Chris, Ian, and I had a spirited conversation about the Washington Capitals during their 5-1 loss to the Devils on Saturday night. The three of us spent a lot of time bemoaning how bad the Caps were playing before we all realized that they were still the best team in the NHL. We had cycled through our worries — Braden Holtby’s apparent downturn and Nick Jensen’s disastrous results in particular — and then we collectively noticed that the Washington Capitals of January 2020 are way better than the Capitals of January 2019 — and even better still than the eventual-champion Capitals of January 2018.
If you were handed a report card for the Capitals right now, there would be A‘s and smiley faces everywhere. Whatever anguish we’re feeling is because of the sharp contrast between the team’s bright, long-term success and some far more fleeting dark spots.
In this snapshot, we look at the shade while enjoying the sunshine.
Previously: Meet the new Caps, same as the old Caps, Backstrom’s back, alright
Player | GP | TOI | SA% | SA% Rel | GF% | PDO |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Boyd | 19 | 193 | 57.9 | +7.6 | 72.9 | 1.08 |
Eller | 46 | 557 | 57.2 | +7.2 | 53.0 | 0.99 |
Dowd | 33 | 263 | 56.9 | +5.6 | 69.0 | 1.04 |
Panik | 36 | 363 | 55.1 | +3.3 | 67.5 | 1.05 |
Hagelin | 35 | 382 | 54.7 | +3.1 | 53.7 | 1.00 |
Hathaway | 43 | 419 | 54.4 | +2.8 | 58.3 | 1.01 |
Leipsic | 46 | 403 | 54.3 | +2.9 | 60.9 | 1.03 |
Vrana | 46 | 577 | 52.3 | +0.6 | 57.9 | 1.03 |
Backstrom | 38 | 524 | 52.1 | +0.1 | 46.4 | 0.98 |
Wilson | 45 | 598 | 50.7 | -2.0 | 46.8 | 0.99 |
Ovechkin | 46 | 670 | 50.5 | -2.2 | 42.9 | 0.97 |
Oshie | 46 | 620 | 49.3 | -3.6 | 50.0 | 1.00 |
Kuznetsov | 43 | 580 | 44.5 | -9.6 | 50.6 | 1.03 |
Player | GP | TOI | SA% | SA% Rel | GF% | PDO |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Orlov | 46 | 844 | 55.0 | +5.0 | 49.8 | 0.98 |
Gudas | 46 | 647 | 52.4 | +0.7 | 60.6 | 1.03 |
Jensen | 46 | 688 | 51.3 | -0.9 | 42.3 | 0.97 |
Siegenthaler | 46 | 595 | 51.2 | -1.0 | 56.4 | 1.02 |
Carlson | 46 | 794 | 50.6 | -2.1 | 55.2 | 1.02 |
Kempny | 36 | 593 | 48.8 | -4.5 | 54.9 | 1.03 |
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