According to multiple sources, a purchasing agreement has been reached between the Washington Capitals and the public website, CapFriendly. CapFriendly is a website that allows the public to view stats about their team’s cap space, roster size, player contracts, and more. It has been an invaluable, free resource for hockey fans since it was launched in 2015.
The agreement between the two companies has reportedly indicated that the sale will not go through until at least July 5th. The site is to remain publically accessible through the 2024 NHL Draft and the start of free agency. After that, it is believed the website will go dark and become a private entity under the Capitals organization. NHL teams that had agreements to use CapFriendly’s tools and Application Programming Interface have received word that those contracts would be terminated, leading to rumors that one club would likely be purchasing the site.
SportsNet’s Elliotte Friedman broke the news on Twitter/X on Sunday afternoon.
Hockey fans across the board are seemingly unhappy about the news, as it will remove a very valuable and widely-used resource from the public eye. There are alternatives to CapFriendly, such as PuckPedia, which will likely see a sharp increase in hits after the sale goes through. The sale also opens up the market for a new cap space website to take over the market and provide resources and tools to fans and teams alike.
As this story continues to develop, keep your eye on Inside the Rink for all of the latest updates.
