THE SIDELINES : Capitals Reportedly to Re-Sign Stevens; May Trade Him to Kings

The Washington Capitals will sign free-agent defenseman Scott Stevens and then trade him rather than allow him to join the St. Louis Blues, the Associated Press reported today.

Sources close to the situation said the Capitals would match the Blues’ offer sheet before the 9 p.m. PDT deadline and then trade Stevens to either the Montreal Canadiens or Los Angeles Kings.

Stevens signed an offer sheet worth more than $4 million over four years with the Blues last Thursday, a deal that would make him the NHL’s highest-paid defenseman.

The Capitals were unhappy that the Blues went after Stevens and decided to match the offer and trade him rather than let the Blues sign him.

If the Capitals re-sign Stevens, they can trade him to any team except the Blues. The Capitals had no comment on the report they would re-sign Stevens.

Stevens, 26, is an eight-year veteran and was a first-team NHL all-star in 1988 after scoring a career-high 72 points. He has led Capitals defensemen in scoring two of the last three years and has 98 goals and 331 assists in 601 career games.