Three more Capitals players who could be on the trade block amid team's busy deadline

The Washington Capitals have already made a pair of moves ahead of Friday's NHL trade deadline, shipping Anthony Mantha to the Vegas Golden Knights and Joel Edmundson to the Toronto Maple Leafs.

With still a day to go as of Thursday afternoon, here are three more Caps players who could potentially find themselves on the move.

Nic Dowd (center)

Dowd's name has been perhaps the most frequent one of all the Capitals to surface in trade rumors, as he's a low-priced fourth-line center who could fill an instrumental need for a playoff contender. Much like Jay Beagle, his predecessor in that role in Washington, Dowd provides reliability to the team's depth, particularly with his defense.

It's not like his scoring output is nonexistent, either, as he's racked up 8 goals and 8 assists for 16 points in 45 games in 2023-24. He can get you a big goal from time to time, and he could net the Caps a draft pick within the first couple of rounds in return.

Darcy Kuemper (goaltender)

Charlie Lindgren has been Washington's best goalie in 2023-24, with his 2.86 goals-against average and .906 save percentage outpacing Kuemper (3.15, .893) in both categories, and with his more favorable contract, it would seem that Lindgren is the hotter trade candidate.

Yet Kuemper was held out of morning practice on Thursday, supposedly due to an illness, but nevertheless it raises some eyebrows. If Lindgren was on the block, then the Caps likely wouldn't be willing to play him in Kuemper's place the night before the deadline, and so perhaps Kuemper's absence is a sign of something more than the team is letting on.

Max Pacioretty (left wing)

The veteran Pacioretty was acquired by Washington last summer and missed the start of the season while recovering from a torn Achilles, but despite that and being 35 years old, he's been productive with 15 points in 25 games. He's the type of experienced player who a contending team would find appealing, and has been linked in possible trade talks.

Pacioretty's contract includes a no-trade clause, but reportedly he would be willing to waive it if the team sent him to a desired location. The Florida Panthers have been brought up as a team that could be a good fit.