Capitals to Terminate Brendan Leipsic’s Contract After His Offensive Comments

The Capitals have placed forward Brendan Leipsic on unconditional waivers and plan to terminate his contract, the team announced Friday.

The move comes after a series of offensive comments he made in a private group chat on Instagram were revealed earlier this week. On Wednesday, Leipsic apologized for his comments, which included foul and misogynistic remarks about women and his teammates.

"Yesterday my friend's Instagram account was hacked and an individual circulated images that are representative of private conversations I was a part of," Leipsic said. "I fully recognize how inappropriate and offensive these comments are and sincerely apologize to everyone for my actions..."

Both the NHL and Capitals released statements after Leipsic’s comments surfaced, and Washington said it would handle the matter internally. The league said it "strongly condemns the misogynistic and reprehensible remarks" made by Leipsic and Panthers forward Jack Rodewald.

The 25-year-old Leipsic signed a one-year deal with Washington last summer. He scored three goals and eight assists in 61 games before the NHL season was suspended amid the coronavirus pandemic.