Washington Capitals goaltender Charlie Lindgren (79) plays during an NHL hockey game, Feb. 23, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass, File)

WASHINGTON (AP) — Charlie Lindgren wondered about his future with the Washington Capitals in late January when they signed the other half of their goaltending tandem, Logan Thompson, to a long-term contract. He wanted to stay with what he considers a home run organization.

He now has no reason to be worried.

A year after carrying the Capitals to the playoffs, Lindgren signed an extension of his own with the team on Monday, getting a three-year deal worth $9 million.

“Since joining our organization in 2022, Charlie has consistently demonstrated exceptional professionalism and reliability in net with his athleticism and drive,” general manager Chris Patrick said in a statement. “With both goalies under contract for the next three seasons, we expect this tandem to provide our club stability at a crucial position and push one another to compete and play at a high level.”

Thompson's deal is for $35.1 million over the next six years. When their new contracts kick in next season, Thompson will count $5.85 million and Lindgren $3 million against the salary cap, giving Washington cost certainty in net at under $9 million annually.

The NHL and NHL Players’ Association have already agreed to raise the cap by $7.5 million to $95.5 million in 2025-26 with bigger increases in ’26-27 and ’27-28.

“Good for him,” said Ottawa Senators winger David Perron, who overlapped with Lindgren in St. Louis. “He would just come and practice and work as hard as he could and put a smile on his face, have a great attitude. Finally, when he got (to Washington), he got a real chance to play consistently. He’s done a really good job, and obviously he’s one of the top goalies over the last several years, so great for him.”

Lindgren, 31, re-upping comes with the Capitals atop the Eastern Conference and in first place in the Metropolitan Division with a comfortable cushion ahead of second-place Carolina. The combination of him and Thompson is a big reason why.

“It’s a great partnership,” coach Spencer Carbery told reporters after his team's morning skate in Arlington, Virginia. “I think both guys work well together. They feed off of one another. They have a great relationship, so that part of it is excellent. And I think just the way that both guys are such capable 1A goalies in this league, it gives us a luxury of being able to utilize both guys.”

Lindgren said the front office reached out to his camp to negotiate right after finalizing Thompson's contract. He would have been a free agent July 1 without a new agreement.

“Really happy to get it done and to sign a three-year deal here,” Lindgren said. “After Logan signed, (Patrick) actually allowed me the opportunity to go and just meet with him and he still told me where I fit into the picture and how bad he wanted me to be a part of this organization and I can’t tell you the amount of respect I have for just that meeting and him allowing me to just have a conversation with him just to kind of see where I fit in and it still made sense.”

Thompson is in his first season with the Capitals. Lindgren last season won the starting job away from Darcy Kuemper and was arguably their MVP with his play down the stretch to get them into the playoffs against the odds.

“He’s been an amazing goaltender,” said Ottawa's Nick Jensen, who played two seasons with Lindgren in Washington and trains with him in the summer. “His work ethic and training when he’s off the ice, on the ice, during games, it’s unmatched. The guy works so hard, so it’s really well-deserved and I’m really happy for him.”

Getting something done with pending unrestricted free agent defenseman Jakob Chychrun now becomes the top priority for Patrick, who took over the day-to-day responsibilities from longtime GM Brian MacLellan last summer. Patrick has not tipped his hand about his plans ahead of the league's trade deadline Friday, though he is expected to pursue depth on defense and at forward.

He's set in goal now, with Thompson looking like the 1A and Lindgren the 1B option for the foreseeable future. Lindgren is nearly tripling his salary from the $1.1 million he's making on his current contract, and solidifying a spot in the NHL is a big win for the undrafted late-bloomer who started with the Montreal Canadiens and had a small role for the Blues before getting an opportunity in Washington.

“It’s hard to play in Montreal and then probably even harder to be a goalie in Montreal,” said retired defenseman Karl Alzner, who played with Lindgren there and for Laval of the American Hockey League. “He had a lot of expectation, too, and to be able to get out of there and take a little pit stop in St. Louis and then really start to shine here I think just goes to show you how good his resolve is and how tough he is mentally to be able to get to this point. He’s just lovable and he works so hard, and so it’s great to see.”

___

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

News from © The Associated Press, 2025