It’s looking highly likely that the Capitals will have defenseman Martin Fehervary available for their opening night lineup. Head coach Spencer Carbery told reporters today, including Sammi Silber of The Hockey News, that he’s an option to play preseason contests as soon as this week .
Fehervary has been present at camp but skating in a non-contact jersey as he deals with some inflammation in his knee, the final remnants from season-ending meniscus surgery he underwent back in April. The 25-year-old regular in the Caps’ top six group of defenders sustained the corresponding injury in Washington’s penultimate game of the regular season, keeping him sidelined for their playoff run that came to an end in the second round against the Hurricanes. After spending the vast majority of the regular season as either John Carlson or Matt Roy’s left-hand man in Washington’s top four, his absence meant a regular role for former first-rounder Alexander Alexeyev, who subsequently left for the Penguins in free agency.
His health is an important storyline for the Caps, who have one of the deepest everyday defense lineups in the league but are lacking an excess of organizational depth past their top six. Fehervary’s absence lingering would have meant Washington was one injury away from having to give veteran minor-league mainstays Dylan McIlrath or Calle Rosen regular minutes, or giving another chance to still-developing prospects like Vincent Iorio. The Caps did make a move this summer to give themselves a more capable two-way option to have in their press box with everyone healthy, picking up Declan Chisholm from the Wild via trade.
But with Fehervary in the mix, he won’t be much of a factor, at least to start. His presence gives the Caps one of the more well-rounded left sides in the league with Jakob Chychrun and Rasmus Sandin manning the other two pairs. As far as Fehervary’s value goes, the 2018 second-rounder has been a quietly rock-solid top-four piece for a few years now. He recorded a career-high 25 points and a +18 rating in 2024-25, averaging 19 minutes per game while logging 150 blocks and 139 hits to rank second and third on the team, respectively. He’s arguably Washington’s most physically involved defender and signed a seven-year, $42MM extension at the beginning of free agency.