Grabovski Said He Was Talked Into Leaving Capitals, Regrets Decision To Sign With Islanders Instead: 'I Made A Mistake'

Grabovski appeared in 58 games for the Capitals in 2013-14 before signing a four-year deal to join the Islanders.

Brad Mills — USA TODAY Sports - Grabovski Said He Was Talked Into Leaving Capitals, Regrets Decision To Sign With Islanders Instead: 'I Made A Mistake'

Former Washington Capitals forward Mikhail Grabovski opened up about his time in D.C. and said that to this day, he regrets his decision to leave the team and sign with the New York Islanders.

Grabovski sat down for an interview with "Hockey Cooking" and said that he was talked into leaving Washington for the New York Islanders, who he signed a four-year deal with in 2014.

"A lot of people talked me out of staying in D.C. because they said this team wasn't going to win," Grabovski said, per a DeepL translation from sports.ru.. "Never going to win, what are you doing there, go... the Islanders had a really cool team with (John) Tavares. I made the decision to leave."

Grabovski originally signed a one-year, $3 million deal with the Capitals in 2013, but after one season and seeing the team miss out on the playoffs, he chose to sign elsewhere.

The German-born center appeared in 58 games for Washington, picking up 35 points.

Grabovski said that the decision, which he made after spending time with Alex Ovechkin in the offseason, wasn't about money, but about his chance for a Stanley Cup.

"The Islanders had a very good team that made the playoffs, and they still do with these same players... maybe it's a mistake that I accepted the Islanders' offer," Grabovski said.

However, Grabovski regrets the decision looking back, as he said it was "painful" to watch Washington eliminate New York in the first round of the 2015 Stanley Cup playoffs and win the Cup just four years later.

"Somewhere, my pride played a bad joke. I just wanted to win," Grabovski said.

The now 40-year-old, who was originally a fifth-round pick in 2004, played his final NHL season in 2016 and retired in 2019 with the Vegas Golden Knights, who he never played a game with.