record in the league during that span, according to ESPN's Greg Wyshynski.

Crosby had five goals and 17 points in 17 games before hitting the shelf. The Penguins have won three straight and currently sit second in the Metropolitan Division.

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The NHL is unveiling a new skills competition event at the 2020 All-Star Weekend that will feature players shooting pucks from up in the stands into targets on the ice, sources told ESPN's Greg Wyshynski.

Eight players will stand in a section of the Enterprise Center in St. Louis above the lower bowl seats and fire pucks down to circular targets positioned on the ice. The targets will vary in point values based on the difficulty of the shot.

"It's hockey meets Topgolf," the source said, referring to the popular driving range.

Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin took part in something similar in 2019 at an empty PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh.

To ensure the safety of the fans below, the protective netting will be "reconfigured" and stretched above the section where the players are shooting from. It will be the final event of the evening on Jan. 24.

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The battle of Alberta is heating up.

Following the recent incident involving Edmonton Oilers winger Zack Kassian and Calgary Flames forward Matthew Tkachuk, a fan has started a GoFundMe campaign to put up billboards of Tkachuk around Edmonton.

"We have decided that Edmonton deserves to see much more of Matthew Tkachuk. So we are raising funds to place multiple billboards around the city of Edmonton with just Tkachuk's face on them (and for ALS)," the GoFundMe reads.

The campaign has already surpassed its goal of $2,500. The organizer said they'll be contacting the Flames to get approval to put up the billboards.

Kassian was handed a two-game suspension Monday for the incident and will be eligible to return Jan. 29 against the Flames.

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The Washington Capitals have re-signed forward Nicklas Backstrom to a five-year deal with an average annual value of $9.2 million, the team announced Tuesday.

The 32-year-old center is in the final season of a 10-year deal he signed with the Capitals in 2010. He negotiated his new deal without the help of an agent, according to Sportsnet's Chris Johnston.

Backstrom has been a staple in the Capitals' lineup since the club drafted him fourth overall in 2006. He's amassed 240 goals and 908 points in 934 career games with Washington.

An integral member of the Capitals' Stanley Cup-winning team in 2018, Backstrom is in the midst of another great season, posting nine goals and 35 points in 39 games.

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