The Caps have made their first NHL trade deadline move by trading for Carolina Hurricanes forward Scott Walker. The price for general manager George McPhee was simply a 7th-round draft pick. Walker is 5-foot-10, 196-pounds and 36 years old. He had a lively playoff run with Carolina last spring, decking former teammate Aaron Ward — then a defenseman with the Boston Bruins — with a controversial sucker punch. But Walker also scored the series-winning goal in overtime of Game 7 to lift the Hurricanes to the Eastern Conference finals. No hard feelings with Ward, who returned to Carolina in the offseason.
Walker has played in 31 career playoff games in 15 NHL seasons. Most of that time, of course, was with the expansion Nashville Predators, who had little hope of contending in their early years. Walker began his career with the Vancouver Canucks when McPhee was an assistant general manager. Walker wasn’t part of the Hurricanes Stanley Cup-winning team in 2005-06. He joined them the next season. Has three goals and two assists in 33 games this season with Carolina. Walker just returned from shoulder surgery on Tuesday night. He had been out since Dec. 31.
